Modified circumpolar deep water intrusions causing enhanced ice shelf melting in East Antarctica ...

• Main Author: Ribeiro Santos, Natalia
• Format: Thesis
• Language: unknown
• Published: University of Tasmania 2024
• Subjects: Antarctic; East Antarctica; Shackleton; Shackleton Ice Shelf; The Antarctic; Vanderford Glacier; Vincennes Bay; West Antarctica; Antarc*; Antarctica; Ice Sheet; Ice Shelf; Ice Shelves; Sea ice
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.25959/25209536.v1; https://figshare.utas.edu.au/articles/thesis/Modified_circumpolar_deep_water_intrusions_causing_enhanced_ice_shelf_melting_in_East_Antarctica/25209536/1

Glaciological evidence shows that the Antarctic Ice Sheet is losing mass, due to the thinning of Antarctic ice shelves caused by warm modified Circumpolar Deep Water (mCDW) intrusions. While mCDW intrusions are well-documented in West Antarctica, their temporal and spatial variability in East Antarctica remain uncertain. Hence, this thesis utilizes a combination of observational data, along with a high-resolution ocean-sea ice model, to investigate mCDW intrusions in two locations in East Antarctica, Vincennes Bay and the Shackleton Ice Shelf (SIS), focusing on the spatial and temporal variability of intrusions, their interaction with local ice shelves, and how they get transported onto the continental shelf. There are three key results. Firstly, this study describes the first observations of warm mCDW intrusions into Vincennes Bay, and attributes these to enhanced melting of the Vanderford Glacier. The consequent input of fresh meltwater increases the stratification of the water column, ultimately making it ...