Dr. Gunnar Spreen

University of Bremen
Institute of Environmental Physics
Otto-Hahn-Allee 1, 28359 Bremen, Germany
Building NW1, office N3330, phone +49-421-218-62158
email: gunnar.spreen(at)uni-bremen.de

ORCID iD iconorcid.org/0000-0003-0165-8448

Curriculum Vitae and Research Interests

Gunnar Spreen received his Diplom in physics and Ph.D. in oceanography from the University of Hamburg, Germany, in 2004 and 2008, respectively. Thereafter, until July 2012, he worked as a Caltech Postdoctoral Scholar in the Climate, Ocean, and Solid Earth Science Section at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, USA. From August 2012 until July 2015 Gunnar Spreen was employed as permanent research scientist for sea ice remote sensing at the Norwegian Polar Institute, Tromsø, Norway. Since August 2015 he is the head of the junior research group "Remote Sensing of Sea Ice" and since October 2016 the head of the research group "Remote Sensing of Polar Regions" at the University of Bremen, Institute of Environmental Physics.

His main research interests are remote sensing of sea ice properties with focus on monitoring changes of sea ice (extent, mass, and dynamics) and on understanding underlying climate processes in polar regions. Recent research is focused on improving estimates of the sea ice export out of the Arctic Basin combining sonar and satellite data. Conceptually, further work is based on the analysis of sea ice drift in comparison to atmospheric reanalyses, freeboard data from altimetry, and sea ice concentration using passive and active microwave remote sensing. Satellite measurements are validated using ground-based and airborne field observations.

Projects

The following projects are currently worked on in the research group for Remote Sensing of Polar Regions.

  • Cooperative junior research group for Remote Sensing of Sea Ice
  • (AC)3 – Arctic Amplification: Climate Relevant Atmospheric and Surface Processes, Feedback, and Mechanisms [DFG]
  • ArcTrain International Research Training Group [DFG]
  • CIMR – Copernicus Imaging Microwave Radiometern [ESA]
  • FreshArc – Arctic freshwater export through Fram Strait in an era of Arctic Ocean freshening and sea ice thinning [RCN]
  • INTAROS – Integrated Arctic Observing System [EU H2020]
  • meereisportal.de – joined platform for sea ice information and data
  • MOSAiC – Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate
  • SIDRIFT – Sea Ice Deformation and Snow for an Arctic in Transition [RCN]
  • SITAnt – Sea ice type distribution in the Antarctic from microwave satellite observations [DFG]

Book Chapters

  • Spreen, G., & S. Kern (2017). Chapter 9 Methods of satellite remote sensing of sea ice. In D. N. Thomas (Ed.), Sea Ice (3rd Edition, pp. 239–260). Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN: 978-1-118-77838-8, doi:10.1002/9781118778371
  • Kern, S., L. Kaleschke, G. Spreen, R. Ezraty, F. Girard-Ardhuin, G. Heygster, S. Andersen, & R. Tonboe (2008). Sea Ice Parameters from Microwave Radiometry. In V. Barale & M. Gade (Eds.), Remote Sensing of the European Seas (pp. 239–250). Netherlands: Springer. ISBN 978-1-4020-6771-6, doi:10.1007/978-1-4020-6772-3_18
  • Spreen, G., S. Kern, & D. Stammer (2006), Utilization of Multiple Satellite Sensors to Estimate Sea Ice Volume Flux through Fram Strait. In P. Wadhams & G. Amanatidis (Eds.), Arctic sea ice thickness: past, present & future, Climate Change and Natural Hazards series 10 (EUR 22416, pp. 176–192). Brussels, Belgium: European Commission. [Chapter (PDF-file)]

