scholarly journals Glaciological settings and recent mass balance of Blåskimen Island in Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica

2017 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 2883-2896 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vikram Goel ◽  
Joel Brown ◽  
Kenichi Matsuoka
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Field Measurements ◽  
The South ◽  
Ice Shelf ◽  
Surface Mass ◽  
The Past ◽  
The North ◽  
Dronning Maud Land ◽  
North Western ◽  
Method Show

Abstract. The ice-shelf-fringed coast of Dronning Maud Land in East Antarctica contains numerous ice rises that influence the dynamics and mass balance of the region. However, only a few of these ice rises have been investigated in detail. Here, we present field measurements of Blåskimen Island, an isle-type ice rise adjacent to Fimbul Ice Shelf. This ice rise is largely dome shaped, with a pronounced ridge extending to the south-west from its summit (410 m a.s.l.). Its bed is mostly flat and about 100 m below the current sea level. Shallow radar-detected isochrones dated with a firn core reveal that the surface mass balance is higher on the south-eastern (upwind) slope than on the north-western (downwind) slope by ∼ 37 %, and this pattern has persisted for at least the past decade. Moreover, arches in radar stratigraphy suggest that the summit of the ice rise has been stable for ∼ 600 years. Ensemble estimates of the mass balance using the input–output method show that this ice rise has thickened by 0.12–0.37 m ice equivalent per year over the past decade.

scholarly journals Glaciological settings and recent mass balance of the Blåskimen Island in Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vikram Goel ◽  
Joel Brown ◽  
Kenichi Matsuoka
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Characteristic Time ◽  
Field Measurements ◽  
Surface Mass Balance ◽  
Ice Shelf ◽  
Surface Mass ◽  
The Past ◽  
Dronning Maud Land ◽  
Method Show ◽  
Firn Core

Abstract. The Dronning Maud Land coast in East Antarctica has numerous ice rises that very likely control the dynamics and mass balance of this region. However, only a few of these ice rises have been investigated in detail. Here, we report field measurements of Blåskimen Island, an isle-type ice rise adjacent to the Fimbul Ice Shelf. Blåskimen Island is largely dome shaped, with a pronounced ridge extending to the southwest from its summit (410 m a.s.l.). Its bed is mostly flat and about 100 m below the current sea level. Shallow radar-detected isochrones dated with a firn core reveal that the surface mass balance is higher on the southeastern slope than the northwestern slope by ~ 37 %, and this pattern has persisted for at least the past decade. Radar stratigraphy shows upward arches underneath the summit, indicating that the summit position has been stable over at least one characteristic time of this ice rise (~ 600 years). Ensemble estimates of the mass balance using the input-output method show that this ice rise has thickened by 0.07–0.35 m ice equivalent per year over the past decade.

scholarly journals Characteristics of ice rises and ice rumples in Dronning Maud Land and Enderby Land, Antarctica

2020 ◽  
Vol 66 (260) ◽  
pp. 1064-1078
Author(s):  
Vikram Goel ◽  
Kenichi Matsuoka ◽  
Cesar Deschamps Berger ◽  
Ian Lee ◽  
Jørgen Dall ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Ice Cores ◽  
Ice Thickness ◽  
Ice Shelf ◽  
Ice Dynamics ◽  
Surface Mass ◽  
Ice Shelves ◽  
The Past ◽  
Dronning Maud Land ◽  
The Antarctic

AbstractIce rises and rumples, locally grounded features adjacent to ice shelves, are relatively small yet play significant roles in Antarctic ice dynamics. Their roles generally depend upon their location within the ice shelf and the stage of the ice-sheet retreat or advance. Large, long-stable ice rises can be excellent sites for deep ice coring and paleoclimate study of the Antarctic coast and the Southern Ocean, while small ice rises tend to respond more promptly and can be used to reveal recent changes in regional mass balance. The coasts of Dronning Maud Land (DML) and Enderby Land in East Antarctica are abundant with these features. Here we review existing knowledge, presenting an up-to-date status of research in these regions with focus on ice rises and rumples. We use regional datasets (satellite imagery, surface mass balance and ice thickness) to analyze the extent and surface morphology of ice shelves and characteristic timescales of ice rises. We find that large parts of DML have been changing over the past several millennia. Based on our findings, we highlight ice rises suitable for drilling ice cores for paleoclimate studies as well as ice rises suitable for deciphering ice dynamics and evolution in the region.

