Analysis of Antarctic Peninsula glacier frontal ablation rates with respect to iceberg melt-inferred variability in ocean conditions
Abstract Marine-terminating glaciers on the Antarctic Peninsula (AP) have retreated, accelerated and thinned in response to climate change in recent decades. Ocean warming has been implicated as a trigger for these changes in glacier dynamics, yet little data exist near glacier termini to assess the...
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/jog.2020.21 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0022143020000210 |
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crcambridgeupr:10.1017/jog.2020.21 2024-04-28T08:00:07+00:00 Analysis of Antarctic Peninsula glacier frontal ablation rates with respect to iceberg melt-inferred variability in ocean conditions Dryak, M. C. Enderlin, E. M. 2020 http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/jog.2020.21 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0022143020000210 en eng Cambridge University Press (CUP) http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Journal of Glaciology volume 66, issue 257, page 457-470 ISSN 0022-1430 1727-5652 Earth-Surface Processes journal-article 2020 crcambridgeupr https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2020.21 2024-04-02T06:54:22Z Abstract Marine-terminating glaciers on the Antarctic Peninsula (AP) have retreated, accelerated and thinned in response to climate change in recent decades. Ocean warming has been implicated as a trigger for these changes in glacier dynamics, yet little data exist near glacier termini to assess the role of ocean warming here. We use remotely-sensed iceberg melt rates seaward of two glaciers on the eastern and six glaciers on the western AP from 2013 to 2019 to explore connections between variations in ocean conditions and glacier frontal ablation. We find iceberg melt rates follow regional ocean temperature variations, with the highest melt rates (mean ≈ 10 cm d −1 ) at Cadman and Widdowson glaciers in the west and the lowest melt rates (mean ≈ 0.5 cm d −1 ) at Crane Glacier in the east. Near-coincident glacier frontal ablation rates from 2014 to 2018 vary from ~450 m a −1 at Edgeworth and Blanchard glaciers to ~3000 m a −1 at Seller Glacier, former Wordie Ice Shelf tributary. Variations in iceberg melt rates and glacier frontal ablation rates are significantly positively correlated around the AP (Spearman's ρ = 0.71, p -value = 0.003). We interpret this correlation as support for previous research suggesting submarine melting of glacier termini exerts control on glacier frontal dynamics around the AP. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula Crane Glacier Ice Shelf Iceberg* Journal of Glaciology Wordie Ice Shelf Cambridge University Press Journal of Glaciology 66 257 457 470 |
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Cambridge University Press |
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crcambridgeupr |
language |
English |
topic |
Earth-Surface Processes |
spellingShingle |
Earth-Surface Processes Dryak, M. C. Enderlin, E. M. Analysis of Antarctic Peninsula glacier frontal ablation rates with respect to iceberg melt-inferred variability in ocean conditions |
topic_facet |
Earth-Surface Processes |
description |
Abstract Marine-terminating glaciers on the Antarctic Peninsula (AP) have retreated, accelerated and thinned in response to climate change in recent decades. Ocean warming has been implicated as a trigger for these changes in glacier dynamics, yet little data exist near glacier termini to assess the role of ocean warming here. We use remotely-sensed iceberg melt rates seaward of two glaciers on the eastern and six glaciers on the western AP from 2013 to 2019 to explore connections between variations in ocean conditions and glacier frontal ablation. We find iceberg melt rates follow regional ocean temperature variations, with the highest melt rates (mean ≈ 10 cm d −1 ) at Cadman and Widdowson glaciers in the west and the lowest melt rates (mean ≈ 0.5 cm d −1 ) at Crane Glacier in the east. Near-coincident glacier frontal ablation rates from 2014 to 2018 vary from ~450 m a −1 at Edgeworth and Blanchard glaciers to ~3000 m a −1 at Seller Glacier, former Wordie Ice Shelf tributary. Variations in iceberg melt rates and glacier frontal ablation rates are significantly positively correlated around the AP (Spearman's ρ = 0.71, p -value = 0.003). We interpret this correlation as support for previous research suggesting submarine melting of glacier termini exerts control on glacier frontal dynamics around the AP. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Dryak, M. C. Enderlin, E. M. |
author_facet |
Dryak, M. C. Enderlin, E. M. |
author_sort |
Dryak, M. C. |
title |
Analysis of Antarctic Peninsula glacier frontal ablation rates with respect to iceberg melt-inferred variability in ocean conditions |
title_short |
Analysis of Antarctic Peninsula glacier frontal ablation rates with respect to iceberg melt-inferred variability in ocean conditions |
title_full |
Analysis of Antarctic Peninsula glacier frontal ablation rates with respect to iceberg melt-inferred variability in ocean conditions |
title_fullStr |
Analysis of Antarctic Peninsula glacier frontal ablation rates with respect to iceberg melt-inferred variability in ocean conditions |
title_full_unstemmed |
Analysis of Antarctic Peninsula glacier frontal ablation rates with respect to iceberg melt-inferred variability in ocean conditions |
title_sort |
analysis of antarctic peninsula glacier frontal ablation rates with respect to iceberg melt-inferred variability in ocean conditions |
publisher |
Cambridge University Press (CUP) |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/jog.2020.21 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0022143020000210 |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula Crane Glacier Ice Shelf Iceberg* Journal of Glaciology Wordie Ice Shelf |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula Crane Glacier Ice Shelf Iceberg* Journal of Glaciology Wordie Ice Shelf |
op_source |
Journal of Glaciology volume 66, issue 257, page 457-470 ISSN 0022-1430 1727-5652 |
op_rights |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2020.21 |
container_title |
Journal of Glaciology |
container_volume |
66 |
container_issue |
257 |
container_start_page |
457 |
op_container_end_page |
470 |
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1797572494479065088 |