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Mass, Volume and Velocity of the Antarctic Ice Sheet: Present-Day Changes and Error Effects

Surveys in Geophysics volume 35, pages 1481–1505 (2014)Cite this article

Abstract

This study examines present-day changes of the Antarctic ice sheet (AIS) by means of different data sets. We make use of monthly gravity field solutions acquired by the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) to study mass changes of the AIS for a 10-year period. In addition to ‘standard’ solutions of release 05, solutions based on radial base functions were used. Both solutions reveal an increased mass loss in recent years. For a 6-year period surface-height changes were inferred from laser altimetry data provided by the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat). The basin-scale volume trends were converted into mass changes and were compared with the GRACE estimates for the same period. Focussing on the Thwaites Glacier, Landsat optical imagery was utilised to determine ice-flow velocities for a period of more than two decades. This data set was extended by means of high-resolution synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data from the TerraSAR-X mission, revealing an accelerated ice flow of all parts of the glacier. ICESat data over the Thwaites Glacier were complemented by digital elevation models inferred from TanDEM-X data. This extended data set exhibits an increased surface lowering in recent times. Passive microwave remote sensing data prove the long-term stability of the accumulation rates in a low accumulation zone in East Antarctica over several decades. Finally, we discuss the main error sources of present-day mass-balance estimates: the glacial isostatic adjustment effect for GRACE as well as the biases between laser operational periods and the volume–mass conversion for ICESat.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the German Research Foundation (DFG) within the Priority Programme SPP1257 “Mass Transport and Mass Distribution in the Earth System”. TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X data were provided by DLR within science proposals HYD1303 and XTI_GLAC0538, respectively. We gratefully acknowledge the helpful comments provided by two anonymous reviewers.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institut für Planetare Geodäsie, Technische Universität Dresden, 01062, Dresden, Germany

    A. Groh, H. Ewert, R. Rosenau & R. Dietrich

  2. Section 1.2: Global Geomonitoring and Gravity Field, GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, c/o DLR Oberpfaffenhofen, 82234, Weßling, Germany

    E. Fagiolini, C. Gruber & F. Flechtner

  3. Remote Sensing Technology Institute, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Oberpfaffenhofen, 82234, Weßling, Germany

    D. Floricioiu, W. Abdel Jaber & M. Eineder

  4. Climate Sciences Division, Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research, 27570, Bremerhaven, Germany

    S. Linow & W. Dierking

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  1. A. Groh
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Groh, A., Ewert, H., Rosenau, R. et al. Mass, Volume and Velocity of the Antarctic Ice Sheet: Present-Day Changes and Error Effects. Surv Geophys 35, 1481–1505 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10712-014-9286-y

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Keywords

  • Antarctic ice sheet
  • Mass balance
  • Velocity
  • Accumulation