Broadband measurements of acoustic noise under a deteriorating fast ice cover

Results obtained from broadband recording of acoustic data beneath spring and summer ice in Barrow Strait are discussed relative to previous studies of ice noise and the feasibility of monitoring and predicting ice breakup. Recorded data indicate that the generally low frequency and short durations of impulsive ice cracking leave biological and wind-related noise sources as the principal contributors to average spectrum levels over most of the study period. Nevertheless, detailed analyses of ice-generated noise suggest that increases in cracking frequency and shifts in the probability distributions for the mean acoustic energy associated with cracking events may provide useful indicators or predictors of ice breakup