Antartic environmental change detection using remote sensing data and historical maps

• Published in: Pesquisas em Geociências
• Main Authors: ARIGONY NETO, JORGE, SIMÕES, JEFERSON CARDIA, BREMER, ULISSES FRANZ, AQUINO, FRANCISCO ELISEU
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: Portuguese
• Published: Instituto de Geociências /Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul 2001
• Subjects: glacier retreat; King George Island; Antartica; Geociências; Admiralty Bay; Antarctic; Antarctic Peninsula; Pressure Point; South Shetland Islands; The Antarctic; Antarc*; Antarctica; antartic*; Antártica; Ice Shelves
• Online Access: https://seer.ufrgs.br/index.php/PesquisasemGeociencias/article/view/20307

Ice masses in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica, are relatively thin and near or at the melting pressure point. They are, therefore, very sensitive to climatic variations. This work discusses glaciers retreat observed since 1950s in the Antarctic Specially Managed Area (ASMA) of Admiralty Bay in King George Island. From 1956 to 1979 this area lost 4.3 km2 (2%) of its ice cover. Further 4.9 km2 disappeared (10% of the original ice cover, i.e. in 1956). The ice retreat magnitude in this period cannot be attributed to in-built variations of the glacier system. Further, it is associated to similar glaciers retractions and ice shelves collapses in the northern most part of the Antarctic Peninsula. Probably this general ice retreat results from or is enhanced by the atmospheric warming recorded for the region since 1940s.