Mass balance of Campbell Glacier, East Antarctica, derived from COSMO-SkyMed interferometric SAR images

Abstract

We derived tide-corrected ice-flow velocity map (v-map) of Campbell Glacier Tongue (CGT) in East Antarctica from 14 COSMO-SkyMed one-day tandem interferometric SAR image pairs obtained in 2011. Ice-flow velocity was measured to increase from the upper part of Campbell Glacier (∼20 cm day−1) to the seaward edge of CGT (∼67 cm day−1). Ice thinning rate by flux of CGT was obtained by calculating ice flux divergence from the v-map and the ice thickness of 340±18 m estimated by the ICESat GLAS data. Basal melting of CGT was deduced from the ice thickening rate (−6.29±1.37 m a−1), surface mass balance (0.24±0.02 m a−1) and the ice flux divergence. Total amount of ice loss in CGT (330.9±72.0 Mt a−1) is more affected by ice flux divergence (214.6±26.7 Mt a−1) than basal melting (129.2±56.4 Mt a−1).