Peer-reviewed Publications

  1. Newman, L., P. Heil, R. Trebilco, K. Katsumata, A. J. Constable, E. van Wijk, K. Assmann, J. Beja, P. Bricher, R. Coleman, D. Costa, S. Diggs, R. Farneti, S. Fawcett, S. T. Gille, K. R. Hendry, S. F. Henley, E. Hofmann, T. Maksym, M. Mazloff, A..J. S. Meijers, M. P. Meredith, S. Moreau, B. Ozsoy, R. Robertson, I. R. Schloss, O. Schofield, J. Shi, E. L Sikes, I. J. Smith, S. Swart, A. Wahlin, G. Williams, M. J.M. Williams, L. Herraiz-Borreguero, S. Kern, J. Lieser, R. Massom, J. Melbourne-Thomas, P. Miloslavich, & G. Spreen (accepted 2019). Delivering sustained, coordinated and integrated observations of the Southern Ocean for global impact. Front. Mar. Sci..
  2. Pohl, C., L. Istomina, S. Tietsche, E. Jäkel, J. Stapf, G. Spreen, & G. Heygster (under review, 2019). Broadband albedo of Arctic sea ice from MERIS optical data. The Cryosphere Discuss., 1–27. doi:10.5194/tc-2019-62
  3. Ludwig, V., G. Spreen, C. Haas, L. Istomina, F. Kauker, & D. Murashkin (2019; accepted for The Cryosphere). Observation of the 2018 North Greenland polynya with a new merged optical and passive microwave sea ice concentration dataset. The Cryosphere Discuss.. doi:10.5194/tc-2019-23
  4. Graham, R., P. Itkin , A. Meyer, A. Sundfjord, G. Spreen, L. H. Smedsrud, G. E. Liston, B. Cheng, L. Cohen, D. Divine, I. Fer, A. Fransson, S. Gerland, J. Haapala, S. R. Hudson, A. M. Johansson, J. King, I. Merkouriadi, A. K. Peterson, C. Provost, A. Randelhoff, A. Rinke, A. Rösel, N. Sennéchael, V. P. Walden, P. Duarte, P. Assmy, H. Steen, & M. A. Granskog (2019). Winter storms accelerate the demise of sea ice in the Atlantic Sector of the Arctic Ocean. Scientific Reports, 9, 9222. doi:10.1038/s41598-019-45574-5 [Article (PDF file)]
  5. Wendisch, M., A. Macke, A. Ehrlich, C. Lüpkes, M. Mech, D. Chechin, K. Dethloff, C. Barientos, H. Bozem, M. Brückner, H.-C. Clemen, S. Crewell, T. Donth, R. Dupuy, K. Ebell, U. Egerer, R. Engelmann, C. Engler, O. Eppers, M. Gehrmann, X. Gong, M. Gottschalk, C. Gourbeyre, H. Griesche, J. Hartmann, M. Hartmann, B. Heinold, A. Herber, H. Herrmann, G. Heygster, P. Hoor, S. Jafariserajehlou, E. Jäkel, E. Järvinen, O. Jourdan, U. Kästner, S. Kecorius, E. M. Knudsen, F. Köllner, J. Kretzschmar, L. Lelli, D. Leroy, M. Maturilli, L. Mei, S. Mertes, G. Mioche, R. Neuber, M. Nicolaus, T. Nomokonova, J. Notholt, M. Palm, M. van Pinxteren, J. Quaas, P. Richter, E. Ruiz-Donoso, M. Schäfer, K. Schmieder, M. Schnaiter, J. Schneider, A. Schwarzenböck, P. Seifert, M. D. Shupe, H. Siebert, G. Spreen, J. Stapf, F. Stratmann, T. Vogl, A. Welti, H. Wex, A. Wiedensohler, M. Zanatta, & S. Zeppenfeld (2019). The Arctic Cloud Puzzle: Using ACLOUD/PASCAL Multi-Platform Observations to Unravel the Role of Clouds and Aerosol Particles in Arctic Amplification, Bull. Am. Meteorol. Soc., 100(5), 841–871. doi:10.1175/BAMS-D-18-0072.1 [Article (PDF file)]
  6. Patilea, C., G. Heygster, M. Huntemann, & G. Spreen (2019). Combined SMAP/SMOS Thin Sea Ice Thickness Retrieval, The Cryosphere. 13, 675–691. doi:10.5194/tc-13-675-2019 [Article (PDF file)]
  7. Liu, J., Z. Chen, Y. Hu, Y. Zhang, Y. Ding, X. Cheng, Q. Yang, L. Nerger, G. Spreen, R. Horton, J. Inoue, C. Yang, M. Li, & M. Song (2019). Towards reliable Arctic sea ice prediction using multivariate data assimilation. Science Bulletin, 64, 63–72. doi:10.1016/j.scib.2018.11.018
