Interests
- Observed and modeled changes of the polar climate system
- Air-ice-ocean interaction
- Southern Ocean stratification and circulation
- Antarctic sea ice and its role in the climate system
- Dynamical processes in atmosphere, ocean and cryosphere
Projects
@ Princeton University & British Antarctic Survey (2017-2022)
The upwelling and subduction of water masses in the Southern Ocean plays a vital role in the global climate system, because they redistribute carbon and heat between the atmosphere and the deep ocean. Human-induced future changes in the marginally stable vertical density gradient (here referred to as stratification) of this region could critically alter this vertical exchange and therefore the uptake and release of carbon-dioxide (CO2) and heat by the ocean. Therefore, such changes could considerably diminish or amplify global warming. Yet, current global climate models reveal large biases in this region leading to large uncertainties in future climate projections. In this project, we investigate the effect of stratification changes on the CO2 and heat uptake by the Southern Ocean.
Related key publications:
@ ETH Zürich (2012-2016)
In my Ph.D. project, I studied the impact of changing freshwater fluxes on the Southern Ocean salinity, stratification, and circulation over recent decades. The freshwater budget of the Southern Ocean mainly consists of these components: Atmospheric flux, oceanic advection, melt water fluxes from Antarctica, and redistribution by sea ice. In this project, I particularly focused on quantifying the so far poorly constrained sea-ice component and the oceanic response to recent changes in this component. Through its interaction with the carbon cycle changes in the Southern Ocean salinity distribution and density stratification play a key role for the global climate. Therefore, I analyzed the response of air-sea carbon fluxes to observed changes in the freshwater fluxes in experiments with a forced regional ocean-biogeochemistry model (ROMS-BEC).
PhD thesis page: "Southern Ocean response to recent changes in surface freshwater fluxes".
Related key publications:
@ MPI-M, Hamburg (2011-2012)
In this project, we analyzed the modeled evolution of Antarctic sea ice in the current CMIP5 simulations of MPI-ESM. We studied the impact of the atmospheric circulation on Antarctic sea ice in the model and in observations. More specifically, we assessed the impact of the ozone hole and the greenhouse gas increase on the atmospheric circulation and thus on the sea ice by performing model experiments. The project aimed at better understanding the observed and modeled long-term changes of the Southern Ocean sea ice and to determine the external drivers and internal processes. This work was carried out in collaboration with the working group "Middle and Upper Atmosphere".
Related publication: F. A. Haumann, D. Notz and H. Schmidt (2014): Anthropogenic influence on recent circulation-driven Antarctic sea ice changes. Geophys. Res. Lett., 41, 8429-8437, doi:10.1002/2014GL061659.
@ Utrecht University, Master's Thesis (2011)
In my Master's thesis I have studied the impact that variations in the wind field in the Antarctic atmospheric boundary layer have on sea ice. In particular, I was interested in the meridional wind-driven ice transport and how its variability influences the regional sea-ice cover. In order to investigate this relation, I have analyzed data from a regional atmospheric climate model and satellite observations in the period 1989 to 2005.
MSc thesis page: "Dynamical Interaction between Atmosphere and Sea Ice in Antarctica".
@ Utrecht University, student assistant (2010-2011)
During my Master's program I worked as a student assistant in the laboratory of the Atmospheric Physics and Chemistry Group at the Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research Utrecht (IMAU). Most of the time I was analyzing the hydrogen stable isotopic composition in air samples.
Related publication: F. A. Haumann, A. M. Batenburg, G. Pieterse, C. Gerbig, M. C. Krol, and T. Röckmann (2013): Emission ratio and isotopic signatures of molecular hydrogen emissions from tropical biomass burning, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 13, 9401-9413, doi:10.5194/acp-13-9401-2013.
The upwelling and subduction of water masses in the Southern Ocean plays a vital role in the global climate system, because they redistribute carbon and heat between the atmosphere and the deep ocean. Human-induced future changes in the marginally stable vertical density gradient (here referred to as stratification) of this region could critically alter this vertical exchange and therefore the uptake and release of carbon-dioxide (CO2) and heat by the ocean. Therefore, such changes could considerably diminish or amplify global warming. Yet, current global climate models reveal large biases in this region leading to large uncertainties in future climate projections. In this project, we investigate the effect of stratification changes on the CO2 and heat uptake by the Southern Ocean.
