Executive Summary The portion of West Antarctic ice sheet draining into the Amundsen Sea is melting, thinning, and retreating

• Main Author: Amundsen Sea
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Subjects: Amundsen Sea; Antarctic; West Antarctic Ice Sheet; Antarc*; Antarctica; Ice Sheet
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.693.8855; http://www.ig.utexas.edu/research/projects/agasea/publications/asep-final.pdf

rapidly, contributing to global sea-level rise. These are among the largest documented changes in Antarctica. The pressing need to understand these changes and to predict their effect on global sea level and the surrounding environment can be addressed through the research in this Science and Implementation Plan, which was developed within open community science meetings over the last few years. Satellite data have permitted reconnaissance of this area with unprecedented detail, but specific airborne, shipborne and surface field studies are essential to supply the necessary additional information to understand the cause of present changes and for accurate prediction. These field studies will be guided by the satellite data and can be conducted efficiently using research techniques refined in the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) program. The prediction will be made using advanced numerical models of ice flow now under development, that for the first time fully incorporate the critical flow dynamics identified during WAIS. Data collection will be guided by the needs of these models for an accurate specification of the character and history of the modern ice sheet and how it interacts with its surroundings. Elevation and surface-velocity data will be available from a number of existing and planned satellite missions, but additional data are required including: ice thickness and internal layer data from airborne radar; oceanic circulation on the continental shelf and under