Ice Sheet Interior Research Articles

A new bed elevation model for the Weddell Sea sector of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet

Abstract. We present a new digital elevation model (DEM) of the bed, with a 1 km gridding, of the Weddell Sea (WS) sector of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS). The DEM has a total area of ∼ 125 000 km2 covering the Institute, Möller and Foundation ice streams, as well as the Bungenstock ice rise. In comparison with the Bedmap2 product, our DEM includes new aerogeophysical datasets acquired by the Center for Remote Sensing of Ice Sheets (CReSIS) through the NASA Operation IceBridge (OIB) program in 2012, 2014 and 2016. We also improve bed elevation information from the single largest existing dataset in the region, collected by the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) Polarimetric radar Airborne Science Instrument (PASIN) in 2010–2011, from the relatively crude measurements determined in the field for quality control purposes used in Bedmap2. While the gross form of the new DEM is similar to Bedmap2, there are some notable differences. For example, the position and size of a deep subglacial trough (∼ 2 km below sea level) between the ice-sheet interior and the grounding line of the Foundation Ice Stream have been redefined. From the revised DEM, we are able to better derive the expected routing of basal water and, by comparison with that calculated using Bedmap2, we are able to assess regions where hydraulic flow is sensitive to change. Given the potential vulnerability of this sector to ocean-induced melting at the grounding line, especially in light of the improved definition of the Foundation Ice Stream trough, our revised DEM will be of value to ice-sheet modelling in efforts to quantify future glaciological changes in the region and, from this, the potential impact on global sea level. The new 1 km bed elevation product of the WS sector can be found at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1035488.

500–2000-MHz Brightness Temperature Spectra of the Northwestern Greenland Ice Sheet

An ultra-wideband radiometer has been developed to measure subsurface properties of the cryosphere including ice sheets and sea ice. The radiometer measures brightness temperature spectra from 0.5 to 2 GHz using 12 channels, each of which measures scene brightness temperatures over an ~88-MHz bandwidth resolved into 0.24-MHz intervals. The instrument was flown over northwestern Greenland in September 2016 and acquired the first, wideband, low-frequency brightness temperature spectra over the ice sheet and coastal region. The results reveal strong spatial and spectral variations that correlate well with the physical properties of the surface encountered along the flight path, which started over ocean, then passed the rock near the coast, and then up onto the ablation, wet, percolation, and dry snow zones of the interior ice sheet. In particular, strong spectral responses in percolation and dry snow zones are observed and plausibly explained by varying the distribution of horizontal density layers and isolated icy bodies in the upper portion of the firn. The success of the airborne deployment of the instrument and subsequent implementation of algorithms to limit radio frequency interference in unprotected bands is motivating continued airborne investigations as well as stimulating research into the feasibility of a spaceborne instrument.

Greenland‐Wide Seasonal Temperatures During the Last Deglaciation

AbstractThe sensitivity of the Greenland ice sheet to climate forcing is of key importance in assessing its contribution to past and future sea level rise. Surface mass loss occurs during summer, and accounting for temperature seasonality is critical in simulating ice sheet evolution and in interpreting glacial landforms and chronologies. Ice core records constrain the timing and magnitude of climate change but are largely limited to annual mean estimates from the ice sheet interior. Here we merge ice core reconstructions with transient climate model simulations to generate Greenland‐wide and seasonally resolved surface air temperature fields during the last deglaciation. Greenland summer temperatures peak in the early Holocene, consistent with records of ice core melt layers. We perform deglacial Greenland ice sheet model simulations to demonstrate that accounting for realistic temperature seasonality decreases simulated glacial ice volume, expedites the deglacial margin retreat, mutes the impact of abrupt climate warming, and gives rise to a clear Holocene ice volume minimum.

