Modeling heat flux in the Beaufort Gyre between 2016 and 2019.

Leads are a primary component of heat flux during polar night-time in the Arctic Ocean. During the winter, there is negligible shortwave radiation incident on the ice surface. Instead, open water and thin ice lead formations on the ice are the primary contributors of longwave radiation. In fact, open water leads produce turbulent heat flux up to 600 W.m-2 while multi-year ice is typically less than 5 W.m-2 (Maykut, 1982). This paper models and compares net heat flux over sea ice using ERA5 monthly averaged reanalysis data with intramonthly lead fractions for the winter months between 2016 and 2019.