At IMAS we deliver exciting, innovative, relevant, globally distinctive, practical and first-class education programs.
Positioned at the gateway to the Southern Ocean and Antarctica and with collaborations and partners with the world's leading scientific institutions, IMAS can provide the next step in your career.
If you are interested in conducting postgraduate research we have a number of pre-approved honours and masters projects.
Available projects
Ecology and biodiversity
Primary supervisor:
Supervisory team:
- Prof Simon Goldsworthy - South Australian Research & Development Institute
- Dr Ryan Baring - Flinders University
- Dr Gretchen Grammer - South Australian Research & Development Institute
Brief project description:
Recent improvements in biologging instrumentation have provided state-of-the-art underwater cameras that can be deployed on marine predator species, providing the opportunity to collect critical data on habitat use and foraging ecology.
Most recently, underwater cameras combined with high-resolution GPS and tri-axial accelerometer/magnetometer devices, have been used to map and identify benthic habitats used by the endangered Australian sea lion (Neophoca cinerea). Cameras and tracking instruments were deployed on eight adult female sea lions during a single foraging trip (2-6 days), four at Seal Bay (Kangaroo Island) and four at Olive Island (off Streaky Bay, western Eyre Peninsula, South Australia).
Each deployment recorded approximately 8 hours of footage (range 6.7 to 12.8 hours), capturing nearly 80 hours in total and covering 560 km of seabed at depths between 5 and 110 meters. In addition to providing detailed information on the habitats used by sea lions, the camera video also provides data on the species and size of prey consumed in different habitats, and the foraging strategies employed.
This project will use video data to quantify sea lion diet and consumption rates over different habitats, and develop food web models of different sea lion habitats and their associated diets as a first examination of their role and impact on benthic ecosystems.
Supervisory Team:
Brief project description:
Australia’s south-east marine ecosystems have undergone dramatic changes over the past three decades. This project will integrate multiple lines of evidence to test for a system-wide productivity change that spans shelf and coastal reef ecosystems. The project’s findings have implications for the management of fisheries and conservation of south-east marine ecosystems. Several studies independently point to productivity declines in different south-east marine ecosystems.
This project will integrate data from trawl fisheries, reef surveys and macroalgal productivity estimates to ask if these disparate trends share a common driver. The project will use ecosystem modelling tools to ask if fishing and climate are causing system wide change in productivity. This project will require the use of ecosystem modelling tools and the R program.
Training in modelling will be provided to help the candidate develop these valuable skills that are in high demand by employers. Applicants should be enthusiastic about learning modelling techniques and their application to ecosystem management.
Supervisory Team:
- Primary supervisor: Mohamed Basseer Codabaccus
- Andrew Trotter
- Ernest Chuku
Brief project description:
The commercial production of oysters in the region of pipe clay is a major concern due to decline in growth and condition over the past few years. Historically, this region has been very productive (10% Tasmanian oyster production) and has sustained oyster farming for over 40 years. To date, factors leading to the decline in production is unknown.
To facilitate narrowing research focus, an assessment of the nutritional condition of oysters grown in impacted areas of Pipe Clay is critical. Thus, the project focus on understanding whether an imbalance in nutrient exist in oysters grown in impacted areas.
This is highly relevant to inform on next steps for managing oyster farming in this area.
Primary Supervisor:
Supervisory Team:
Brief project description:
In 2012 Macrocystis pyrifera, or giant kelp, was listed as an endangered ecological community under the Australian EPBC Act (1999). Yet only a decade earlier, giant kelp received little public recognition or advocacy attention despite the documented decline of the kelp forest, indeed it is reported anecdotally that some community cohorts regarded giant kelp as a nuisance.
Meanwhile, beyond this single species, the biodiversity and conditions of many communities and suites of species of the southern temperate reef system are under threat due to warming and more acidic ocean waters. However, this changing state is not well recognised in the public or policy domains. To help inform understanding of formation of conservation policy priorities, this project asks:
- How did the giant kelp move from ignored or negatively viewed to highly valued ecologically and socially species – charismatic megaflora - and worthy of protection? (the backwards analysis)
- What can be learnt from this case that can inform future formation of conservation policy priorities to protect and restore biodiversity across the great southern reef?
Primary Supervisor:
Supervisory Team:
Brief project description:
This field ecology honours project will explore patterns in abundance of sub-legal southern rock lobsters (Jasus edwardsii) relative to rocky reef substrate types and macroalgal cover in Tasmania.
