Baffin Bay Freshwater Content Seasonal Variability and Budget: A Modeling Approach

Abstract

Baffin Bay plays a significant role as an exporter of freshwater from the Arctic to the North Atlantic. However, we still do not completely understand how this freshwater is stored and transformed within the bay before it exits. Here, we use a six‐member ensemble built using the Nucleus for European Modelling of the Ocean (NEMO)—at 1/4° horizontal spatial resolution—to investigate the annual variability of the freshwater content (FWC) in Baffin Bay. We have quantified Baffin Bay's seasonal FWC budget (with salinity reference of 33.1) and found that the net freshwater flux is positive (into the bay) from May to September and negative (out of the bay) during the other months of the year, mainly led by the flux from sea ice production and melting. The net freshwater flux from all sources and sinks considered in this study is positive, indicating accumulation of 592.7 (±39.8) km ³ along a climatological year. We have also applied a Common Empirical Orthogonal Function (CEOF) analysis to Baffin Bay's FWC, which revealed that the first mode of variability (81.4%) is likely related to sea ice melting in central Baffin Bay and to land runoff along the coastal areas. The second mode represents around 11.9% of the FWC total variance, is driven by ocean surface stress and is connected to a seasonal cross‐shelf recirculation system along Baffin Island shelf break.