ИСТИНА

Polar coastal ecosystems are becoming more vulnerable due changes in the climate system. The dynamics of the Arctic coastal zones are highly related to the observed in sea ice area decline and air temperature increase. The observed from microwave remote sensing data ice-free period extension provides more time for wave activities, especially in the fall period. As a result, coastlines are exposed longer each year to the impacts of waves, storms and storm surges.Model historical and forecast wind data play a significant role in climate analysis. For the majority of arctic coasts, it is a unique source of wind data. Despite the tendency of reanalysis wind data to smooth velocities, it remains one of the primary sources for forecasting opplications and modern climate analysis.We have analyzed U and V wind components from the ERA-5 and MERRA-2 reanalysis datasets for in the Barents and the Kara seas for 1981-2023 period. We have found that MERRA-2 includes higher wind speeds, which leads to higher number of storm events and related with it hazard consequences. We also calculated trends in storm activity and wind direction in the region. We have used 10 m/s threshold to identify the storm wind events. The reanalysis comparison shows the significant difference in storm activities and related to them storm surges number and intensity. We have investigated the changes in wind directions, associated with high wind velocities, during last 40 years and found regions with statistically significant change in storm surge activity.