Published: Oct 1, 2016 by The PISM Authors
| Title | The influence of continental shelf bathymetry on Antarctic Ice Sheet response to climate forcing |
| Authors | P. Bart, D. Mullally, and N. Golledge |
| Venue | Global and Planetary Change |
Depth of water on the Antarctic continental shelf is one key factor determining the maximum possible contribution of ice shelf processes (calving and sub-shelf melting/freezing) to ice-sheet mass balance. This paper uses PISM to investigate how shelf-depth changes through geologic time might have affected Antarctic Ice Sheet (AIS) dynamics. Over-deepened, shallow, and intermediate versions of BEDMAP2 bathymetry were combined with unmodified land elevations. For climate forcing similiar to the last glacial cycle, a polar AIS surrounded by shallow and intermediate bathymetries experiences rapid grounding-line advance early during the transition from interglacial to glacial conditions. The corresponding increase in mass is primarily a result of lower calving fluxes from smaller-area ice shelves. In contrast, the currently over-deepened bathymetry in the same forcing generates the expected gradual advance of grounding lines.
