2014/01/01 by Gerhard Kühn, Kuhn, G., Christoph Gaedicke +1
Earth and Planetary Sciences · #Cryospheric studies and observations
paper · pdf · doi:10.2312/polarforschung.84.2.99
Antarctic ice sheet mass variability is related to ocean melting and freezing processes in the under-ice cavities.Basal melting is fueled by ocean heat transported from the open ocean underneath ice shelves or by high-saline waters formed in polynyas off ice shelf fronts.Processes in the sub-ice cavity lead to the formation of ice platelets, icicles, anchor ice and marine ice at the bottom of an ice shelf and/or at the fast ice in front.Brines are associated with ice growth and mineral precipitations like ikaite may occur -a possible precursor for carbonates that we detected in sedimentary archives.Anchor ice and tidal currents in narrow cavities create sediment redistribution and impurities in marine ice.Here, we propose a project for multi-year hydrographic and biogeochemical observations underneath the Eckstroem Ice Shelf, video characterization underneath and at the seafloor, sediment trap deployment, seafloor mapping and sampling for (bio)geological studies by shallow coring.This project comprises a site study for potential drilling in that area to study the history of polar amplification and climate changes in Antarctica, the build up of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet during past warmer climates and its Cenozoic and future variability.