scholarly journals A Reconsideration of the Mass Balance of a Portion of the Ross Ice Shelf, Antarctica

1984 ◽  
Vol 30 (106) ◽  
pp. 381-384 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth C. Jezek ◽  
Charles R. Bentley
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Small Region ◽  
Volume Element ◽  
Ice Shelf ◽  
Ross Ice Shelf ◽  
The North ◽  
Ice Velocity ◽  
Flow Band ◽  
Input Gate ◽  
North Western

AbstractThe identification of a small region of grounded ice in the north-western sector of the Ross Ice Shelf has forced a re-evaluation of the mass-balance calculations carried out by Thomas and Bentley (1978). Those authors concluded that the Ross Ice Shelf up-stream of Crary Ice Rise was thickening, but they did not take into account the effects on the velocity field of grounded ice (of which they were unaware), which is located near the input gate to their volume element. Reasonable estimates of the degree to which the ice velocity just up-stream of the grounded ice is diminished indicate that it is no longer possible to conclude that the ice shelf is thickening using Thomas and Bentley’s original flow band. Therefore, a new flow band was chosen which was grid east of Thomas and Bentley’s band and unaffected by any nearby grounded areas. The mass balance in this flow band was found to be zero within experimental error; a difference exceeding about 0.2 m a−1 in magnitude between the thickening and bottom freeze-on rates is unlikely.

scholarly journals Antarctic Atmospheric River Climatology and Impacts

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Wille ◽  
Vincent Favier ◽  
Irina V. Gorodetskaya ◽  
Cécile Agosta ◽  
Jai Chowdhry Beeman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Surface Mass Balance ◽  
Ice Shelf ◽  
Surface Mass ◽  
Atmospheric Rivers ◽  
Atmospheric River ◽  
Dronning Maud Land ◽  
Antarctic Continent ◽  
Surface Melt ◽  
The Antarctic

<p>Atmospheric rivers, broadly defined as narrow yet long bands of strong horizontal vapor transport typically imbedded in a low level jet ahead of a cold front of an extratropical cyclone, provide a sub-tropical connection to the Antarctic continent and are observed to significantly impact the affected region’s surface mass balance over short, extreme events. When an atmospheric river makes landfall on the Antarctic continent, their signature is clearly observed in increased downward longwave radiation, cloud liquid water content, surface temperature, snowfall, surface melt, and moisture transport.</p><p>Using an atmospheric river detection algorithm designed for Antarctica and regional climate simulations from MAR, we created a climatology of atmospheric river occurrence and their associated impacts on surface melt and snowfall. Despite their rarity of occurrence over Antarctica (maximum frequency of ~1.5% over a given point), they have produced significant impacts on melting and snowfall processes. From 1979-2017, atmospheric rivers landfalls and their associated radiative flux anomalies and foehn winds accounted for around 40% of the total summer surface melt on the Ross Ice Shelf (approaching 100% at higher elevations in Marie Byrd Land) and 40-80% of total winter surface melt on the ice shelves along the Antarctic Peninsula. On the other side of the continent in East Antarctica, atmospheric rivers have a greater influence on annual snowfall variability. There atmospheric rivers are responsible for 20-40% of annual snowfall with localized higher percentages across Dronning Maud Land, Amery Ice Shelf, and Wilkes Land.</p><p>Atmospheric river landfalls occur within a highly amplified polar jet pattern and often are found in the entrance region of a blocking ridge. Therefore, atmospheric river variability is connected with atmospheric blocking variability over the Southern Ocean. There has been a significant increase in atmospheric river activity over the Amundsen-Bellingshausen sea and coastline and into Dronning Maud Land region from 1980-2018. Meanwhile, there is a significant decreasing trend in the region surrounding Law Dome. Our results suggest that atmospheric rivers play a significant role in the Antarctic surface mass balance, and that any future changes in atmospheric blocking or tropical-polar teleconnections may have significant impacts on future surface mass balance projections.</p>