  8. Rostosky, P., G. Spreen, S. L. Farrell, T. Frost, G. Heygster, & C. Melsheimer (2018). Snow depth retrieval on Arctic sea ice from passive microwave radiometers—Improvements and extensions to multiyear ice using lower frequencies. J Geophys. Res. Oceans, 123(10), 7120–7138. doi:10.1029/2018JC014028 [Article (PDF file)]
  9. Murashkin, D., G. Spreen, M. Huntemann, & W. Dierking (2018). Method for detection of leads from Sentinel-1 SAR images. Ann. Glaciol., 59(76pt2), 124–136. doi:10.1017/aog.2018.6 [Article (PDF file)]
  10. Lam, H. M., G. Spreen, G. Heygster, C. Melsheimer, & N. W. Young (2018). Erroneous sea ice concentration retrieval in the East Antarctic. Ann. Glaciol., 59(76pt2), 201–212. doi:10.1017/aog.2018.1 [Article (PDF file)]
  11. Malinka, A., E. Zege, L. Istomina, G. Heygster, G. Spreen, D. Perovich, & C. Polashenski (2018). Reflective properties of melt ponds on sea ice. The Cryosphere, 12, 1921–1937. doi:10.5194/tc-12-1921-2018 [Article (PDF file)]
  12. Lu, J., G. Heygster, & G. Spreen (2018). Atmospheric Correction of Sea Ice Concentration Retrieval for 89 GHz AMSR-E Observations. IEEE J-STARS., 11(5), 1442–1457. doi:10.1109/JSTARS.2018.2805193
  13. King, J., H. Skourup, S. M. Hvidegaard, A. Rösel, S. Gerland, G. Spreen, C. Polashenski, V. Helm, & G. E. Liston (2018). Comparison of freeboard retrieval and ice thickness calculation from ALS, ASIRAS, and CryoSat-2 in the Norwegian Arctic, to field measurements made during the N-ICE2015 expedition. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans, 123(2), 1123–1141. doi:10.1002/2017JC013233 [Article (PDF file)]
  14. Itkin P., G. Spreen, S. M. Hvidegaard, H. Skourup, J. Wilkinson, S. Gerland, & M. A. Granskog (2018). Contribution of deformation to sea-ice mass balance: a case study from an N-ICE2015 storm. Geophys. Res. Lett., 45(2), 789–796. doi:10.1002/2017GL076056 [Article (PDF file)]
  15. Johansson, A. M., C. Brekke, G. Spreen, & J. A. King (2018). X-, C-, and L-band SAR signatures of newly formed sea ice in Arctic leads during winter and spring. Rem. Sens. Env., 204, 162–180. doi:10.1016/j.rse.2017.10.032 [Article (PDF-File)]
  16. Barbaro, E., A. Spolaor, O. Karroca, K.-T. Park, T. Martma, E. Isaksson, J. Kohler, J. C. Gallet, M. P. Bjorkman, D. Cappelletti, G. Spreen, R. Zangrando, C. Barbante, & A. Gambaro (2017). Free amino acids in the Arctic snow and ice core samples: potential markers for paleoclimatic studies. Science of the Total Environment, 607-608, 454–462. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.07.041
  17. Fransson, A., M. Chierici, I. Skjelvan, A. Olsen, P. Assmy, A. K. Peterson, G. Spreen, & B. Ward (2017). Effects of sea-ice and biogeochemical processes and storms on under-ice water fCO2 during the winter-spring transition in the high Arctic Ocean: implications for sea-air CO2 fluxes. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans, 122(7), 5566–5587. doi:10.1002/2016JC012478 [Article (PDF-File)]
  18. Itkin, P., G. Spreen, B. Cheng, M. Doble, F. Girard-Ardhuin, J. Haapala, N. Hughes, L. Kaleschke, M. Nicolaus, & J. Wilkinson (2017). Thin ice and storms: sea ice deformation from buoy arrays deployed during N-ICE2015. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans, 122(6), 4661–4674. doi:10.1002/2016JC012403 [Article (PDF-File)]
