Satellite altimetry detection of ice-shelf-influenced fast ice
The outflow of supercooled Ice Shelf Water from the conjoined Ross and McMurdo ice shelf cavity augments fast ice thickness and forms a thick sub-ice platelet layer in McMurdo Sound. Here, we investigate whether the CryoSat-2 satellite radar altimeter can consistently detect the higher freeboard cau...
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ftcopernicus:oai:publications.copernicus.org:tc90065 2023-05-15T14:02:17+02:00 Satellite altimetry detection of ice-shelf-influenced fast ice Brett, Gemma M. Price, Daniel Rack, Wolfgang Langhorne, Patricia J. 2021-08-26 application/pdf https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4099-2021 https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/15/4099/2021/ eng eng doi:10.5194/tc-15-4099-2021 https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/15/4099/2021/ eISSN: 1994-0424 Text 2021 ftcopernicus https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4099-2021 2021-08-30T16:22:16Z The outflow of supercooled Ice Shelf Water from the conjoined Ross and McMurdo ice shelf cavity augments fast ice thickness and forms a thick sub-ice platelet layer in McMurdo Sound. Here, we investigate whether the CryoSat-2 satellite radar altimeter can consistently detect the higher freeboard caused by the thicker fast ice combined with the buoyant forcing of a sub-ice platelet layer beneath. Freeboards obtained from CryoSat-2 were compared with 4 years of drill-hole-measured sea ice freeboard, snow depth, and sea ice and sub-ice platelet layer thicknesses in McMurdo Sound in November 2011, 2013, 2017 and 2018. The spatial distribution of higher CryoSat-2 freeboard concurred with the distributions of thicker ice-shelf-influenced fast ice and the sub-ice platelet layer. The mean CryoSat-2 freeboard was 0.07–0.09 m higher over the main path of supercooled Ice Shelf Water outflow, in the centre of the sound, relative to the west and east. In this central region, the mean CryoSat-2-derived ice thickness was 35 % larger than the mean drill-hole-measured fast ice thickness. We attribute this overestimate in satellite-altimeter-obtained ice thickness to the additional buoyant forcing of the sub-ice platelet layer which had a mean thickness of 3.90 m in the centre. We demonstrate the capability of CryoSat-2 to detect higher Ice Shelf Water-influenced fast ice freeboard in McMurdo Sound. Further development of this method could provide a tool to identify regions of ice-shelf-influenced fast ice elsewhere on the Antarctic coastline with adequate information on the snow layer. Text Antarc* Antarctic Ice Shelf McMurdo Ice Shelf McMurdo Sound Sea ice Copernicus Publications: E-Journals Antarctic The Antarctic McMurdo Sound McMurdo Ice Shelf ENVELOPE(166.500,166.500,-78.000,-78.000) The Cryosphere 15 8 4099 4115 |
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Open Polar |
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Copernicus Publications: E-Journals |
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ftcopernicus |
language |
English |
description |
The outflow of supercooled Ice Shelf Water from the conjoined Ross and McMurdo ice shelf cavity augments fast ice thickness and forms a thick sub-ice platelet layer in McMurdo Sound. Here, we investigate whether the CryoSat-2 satellite radar altimeter can consistently detect the higher freeboard caused by the thicker fast ice combined with the buoyant forcing of a sub-ice platelet layer beneath. Freeboards obtained from CryoSat-2 were compared with 4 years of drill-hole-measured sea ice freeboard, snow depth, and sea ice and sub-ice platelet layer thicknesses in McMurdo Sound in November 2011, 2013, 2017 and 2018. The spatial distribution of higher CryoSat-2 freeboard concurred with the distributions of thicker ice-shelf-influenced fast ice and the sub-ice platelet layer. The mean CryoSat-2 freeboard was 0.07–0.09 m higher over the main path of supercooled Ice Shelf Water outflow, in the centre of the sound, relative to the west and east. In this central region, the mean CryoSat-2-derived ice thickness was 35 % larger than the mean drill-hole-measured fast ice thickness. We attribute this overestimate in satellite-altimeter-obtained ice thickness to the additional buoyant forcing of the sub-ice platelet layer which had a mean thickness of 3.90 m in the centre. We demonstrate the capability of CryoSat-2 to detect higher Ice Shelf Water-influenced fast ice freeboard in McMurdo Sound. Further development of this method could provide a tool to identify regions of ice-shelf-influenced fast ice elsewhere on the Antarctic coastline with adequate information on the snow layer. |
format |
Text |
author |
Brett, Gemma M. Price, Daniel Rack, Wolfgang Langhorne, Patricia J. |
spellingShingle |
Brett, Gemma M. Price, Daniel Rack, Wolfgang Langhorne, Patricia J. Satellite altimetry detection of ice-shelf-influenced fast ice |
author_facet |
Brett, Gemma M. Price, Daniel Rack, Wolfgang Langhorne, Patricia J. |
author_sort |
Brett, Gemma M. |
title |
Satellite altimetry detection of ice-shelf-influenced fast ice |
title_short |
Satellite altimetry detection of ice-shelf-influenced fast ice |
title_full |
Satellite altimetry detection of ice-shelf-influenced fast ice |
title_fullStr |
Satellite altimetry detection of ice-shelf-influenced fast ice |
title_full_unstemmed |
Satellite altimetry detection of ice-shelf-influenced fast ice |
title_sort |
satellite altimetry detection of ice-shelf-influenced fast ice |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4099-2021 https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/15/4099/2021/ |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(166.500,166.500,-78.000,-78.000) |
geographic |
Antarctic The Antarctic McMurdo Sound McMurdo Ice Shelf |
geographic_facet |
Antarctic The Antarctic McMurdo Sound McMurdo Ice Shelf |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctic Ice Shelf McMurdo Ice Shelf McMurdo Sound Sea ice |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctic Ice Shelf McMurdo Ice Shelf McMurdo Sound Sea ice |
op_source |
eISSN: 1994-0424 |
op_relation |
doi:10.5194/tc-15-4099-2021 https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/15/4099/2021/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4099-2021 |
container_title |
The Cryosphere |
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15 |
container_issue |
8 |
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4099 |
op_container_end_page |
4115 |
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1766272458358259712 |