Τὸ Δέμα: A Survey of the Aigaleos–Parnes Wall

1957 ◽  
Vol 52 ◽  
pp. 152-189
Author(s):  
J. E. Jones ◽  
L. H. Sackett ◽  
C. W. J. Eliot
Keyword(s):  
Field Survey ◽  
Full Description ◽  
The South ◽  
The Past ◽  
Detailed Survey ◽  
The North ◽  
The City ◽  
North Western

The wall surveyed in this article is a continuous defensive fieldwork in north-western Attica, situated some six miles from Athens; it closes a prominent gap in the mountain-ring around the city, linking the ranges of Aigaleos to the south and Parnes to the north (Fig. 1). The local name for this wall, Τὸ Δέμα ‘The Link’, is both apt and specific and is being used in this article; in the past the wall has sometimes been referred to as the Aigaleos–Parnes wall and sometimes also as the Ano-Liosia wall from its relation to the nearest modern village.The lack of a detailed survey of the Dema, combined with a complete absence of literary references in ancient authors, has compelled earlier writers to base their theories largely on grounds of historical probability. The divergences in their conclusions are not surprising, and clearly demonstrate the need for detailed information about the remains. We have accordingly made a field survey of the Dema and offer a full description of the wall in the belief that this will lead to a truer interpretation of its function and also its date.

scholarly journals Ice-rise stratigraphy reveals changes in surface mass balance over the last millennia in Dronning Maud Land

2018 ◽  
Vol 64 (248) ◽  
pp. 932-942 ◽  
Author(s):  
VIKRAM GOEL ◽  
CARLOS MARTÍN ◽  
KENICHI MATSUOKA
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Surface Mass Balance ◽  
Synoptic Scale ◽  
Ice Flow ◽  
Glacial Retreat ◽  
Surface Mass ◽  
The Past ◽  
Dronning Maud Land ◽  
Atmospheric Changes ◽  
Ice Model

ABSTRACTWe use ice flow modelling to simulate the englacial stratigraphy of Blåskimen Island, an ice rise in Dronning Maud Land and elucidate the evolution of this data-sparse region. We apply a thermo-mechanically coupled Elmer/Ice model to a profile along flowlines and through the ice-rise summit, where surface mass balance (SMB), flow velocity and ice stratigraphy were recently measured. We conclude that: (i) the ice rise is presently thickening at a rate of 0.5~0.6 m ice equivalent per year (mieq a−1), which is twice an earlier estimate using the field data and the input–output method; (ii) present thickening started 20–40 years in the past, before which the ice rise was in a steady state; (iii) SMB contrast between the upwind and downwind slopes was stronger than the present value by ~23% (or 0.15 mieq a−1) prior to ~1100 years ago. Since then, this contrast has been decreasing overall. We surmise that these SMB changes are likely a result of synoptic-scale atmospheric changes, rather than local atmospheric changes controlled by local ice topography. Our technique effectively assimilates geophysical data, avoiding the complexity of ice flow beneath the ice divide. Thus, it could be applied to other ice rises to elucidate the recent glacial retreat.

scholarly journals A Reconsideration of the Mass Balance of a Portion of the Ross Ice Shelf, Antarctica

1984 ◽  
Vol 30 (106) ◽  
pp. 381-384 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth C. Jezek ◽  
Charles R. Bentley
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Small Region ◽  
Volume Element ◽  
Ice Shelf ◽  
Ross Ice Shelf ◽  
The North ◽  
Ice Velocity ◽  
Flow Band ◽  
Input Gate ◽  
North Western

