Why icebergs and their interactions with sea ice should be included in Earth system models
Abstract
Thirty-three researchers from France, Australia, Belgium, Canada, the UK, and Germany gathered in Paris for a two-day hybrid workshop (3–4 June 2025) to discuss iceberg–sea ice interactions and their representation in Earth system models. Icebergs and sea ice are two distinct forms of drifting ice, typically represented using different modelling approaches. Icebergs — relatively small in horizontal extent (500 m - 50 km long) but up to 700 m thick — calve from continental ice shelves and marine terminating glaciers and are modelled as Lagrangian particles. In contrast, sea ice, forming from the freezing of seawater, covers vast areas, spanning thousands of kilometers, but is much thinner (about 1 m thick), and modelled as a two-dimensional continuum. Current Earth system models generally assume that sea ice–iceberg interactions are negligible. However, mounting evidence indicates that processes essential to Antarctic sea ice and ocean dynamics — such as landfast sea ice and coastal polynyas — arise from dynamic iceberg–sea ice interactions. Several Earth system modeling groups are actively addressing these interactions, resulting in a series of recent studies on icebergs, sea ice, and their interplay, which motivated the workshop.Presentations from 13 invited speakers, covering modelling and observational perspectives, formed the basis of discussions around the following themes: - Iceberg, sea ice, and their interactions; - Implications for the ocean; - Perspectives on numerical and computational model infrastructure.
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BibTeX
@article{vancoppenolle2026icebergs,
title = {{Why icebergs and their interactions with sea ice should be included in Earth system models}},
author = {Martin Vancoppenolle and Nicolas Jourdain and Thierry Fichefet and Alexander Fraser and François Massonnet and Pierre Mathiot and Gurvan Madec and Carolin Mehlmann and Anna Olivé Abelló and Daniel P Atwater and Clément Billy and Alex Brearley and Jacquemine Delfieu and Yavor Kostov and Eva Lemaire and Juliana M Marson and Joël Petit and Noé Pirlet and Pat Wongpan and Clara Burgard and Casimir de Lavergne and Paul R Holland and Katherine Hutchinson and Matthias Noël and Élise Ortega and Évéa Piedagnel and Pierre Rampal and Jeff Ridley and Clément Rousset and Jean-Baptiste Sallée and Max Thomas},
journal = {Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.1175/bams-d-25-0322.1},
url = {https://hal.science/hal-05397165v3},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Why icebergs and their interactions with sea ice should be included in Earth system models
AU - Martin Vancoppenolle
AU - Nicolas Jourdain
AU - Thierry Fichefet
AU - Alexander Fraser
AU - François Massonnet
AU - Pierre Mathiot
AU - Gurvan Madec
AU - Carolin Mehlmann
AU - Anna Olivé Abelló
AU - Daniel P Atwater
AU - Clément Billy
AU - Alex Brearley
AU - Jacquemine Delfieu
AU - Yavor Kostov
AU - Eva Lemaire
AU - Juliana M Marson
AU - Joël Petit
AU - Noé Pirlet
AU - Pat Wongpan
AU - Clara Burgard
AU - Casimir de Lavergne
AU - Paul R Holland
AU - Katherine Hutchinson
AU - Matthias Noël
AU - Élise Ortega
AU - Évéa Piedagnel
AU - Pierre Rampal
AU - Jeff Ridley
AU - Clément Rousset
AU - Jean-Baptiste Sallée
AU - Max Thomas
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/02
JO - Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society
DO - 10.1175/bams-d-25-0322.1
UR - https://hal.science/hal-05397165v3
AB - Thirty-three researchers from France, Australia, Belgium, Canada, the UK, and Germany gathered in Paris for a two-day hybrid workshop (3–4 June 2025) to discuss iceberg–sea ice interactions and their representation in Earth system models. Icebergs and sea ice are two distinct forms of drifting ice, typically represented using different modelling approaches. Icebergs — relatively small in horizontal extent (500 m - 50 km long) but up to 700 m thick — calve from continental ice shelves and marine terminating glaciers and are modelled as Lagrangian particles. In contrast, sea ice, forming from the freezing of seawater, covers vast areas, spanning thousands of kilometers, but is much thinner (about 1 m thick), and modelled as a two-dimensional continuum. Current Earth system models generally assume that sea ice–iceberg interactions are negligible. However, mounting evidence indicates that processes essential to Antarctic sea ice and ocean dynamics — such as landfast sea ice and coastal polynyas — arise from dynamic iceberg–sea ice interactions. Several Earth system modeling groups are actively addressing these interactions, resulting in a series of recent studies on icebergs, sea ice, and their interplay, which motivated the workshop.Presentations from 13 invited speakers, covering modelling and observational perspectives, formed the basis of discussions around the following themes: - Iceberg, sea ice, and their interactions; - Implications for the ocean; - Perspectives on numerical and computational model infrastructure.
SN - 0003-0007
SN - 1520-0477
ER -