Author(s)

B. Petit

Abstract

This paper proposes a model of oil behaviour in ice-infested waters. It has been built on the basis of an ice formation model and a hydrodynamic model to respond to an oil pollution danger increasing proportionally to human presence and activities in Antarctica and describes the interactions between oil and ice. The main features of oil spreading and dynamics in an ice pack are taken into account in the model which is used for the simulation of possible spills in the Southern Ocean: in the short term in cold waters and in the presence of ice, and in the long term. The results show that the presence of ice completely modifies the classical spreading of an oil slick by shrinking its area, and by incorporating some oil in the ice structures. The quantity of oil initially entrapped in the ice may later induce a second spill. The diverg

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