Our second field test was conducted between February and May 2025, in the Milan Arm of Pistolet Bay in northern Newfoundland, Canada. This time around, we installed new and improved measurement stations, and used larger, custom-made flood pumps. The scale of the operations was also much larger, both in time and space than in our first field test in Svalbard. Though not in the Arctic, northern Newfoundland was selected to derisk the logistics, while applying the local knowledge of the sea ice conditions from our team. It also offered the opportunity to work with very variable weather conditions, which might mimic the conditions of the Arctic in the future.
Our main objectives in the field tests were to:
- Expand the ice thickening operations; test and validate the custom-made pump under variable sub-arctic conditions.
- Understand the floodwater distribution by observing how snow depth, topography and weather conditions influence the spread of the pumped sea water.
- Determine whether a larger surface of thickened ice lasts longer into the melting season than the un-thickened reference ice, and measure how flooding affects reflectivity (albedo) across freezing and melting phases.
Our main findings
These field tests in Newfoundland have provided us with a wealth of data and practical operational and logistical experience about a somewhat larger scale of ice thickening experiment.
- We successfully thickened 9 hectares of ice by 10-25 percent, which was 10x larger than the previous field test in Svalbard.
- Due to challenging weather conditions, such as rain and above-freezing temperatures, assessing if sea ice thickening made the ice last longer versus a control site proved difficult.
- However, the thickened sites were clearly visible from space and marginally whiter than their surroundings once the snow cover was absent in the melting season, validating a phenomenon noted in our earlier field test.
- Surprisingly, the flooded sea ice area below the snow layer, as inferred from thermal images, turned out to be 50 percent larger than the area inferred from the optical images, highlighting the novelty and effectiveness of applying aerial drone imaging with optical and thermal capabilities.
- We learned many lessons in operations and logistics, which will improve our future field tests.
Further research for the following field tests
Going forward, we will continue to collect even more comprehensive data on the impact of ice thickening on sea ice longevity for the sake of validating ice thickening as a robust climate intervention.
- How effective is flooding the snow layer at disrupting the thermal insulation of the snow and accelerating bottom ice growth?
- How and at what rate does brine drain from the flooded layer?
- How is the ice composition influenced by sea ice thickening?
- What is the relationship between snow properties and floodwater distribution over and through snow?
- How much thickening and over how much area is necessary for a measurable impact on sea ice longevity?
- Why is there a higher albedo observed at the thickened sites during part of the melting phase?
- What are the impacts of sea ice thickening on sea ice ecology?
The Team
Fonger Ypma, Tom Meijeraan, Cody Owen, Soroosh Afzali and Willem Schellingerhout (not pictured here).
News and reports from Newfoundland
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News from our third field test
Since our return from our third field test in Qikiqtarjuaq, Nunavut in Canada, we’ve been busy sorting through all the data we collected over six weeks. The videos below provide a first-hand account of our field test. What we set out to do We’re happy that we met all three of our core objectives. What we measured Our drone flights…
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Trials and tribulations of drone data collection in the high Arctic
Tom Heyning joined the Arctic Reflections crew for the third field test in Qikiqtarjuaq, Nunavut. A recent graduate from Amsterdam University College, where he followed a programme focused on mathematics and computation, Tom was responsible for drone data collection during the field test. In this blog, he shares what it was really like to collect data firsthand, and the unexpected challenges that come…
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Arctic Reflections embarks on its third field test
Arctic Reflections is embarking on its third field test in the Baffin Bay area in Nunavut, Canada. Our first field test was conducted in Svalbard, followed by one in Newfoundland. For this field test, we are grateful to be welcomed by the local Inuit community, and we are looking forward to collaborating with them and learning from their lived…