Deep water inflow slowed offshore expansion of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet at the Eocene-Oligocene transition

Uenzelmann-Neben, Gabriele; Gohl, Karsten; Hochmuth, Katharina; Salzmann, Ulrich; Larter, Robert D. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8414-7389; Hillenbrand, Claus-Dieter ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0240-7317; Klages, Johann P.; Expedition PS104, Science Team. 2022 Deep water inflow slowed offshore expansion of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet at the Eocene-Oligocene transition. Communications Earth & Environment, 3 (36). 10, pp. 10.1038/s43247-022-00369-x

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Official URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-022-00369-x

Abstract/Summary

The stability of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet is threatened by the incursion of warm Circumpolar Deepwater which flows southwards via cross-shelf troughs towards the coast there melting ice shelves. However, the onset of this oceanic forcing on the development and evolution of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet remains poorly understood. Here, we use single- and multichannel seismic reflection profiles to investigate the architecture of a sediment body on the shelf of the Amundsen Sea Embayment. We estimate the formation age of this sediment body to be around the Eocene-Oligocene Transition and find that it possesses the geometry and depositional pattern of a plastered sediment drift. We suggest this indicates a southward inflow of deep water which probably supplied heat and, thus, prevented West Antarctic Ice Sheet advance beyond the coast at this time. We conclude that the West Antarctic Ice Sheet has likely experienced a strong oceanic influence on its dynamics since its initial formation.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	10.1038/s43247-022-00369-x
Date made live:	28 Feb 2022 12:40 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/529578

Item Type:

Publication - Article

Digital Object Identifier (DOI):

10.1038/s43247-022-00369-x

Date made live:

28 Feb 2022 12:40 +0 (UTC)

URI:

https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/529578