Sub-ice shelf circulation and melt rate variability in the Energy Exascale Earth System Model

In-situ observations from the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf (FRIS) have uncovered dominant time scales of variability in basal melting and circulation beneath this extensive ice shelf. In particular, the data characterize mechanisms of seasonal and inter-annual variability in sub-ice shelf properties, and show that the amplitude of the variability over the past thirty years is very modest.
Because accurate representation of variability under present-day climate is an obvious prerequisite for earth system models that aim to project climate under a future change, this new observational understanding presents an opportunity for critical evaluation and improvement of existing models. We focus on the Energy Exascale Earth System Model (E3SM) and through a series of simulations we investigate the impact of ocean mixing parameterizations on the variability in the FRIS cavity.