Ice streams of the Late Wisconsin Cordilleran Ice Sheet in western North America

The Late Wisconsin Cordilleran Ice Sheet (CIS) of western North America is thought to have reached its maximum extent (∼2.5 × 106 km2) as late at c. 14.5 ka. Most (80%) of the ice sheet's bed consists of high mountains but its ‘core zone’ sited on plateaux of the Intermontane Belt of British Columbia and coterminous parts of the USA, shows broad swaths of subglacially-streamlined rock and sediment. Broad scale mapping from new digital imagery data identifies three subglacial bed types: 1) ‘hard beds’ of variably streamlined bedrock; 2) drumlinized ‘soft beds’ of deformation till reworked from antecedent sediment, and 3) ‘mixed beds’ of variably-streamlined bedrock protruding through drumlinized sediment. Drumlins on soft beds appear to be erosional features cut into till and antecedent sediments, and identify the catchment areas of paleo ice streams expressed downglacier as flow sets of megascale glacial lineations (MSGLs). ‘Grooved’ and ‘cloned’ drumlins appear to record the transition from drumlins to MSGLs. The location of paleo ice streams reflects topographic funneling of ice from plateau surfaces through outlet valleys and a soft bed that sustained fast flow; rock-cut MSGLs are also present locally on the floors of outlet valleys. CIS disintegrated in <1000 years shortly after c. 13.0 ka releasing very large volumes of meltwater and sediment to the Pacific coast. Abrupt deglaciation may reflect unsustainable calving of marine-based ice streams along the glacio-isostatically depressed coast; large deep ‘fiord lakes’ in the ice sheet's interior may have played an analogous role. Mapping of the broad scale distribution of bed types across the Cordilleran Ice Sheet provides key information for paleoglaciological modelling and also for understanding the beds of modern ice masses such as the Greenland Ice Sheet which is of a comparable topographic setting.

Cosmogenic nuclides constrain surface fluctuations of an East Antarctic outlet glacier since the Pliocene

Understanding past changes in the Antarctic ice sheets provides insight into how they might respond to future climate warming. During the Pliocene and Pleistocene, geological data show that the East Antarctic Ice Sheet responded to glacial and interglacial cycles by remaining relatively stable in its interior, but oscillating at its marine-based margin. It is currently not clear how outlet glaciers, which connect the ice sheet interior to its margin, responded to these orbitally-paced climate cycles. Here we report new ice surface constraints from Skelton Glacier, an outlet of the East Antarctic ice sheet, which drains into the Ross Ice Shelf. Our multiple-isotope (10Be and 26Al) cosmogenic nuclide data indicate that currently ice-free areas adjacent to the glacier underwent substantial periods of exposure and ice cover in the past. We use an exposure-burial model driven by orbitally-paced glacial–interglacial cycles to determine the probable ice surface history implied by our data. This analysis shows that: 1) the glacier surface has likely fluctuated since at least the Pliocene; 2) the ice surface was >200 m higher than today during glacial periods, and the glacier has been thicker than present for ∼75–90% of each glacial–interglacial cycle; and 3) ice cover at higher elevations possibly occurred for a relatively shorter time per Pliocene cycle than Pleistocene cycle. Our multiple-nuclide approach demonstrates the magnitude of ice surface fluctuations during the Pliocene and Pleistocene that are linked to marine-based ice margin variability.

Improving the Representation of Polar Snow and Firn in the Community Earth System Model

AbstractIn Earth system models, terrestrial snow is usually modeled by the land surface component. In most cases, these snow models have been developed with an emphasis on seasonal snow. Questions about future sea level rise, however, prompt the need for a realistic representation of perennial snow, as snow processes play a key role in the mass balance of glaciers and ice sheets. Here we enhance realism of modeled polar snow in the Community Land Model (CLM), the land component of the Community Earth System Model (CESM), by implementing (1) new parametrizations for fresh snow density, destructive metamorphism, and compaction by overburden pressure, (2) by allowing for deeper snow packs, and (3) by introducing drifting snow compaction, with a focus on the ice sheet interior. Comparison with Greenlandic and Antarctic snow density observations show that the new physics improve model skill in predicting firn and near‐surface density in the absence of melt. Moreover, compensating biases are removed and spurious subsurface melt rates at ice sheets are eliminated. The deeper snow pack enhances refreezing and allows for deeper percolation, raising ice temperatures up to 15°C above the skin temperature.