Related key publications:
- F. A. Haumann, R. Moorman, S. Riser, L. H. Smedsrud, T. Maksym, A. P. S. Wong, E. A. Wilson, R. Drucker, L. D. Talley, K. S. Johnson, R. M. Key, J. L. Sarmiento (2020): Supercooled Southern Ocean Waters. Geophysical Research Letters, 47, e2020GL090242. doi:10.1029/2020GL090242.
- F. A. Haumann, N. Gruber, M. Münnich (2020): Sea-ice induced Southern Ocean subsurface warming and surface cooling in a warming climate. AGU Advances, 1, e2019AV000132. In press. doi:10.1029/2019AV000132.
@ ETH Zürich (2012-2016)
In my Ph.D. project, I studied the impact of changing freshwater fluxes on the Southern Ocean salinity, stratification, and circulation over recent decades. The freshwater budget of the Southern Ocean mainly consists of these components: Atmospheric flux, oceanic advection, melt water fluxes from Antarctica, and redistribution by sea ice. In this project, I particularly focused on quantifying the so far poorly constrained sea-ice component and the oceanic response to recent changes in this component. Through its interaction with the carbon cycle changes in the Southern Ocean salinity distribution and density stratification play a key role for the global climate. Therefore, I analyzed the response of air-sea carbon fluxes to observed changes in the freshwater fluxes in experiments with a forced regional ocean-biogeochemistry model (ROMS-BEC).
PhD thesis page: "Southern Ocean response to recent changes in surface freshwater fluxes".
Related key publications:
- F. A. Haumann, N. Gruber, M. Münnich, I. Frenger, S. Kern (2016): Sea-ice transport driving Southern Ocean salinity and its recent trends. Nature, 537, 89–92,
doi:10.1038/nature19101.
⤷ Full-access (read only): epdf - F. A. Haumann, N. Gruber, M. Münnich (2020): Sea-ice induced Southern Ocean subsurface warming and surface cooling in a warming climate. AGU Advances, 1, e2019AV000132. In press. doi:10.1029/2019AV000132.
@ MPI-M, Hamburg (2011-2012)
In this project, we analyzed the modeled evolution of Antarctic sea ice in the current CMIP5 simulations of MPI-ESM. We studied the impact of the atmospheric circulation on Antarctic sea ice in the model and in observations. More specifically, we assessed the impact of the ozone hole and the greenhouse gas increase on the atmospheric circulation and thus on the sea ice by performing model experiments. The project aimed at better understanding the observed and modeled long-term changes of the Southern Ocean sea ice and to determine the external drivers and internal processes. This work was carried out in collaboration with the working group "Middle and Upper Atmosphere".
Related publication: F. A. Haumann, D. Notz and H. Schmidt (2014): Anthropogenic influence on recent circulation-driven Antarctic sea ice changes. Geophys. Res. Lett., 41, 8429-8437, doi:10.1002/2014GL061659.
@ Utrecht University, Master's Thesis (2011)
In my Master's thesis I have studied the impact that variations in the wind field in the Antarctic atmospheric boundary layer have on sea ice. In particular, I was interested in the meridional wind-driven ice transport and how its variability influences the regional sea-ice cover. In order to investigate this relation, I have analyzed data from a regional atmospheric climate model and satellite observations in the period 1989 to 2005.
MSc thesis page: "Dynamical Interaction between Atmosphere and Sea Ice in Antarctica".
@ Utrecht University, student assistant (2010-2011)
During my Master's program I worked as a student assistant in the laboratory of the Atmospheric Physics and Chemistry Group at the Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research Utrecht (IMAU). Most of the time I was analyzing the hydrogen stable isotopic composition in air samples.
Related publication: F. A. Haumann, A. M. Batenburg, G. Pieterse, C. Gerbig, M. C. Krol, and T. Röckmann (2013): Emission ratio and isotopic signatures of molecular hydrogen emissions from tropical biomass burning, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 13, 9401-9413, doi:10.5194/acp-13-9401-2013.