Antarctic slope undercurrent and onshore heat transport driven by ice shelf melting
Antarctic slope undercurrent and onshore heat transport driven by ice shelf melting
Elevated ice shelf melt rates in West Antarctica have been attributed to transport of warm Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW) onto the continental shelf via bathymetric troughs. These inflows are supplied by an eastward, subsurface slope current (referred to as the Antarctic Slope Undercurrent) that opposes the westward momentum input from local winds and tides. Despite its importance to basal melt, the mechanism via which the undercurrent forms, and thus what controls the shoreward heat transport, remains unclear. In this study, the dynamics of the undercurrent are investigated using high-resolution process-oriented simulations with coupled ocean, sea ice, and ice shelf components. It is shown that the bathymetric steering of the undercurrent toward the ice shelf is driven by upwelling of meltwater within the ice shelf cavity. Increased basal melt therefore strengthens the undercurrent and enhances onshore CDW transport, which indicates a positive feedback that may accelerate future melt of ice shelves, potentially further destabilizing the West Antarctic Ice Sheet.
Si, Yidongfang
b420bbac-50c3-42d1-bd8f-e5e8190292b3
Stewart, Andrew L.
f042b0ae-176d-4c02-831f-40272cf171b9
Silvano, Alessandro
54a4322b-c52d-4179-a414-dc108c416ec9
Naveira Garabato, Alberto
97c0e923-f076-4b38-b89b-938e11cea7a6
17 April 2024
Si, Yidongfang
b420bbac-50c3-42d1-bd8f-e5e8190292b3
Stewart, Andrew L.
f042b0ae-176d-4c02-831f-40272cf171b9
Silvano, Alessandro
54a4322b-c52d-4179-a414-dc108c416ec9
Naveira Garabato, Alberto
97c0e923-f076-4b38-b89b-938e11cea7a6
Si, Yidongfang, Stewart, Andrew L., Silvano, Alessandro and Naveira Garabato, Alberto
(2024)
Antarctic slope undercurrent and onshore heat transport driven by ice shelf melting.
Science Advances, 10 (16), [eadl0601].
(doi:10.1126/sciadv.adl0601).
Abstract
Elevated ice shelf melt rates in West Antarctica have been attributed to transport of warm Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW) onto the continental shelf via bathymetric troughs. These inflows are supplied by an eastward, subsurface slope current (referred to as the Antarctic Slope Undercurrent) that opposes the westward momentum input from local winds and tides. Despite its importance to basal melt, the mechanism via which the undercurrent forms, and thus what controls the shoreward heat transport, remains unclear. In this study, the dynamics of the undercurrent are investigated using high-resolution process-oriented simulations with coupled ocean, sea ice, and ice shelf components. It is shown that the bathymetric steering of the undercurrent toward the ice shelf is driven by upwelling of meltwater within the ice shelf cavity. Increased basal melt therefore strengthens the undercurrent and enhances onshore CDW transport, which indicates a positive feedback that may accelerate future melt of ice shelves, potentially further destabilizing the West Antarctic Ice Sheet.
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sciadv.adl0601
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e-pub ahead of print date: 17 April 2024
Published date: 17 April 2024
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Local EPrints ID: 491725
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/491725
ISSN: 2375-2548
PURE UUID: 498c6556-8bbb-4b9a-85f3-2aa240d87739
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Date deposited: 03 Jul 2024 16:46
Last modified: 12 Jul 2024 02:05
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Author:
Yidongfang Si
Author:
Andrew L. Stewart
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