Antarctic Slope Undercurrent and onshore heat transport driven by ice shelf melting.
Sci Adv
; 10(16): eadl0601, 2024 Apr 19.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38630821
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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Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Sci Adv
Año:
2024
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Estados Unidos