  19. Spreen, G., R. Kwok, D. Menemenlis, & A. T. Nguyen (2017). Sea ice deformation in a coupled ocean-sea ice model and in satellite remote sensing data. The Cryosphere, 11, 1553–1573. doi:10.5194/tc-11-1553-2017 [Article (PDF-File)]
  20. King, J., G. Spreen, S. Gerland, C. Haas, S. Hendricks, L. Kaleschke, & C. Wang (2017). Sea-Ice Thickness from field measurements in the north-western Barents Sea. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans, 122(2), 1497–1512. doi:10.1002/2016JC012199 [Article (PDF-File)]
  21. Vallelonga, P., N. Maffezzoli, A. D. Moy, M. A. J. Curran, T. R. Vance, R. Edwards, G. Hughes, E. Barker, G. Spreen, A. Saiz-Lopez, J. P. Corella, C. A. Cuevas, & A. Spolaor (2017). Sea-ice-related halogen enrichment at Law Dome, coastal East Antarctica. Clim. Past, 13, 171–184. doi:10.5194/cp-13-171-2017 [Article (PDF-File)]
  22. Assmy, P., M. Fernandez-Mendez, P. Duarte, A. Meyer, A. Randelhoff, C. Mundy, L. Olsen, H. Kauko, A. Bailey, M. Chierici, L. Cohen, A. Doulgeris, J. Ehn, A. Fransson, S. Gerland, H. Hop, S. Hudson, N. Hughes, P. Itkin, G. Johnsen, J. King, B. Koch, Z. Koenig, S. Kwasniewski, S. Laney, M. Nicolaus, A. Pavlov, C. Polashenski, C. Provost, A. Rösel, M. Sandbu, G. Spreen, L. Smedsrud, A. Sundfjord, T. Taskjelle, A. Tatarek, J. Wiktor, P. Wagner, A. Wold, H. Steen, & M. Granskog (2017). Leads in Arctic pack ice enable early phytoplankton blooms below snow-covered sea ice. Scientific Reports, 7, 40850. doi:10.1038/srep40850 [Article (PDF-File)]
  23. Johansson, A. M., J. A. King, A. P. Doulgeris, S. Gerland, S. Singha, G. Spreen, & T. Busche (2017). Combined observations of Arctic sea ice with near-coincident colocated X-band, C-band, and L-band SAR satellite remote sensing and helicopter-borne measurements. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans, 122(1), 669–691. doi:10.1002/2016JC012273
  24. Ressel, R., S. Singha, S. Lehner, A. Rösel, & G. Spreen (2016). Investigation into different polarimetric features for sea ice classification using X-band Synthetic Aperture Radar. IEEE J-STARS, 9(7), 3131–3143. doi:10.1109/JSTARS.2016.2539501 [Article (PDF-File)]
  25. Ye, Y., M. Shokr, G. Heygster, & G. Spreen (2016). Improving Multiyear Ice Concentration Estimates with Ice Drift. Remote Sens., 8(5), 397. doi:10.3390/rs8050397 [Article (PDF-File)]
  26. Kaleschke, L., X. Tian-Kunze, N. Maaß, A. Beitsch, A. Wernecke, M. Miernecki, G. Müller, B. H. Fock, A. M. Gierisch, K. H. Schlünzen, T. Pohlmann, M. Dobrynin, S. Hendricks, J. Asseng, R. Gerdes, P. Jochmann, N. Reimer, J. Holfort, C. Melsheimer, G. Heygster, G. Spreen, S. Gerland, J. King, N. Skou, S. S. Søbjærg, C. Haas, F. Richter, & T. Casal (2016). SMOS sea ice product: Operational application and validation in the Barents Sea marginal ice zone. Remote Sens. Environ., 180, 264–273. doi:10.1016/j.rse.2016.03.009
  27. Krumpen, T., R. Gerdes, C. Haas, S. Hendricks, A. Herber, V. Selyuzhenok, L. Smedsrud, & G. Spreen (2016). Recent summer sea ice thickness surveys in the Fram Strait and associated ice volume fluxes. The Cryosphere, 10(2), 523–534. doi:10.5194/tc-10-523-2016 [Article (PDF-File)]