The research will combine the analysis of lobster size and abundance using an existing east-coast-wide reef dataset, and will involve fieldwork to assess the capacity for remnant giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) forests to retain disproportionately more juvenile lobsters relative to areas where giant kelp no longer persists. To rigorously explore the potential role of giant kelp as a nursery ground for lobsters, substrate types within giant kelp forests and lower-lying kelp beds will need to be explicitly accounted for.
Deployment of standardised artificial brick-reef 'lobster dens' within kelp forests versus kelp beds is also a possible experimental method which could be explored. This research will dovetail with planned industry translocations of juvenile lobsters to remnant forest areas and kelp bed sites where giant kelp has been lost in recent decades. Results will inform possible ecological flow-on effects of giant kelp loss to secondary productivity.
Primary Supervisor:
Supervisory Team:
- Associate Professor Jeffrey Wright
- Debbi Delaney
Brief project description:
The wild harvest of southern bull kelp, Durvillaea potatorum, has been in operation since 1975 and is Australia's largest seaweed wild harvest industry and Tasmania's largest wild-caught fishery by biomass.
Despite its long history, there is a paucity of information on the trajectory of the kelp harvest industry due to mixed historical reporting of the fresh kelp collected and the dry milled product produced at the end. This project aims to calibrate fresh and dried bull kelp biomass measurements, using industry relevant methods, to better understand how the harvest of bull kelp has changed over recent decades and how harvest rates relate to changes in natural populations of southern bull kelp.
This project will provide recommendations that can better enable fishers to report bull kelp harvests and managers to track changes in bull kelp harvest through time - critical to understanding the trajectory and future of bull kelp populations in Tasmania.
Primary supervisor:
Supervisory Team:
- Dr Paul Burch (Paul.Burch@csiro.au; 0421569189)
- Rikki Taylor
Brief project description:
Frostfish (Lepidopus caudatus) is a short-lived, fast growing species that is widely distributed in temperate and tropical waters around the world. It is a byproduct species in fisheries on the continental shelf and slope in Australia and New Zealand, with annual landed catches in Australia's Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery (SESSF) of 90 -300 tonnes over the last twenty years (Althaus and Sutton 2024). While the age and growth dynamics of this species have been described in New Zealand (Horn 2013), no comparable studies have been undertaken in southern Australia.
Many fish stocks on the continental shelf and slope of south eastern Australia have experienced declines in production over the past two decades that has been linked to both historical overfishing and climate change. With Frostfish emerging in importance in the SESSF quantifying the biological characteristics of Frostfish is a crucial component of the sustainable management of this species.
Data has been collected as part of FRDC 2022-032 Biological parameters for stock assessments in South Eastern Australia - an information and capacity uplift with biological samples obtained from the winter spawning fishery for Blue Grenadier on the west coast of Tasmania.
The data include including length, weight, sex, macroscopic maturity and otoliths from ~650 along with some additional frozen gonads. There is potentially the opportunity to collect additional data through the SESSF Observer Program in 2026.
References
- https://doi.org/10.25919/3k9r-y573
- Horn, P.L. 2013. Age determination of frostfish (Lepidopus caudatus) off west coast South Island, New Zealand Fisheries Assessment Report 2013/21.
- Dick, E.J. and MacCall, A.D., 2011. Depletion-based stock reduction analysis: a catch-based method for determining sustainable yields for data-poor fish stocks. Fisheries Research, 110, 331-341.
Fisheries and aquaculture
Primary supervisor:
Supervisory team:
- Kerrie Swadling
- Luke Brokensha
Anecdotal evidence suggested an increasing interaction of scavenging crustacea depredating fish caught on longlines within the Heard Island and McDonald Islands toothfish fishery. Since 2022, Australian vessels have been trialing bespoke traps designed to sample the scavenging crustacea. Here we present the development process of the traps, and with over with over 1800 deployments during the trial period, and initial investigations into distribution and abundance of scavenging crustacea. Typically, the distribution of crustacea have been highly heterogeneous even within small sampling distances, whilst size of individuals within Amphipoda and Isopoda have shown increasing size with decreasing latitude.
