New Insights into Past East Antarctic Margin Ice Sheet Behavior from Combined Geophysical and Geological Data Collected During RV Polarstern Expeditions PS140 and PS141 (EASI-2 and -3)  

Authors / CoAuthors

Klages, J.P. | Müller, J. | Weigelt, E. | McNeil, M. | Lembke-Jene, L. | Gohl, K. | Esper, O. | Schwarzbach, P. | Schulze-Tenberge, Y. | Mackintosh, A. | Krastel, S.

Abstract

<div>Compared to its inherently unstable West Antarctic companion, the East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS) as the largest ice mass on Earth, was long considered to react relatively robustly to external oceanic and/or atmospheric forcing. Many studies from recent years, however, revealed that ice masses in its marine-based portions such as the Wilkes and Aurora Subglacial Basins, which hold a potential sea-level equivalent of about 20 metres, may react just as sensitively. Currently, many outlet glaciers that connect into these deep hinterland basins are subject to significant ice flow acceleration and grounding-line retreat, hence may hint at potentially substantial ice losses in coming decades and centuries. Since those observations only cover a relatively short time period of several decades, it remains largely uncertain how the modern rapid changes in those sectors compare to ice sheet dynamics since the ice sheet’s last maximum extent some 20,000 years ago. Here, we report first results from newly acquired multibeam bathymetry, sediment echography and <em>in-situ</em> sediment core data from the Davis and Mawson Sea continental shelves, revealing major palaeo-ice stream troughs, grounding-line stabilization features, and extensive meltwater drainage systems. These new combined data will allow for establishing crucial spatiotemporal benchmarks for characterizing past ice sheet dynamics for these vulnerable EAIS portions, and with that deliver a needed framework for testing and validating palaeo-ice sheet models that ultimately aim at predicting their future response more reliably. Presented at the 29th International Polar Conference 'Dynamic Poles and High Mountain Environments'

Product Type

document

eCat Id

149619

Contact for the resource

Keywords

( Project )

• Antarctic Geoscience

( Project )

• Marine Geoscience

( Project )

• EASI-3

• Antarctica

• Ice Sheet

• EAIS

• conference material

• Seabed Mapping

• Sea Level

theme.ANZRC Fields of Research.rdf

• Marine Geoscience

• Published_External

Publication Date

2024-10-30T22:24:13

Creation Date

2024-05-18T22:00:00

Security Constraints

Australian Government Security Classification System    

Classification - unclassified

Legal Constraints

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence    

Access - license

Use - license

Status

completed

Purpose

This abstract is for submission to the International Glaciological Society 29th International Polar Conference 2024.

Maintenance Information

notPlanned

Topic Category

geoscientificInformation

Series Information

29th International Polar Conference 'Dynamic Poles and High Mountain Environment' 16-20 September 2024, Rauris Austria

Lineage

<div>This work results from marine geology expedition PS141 to the East Antarctic Margin from 6 February to 14 April 2024 on the RV <em>Polarstern</em>. Voyage data are embargoed.</div>

Parent Information

Extents

[-90.00, -60.516, -180.00, 180.00]

Reference System

Spatial Resolution

Service Information

Associations

Downloads and Links

Link to Conference Page  

Link to Conference Booklet  

Link to Abstract (page 97)  

Source Information