by Matthew Shupe, CIRES/NOAA scientist and co-coordinator of MOSAiC

The ice around us, at least on the Fortress, is filthy. In many locations it is brown with sediment. Many small rocks have been found, suggesting that this ice was initially formed as land-fast ice along the Siberian Shelf. A recent satellite radar image shows that this floe is somewhat different from the ice around us. It is more ridged and with more extensive pond formation. I wonder how much these two go together. Higher ridging will collect more snow, which will lead to more melt water. And the large ridge features keep this melt water trapped leading to the extensive ponding that we see. The ponds on the other side of the floe, over on the so-called “first year ice” side, are smaller and more like those I’ve been around in the past.  This MOSAiC floe appears to be quite unique and it continues to reveal an interesting story….. now through sediment that emerges with the progressing melt.