Hot rocks in a cold place: high sub-glacial heat flow in East Antarctica

Numerical models are the primary predictive tools for understanding the dynamic behaviour of the Antarctic ice sheet. However, a key boundary parameter, sub-glacial heat flow, remains poorly constrained. We show that variations in abundance and distribution of heat-producing elements within the Anta...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of the Geological Society
Main Authors: Carson, CJ, McLaren, S, Roberts, JL, Boger, SD, Blankenship, DD
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Geological Soc Publ House 2014
Subjects:
Earth Sciences
Oceanography
Physical Oceanography
Antarctic
East Antarctica
The Antarctic
Antarc*
Antarctica
Ice Sheet
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1144/jgs2013-030
http://ecite.utas.edu.au/96126
Description
Summary:Numerical models are the primary predictive tools for understanding the dynamic behaviour of the Antarctic ice sheet. However, a key boundary parameter, sub-glacial heat flow, remains poorly constrained. We show that variations in abundance and distribution of heat-producing elements within the Antarctic continental crust result in greater and more variable regional sub-glacial heat flows than currently assumed in ice modelling studies. Such elevated heat flows would have a fundamental effect on ice sheet behaviour and highlight that geological controls on heat flow must be considered to obtain more accurate and refined predictions of ice mass balance and sea-level change.

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