Constraints on holocene ice-thickness changes in central Greenland from the GISP2 ice-core data

Abstract

The depth–age relation observed in the GISP2 ice core is the result of the integrated effects of ice-sheet changes over time, as well as the accumulation-rate history. Here, we construct a forward model to compute ages at various depths in the core. In the model, these ages are functions of parameters that describe the ice thickness as a function of time. Using the maximum-likelihood inverse method, these parameters are iteratively adjusted until measured and computed ages agree satisfactorily. The results suggest that the thickness along the flowline connecting the GISP2 and GRIP drill sites has not changed significantly since the onset of the Holocene. We also derive bounds on the likely thickness changes. Because these bounds are independent of assumptions concerning the processes driving the ice-sheet evolution, they can provide useful constraints for other ice-sheet modeling efforts.