  28. Granskog, M. A., P. Assmy, S. Gerland, G. Spreen, H. Steen, & L. H. Smedsrud (2016). Arctic research on thin ice: Consequences of Arctic sea ice loss. Eos Trans. AGU, 97. doi:10.1029/2016EO044097. [Article (PDF-File)]
  29. Spolaor, A., T. Opel, J. R. McConnell, O. J. Maselli, G. Spreen, C. Varin, T. Kirchgeorg, D. Fritzsche, & P. Vallelonga (2016). Halogen-based reconstruction of Russian Arctic sea ice area from the Akademii Nauk ice core (Severnaya Zemlya). The Cryosphere, 10(1), 245–256. doi:10.5194/tc-10-245-2016 [Article (PDF-File)]
  30. Hansen, E., S. Gerland, K. V. Høyland, O. Pavlova, & G. Spreen (2015). Time variability in the annual cycle of sea ice thickness in the Transpolar Drift. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans, 120(12), 8135–8150. doi:10.1002/2015JC011102 [Article (PDF-File)]
  31. Duarte, P., P. Assmy, H. Hop, G. Spreen, S. Gerland, & S. R. Hudson (2015). The importance of vertical resolution in sea ice algae production models. Journal of Marine Systems, 145, 69–90. doi:10.1016/j.jmarsys.2014.12.004
  32. Haine, T. W. N., B. Curry, R. Gerdes, E. Hansen, M. Karcher, C. Lee, B. Rudels, G. Spreen, L. de Steur, K. D. Stewart, & R. Woodgate (2015). Arctic Freshwater Export: Status, Mechanisms, and Prospects. Global and Planetary Change, 125, 13–35. doi:10.1016/j.gloplacha.2014.11.013
  33. Beckers, J. F., A. H. H. Renner, G. Spreen, S. Gerland, & C. Haas (2015). Sea-ice surface roughness estimates from airborne laser scanner and laser altimeter observations in Fram Strait and north of Svalbard. Ann. Glaciol., 56(69), 235–244. doi:10.3189/2015AoG69A717 [Article (PDF-File)]
  34. Kern, S., & G. Spreen (2015). Uncertainties in Antarctic Sea-Ice Thickness Retrieval from ICESat. Ann. Glaciol., 56(69), 107–119. doi:10.3189/2015AoG69A736 [Article (PDF-File)]
  35. Hansen, E., O-C. Ekeberg, S. Gerland, O. Pavlova, G. Spreen, & M. Tschudi (2014). Variability in categories of Arctic sea ice in Fram Strait. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans, 119(10), 7175–7189. doi:10.1002/2014JC010048 [Article (PDF-File)]
  36. Renner, A. H. H., S. Gerland, C. Haas, G. Spreen, J. F. Beckers, E. Hansen, M. Nicolaus, H. Goodwin (2014). Evidence of Arctic sea ice thinning from direct observations. Geophys. Res. Lett., 41(14), 5029–5036. doi:10.1002/2014GL060369 [Article (PDF-file)]
  37. Cape, M. R., M. Vernet, M. Kahru, & G. Spreen (2014). Polynya dynamics drive primary production in the Larsen A and B embayments following ice shelf collapse. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans, 119(1), 572–594. doi:10.1002/2013JC009441 [Article (PDF-file)]
  38. Assmy, P., J. K. Ehn, M. Fernández-Méndez, H. Hop, C. Katlein, A. Sundfjord, K. Bluhm, M. Daase, A. Engel, A. Fransson, M. A. Granskog, S. R. Hudson, S. Kristiansen, M. Nicolaus, I. Peeken, A. H. H. Renner, G. Spreen, A. Tatarek, & J. Wiktor (2013). Floating ice-algal aggregates below melting Arctic sea ice. PLoS ONE, 8(10), e76599. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0076599 [Article (PDF-File)]
  39. Kwok, R., G. Spreen, & S. Pang (2013). Arctic sea ice circulation and drift speed: decadal trends and ocean currents. J. Geophys. Res., 118(5), 2408–2425. doi:10.1002/jgrc.20191 [Article (PDF-file)]
