Thwaites Offshore Research (THOR)
Thwaites Offshore Research (THOR) is a ship-based and ice-based project that will examine the sedimentary records both offshore from the glacier and beneath the ice shelf, together with glacial landforms on the sea bed, to reconstruct past changes in ocean conditions and the glaciers response to these changes.
Data collection will be split over two research cruises combining marine geophysical surveying and geological sampling. In addition, sediment cores will be collected beneath the ice sheet via access holes made by hot water drilling.
The first cruise will focus on surveying the seafloor in the region, using swath bathymetry, and obtaining a set of sediment cores. The second cruise will complete the survey coverage, and collect sediment cores targeted on the basis of the new survey data. The team will also collect seismic reflection profiles to reveal the three dimensional form of landforms and the distribution of sediments the continental shelf from which the glacier has retreated.
Principal Investigators
Team Members
Blog Posts
THOR research onboard the N.B. Palmer icebreaker through March 2020
The Thwaites Glacier Offshore Research (THOR) team set sail from Punta Arenas, Chile, on January 26, 2020 and is conducting research in the Amundsen Sea off the coast of Thwaites Glacier. During their 60-day cruise on the US icebreaker Nathaniel B.
US PolarTREC teacher blogs about upcoming research cruise with THOR project, January 2020
Join teacher Sarah Slack as she writes about her experience as an NSF PolarTREC teacher on board the Nathaniel B. Palmer research vessel. The Palmer departs Punta Arenas, Chile, on January 26, 2020, bound for the Amundsen Sea waters off the coast of the Thwaites Glacier.
THOR blog - Cruise offshore of Thwaites Glacier
Seven researchers from the Thwaites Offshore Research team embark on a 53-day cruise in the Amundsen Sea to study the ocean off of the Thwaites Glacier.
Read about THOR's Cruise News.
Related News
New high resolution images of the seafloor in West Antarctica show past retreat of Thwaites Glacier.
Principal Investigators
Team Members
Blog Posts
THOR research onboard the N.B. Palmer icebreaker through March 2020
The Thwaites Glacier Offshore Research (THOR) team set sail from Punta Arenas, Chile, on January 26, 2020 and is conducting research in the Amundsen Sea off the coast of Thwaites Glacier. During their 60-day cruise on the US icebreaker Nathaniel B.
US PolarTREC teacher blogs about upcoming research cruise with THOR project, January 2020
Join teacher Sarah Slack as she writes about her experience as an NSF PolarTREC teacher on board the Nathaniel B. Palmer research vessel. The Palmer departs Punta Arenas, Chile, on January 26, 2020, bound for the Amundsen Sea waters off the coast of the Thwaites Glacier.
THOR blog - Cruise offshore of Thwaites Glacier
Seven researchers from the Thwaites Offshore Research team embark on a 53-day cruise in the Amundsen Sea to study the ocean off of the Thwaites Glacier.
Read about THOR's Cruise News.
Related News
New high resolution images of the seafloor in West Antarctica show past retreat of Thwaites Glacier.
