Recent rift formation and impact on the structural integrity of the Brunt Ice Shelf, East Antarctica
We report on the recent reactivation of a large rift in the Brunt Ice Shelf, East Antarctica, in December 2012 and the formation of a 50 km long new rift in October 2016. Observations from a suite of ground-based and remote sensing instruments between January 2000 and July 2017 were used to track pr...
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2018
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Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-505-2018 https://www.the-cryosphere.net/12/505/2018/tc-12-505-2018.pdf https://doaj.org/article/15419e46f51842788fabbeb12105a49f |
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fttriple:oai:gotriple.eu:oai:doaj.org/article:15419e46f51842788fabbeb12105a49f 2023-05-15T13:52:50+02:00 Recent rift formation and impact on the structural integrity of the Brunt Ice Shelf, East Antarctica J. De Rydt G. H. Gudmundsson T. Nagler J. Wuite E. C. King 2018-02-01 https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-505-2018 https://www.the-cryosphere.net/12/505/2018/tc-12-505-2018.pdf https://doaj.org/article/15419e46f51842788fabbeb12105a49f en eng Copernicus Publications doi:10.5194/tc-12-505-2018 1994-0416 1994-0424 https://www.the-cryosphere.net/12/505/2018/tc-12-505-2018.pdf https://doaj.org/article/15419e46f51842788fabbeb12105a49f undefined The Cryosphere, Vol 12, Pp 505-520 (2018) geo envir Journal Article https://vocabularies.coar-repositories.org/resource_types/c_6501/ 2018 fttriple https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-505-2018 2023-01-22T18:11:47Z We report on the recent reactivation of a large rift in the Brunt Ice Shelf, East Antarctica, in December 2012 and the formation of a 50 km long new rift in October 2016. Observations from a suite of ground-based and remote sensing instruments between January 2000 and July 2017 were used to track progress of both rifts in unprecedented detail. Results reveal a steady accelerating trend in their width, in combination with alternating episodes of fast ( > 600 m day−1) and slow propagation of the rift tip, controlled by the heterogeneous structure of the ice shelf. A numerical ice flow model and a simple propagation algorithm based on the stress distribution in the ice shelf were successfully used to hindcast the observed trajectories and to simulate future rift progression under different assumptions. Results show a high likelihood of ice loss at the McDonald Ice Rumples, the only pinning point of the ice shelf. The nascent iceberg calving and associated reduction in pinning of the Brunt Ice Shelf may provide a uniquely monitored natural experiment of ice shelf variability and provoke a deeper understanding of similar processes elsewhere in Antarctica. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctica Brunt Ice Shelf East Antarctica Ice Shelf The Cryosphere Unknown Brunt Ice Shelf ENVELOPE(-22.500,-22.500,-74.750,-74.750) East Antarctica McDonald Ice Rumples ENVELOPE(-26.352,-26.352,-75.458,-75.458) The Cryosphere 12 2 505 520 |
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English |
topic |
geo envir |
spellingShingle |
geo envir J. De Rydt G. H. Gudmundsson T. Nagler J. Wuite E. C. King Recent rift formation and impact on the structural integrity of the Brunt Ice Shelf, East Antarctica |
topic_facet |
geo envir |
description |
We report on the recent reactivation of a large rift in the Brunt Ice Shelf, East Antarctica, in December 2012 and the formation of a 50 km long new rift in October 2016. Observations from a suite of ground-based and remote sensing instruments between January 2000 and July 2017 were used to track progress of both rifts in unprecedented detail. Results reveal a steady accelerating trend in their width, in combination with alternating episodes of fast ( > 600 m day−1) and slow propagation of the rift tip, controlled by the heterogeneous structure of the ice shelf. A numerical ice flow model and a simple propagation algorithm based on the stress distribution in the ice shelf were successfully used to hindcast the observed trajectories and to simulate future rift progression under different assumptions. Results show a high likelihood of ice loss at the McDonald Ice Rumples, the only pinning point of the ice shelf. The nascent iceberg calving and associated reduction in pinning of the Brunt Ice Shelf may provide a uniquely monitored natural experiment of ice shelf variability and provoke a deeper understanding of similar processes elsewhere in Antarctica. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
J. De Rydt G. H. Gudmundsson T. Nagler J. Wuite E. C. King |
author_facet |
J. De Rydt G. H. Gudmundsson T. Nagler J. Wuite E. C. King |
author_sort |
J. De Rydt |
title |
Recent rift formation and impact on the structural integrity of the Brunt Ice Shelf, East Antarctica |
title_short |
Recent rift formation and impact on the structural integrity of the Brunt Ice Shelf, East Antarctica |
title_full |
Recent rift formation and impact on the structural integrity of the Brunt Ice Shelf, East Antarctica |
title_fullStr |
Recent rift formation and impact on the structural integrity of the Brunt Ice Shelf, East Antarctica |
title_full_unstemmed |
Recent rift formation and impact on the structural integrity of the Brunt Ice Shelf, East Antarctica |
title_sort |
recent rift formation and impact on the structural integrity of the brunt ice shelf, east antarctica |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2018 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-505-2018 https://www.the-cryosphere.net/12/505/2018/tc-12-505-2018.pdf https://doaj.org/article/15419e46f51842788fabbeb12105a49f |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-22.500,-22.500,-74.750,-74.750) ENVELOPE(-26.352,-26.352,-75.458,-75.458) |
geographic |
Brunt Ice Shelf East Antarctica McDonald Ice Rumples |
geographic_facet |
Brunt Ice Shelf East Antarctica McDonald Ice Rumples |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctica Brunt Ice Shelf East Antarctica Ice Shelf The Cryosphere |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctica Brunt Ice Shelf East Antarctica Ice Shelf The Cryosphere |
op_source |
The Cryosphere, Vol 12, Pp 505-520 (2018) |
op_relation |
doi:10.5194/tc-12-505-2018 1994-0416 1994-0424 https://www.the-cryosphere.net/12/505/2018/tc-12-505-2018.pdf https://doaj.org/article/15419e46f51842788fabbeb12105a49f |
op_rights |
undefined |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-505-2018 |
container_title |
The Cryosphere |
container_volume |
12 |
container_issue |
2 |
container_start_page |
505 |
op_container_end_page |
520 |
_version_ |
1766257592359714816 |