AbstractThe identification of a small region of grounded ice in the north-western sector of the Ross Ice Shelf has forced a re-evaluation of the mass-balance calculations carried out by Thomas and Bentley (1978). Those authors concluded that the Ross Ice Shelf up-stream of Crary Ice Rise was thickening, but they did not take into account the effects on the velocity field of grounded ice (of which they were unaware), which is located near the input gate to their volume element. Reasonable estimates of the degree to which the ice velocity just up-stream of the grounded ice is diminished indicate that it is no longer possible to conclude that the ice shelf is thickening using Thomas and Bentley’s original flow band. Therefore, a new flow band was chosen which was grid east of Thomas and Bentley’s band and unaffected by any nearby grounded areas. The mass balance in this flow band was found to be zero within experimental error; a difference exceeding about 0.2 m a−1in magnitude between the thickening and bottom freeze-on rates is unlikely.

scholarly journals Surface mass balance on Fimbul ice shelf, East Antarctica: Comparison of field measurements and large-scale studies

2013 ◽  
Vol 118 (20) ◽  
pp. 11,625-11,635 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Sinisalo ◽  
Helgard Anschütz ◽  
Anne Tårånd Aasen ◽  
Kirsty Langley ◽  
Angela von Deschwanden ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Field Measurements ◽  
East Antarctica ◽  
Surface Mass Balance ◽  
Ice Shelf ◽  
Surface Mass

Loadings of Selected Chemicals into the St. Lawrence River System from Lake Ontario, 1986/87

1989 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 589-608 ◽  
Author(s):  
I.K. Tsanis ◽  
J. Biberhofer ◽  
C.R. Murthy ◽  
A. Sylvestre
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Lake Ontario ◽  
River System ◽  
Vertical Gradient ◽  
The South ◽  
Measured Concentration ◽  
Chemical Monitoring ◽  
The North ◽  
Loading Estimates ◽  
St Lawrence River

Abstract Determination of the mass output through the St. Lawrence River outflow system is an important component in computing mass balance of chemical loadings to Lake Ontario. The total flow rate in the St. Lawrence River System at the Wolfe Island area was calculated from detailed time series current meter measurements from a network of current meters and Lagrangian drifter experiments. This flow is roughly distributed in the ratio of 55% to 45% in the South and North channel, respectively. Loading estimates of selected chemicals have been made by combining the above transport calculations with the ongoing chemical monitoring data at the St. Lawrence outflow. A vertical gradient in the concentration of some organic and inorganic chemicals was observed. The measured concentration for some of the chemicals was higher during the summer months and also is higher in the South Channel than in the North Channel of the St. Lawrence River. These loading estimates are useful not only for modelling the mass balance of chemicals in Lake Ontario but also for serving as input loadings to the St. Lawrence River system from Lake Ontario.

New determinations of tides on the north-western Ross Ice Shelf

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Richard D. Ray ◽  
Kristine M. Larson ◽  
Bruce J. Haines
Keyword(s):  
Time Series ◽  
Tide Gauge ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Ice Shelf ◽  
Ross Ice Shelf ◽  
The North ◽  
Global Positioning ◽  
North Western

Abstract New determinations of ocean tides are extracted from high-rate Global Positioning System (GPS) solutions at nine stations sitting on the Ross Ice Shelf. Five are multi-year time series. Three older time series are only 2–3 weeks long. These are not ideal, but they are still useful because they provide the only in situ tide observations in that sector of the ice shelf. The long tide-gauge observations from Scott Base and Cape Roberts are also reanalysed. They allow determination of some previously neglected tidal phenomena in this region, such as third-degree tides, and they provide context for analysis of the shorter datasets. The semidiurnal tides are small at all sites, yet M2 undergoes a clear seasonal cycle, which was first noted by Sir George Darwin while studying measurements from the Discovery expedition. Darwin saw a much larger modulation than we observe, and we consider possible explanations - instrumental or climatic - for this difference.

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