DEM DEVELOPMENT AND PRECISION ANALYSIS FOR ANTARCTIC ICE SHEET USING CRYOSAT‐2 ALTIMETRY DATA

AbstractDigital elevation models (DEMs) are of fundamental importance to many geoscientific and environmental studies in Antarctic and due to relatively poor coverage by ground based surveys, the main data source for constructing an Antarctic DEM is satellite altimetry. The newest operating satellite‐borne altimeter with ice applications is the ESA satellite CryoSat‐2, which was launched in April 2010. CryoSat‐2 provides altimetry data up to a latitude of 88°S/N, which is a significant improvement to previous satellite‐borne altimeters. Based on two full cycles of CryoSat‐2 observations acquired between December 2012 and January 2015, we derived a new DEM for the Antarctic Ice Sheet. The accuracy of generated DEM depends largely on the interpolation method adopted and five widely used interpolation methods were compared using the Cross Validation method. The Kriging method yielded better estimates for the Antarctic Ice Sheet and was adopted when constructing the final DEM. For the CryoSat‐2 LRM data we followed an iterative approach to correct for the surface slope, and the slope correction was applied to each data point using the relocation method. Data gap beyond the latitudinal limit of the CryoSat‐2 mission (88°S) was filled by contour data from Antarctic Digital Database (ADD). Finally, we present a new Antarctic DEM with a pixel size of 1 km×1 km. The accuracy of the final DEM was assessed by ICESat, IceBridge and GPS data and compared with four widely used Antarctic DEMs namely Bamber 1 km DEM, ICESat DEM, RAMPv2 DEM and JLB97 DEM. The results show that the CryoSat‐2 DEM has an uncertainty of 0.73±8.398 m. The vertical accuracy of the DEM is better than 1 m at domes, better than 4 m for the ice shelves, better than 10 m for the interior ice sheet and over 150 m for the rugged mountainous and coastal areas.

Inland thinning on the Greenland ice sheet controlled by outlet glacier geometry

Greenland’s contribution to future sea-level rise remains uncertain and a wide range of upper and lower bounds has been proposed. These predictions depend strongly on how mass loss—which is focused at the termini of marine-terminating outlet glaciers—can penetrate inland to the ice-sheet interior. Previous studies have shown that, at regional scales, Greenland ice sheet mass loss is correlated with atmospheric and oceanic warming. However, mass loss within individual outlet glacier catchments exhibits unexplained heterogeneity, hindering our ability to project ice-sheet response to future environmental forcing. Using digital elevation model differencing, we spatially resolve the dynamic portion of surface elevation change from 1985 to present within 16 outlet glacier catchments in West Greenland, where significant heterogeneity in ice loss exists. We show that the up-glacier extent of thinning and, thus, mass loss, is limited by glacier geometry. We find that 94% of the total dynamic loss occurs between the terminus and the location where the down-glacier advective speed of a kinematic wave of thinning is at least three times larger than its diffusive speed. This empirical threshold enables the identification of glaciers that are not currently thinning but are most susceptible to future thinning in the coming decades. Greenland’s ice loss depends on propagation of mass loss from the marine glacier termini to the interior. An analysis of surface elevation change in 16 glacier catchments shows that the up-glacier extent of thinning is limited by glacier geometry.

Assessment of NASA airborne laser altimetry data using ground-based GPS data near Summit Station, Greenland

Abstract. A series of NASA airborne lidars have been used in support of satellite laser altimetry missions. These airborne laser altimeters have been deployed for satellite instrument development, for spaceborne data validation, and to bridge the data gap between satellite missions. We used data from ground-based Global Positioning System (GPS) surveys of an 11 km long track near Summit Station, Greenland, to assess the surface–elevation bias and measurement precision of three airborne laser altimeters including the Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM), the Land, Vegetation, and Ice Sensor (LVIS), and the Multiple Altimeter Beam Experimental Lidar (MABEL). Ground-based GPS data from the monthly ground-based traverses, which commenced in 2006, allowed for the assessment of nine airborne lidar surveys associated with ATM and LVIS between 2007 and 2016. Surface–elevation biases for these altimeters – over the flat, ice-sheet interior – are less than 0.12 m, while assessments of measurement precision are 0.09 m or better. Ground-based GPS positions determined both with and without differential post-processing techniques provided internally consistent solutions. Results from the analyses of ground-based and airborne data provide validation strategy guidance for the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite 2 (ICESat-2) elevation and elevation-change data products.

