The Melting of the Icecubergs: Effects of Rotation and Salinity

This video shows two side-by-sde icecube melting experiments, one in a rotating tank of water, the other in a rotating tank of high salinity water. The meltwater from the icecube is denser than the pure water and less dense than the high salinity water. Our experiments show that the melting time scale is greatly extended in the high salinity, stably stratified case. Further, the meltwater fluid dynamics and icecube rotational kinematics greatly differ between the two end member experimental cases. In sum, these simple experiments imply that a broad range of behaviors need be considered in accounting for iceberg melting in processes in models of Earth’s climate.