This project will work across the Australian Antarctic Program Partnership and the Australian Antarctic Division fisheries team to sort and identify the samples collected so far. This project will contain two main components:
- Sorting benthic invertebrates into large taxonomic groups and imaging with the zooscan,
- Modeling of invertebrate occurrence with longline catch rates to explore interactions. This projects provides a split between lab work across the AAD and IMAS with quantitative modeling skills.
This projects provides a split between lab work across the AAD and IMAS with quantitative modeling skills.
Primary supervisor:
Supervisory team:
Brief project description:
Background: Sustainability of fisheries is generally focused on the fished species, as well as direct impacts on other species as by-catch, and the local environment. Increasingly, the sustainability of the entire seafood supply chain is being considered, taking into account the carbon footprint of all processes from capture to transport to market. This process can be evaluated using a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach, which can be used to measure the environmental impacts of a fishery from ocean to plate.
Need: At present, there are no estimations of the potential environmental impacts resulting from the use of fossil fuels in the south-east Giant Crab fishery operating in Tasmania and Victoria.
Objectives: Quantify the south-east Giant Crab fishery's carbon footprint
Method: Use the LCA approach to estimate the fossil fuel use effects categorised as global warming potential, acidification potential, eutrophication potential, ozone depletion potential, and cumulative energy demand.
Outcome: Increased knowledge regarding the carbon footprint of the fishery to assess its environmental sustainability.
Supervisory Team:
Brief project description:
Australia’s south-east marine ecosystems have undergone dramatic changes over the past three decades. This project will integrate multiple lines of evidence to test for a system-wide productivity change that spans shelf and coastal reef ecosystems. The project’s findings have implications for the management of fisheries and conservation of south-east marine ecosystems. Several studies independently point to productivity declines in different south-east marine ecosystems.
This project will integrate data from trawl fisheries, reef surveys and macroalgal productivity estimates to ask if these disparate trends share a common driver. The project will use ecosystem modelling tools to ask if fishing and climate are causing system wide change in productivity. This project will require the use of ecosystem modelling tools and the R program.
Training in modelling will be provided to help the candidate develop these valuable skills that are in high demand by employers. Applicants should be enthusiastic about learning modelling techniques and their application to ecosystem management.
Supervisory Team:
- Primary supervisor: Mohamed Basseer Codabaccus
- Andrew Trotter
- Ernest Chuku
Brief project description:
The commercial production of oysters in the region of pipe clay is a major concern due to decline in growth and condition over the past few years. Historically, this region has been very productive (10% Tasmanian oyster production) and has sustained oyster farming for over 40 years. To date, factors leading to the decline in production is unknown.
To facilitate narrowing research focus, an assessment of the nutritional condition of oysters grown in impacted areas of Pipe Clay is critical. Thus, the project focus on understanding whether an imbalance in nutrient exist in oysters grown in impacted areas.
This is highly relevant to inform on next steps for managing oyster farming in this area.
Primary supervisor:
Supervisory Team:
Brief project description:
The Inland Fisheries Service (IFS) is responsible for the management of the recreational trout fishery in Tasmania. In discharging this responsibility, the IFS manages several inland waters as `assisted fisheries' that rely on stocking and regulation to maintain a desirable level of fishery performance. Some of these assisted fisheries have no natural recruitment, however some have limited or variable natural recruitment. Performance criteria for these assisted fisheries have been established and are listed in the Tasmanian Inland Recreational Fishery Management Plan 2018-2028.
This project aims to develop a mathematical stocking model to support the management of assisted trout fisheries in Tasmania. Once established, the model will be used to support the annual IFS Transfer and Stocking Plan. Estimates for the model parameters will be obtained from the literature and historical IFS records however a field work component may be required to fill any knowledge gaps and/or to ground-truth the model.
The student will have an opportunity to work closely with the Inland Fisheries Service staff and have access to historical data sets regarding fish stocking and fishery performance assessments. The student will also have the opportunity to participate in field work to collect additional information relevant to model development as required. Applicants should be enthusiastic about the Tasmanian inland fishery and in terms of learning modelling techniques and their application to fisheries management.
Primary supervisor:
Supervisory Team:
- Dr Paul Burch (Paul.Burch@csiro.au; 0421569189)
- Rikki Taylor
Brief project description:
Frostfish (Lepidopus caudatus) is a short-lived, fast growing species that is widely distributed in temperate and tropical waters around the world. It is a byproduct species in fisheries on the continental shelf and slope in Australia and New Zealand, with annual landed catches in Australia's Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery (SESSF) of 90 -300 tonnes over the last twenty years (Althaus and Sutton 2024). While the age and growth dynamics of this species have been described in New Zealand (Horn 2013), no comparable studies have been undertaken in southern Australia.
