A reconstruction of warm water inflow to Upernavik Isstrøm since AD 1925 and its relation to glacier retreat
International audience The mass loss from the Greenland Ice Sheet has increased over the past 2 decades. Marine-terminating glaciers contribute significantly to this mass loss due to increased melting and ice discharge. Periods of rapid retreat of these tidewater glaciers have been linked to the con...
Published in: | Climate of the Past |
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Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
Other Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
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HAL CCSD
2019
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Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://hal.science/hal-02357272 https://hal.science/hal-02357272/document https://hal.science/hal-02357272/file/cp-15-1171-2019.pdf https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-1171-2019 |
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ftinsu:oai:HAL:hal-02357272v1 |
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openpolar |
institution |
Open Polar |
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Institut national des sciences de l'Univers: HAL-INSU |
op_collection_id |
ftinsu |
language |
English |
topic |
climate change [SDE.MCG]Environmental Sciences/Global Changes |
spellingShingle |
climate change [SDE.MCG]Environmental Sciences/Global Changes Vermassen, Flor Andreasen, Nanna Wangner, David Thibault, Nicolas Seidenkrantz, Marit-Solveig, A Jackson, Rebecca, D. Schmidt, Sabine Kjær, Kurt Andresen, Camilla, S A reconstruction of warm water inflow to Upernavik Isstrøm since AD 1925 and its relation to glacier retreat |
topic_facet |
climate change [SDE.MCG]Environmental Sciences/Global Changes |
description |
International audience The mass loss from the Greenland Ice Sheet has increased over the past 2 decades. Marine-terminating glaciers contribute significantly to this mass loss due to increased melting and ice discharge. Periods of rapid retreat of these tidewater glaciers have been linked to the concurrent inflow of warm Atlantic-sourced waters. However, little is known about the variability of these Atlantic-derived waters within the fjords, due to a lack of multi-annual in situ measurements. Thus, to better understand the potential role of ocean warming on glacier retreat, reconstructions that characterize the variability of Atlantic water inflow to the fjords are required. Here, we investigate foraminiferal assemblages in a sediment core from Upernavik Fjord, West Greenland, in which the major ice stream Upernavik Isstrøm terminates. We conclude that the foraminiferal assemblage is predominantly controlled by changes in bottom water composition and provide a reconstruction of Atlantic water inflow to Upernavik Fjord, spanning the period 1925–2012. This reconstruction reveals peak Atlantic water influx during the 1930s and again after 2000, a pattern that is comparable to the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO). The comparison of these results to historical observations of front positions of Upernavik Isstrøm reveals that inflow of warm Atlantic-derived waters likely contributed to high retreat rates in the 1930s and after 2000. However, moderate retreat rates of Upernavik Isstrøm also prevailed in the 1960s and 1970s, showing that glacier retreat continued despite a reduced Atlantic water inflow, albeit at a lower rate. Considering the link between bottom water variability and the AMO in Upernavik Fjord, and the fact that a persistent negative phase of the AMO is expected for the next decade, Atlantic water inflow into the fjord may decrease in the coming decade, potentially minimizing or stabilizing the retreat of Upernavik Isstrøm during this time interval.climate change |
author2 |
Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management Copenhagen (IGN) Faculty of Science Copenhagen University of Copenhagen = Københavns Universitet (UCPH)-University of Copenhagen = Københavns Universitet (UCPH) Aarhus University Aarhus Ohio State University Columbus (OSU) Environnements et Paléoenvironnements OCéaniques (EPOC) Observatoire aquitain des sciences de l'univers (OASU) Université Sciences et Technologies - Bordeaux 1 (UB)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Sciences et Technologies - Bordeaux 1 (UB)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE) Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Vermassen, Flor Andreasen, Nanna Wangner, David Thibault, Nicolas Seidenkrantz, Marit-Solveig, A Jackson, Rebecca, D. Schmidt, Sabine Kjær, Kurt Andresen, Camilla, S |
author_facet |
Vermassen, Flor Andreasen, Nanna Wangner, David Thibault, Nicolas Seidenkrantz, Marit-Solveig, A Jackson, Rebecca, D. Schmidt, Sabine Kjær, Kurt Andresen, Camilla, S |
author_sort |
Vermassen, Flor |
title |
A reconstruction of warm water inflow to Upernavik Isstrøm since AD 1925 and its relation to glacier retreat |
title_short |
A reconstruction of warm water inflow to Upernavik Isstrøm since AD 1925 and its relation to glacier retreat |
title_full |
A reconstruction of warm water inflow to Upernavik Isstrøm since AD 1925 and its relation to glacier retreat |
title_fullStr |
A reconstruction of warm water inflow to Upernavik Isstrøm since AD 1925 and its relation to glacier retreat |
title_full_unstemmed |
A reconstruction of warm water inflow to Upernavik Isstrøm since AD 1925 and its relation to glacier retreat |
title_sort |
reconstruction of warm water inflow to upernavik isstrøm since ad 1925 and its relation to glacier retreat |
