MicroSWIFT Buoys Measure SST and SSS in the Alaskan Arctic
[19-May-2026] Steele, M., Dickinson, S., Thomson, J., Zhang, J., and Bingham, F. We present preliminary results from our analysis of three years of microSWIFT buoy deployments in the Alaskan Arctic i.e. the Bering, Chukchi, and Beaufort Seas. These small buoys measure ocean surface waves, surface currents, SST, and SSS. Comparison with satellite SST and SSS reveals higher error near sea ice and coastlines, as expected. Nonetheless, the buoys provide clear signals of sea ice meltwater and river inputs. We also analyze the correlation of buoy SST and SSS as a function of separation distance.