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The new model predicts the growth of small ponds on arctic ice sheets. Scientific Visualization Studio / NASA
By Anurag Papolu
To better predict climate change, scientists need accurate models which predict the behavior of many natural processes. One of these is the melting of Arctic sea ice, which requires expensive and difficult data collection in the Arctic.
Physicist Ivan Sudakov at the University of Dayton and his colleagues have developed a new method to understand the growth of small ponds on sea ice. They developed a model which borrows ideas from the 100-year-old Ising model that simulates the behavior of ferromagnetic materials.
This video shows how these small ponds form on the ice, and how the model can be used to understand the process more efficiently.
Anurag worked as a graphic designer, photographer, documentary video editor, and motion graphics artist before joining The Conversation. He earned his Master’s in Journalism from the CUNY J-School and Bachelor’s in Photography & Design from RIT.
Reposted with permission from The Conversation.