Simultaneous disintegration of outlet glaciers in Porpoise Bay (Wilkes Land), East Antarctica, driven by sea ice break-up

Abstract. The floating ice shelves and glacier tongues which fringe the Antarctic continent are important because they help buttress ice flow from the ice sheet interior. Dynamic feedbacks associated with glacier calving have the potential to reduce buttressing and subsequently increase ice flow into the ocean. However, there are few high temporal resolution studies on glacier calving, especially in East Antarctica. Here we use ENVISAT ASAR wide swath mode imagery to investigate monthly glacier terminus change across six marine-terminating outlet glaciers in Porpoise Bay (76° S, 128° E), Wilkes Land (East Antarctica), between November 2002 and March 2012. This reveals a large near-simultaneous calving event in January 2007, resulting in a total of ∼ 2900 km2 of ice being removed from glacier tongues. We also observe the start of a similar large near-simultaneous calving event in March 2016. Our observations suggest that both of these large calving events are driven by the break-up of the multi-year sea ice which usually occupies Porpoise Bay. However, these break-up events appear to have been driven by contrasting mechanisms. We link the 2007 sea ice break-up to atmospheric circulation anomalies in December 2005 weakening the multi-year sea ice through a combination of surface melt and a change in wind direction prior to its eventual break-up in January 2007. In contrast, the 2016 break-up event is linked to the terminus of Holmes (West) Glacier pushing the multi-year sea ice further into the open ocean, making the sea ice more vulnerable to break-up. In the context of predicted future warming and the sensitivity of sea ice to changes in climate, our results highlight the importance of interactions between landfast sea ice and glacier tongue stability in East Antarctica.

Rapid Access Ice Drill: a new tool for exploration of the deep Antarctic ice sheets and subglacial geology

ABSTRACTA new Rapid Access Ice Drill (RAID) will penetrate the Antarctic ice sheets in order to create borehole observatories and take cores in deep ice, the glacial bed and bedrock below. RAID is a mobile drilling system to make multiple long, narrow boreholes in a single field season in Antarctica. RAID is based on a mineral exploration-type rotary rock-coring system using threaded drill pipe to cut through ice using reverse circulation of a non-freezing fluid for pressure-compensation, maintenance of temperature and removal of ice cuttings. Near the bottom of the ice sheet, a wireline latching assembly will enable rapid coring of ice, the glacial bed and bedrock below. Once complete, boreholes will be kept open with fluid, capped and available for future down-hole measurement of temperature gradient, heat flow, ice chronology and ice deformation. RAID is designed to penetrate up to 3300 m of ice and take cores in &lt;200 hours, allowing completion of a borehole and coring in ~10 d at each site. Together, the rapid drilling capability and mobility of the system, along with ice-penetrating imaging methods, will provide a unique 3-D picture of interior and subglacial features of the Antarctic ice sheets.

Annual Greenland accumulation rates (2009–2012) from airborne snow radar

Abstract. Contemporary climate warming over the Arctic is accelerating mass loss from the Greenland Ice Sheet through increasing surface melt, emphasizing the need to closely monitor its surface mass balance in order to improve sea-level rise predictions. Snow accumulation is the largest component of the ice sheet's surface mass balance, but in situ observations thereof are inherently sparse and models are difficult to evaluate at large scales. Here, we quantify recent Greenland accumulation rates using ultra-wideband (2–6.5 GHz) airborne snow radar data collected as part of NASA's Operation IceBridge between 2009 and 2012. We use a semiautomated method to trace the observed radiostratigraphy and then derive annual net accumulation rates for 2009–2012. The uncertainty in these radar-derived accumulation rates is on average 14 %. A comparison of the radar-derived accumulation rates and contemporaneous ice cores shows that snow radar captures both the annual and long-term mean accumulation rate accurately. A comparison with outputs from a regional climate model (MAR) shows that this model matches radar-derived accumulation rates in the ice sheet interior but produces higher values over southeastern Greenland. Our results demonstrate that snow radar can efficiently and accurately map patterns of snow accumulation across an ice sheet and that it is valuable for evaluating the accuracy of surface mass balance models.