publisher |
HAL CCSD |
publishDate |
2019 |
url |
https://hal.science/hal-02357272 https://hal.science/hal-02357272/document https://hal.science/hal-02357272/file/cp-15-1171-2019.pdf https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-1171-2019 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-54.500,-54.500,72.917,72.917) |
geographic |
Greenland Upernavik Isstrøm |
geographic_facet |
Greenland Upernavik Isstrøm |
genre |
glacier Greenland Ice Sheet Tidewater Upernavik |
genre_facet |
glacier Greenland Ice Sheet Tidewater Upernavik |
op_source |
ISSN: 1814-9324 EISSN: 1814-9332 Climate of the Past https://hal.science/hal-02357272 Climate of the Past, 2019, Climate of the Past, 15 (3), pp.1171-1186. ⟨10.5194/cp-15-1171-2019⟩ |
op_relation |
info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.5194/cp-15-1171-2019 hal-02357272 https://hal.science/hal-02357272 https://hal.science/hal-02357272/document https://hal.science/hal-02357272/file/cp-15-1171-2019.pdf doi:10.5194/cp-15-1171-2019 |
op_rights |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/ info:eu-repo/semantics/OpenAccess |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-1171-2019 |
container_title |
Climate of the Past |
container_volume |
15 |
container_issue |
3 |
container_start_page |
1171 |
op_container_end_page |
1186 |
_version_ |
1790600435890913280 |
spelling |
ftinsu:oai:HAL:hal-02357272v1 2024-02-11T10:04:01+01:00 A reconstruction of warm water inflow to Upernavik Isstrøm since AD 1925 and its relation to glacier retreat Vermassen, Flor Andreasen, Nanna Wangner, David Thibault, Nicolas Seidenkrantz, Marit-Solveig, A Jackson, Rebecca, D. Schmidt, Sabine Kjær, Kurt Andresen, Camilla, S Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management Copenhagen (IGN) Faculty of Science Copenhagen University of Copenhagen = Københavns Universitet (UCPH)-University of Copenhagen = Københavns Universitet (UCPH) Aarhus University Aarhus Ohio State University Columbus (OSU) Environnements et Paléoenvironnements OCéaniques (EPOC) Observatoire aquitain des sciences de l'univers (OASU) Université Sciences et Technologies - Bordeaux 1 (UB)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Sciences et Technologies - Bordeaux 1 (UB)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE) Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) 2019-07-01 https://hal.science/hal-02357272 https://hal.science/hal-02357272/document https://hal.science/hal-02357272/file/cp-15-1171-2019.pdf https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-1171-2019 en eng HAL CCSD European Geosciences Union (EGU) info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.5194/cp-15-1171-2019 hal-02357272 https://hal.science/hal-02357272 https://hal.science/hal-02357272/document https://hal.science/hal-02357272/file/cp-15-1171-2019.pdf doi:10.5194/cp-15-1171-2019 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/ info:eu-repo/semantics/OpenAccess ISSN: 1814-9324 EISSN: 1814-9332 Climate of the Past https://hal.science/hal-02357272 Climate of the Past, 2019, Climate of the Past, 15 (3), pp.1171-1186. ⟨10.5194/cp-15-1171-2019⟩ climate change [SDE.MCG]Environmental Sciences/Global Changes info:eu-repo/semantics/article Journal articles 2019 ftinsu https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-1171-2019 2024-01-17T17:27:48Z International audience The mass loss from the Greenland Ice Sheet has increased over the past 2 decades. Marine-terminating glaciers contribute significantly to this mass loss due to increased melting and ice discharge. Periods of rapid retreat of these tidewater glaciers have been linked to the concurrent inflow of warm Atlantic-sourced waters. However, little is known about the variability of these Atlantic-derived waters within the fjords, due to a lack of multi-annual in situ measurements. Thus, to better understand the potential role of ocean warming on glacier retreat, reconstructions that characterize the variability of Atlantic water inflow to the fjords are required. Here, we investigate foraminiferal assemblages in a sediment core from Upernavik Fjord, West Greenland, in which the major ice stream Upernavik Isstrøm terminates. We conclude that the foraminiferal assemblage is predominantly controlled by changes in bottom water composition and provide a reconstruction of Atlantic water inflow to Upernavik Fjord, spanning the period 1925–2012. This reconstruction reveals peak Atlantic water influx during the 1930s and again after 2000, a pattern that is comparable to the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO). The comparison of these results to historical observations of front positions of Upernavik Isstrøm reveals that inflow of warm Atlantic-derived waters likely contributed to high retreat rates in the 1930s and after 2000. However, moderate retreat rates of Upernavik Isstrøm also prevailed in the 1960s and 1970s, showing that glacier retreat continued despite a reduced Atlantic water inflow, albeit at a lower rate. Considering the link between bottom water variability and the AMO in Upernavik Fjord, and the fact that a persistent negative phase of the AMO is expected for the next decade, Atlantic water inflow into the fjord may decrease in the coming decade, potentially minimizing or stabilizing the retreat of Upernavik Isstrøm during this time interval.climate change Article in Journal/Newspaper glacier Greenland Ice Sheet Tidewater Upernavik Institut national des sciences de l'Univers: HAL-INSU Greenland Upernavik Isstrøm ENVELOPE(-54.500,-54.500,72.917,72.917) Climate of the Past 15 3 1171 1186 |