Rapid loss of the Ayles Ice Shelf, Ellesmere Island, Canada
On August 13, 2005, almost the entire Ayles Ice Shelf (87.1 km2) calved off within an hour and created a new 66.4 km2 ice island in the Arctic Ocean. This loss of one of the six remaining Ellesmere Island ice shelves reduced their overall area by ∼7.5%. The ice shelf was likely weakened prior to cal...
| Published in: | Geophysical Research Letters |
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| Main Authors: | , , |
| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2007
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://ir.library.carleton.ca/pub/25900 https://doi.org/10.1029/2007GL031809 |
| Summary: | On August 13, 2005, almost the entire Ayles Ice Shelf (87.1 km2) calved off within an hour and created a new 66.4 km2 ice island in the Arctic Ocean. This loss of one of the six remaining Ellesmere Island ice shelves reduced their overall area by ∼7.5%. The ice shelf was likely weakened prior to calving by a long-term negative mass balance related to an increase in mean annual temperatures over the past 50+ years. The weakened ice shelf then calved during The warmest summer on record in a period of high winds, record low sea ice conditions and the loss of a semi-permanent landfast sea ice fringe. Climate reanalysis suggests that a threshold of >200 positive degree days year-1 is important in determining when ice shelf calving events occur on N. Ellesmere Island. Copyright 2007 by the American Geophysical Union. |
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