Rignot, Eric; Bamber, Jonathan L; van den Broeke, Michiel R; Davis, Curt; Li, Yonghong; van de Berg, Willem Jan; van Meijgaard, Erik (2008): Mass balances of different sectors in Antarctica in 1996, 2000 and 2006 [dataset publication series]. PANGAEA, https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.819271, Supplement to: Rignot, E et al. (2008): Recent Antarctic ice mass loss from radar interferometry and regional climate modelling. Nature Geoscience, 1(2), 106-110, https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo102
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Abstract:
Large uncertainties remain in the current and future contribution to sea level rise from Antarctica. Climate warming may increase snowfall in the continent's interior, but enhance glacier discharge at the coast where warmer air and ocean temperatures erode the buttressing ice shelves. Here, we use satellite interferometric synthetic-aperture radar observations from 1992 to 2006 covering 85% of Antarctica's coastline to estimate the total mass flux into the ocean. We compare the mass fluxes from large drainage basin units with interior snow accumulation calculated from a regional atmospheric climate model for 1980 to 2004. In East Antarctica, small glacier losses in Wilkes Land and glacier gains at the mouths of the Filchner and Ross ice shelves combine to a near-zero loss of 4 ± 61 Gt/yr. In West Antarctica, widespread losses along the Bellingshausen and Amundsen seas increased the ice sheet loss by 59% in 10 years to reach 132 ± 60 Gt/yr in 2006. In the Peninsula, losses increased by 140% to reach 60 ± 46 Gt/yr in 2006. Losses are concentrated along narrow channels occupied by outlet glaciers and are caused by ongoing and past glacier acceleration. Changes in glacier flow therefore have a significant, if not dominant impact on ice sheet mass balance.
Project(s):
Coverage:
Latitude: -90.000000 * Longitude: 0.000000
Comment:
Data extracted in the frame of a joint ICSTI/PANGAEA IPY effort, see http://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.150150
License:
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC-BY-3.0)
Size:
2 datasets
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Datasets listed in this publication series
- Rignot, E; Bamber, JL; van den Broeke, MR et al. (2008): (Table 1) Mass balance of different sectors in Antarctica in 2000. https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.819269
- Rignot, E; Bamber, JL; van den Broeke, MR et al. (2008): (Table 2) Mass balance of different sectors in Antarctica in 1996 and 2006. https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.819270