MABEL photon-counting laser altimetry data in Alaska for ICESat-2 simulations and development

Abstract. Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) is scheduled to launch in late 2017 and will carry the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System (ATLAS), which is a photon-counting laser altimeter and represents a new approach to satellite determination of surface elevation. Given the new technology of ATLAS, an airborne instrument, the Multiple Altimeter Beam Experimental Lidar (MABEL), was developed to provide data needed for satellite-algorithm development and ICESat-2 error analysis. MABEL was deployed out of Fairbanks, Alaska, in July 2014 to provide a test dataset for algorithm development in summer conditions with water-saturated snow and ice surfaces. Here we compare MABEL lidar data to in situ observations in Southeast Alaska to assess instrument performance in summer conditions and in the presence of glacier surface melt ponds and a wet snowpack. Results indicate the following: (1) based on MABEL and in situ data comparisons, the ATLAS 90 m beam-spacing strategy will provide a valid assessment of across-track slope that is consistent with shallow slopes (&lt; 1°) of an ice-sheet interior over 50 to 150 m length scales; (2) the dense along-track sampling strategy of photon counting systems can provide crevasse detail; and (3) MABEL 532 nm wavelength light may sample both the surface and subsurface of shallow (approximately 2 m deep) supraglacial melt ponds. The data associated with crevasses and melt ponds indicate the potential ICESat-2 will have for the study of mountain and other small glaciers.

Evidence for variable grounding-zone and shear-margin basal conditions across Thwaites Glacier, West Antarctica

Definitive interpretation of ice-sheet basal conditions from radar-sounding data beneath outlet-glacier grounding zones and shear margins can be problematic due to poorly constrained and spatially variable englacial attenuation rates and losses from propagation through a rough ice surface. To correct for spatially variable attenuation rates, we developed a novel radar analysis approach that provided improved empirical attenuation correction by fitting linearly variable attenuation rates along radar-sounding profiles from the ice-sheet interior to the grounding zone. We also corrected for ice-surface propagation losses by using surface echo amplitude distributions to constrain the loss of coherent power for surface reflections and two-way propagation through a rough ice surface. By applying this approach to airborne radar-sounding observations of the Thwaites Glacier catchment in West Antarctica, we produced relative reflectivity profiles, which show grounding-zone basal conditions varying across the Amundsen Sea Embayment. Additionally, these techniques provided improved characterization of basal conditions across shear margins, showing that — contrary to previous interpretations — the eastern shear margin of Thwaites Glacier corresponded to a change in basal conditions consistent with a transition from frozen to thawed bed.

Coast-to-interior gradient in recent northwest Greenland precipitation trends (1952–2012)

The spatial and temporal variability of precipitation on the Greenland ice sheet is an essential component of surface mass balance, which has been declining in recent years with rising temperatures. We present an analysis of precipitation trends in northwest (NW) Greenland (1952–2012) using instrumental (coastal meteorological station) and proxy records (snow pits and ice cores) to characterize the precipitation gradient from the coast to the ice sheet interior. Snow-pit-derived precipitation near the coast (1950–2000) has increased (∼7% decade−1, p < 0.01) whereas there is no significant change observed in interior snow pits. This trend holds for 1981–2012, where calculated precipitation changes decrease in magnitude with increasing distance from the coast: 13% decade−1 (2.4 mm water equivalent (w.e.) decade−2) at coastal Thule air base (AB), 8.6% decade−1 (4.7 mm w.e. decade−2) at the 2Barrel ice core site 150 km from Thule AB, −5.2% decade−1 (1.7 mm w.e. decade−2) at Camp Century located 205 km from Thule AB, and 4.4% decade−1 (1.0 mm w.e. decade−2) at B26 located 500 km from Thule AB. In general, annually averaged precipitation and annually and seasonally averaged mean air temperatures observed at Thule AB follow trends observed in composite coastal Greenland time series, with both notably indicating winter as the fastest warming season in recent periods (1981–2012). Trends (1961–2012) in seasonal precipitation differ, specifically with NW Greenland summer precipitation increasing (∼0.6 mm w.e. decade−2) in contrast with decreasing summer precipitation in the coastal composite time series (3.8 mm w.e. decade−2). Differences in precipitation trends between NW Greenland and coastal composite Greenland underscore the heterogeneity in climate influences affecting precipitation. In particular, recent (1981–2012) changes in NW Greenland annual precipitation are likely a response to a weakening North Atlantic oscillation.