Many fish stocks on the continental shelf and slope of south eastern Australia have experienced declines in production over the past two decades that has been linked to both historical overfishing and climate change. With Frostfish emerging in importance in the SESSF quantifying the biological characteristics of Frostfish is a crucial component of the sustainable management of this species.
Data has been collected as part of FRDC 2022-032 Biological parameters for stock assessments in South Eastern Australia - an information and capacity uplift with biological samples obtained from the winter spawning fishery for Blue Grenadier on the west coast of Tasmania.
The data include including length, weight, sex, macroscopic maturity and otoliths from ~650 along with some additional frozen gonads. There is potentially the opportunity to collect additional data through the SESSF Observer Program in 2026.
References
- https://doi.org/10.25919/3k9r-y573
- Horn, P.L. 2013. Age determination of frostfish (Lepidopus caudatus) off west coast South Island, New Zealand Fisheries Assessment Report 2013/21.
- Dick, E.J. and MacCall, A.D., 2011. Depletion-based stock reduction analysis: a catch-based method for determining sustainable yields for data-poor fish stocks. Fisheries Research, 110, 331-341.
Primary supervisor:
Supervisory Team:
- Katerina Charitonidou
- Paul Burch
- Gretchen Grammer
Brief project description:
Batch fecundity is the average number of eggs released by a female during each spawning event. Relative
fecundity is the average number of eggs released by a female during each spawning event relative to female
weight (e.g. oocytes per gram). In previous studies of Jack Mackerel off eastern Australia, batch fecundity has been estimated from females with ovaries with hydrated oocytes using the traditional gravimetric method of Hunter and Goldberg (1980). This approach involves counting hydrated oocytes in weighed of sub-sections of the ovaries. The main disadvantage of this approach has been that few females with hydrated oocytes have been collected in trawls.
Recently, samples of containing spawning Jack Mackerel were collected from Bass Strait that are suitable for estimating batch fecundity using the traditional method. In this study, the student will also use two new methods to estimate the number of eggs in each batch. Firstly, whole mounts of ovaries will be analyzed using image analysis methodology and software as described by Thorsen and Kjesbu (2001). Using this method, batch fecundity will be estimated from both hydrated oocytes and the oocytes that will comprise the next batch to be spawned. Secondly, histological slides from studies will be analyzed using stereological approaches described by Weibel (1966), Kjesbu, et al. (2011) and Saber et al. 2016). Using these three approaches will help to resolve current uncertainties associated with estimates of the relative fecundity of Jack Mackerel off eastern Australia.
Oceans and cryosphere
Primary supervisor:
Supervisory team:
Brief project description:
The Denman Glacier in East Antarctica offers a direct pathway to the Aurora Basin. It is highly susceptible to ice loss and a critical factor in understanding sea-level rise and climate change. The Denman Glacier has recently been rapidly thinning and retreating, losing mass at an accelerating rate due to the intrusion of warm ocean water beneath its ice shelf. Glacial meltwaters released into the ocean can influence nutrient dynamics, carbon cycling, and primary productivity, offering insights into how glacial retreat in Antarctica impacts marine ecosystems and biogeochemical processes in a rapidly changing polar environment.
The region shows clear differences in ocean and sea ice conditions between the Eastern and Western sides of the Denman glacier. The Eastern side is characterised by long periods of sea-ice coverage, and low surface Chla (an indicator of primary productivity). Conversely, the Western side is characterised by long periods of open water, and high surface Chla (Figure 1). In this context, the project aims to analyse ocean biogeochemical variables from both the eastern and western sides of the Denman glacier. The goal is to assess potential spatial variations that could be indicative of differing glacial, oceanographic, and biological processes. This research will contribute to understanding the regional influence of the glacier on surrounding marine ecosystems and biogeochemical cycles.
