Rapid Viscoelastic Deformation Slows Marine Ice Sheet Instability at Pine Island Glacier
The ice sheets of the Amundsen Sea Embayment (ASE) are vulnerable to the marine ice sheet instability (MISI), which could cause irreversible collapse and raise sea levels by over a meter. The uncertain timing and scale of this collapse depend on the complex interaction between ice, ocean, and bedroc...
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ftcdlib:oai:escholarship.org/ark:/13030/qt5mv7v85d 2023-05-15T13:24:04+02:00 Rapid Viscoelastic Deformation Slows Marine Ice Sheet Instability at Pine Island Glacier Kachuck, SB Martin, DF Bassis, JN Price, SF 2020-05-28 application/pdf https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5mv7v85d unknown eScholarship, University of California qt5mv7v85d https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5mv7v85d public Geophysical Research Letters, vol 47, iss 10 marine ice sheet instability solid Earth feedback glacial isostatic adjustment mantle rheology West Antarctica Pine Island Glacier Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences article 2020 ftcdlib 2021-06-21T17:05:37Z The ice sheets of the Amundsen Sea Embayment (ASE) are vulnerable to the marine ice sheet instability (MISI), which could cause irreversible collapse and raise sea levels by over a meter. The uncertain timing and scale of this collapse depend on the complex interaction between ice, ocean, and bedrock dynamics. The mantle beneath the ASE is likely less viscous (∼1018 Pa s) than the Earth's average mantle (∼1021 Pa s). Here we show that an effective equilibrium between Pine Island Glacier's retreat and the response of a weak viscoelastic mantle can reduce ice mass lost by almost 30% over 150 years. Other components of solid Earth response—purely elastic deformations and geoid perturbations—provide less stability than the viscoelastic response alone. Uncertainties in mantle rheology, topography, and basal melt affect how much stability we expect, if any. Our study indicates the importance of considering viscoelastic uplift during the rapid retreat associated with MISI. Article in Journal/Newspaper Amundsen Sea Antarc* Antarctica Ice Sheet Pine Island Pine Island Glacier West Antarctica University of California: eScholarship Amundsen Sea Misi ENVELOPE(26.683,26.683,66.617,66.617) Pine Island Glacier ENVELOPE(-101.000,-101.000,-75.000,-75.000) West Antarctica |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
University of California: eScholarship |
op_collection_id |
ftcdlib |
language |
unknown |
topic |
marine ice sheet instability solid Earth feedback glacial isostatic adjustment mantle rheology West Antarctica Pine Island Glacier Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences |
spellingShingle |
marine ice sheet instability solid Earth feedback glacial isostatic adjustment mantle rheology West Antarctica Pine Island Glacier Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences Kachuck, SB Martin, DF Bassis, JN Price, SF Rapid Viscoelastic Deformation Slows Marine Ice Sheet Instability at Pine Island Glacier |
topic_facet |
marine ice sheet instability solid Earth feedback glacial isostatic adjustment mantle rheology West Antarctica Pine Island Glacier Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences |
description |
The ice sheets of the Amundsen Sea Embayment (ASE) are vulnerable to the marine ice sheet instability (MISI), which could cause irreversible collapse and raise sea levels by over a meter. The uncertain timing and scale of this collapse depend on the complex interaction between ice, ocean, and bedrock dynamics. The mantle beneath the ASE is likely less viscous (∼1018 Pa s) than the Earth's average mantle (∼1021 Pa s). Here we show that an effective equilibrium between Pine Island Glacier's retreat and the response of a weak viscoelastic mantle can reduce ice mass lost by almost 30% over 150 years. Other components of solid Earth response—purely elastic deformations and geoid perturbations—provide less stability than the viscoelastic response alone. Uncertainties in mantle rheology, topography, and basal melt affect how much stability we expect, if any. Our study indicates the importance of considering viscoelastic uplift during the rapid retreat associated with MISI. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Kachuck, SB Martin, DF Bassis, JN Price, SF |
author_facet |
Kachuck, SB Martin, DF Bassis, JN Price, SF |
author_sort |
Kachuck, SB |
title |
Rapid Viscoelastic Deformation Slows Marine Ice Sheet Instability at Pine Island Glacier |
title_short |
Rapid Viscoelastic Deformation Slows Marine Ice Sheet Instability at Pine Island Glacier |
title_full |
Rapid Viscoelastic Deformation Slows Marine Ice Sheet Instability at Pine Island Glacier |
title_fullStr |
Rapid Viscoelastic Deformation Slows Marine Ice Sheet Instability at Pine Island Glacier |
title_full_unstemmed |
Rapid Viscoelastic Deformation Slows Marine Ice Sheet Instability at Pine Island Glacier |
title_sort |
rapid viscoelastic deformation slows marine ice sheet instability at pine island glacier |
publisher |
eScholarship, University of California |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5mv7v85d |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(26.683,26.683,66.617,66.617) ENVELOPE(-101.000,-101.000,-75.000,-75.000) |
geographic |
Amundsen Sea Misi Pine Island Glacier West Antarctica |
geographic_facet |
Amundsen Sea Misi Pine Island Glacier West Antarctica |
genre |
Amundsen Sea Antarc* Antarctica Ice Sheet Pine Island Pine Island Glacier West Antarctica |
genre_facet |
Amundsen Sea Antarc* Antarctica Ice Sheet Pine Island Pine Island Glacier West Antarctica |
op_source |
Geophysical Research Letters, vol 47, iss 10 |
op_relation |
qt5mv7v85d https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5mv7v85d |
op_rights |
public |
_version_ |
1766377223721320448 |