  40. Spreen, G., R. Kwok, & D. Menemenlis (2011). Trends in Arctic sea ice drift and role of wind forcing: 1992-2009. Geophys. Res. Lett., 38, L19501. doi:10.1029/2011GL048970 [Article (PDF-file)]
  41. Kern, S., L. Kaleschke, & G. Spreen (2010). Climatology of the Nordic (Irminger, Greenland, Barents, Kara, White/Pechora) Seas ice cover based on 85 GHz satellite microwave radiometry: 1992-2008. Tellus A, 62A, 411–434. doi:10.1111/j.1600-0870.2010.00457.x [Article (PDF-File)]
  42. Brümmer, B., G. Müller, C. Klepp, G. Spreen, R. Romeiser, & J. Horstmann (2010). Characteristics and impact of a gale-force storm field over the Norwegian Sea. Tellus A, 62A, 481–496. doi:10.1111/j.1600-0870.2010.00448.x [Article (PDF-file)]
  43. Spreen, G., S. Kern, D. Stammer, & E. Hansen (2009). Fram Strait sea ice volume export estimated between 2003 and 2008 from satellite data. Geophys. Res. Lett., 36, L19502. doi:10.1029/2009GL039591 [Article (PDF-file)]
  44. Heygster, G., H. Wiebe, G. Spreen, & L. Kaleschke (2009). AMSR-E Geolocation and Validation of Sea Ice Concentrations Based on 89 GHz Data. Journal of the Remote Sensing Society of Japan, 29(1), 226–235. [Article (PDF-File)]
  45. Kern, S., M. Brath, R. Fontes, M. Gade, K.-W. Gurgel, L. Kaleschke, T. Schlick, G. Spreen, S. Schulz, A. Winderlich, & D. Stammer (2009). Multi3Scat – A helicopter-based Scatterometer for Snow Cover and Sea Ice Investigations. IEEE Geosci. Remote Sens. Lett., 6(4), 703–707. doi:10.1109/LGRS.2009.2023823 [Article (PDF-file)]
  46. Spreen, G., L. Kaleschke, & G. Heygster (2008). Sea ice remote sensing using AMSR-E 89-GHz channels. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans, 113, C02S03. doi:10.1029/2005JC003384 [Article (PDF-file)]
  47. Brümmer, B., D. Schröder, G. Müller, G. Spreen, A. Jahnke-Bornemann, & J. Launiainen (2008). Impact of a Fram Strait cyclone on ice edge, drift, divergence and concentration: Possibilities and limits of an observational analysis. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans, 113, C12003. doi:10.1029/2007JC004149 [Article (PDF-file)]
  48. Haarpaintner, J., & G. Spreen (2007). Use of Enhanced-Resolution QuikSCAT/SeaWinds Data for Operational Ice Services and Climate Research: Sea Ice Edge, Type, Concentration, and Drift. IEEE Trans. Geosci. Rem. Sens., 45(10), 3131–3137. doi:10.1109/TGRS.2007.895419 [Article (PDF-file)]
  49. Kern, S., G. Spreen, L. Kaleschke, S. De La Rosa Höhn, & G. Heygster (2007). Polynya Signature Simulation Method polynya area in comparison to AMSR-E 89 GHz sea-ice concentrations in the Ross Sea and off the Adélie Coast, Antarctica, for 2002-05: first results. Ann. Glaciol., 46, 409–418. doi:10.3189/172756407782871585 [Article (PDF-file)]
  50. Spreen, G., S. Kern, D. Stammer, R. Forsberg, & J. Haarpaintner (2006). Satellite-based Estimates of Sea Ice Volume Flux through Fram Strait. Ann. Glaciol., 44, 321–328. doi:10.3189/172756406781811385 [Article (PDF-File)]
  51. Kern, S., Y. Chen, D. Stammer, & G. Spreen (2006). The Sea-Ice Compactness in the Greenland and Barents Sea during 1979-2003: Changes and Links to the Surface Air Flow. Ann. Glaciol., 44, 30–36. doi:10.3189/172756406781811808 [Article (PDF-File)]