Civil and environmental engineering assistant professor aims to predict how sea ice reacts to stress and strain
Published: Feb 20, 2025 1:00 PM
By Dustin Duncan
A civil and environmental engineering professor is working to predict how stress and strain affect sea ice floes in the Arctic.
Ali Khosravi, an assistant professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, is studying how sea ice moves and reacts to stress, especially during interactions with structures and vessels.
“Over the past decades, Arctic sea ice has thinned significantly — from tens of meters in the 1990s to just 2–3 meters today,” Khosravi said. “While this poses environmental challenges, it also creates opportunities for shipping and resource transportation in the Arctic.”
Khosravi’s research is supported by an Office of Naval Research grant in collaboration with Oregon State and Portland State Universities, focusing on modeling sea ice behavior.
Sea ice varies, from small pieces to large floes spanning meters or more. Because it drifts with ocean currents and wind, predicting the location and force of ice is essential for designing safe structures and vessels, Khosravi said.
“To address these challenges, we will integrate advanced modeling techniques with remote sensing, machine learning, and image processing,” he said. “We'll refine and improve our models using data from field observations and sensors.”
The project will use data from a field study near the North Pole led by Oregon State University, where a team has deployed sensors on ice floes to monitor their behavior.
“We’re going to look at the behavior of the ice under different climate conditions, circumstances and stresses, including interactions with ships or structures,” Khosravi said.
Once calibrated with real-world data, these models will simulate how stress and strain distribute across the ice under different conditions, helping to improve the design of ships and infrastructure to withstand ice-related forces.
“This research could pave the way for multi-scale modeling, connecting small-scale ice dynamics with larger-scale climate systems,” Khosravi said. “Accurate models will be critical for predicting sea ice behavior, supporting safer operations for shipping and Arctic infrastructure in a changing climate.” Media Contact: , dzd0065@auburn.edu, 334-844-2326
Ali Khosravi, an assistant professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, is studying how sea ice moves and reacts to stress, especially during interactions with structures and vessels.
“Over the past decades, Arctic sea ice has thinned significantly — from tens of meters in the 1990s to just 2–3 meters today,” Khosravi said. “While this poses environmental challenges, it also creates opportunities for shipping and resource transportation in the Arctic.”
Khosravi’s research is supported by an Office of Naval Research grant in collaboration with Oregon State and Portland State Universities, focusing on modeling sea ice behavior.
Sea ice varies, from small pieces to large floes spanning meters or more. Because it drifts with ocean currents and wind, predicting the location and force of ice is essential for designing safe structures and vessels, Khosravi said.
“To address these challenges, we will integrate advanced modeling techniques with remote sensing, machine learning, and image processing,” he said. “We'll refine and improve our models using data from field observations and sensors.”
The project will use data from a field study near the North Pole led by Oregon State University, where a team has deployed sensors on ice floes to monitor their behavior.
“We’re going to look at the behavior of the ice under different climate conditions, circumstances and stresses, including interactions with ships or structures,” Khosravi said.
Once calibrated with real-world data, these models will simulate how stress and strain distribute across the ice under different conditions, helping to improve the design of ships and infrastructure to withstand ice-related forces.
“This research could pave the way for multi-scale modeling, connecting small-scale ice dynamics with larger-scale climate systems,” Khosravi said. “Accurate models will be critical for predicting sea ice behavior, supporting safer operations for shipping and Arctic infrastructure in a changing climate.” Media Contact: , dzd0065@auburn.edu, 334-844-2326
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