Measuring wave-induced motion of ice floes in the Antarctic marginal ice zone

Annals of Glaciology (2017)

A series of wave instruments was deployed on first-year Antarctic sea ice during SIPEX (Sea Ice Physics and Ecosystem Experiment) II.

Here we describe the hardware and software design of these instruments and summarise the returned dataset. Each instrument consisted of a high-resolution accelerometer coupled with a tri-axis inertial measurement unit, which was located using GPS.

The significant wave heights measured near the ice edge were predominately 1-2m high. Several large wave events were measured over 6 weeks of data capture.

We report here a selection of events, highlighting the complexities associated with measuring wave decay at individual frequencies.