The honours student will participate in Antarctic fieldwork between March and May 2025 on the RSV Nuyina to collect full depth seawater profiles from the CTD rosette. Samples will be processes onboard for Chlorophyll-a (Chl-a), macronutrients, δ18O (oxygen isotopes), particulate and dissolved organic carbon and nitrogen (POC/PON, DOC/DON), biogenic silica (BSi), and flow cytometry for phytoplankton analysis following international protocols. Seawater from both sides of the ice shelf will be analysed to determine whether there are significant differences in nutrient distributions, biological productivity, and glacial meltwater fluxes between the eastern and western sides of the glacier front. The suite of biogeochemical and biological variables will also be used to evaluate what processes drive the regional difference in phytoplankton blooms east and west (Figure 1) of the Denman/Shackleton system. This is a key research question for the ACEAS program during DMV. The honours project will produce key knowledge that will directly contribute to the research outcomes of ACEAS scientists from other working groups.
Voyage Timing - The DMV will be the first marine science campaign for the newly commissioned RSV Nuyina. DMV is a dedicated 68 days marine science voyage scheduled for late February-April 2025 (Hobart-Hobart). We plan to arrive on site on the 7th of March 2025 and depart around the 18th of April 2025. Arrival in Hobart is envisaged around the 28th of April 2025.
Voyage Location - The voyage will transit from Hobart to the Denman Glacier located between Casey and Davis research stations. DMV activities will be focused in 3 areas west and east of Shackleton ice shelf. The eastern side may show signs of warm water intrusion toward the ice shelf grounding line, while the west shows a recurrent phytoplankton bloom that could be fed by the iron meltwater pump. The voyage will also undertake investigations in East Bruce Rise and West Bruce Rise, as well as on the volcanic seamounts located at 60°S 100°E.
Timeline:
February 2025:
Begin literature review on Denman Glacier and Southern Ocean biogeochemistry.
Training on sampling collection techniques (Chl-a, BSi, POC/PON, DOC/DON, nutrients, isotope analysis, flow cytometry).
March - April 2025:
Field work (ship-based filtrations: Chl-a, BSi, POC/PON, DOC/DON)
Sample analyses of Chl-a and macronutrients onboard
Microscopy analysis of phytoplankton
Prepare POC/PON filters for analysis at CSL
Data entry and initial statistical analysis
IMAS introduction seminar
May - June 2025:
δ18O and POC/PON analysis at CSL
DOC/DON analysis at UTAS plant science
Complete remaining analyses (BSi, flow cytometry).
Hydrography analyses
Data entry and initial statistical analysis.
July - August 2025:
Data synthesis, visualization, and comparative analysis between the east and west glacier zones.
Begin drafting honours thesis.
September - October 2025:
Finalise thesis and prepare for submission.
Presentations at ACEAS and final honours project seminars.
Primary supervisor:
Supervisory team:
Brief project description:
The formation of Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW) ventilates the abyssal ocean and helps drive global ocean circulation, thus making it a key component of our climate system. Yet recent observations show that AABW is warming, freshening, and reducing in volume (Zhou et al., 2023; Gunn et al. 2023; Johnson et al., 2024).
This observed freshening and contraction has been attributed to upstream changes on the continental shelf where dense source waters form (Zhou et al., 2023). However, conclusively linking these changes with upstream drivers remains challenging because of scarce observations and limited knowledge of AABW transport timescales.
This project aims to help address this by quantifying the advection timescales of AABW from the four known formation sites using an ocean-sea model that realistically simulates the formation processes of AABW (Kiss et al., 2020). Advection timescales will be estimated using a combination of existing passive tracer experiments (Solodoch et al., 2022) and Lagrangian particle trajectories, with a goal of quantifying and comparing timescales between the two modelling approaches.
An outcome of this work will be to provide a model-based estimate of AABW advection timescales that will assist with interpreting and linking observed changes with upstream drivers.
Skills students will develop during this research project:
The student will develop python programming skills by working with gridded data from an ocean-sea model, along with Lagrangian particle trajectory data. They will also develop skills in high performance computing via use of the National Computing Infrastructure, as well as visualisation skills through data analysis and figure preparation.
Primary supervisor:
Supervisory team:
- Joe Cresswell
- George Rowland
Brief project description:
The ocean contains 60 times more carbon than the atmosphere. Changes in the ocean's carbon cycle affect atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations, and have the capacity to change our climate on the timescale of a human lifespan. One feedback of concern is the relationship between the biological carbon pump and temperature. The biological carbon pump is a key component of carbon sequestration in the ocean. Through this pump carbon is removed from surface waters by phytoplankton and a fraction of this carbon is ultimately delivered to the deep ocean through gravitational sinking and other processes. It has been proposed that under a warming climate, microbial decomposition of sinking carbon accelerates, resulting in less carbon reaching the deep sea, a weakening of the biological carbon pump, and increased atmospheric carbon dioxide- a vicious cycle. While there is some evidence supporting this proposal, to find firm evidence we can look to the past when climate changed dramatically.
