Oceanic heat content (OHC) is the primary contributor to the Earth Energy Imbalance, which is a fundamental metrics of climate change. Some of the largest uncertainty in OHC estimates are associated with polar and shelf regions. The Arctic Ocean consists of a large fraction of shallow marginal seas, which control its exchanges with the lower latitude oceans. Also, the surface energy and freshwater budgets have been modulated by a declining sea ice cover and Arctic amplification. Thus, the combined changes in Arctic-wide energy imbalance are likely of relative importance to the global energy imbalance and climate change.

This session focuses on progress and challenges in observing and modeling the Arctic Ocean, including its role within the fully coupled Earth system. We solicit presentations that advance understanding of Arctic energy imbalance, changing hydrography and dynamics, and Arctic-subarctic mass and property fluxes in a hierarchy of ocean and coupled Earths system models.

• C - Cryosphere
• GC - Global Environmental Change