Cook Ice Shelf and Ninnis Glacier Tongue Bathymetry From Inversion of Operation Ice Bridge Airborne Gravity Data

• Published in: Geophysical Research Letters
• Main Authors: Renata R. Constantino, Kirsty J. Tinto
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2023
• Subjects: bathymetry; east Antarctica; ice shelves; Geophysics. Cosmic physics; QC801-809; Antarc*; Antarctica; Cook Ice Shelf; East Antarctica; Ice Shelf; Ice Shelves; Ninnis Glacier
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1029/2023GL103815; https://doaj.org/article/97abf3f06e51441a8c2d55928bcf7e2e

Abstract The seafloor depths under the Cook Ice Shelf and Ninnis Glacier Tongue have not been directly measured, despite their importance for understanding ocean circulation and ice shelf change. We model the bathymetry underneath the floating ice and surrounding ocean using airborne gravity data. Our model is constrained by few ship‐based seafloor measurements near the ice front and by ice‐base measurements over areas of grounded ice from radar data. Localized basins (∼1,400 m deep) are found beneath both ice shelves. The shallowest modeled bathymetry (∼200 m) represents the offshore extension of Cape Freshfield. Near the grounding line, seafloor depths are found to be deeper than the observed depth of the modified Circumpolar Deep water in the region (<350 m), key factor for basal melt analyses. From transit flight gravity anomalies, we suggest the relocation of the mapped edge of the continental shelf and a narrowing of the Cook Shelf Depression.