This project will use sediment cores from the Southern Indian Ocean that span the warming that occurred at the end of the last ice age. We have three sediment cores located in roughly the same place but at different water depths, of between ~1000 and 3000m. These cores allow us to reconstruct the vertical distribution of water properties, similar to an oceanographic CTD profile. You will use geochemical techniques to reconstruct the carbon burial and related environmental conditions from the three depths during the peak of the last ice age and during the subsequent warming. The results should help us understand how the fate of exported carbon changes with climate.
Supervisory Team:
Brief project description:
Southern Ocean waters are becoming warmer, fresher, less oxygenated and more acidic (“heating up, losing breath and turning sour”). Changes are happening both from the north as warming boundary currents push further southward, and from the south as the Antarctic cryosphere melts. The implications of these changes for global and regional marine productivity, global ocean carbon uptake and in turn atmospheric CO2 levels, are poorly understood.
Tracking the oceanic uptake of anthropogenic CO2 requires high-quality observations collected over many years. This project will use oceanographic and biogeochemical data collected in 2021 on the Trends in Euphausiids off Mawson, Predators and Oceanography (TEMPO) as well as collected in on the BROKE-West voyage in 2006 to quantify the increase in dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and evaluate the progress of Ocean Acidification in the East Antarctic coastal region.
Skills students will develop during this research project:
- Computer languages such as Matlab
- Accessing and analysing large datasets such as satellite and Argo data as well as discrete bottle data collected at sea
- Understanding of the Southern Ocean CO2 system and biogeochemical cycles
Primary supervisor:
Supervisory Team:
- Dr Paul Burch (Paul.Burch@csiro.au; 0421569189)
- Rikki Taylor
Brief project description:
Frostfish (Lepidopus caudatus) is a short-lived, fast growing species that is widely distributed in temperate and tropical waters around the world. It is a byproduct species in fisheries on the continental shelf and slope in Australia and New Zealand, with annual landed catches in Australia's Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery (SESSF) of 90 -300 tonnes over the last twenty years (Althaus and Sutton 2024). While the age and growth dynamics of this species have been described in New Zealand (Horn 2013), no comparable studies have been undertaken in southern Australia.
Many fish stocks on the continental shelf and slope of south eastern Australia have experienced declines in production over the past two decades that has been linked to both historical overfishing and climate change. With Frostfish emerging in importance in the SESSF quantifying the biological characteristics of Frostfish is a crucial component of the sustainable management of this species.
Data has been collected as part of FRDC 2022-032 Biological parameters for stock assessments in South Eastern Australia - an information and capacity uplift with biological samples obtained from the winter spawning fishery for Blue Grenadier on the west coast of Tasmania.
The data include including length, weight, sex, macroscopic maturity and otoliths from ~650 along with some additional frozen gonads. There is potentially the opportunity to collect additional data through the SESSF Observer Program in 2026.
References
- https://doi.org/10.25919/3k9r-y573
- Horn, P.L. 2013. Age determination of frostfish (Lepidopus caudatus) off west coast South Island, New Zealand Fisheries Assessment Report 2013/21.
- Dick, E.J. and MacCall, A.D., 2011. Depletion-based stock reduction analysis: a catch-based method for determining sustainable yields for data-poor fish stocks. Fisheries Research, 110, 331-341.
Primary supervisor:
Supervisory Team:
- Dr Martin Jucker
Brief project description:
Antarctic sea ice is a critical part of the global climate, that has undergone drastic decreases in just the last few years. Understanding the significance of these losses means that we need to understand the drivers of natural variability.
A surprising potential driver of this variability is the 2022 Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcanic eruption, which released an unusually large amount of water vapor into the stratosphere. Climate model experiments suggest that this could have had a delayed impact on Antarctic sea ice in 2024 by changing the atmospheric circulation.
This project apply advanced “Detection and Attribution” techniques to satellite sea ice observations and output from climate models, to quantify exactly how much effect Tunga-Honga had on sea ice.