Recent update from the ITGC
It has been a busy autumn (for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere) for the International Thwaites Glacier Collaboration (ITGC). And it is about to get much, much busier. Meetings have been held, bags have been packed, travel has begun, and preparations are well underway for the upcoming field season, which commences this month in Antarctica. Researchers have already begun to filter into the United States’ McMurdo Station, where most will gather to await transport to their field camps, and more are en route.
Nearly 100 scientists and staff from around the world, including University of Colorado Boulder (CU) and CIRES scientist Ted Scambos, departed last month to conduct fieldwork in one of the most remote and inhospitable areas on Earth: Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica. Their aim? To investigate how and when climate change might affect the glacier, including a possible runaway collapse, which would raise global sea levels by up to two feet over the next century and put coastal cities and communities around the world at risk.
Press release from the ITGC
November 13, 2019: For immediate release
Thwaites-Explorer is an online interactive tool for exploring Thwaites Glacier and learning about why it is the focus of our research. Users can click straight on the data to see rates of ice loss, depth of cavities under the ice, speed of ice flow and more, and can locate and read about the different science projects underway. Thwaites-Explorer will continue to be updated so check back regularly.
Karen is a glaciologist and remote sensor at the University of Manitoba, Canada. She is interested in ice shelf-ocean interactions, particularly in relation to buoyant plumes that carve channels on ice-shelf bases. On the TARSAN team, she will primarily assist with seismic surveys to investigate the shape of the sub-ice-shelf cavities.
Aleksandra has a background in satellite oceanography with her PhD research focused on detection and characteristics of icebergs in the Amundsen Sea. In the Thwaites Glacier project, she's interested in measuring sea ice properties with the use of an upward-looking multibeam and autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV).
Yixi's research focuses on ocean-ice-air and ocean-ice shelf interactions. As a member of TARSAN team, she uses the data collected by seals to understand the response of the melting of Thwaites Glacier to the ocean.
Lars Boehme is responsible for the deployment of animal-borne instruments on Weddell and Southern Elephant seals. He is interested in mesoscale processes in the Southern Ocean, e.g., how warmer water from further north finds its way under the Thwaites Glacier. His previous research has also led to a more strategic view of how to combine a range of observational approaches to achieve a cost-effective observation system linking physical observations to the range of trophic levels they drive.
Ben uses observations and models to understand the dynamics of the climate system, including the interaction between ocean, ice and atmosphere. In the Antarctic, his work has focused on the transports of heat around the Amundsen Sea and the interactions with Pine Island and Thwaites Ice Shelves. Ben supervises two PhD students affiliated with the TARSAN project, Kyriaki Lekakou and Yixi Zheng.
Bastien Queste (orcid: 0000-0002-3786-2275) led the TARSAN field component on cruise NBP 19-02. Bastien is an autonomous vehicle specialist with interests in biophysical interactions. His work focuses on physical transport of meltwater and subsequent fuelling of primary production on the shelf.
