Holocene melting of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet driven by tropical Pacific warming

Adam D. Sproson (), Yusuke Yokoyama, Yosuke Miyairi, Takahiro Aze and Rebecca L. Totten
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Adam D. Sproson: The University of Tokyo
Yusuke Yokoyama: The University of Tokyo
Yosuke Miyairi: The University of Tokyo
Takahiro Aze: The University of Tokyo
Rebecca L. Totten: The University of Alabama

Nature Communications, 2022, vol. 13, issue 1, 1-9

Abstract: Abstract The primary Antarctic contribution to modern sea-level rise is glacial discharge from the Amundsen Sea sector of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. The main processes responsible for ice mass loss include: (1) ocean-driven melting of ice shelves by upwelling of warm water onto the continental shelf; and (2) atmospheric-driven surface melting of glaciers along the Antarctic coast. Understanding the relative influence of these processes on glacial stability is imperative to predicting sea-level rise. Employing a beryllium isotope-based reconstruction of ice-shelf history, we demonstrate that glaciers flowing into the Amundsen Sea Embayment underwent melting and retreat between 9 and 6 thousand years ago. Despite warm ocean water influence, this melting event was mainly forced by atmospheric circulation changes over continental West Antarctica, linked via a Rossby wave train to tropical Pacific Ocean warming. This millennial-scale glacial history may be used to validate contemporary ice-sheet models and improve sea-level projections.

Date: 2022
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-30076-2

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