Elevation change around Dome A region of Antarctica from EnviSat satellite radar altimetry during 2002–2012

The expected responses of ice sheets to climate warming are growth in the thickness of the inland ice areas and thinning near the margins. In recent decades, researchers have identified glacier acceleration along Antarctic ice sheet coastal margins. However, the study of ice sheet interiors where seasonal accumulation eventually balances ice wastage at the lower elevation is poorly understood. In this paper, the ice sheet elevation change around Dome A region is analyzed from 2002 to 2012 using two million elevation change measurements from EnviSat satellite radar altimeter data covering an area of about 7000 km2. A declining trend of 0.572 ± 1.31 mm/year which means that the Dome A region was in balance during the last decade can be captured. In addition, two obvious changes in accumulation which divide elevation change time series into three independent equilibration stages are also extracted. In order to explain this phenomenon, two speculations related to snowfall and firn compaction are proposed in this paper.

Concurrent Use of OSCAT and AltiKa to Characterize Antarctic Ice Surface Features

Radar altimetry provides an important geophysical parameter, backscatter coefficient (σ0), which is useful in studying target surface characteristics. Ku-band (Oceansat-2 scatterometer- OSCAT) and Ka-band (SARAL-AltiKa altimeter) data are concurrently used to characterize polar surface features over the Antarctic region. Maximum-likelihood classification has been employed to classify combined data set (AltiKa and OSCAT) for discrimination among sea ice, open water, and ice sheet (interior and exterior). The sea ice region obtained using the current approach has been compared with sea ice boundary derived from passive microwave data.

Amplified melt and flow of the Greenland ice sheet driven by late-summer cyclonic rainfall

Intense rainfall events significantly affect Alpine and Alaskan glaciers through enhanced melting, ice-flow acceleration and subglacial sediment erosion, yet their impact on the Greenland ice sheet has not been assessed. Here we present measurements of ice velocity, subglacial water pressure and meteorological variables from the western margin of the Greenland ice sheet during a week of warm, wet cyclonic weather in late August and early September 2011. We find that extreme surface runoff from melt and rainfall led to a widespread acceleration in ice flow that extended 140 km into the ice-sheet interior. We suggest that the late-season timing was critical in promoting rapid runoff across an extensive bare ice surface that overwhelmed a subglacial hydrological system in transition to a less-efficient winter mode. Reanalysis data reveal that similar cyclonic weather conditions prevailed across southern and western Greenland during this time, and we observe a corresponding ice-flow response at all land- and marine-terminating glaciers in these regions for which data are available. Given that the advection of warm, moist air masses and rainfall over Greenland is expected to become more frequent in the coming decades, our findings portend a previously unforeseen vulnerability of the Greenland ice sheet to climate change.

Considering thermal-viscous collapse of the Greenland ice sheet.

We explore potential changes in Greenland ice sheet form and flow associated with increasing ice temperatures and relaxing effective ice viscosities. We define “thermal‐viscous collapse” as a transition from the polythermal ice sheet temperature distribution characteristic of the Holocene to temperate ice at the pressure melting point and associated lower viscosities. The conceptual model of thermal‐viscous collapse we present is dependent on: (1) sufficient energy available in future meltwater runoff, (2) routing of meltwater to the bed of the ice sheet interior, and (3) efficient energy transfer from meltwater to the ice. Although we do not attempt to constrain the probability of thermal‐viscous collapse, it appears thermodynamically plausible to warm the deepest 15% of the ice sheet, where the majority of deformational shear occurs, to the pressure melting point within four centuries. First‐order numerical modeling of an end‐member scenario, in which prescribed ice temperatures are warmed at an imposed rate of 0.05 K/a, infers a decrease in ice sheet volume of 5 ± 2% within five centuries of initiating collapse. This is equivalent to a cumulative sea‐level rise contribution of 33 ± 18 cm. The vast majority of the sea‐level rise contribution associated with thermal‐viscous collapse, however, would likely be realized over subsequent millennia.

Charles Swithinbank

Charles Swithinbank