Increased rate of acceleration on Pine Island Glacier strongly coupled to changes in gravitational driving stress

Scott, Julian; Gudmundsson, Hilmar ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4236-5369; Smith, Andrew ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8577-482X; Bingham, Robert; Pritchard, Hamish ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2936-1734; Vaughan, David ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9065-0570. 2009 Increased rate of acceleration on Pine Island Glacier strongly coupled to changes in gravitational driving stress. The Cryosphere, 3. 125-131. https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-3-125-2009

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Abstract/Summary

Pine Island Glacier, Antarctica, has been undergoing several related changes for at least two decades; these include acceleration, thinning and grounding line retreat. During the first major ground-based study between 2006 and 2008, GPS receivers were used to monitor ice flow from 55 km to 171 km inland, along the central flowline. At four sites both acceleration and thinning rates over the last two years exceeded rates observed at any other time over the last two decades. At the downstream site acceleration was 6.4 % over 2007 and thinning was 3.5 ± 0.5 ma-1. Acceleration and thinning have spread rapidly inland with the acceleration 171 km inland at 4.1 % over 2007, greater than any measured annual flow increase along the whole glacier prior to 2006. Increases in surface slope, and hence gravitational driving stress, correlate well with the acceleration and no sustained change in longitudinal stress gradient is needed to explain the force balance. There is no indication that the glacier is approaching a new steady state.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-3-125-2009
Programmes:	BAS Programmes > Global Science in the Antarctic Context (2005-2009) > Glacial Retreat in Antarctica and Deglaciation of the Earth System BAS Programmes > Polar Science for Planet Earth (2009 - ) > Ice Sheets
Additional Information. Not used in RCUK Gateway to Research.:	Open access journal
NORA Subject Terms:	Glaciology
Date made live:	30 Jun 2010 10:20 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/7294

Item Type:

Publication - Article

Digital Object Identifier (DOI):

https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-3-125-2009

Programmes:

BAS Programmes > Global Science in the Antarctic Context (2005-2009) > Glacial Retreat in Antarctica and Deglaciation of the Earth System
BAS Programmes > Polar Science for Planet Earth (2009 - ) > Ice Sheets

Additional Information. Not used in RCUK Gateway to Research.:

Open access journal

NORA Subject Terms:

Glaciology

Date made live:

30 Jun 2010 10:20 +0 (UTC)