Constructing seasonal records of Ross Ice Shelf elevation changes using ICESat altimetry data

Ice shelves are important passageways for ice sheets flowing into the ocean. Through iceberg calving and basal melting, ice shelves exert considerable influence on the mass balance of the Antarctic Ice Sheet and glacier stability. The Ross Ice Shelf (RIS), the largest body of floating ice on Earth,...

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Main Authors: Lexian Yuan, Shengkai Zhang, Feng Xiao, Xiao Li, Tingguo Lu, Hui Luo, Fei Li
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: KeAi Communications Co., Ltd. 2025-05-01
Series:Geodesy and Geodynamics
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674984724001186
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author Lexian Yuan
Shengkai Zhang
Feng Xiao
Xiao Li
Tingguo Lu
Hui Luo
Fei Li
author_facet Lexian Yuan
Shengkai Zhang
Feng Xiao
Xiao Li
Tingguo Lu
Hui Luo
Fei Li
author_sort Lexian Yuan
collection DOAJ
description Ice shelves are important passageways for ice sheets flowing into the ocean. Through iceberg calving and basal melting, ice shelves exert considerable influence on the mass balance of the Antarctic Ice Sheet and glacier stability. The Ross Ice Shelf (RIS), the largest body of floating ice on Earth, plays an essential role in any changes in the mass balance of the Antarctic Ice Sheet. The long-term elevation change trend of RIS has been calculated with multiple satellite altimetry in previous studies. However, the seasonal variations were less revealed. Based on crossover analysis and indirect observation adjustments, this study proposed a new method for constructing seasonal records for surface elevation changes in the RIS using ICESat laser altimetry data from 2003 to 2009. The results showed that surface elevation changes exhibited seasonal variations with fluctuations over 20 cm, and the seasonal change characteristics were closely related to the temperature. Interannual variations in RIS surface elevation decreased from 2003 to 2009 at a rate of 2 cm/yr. From March 2003 to April 2007, the surface elevation decreased at 3.7 cm/yr; however, after April 2007, the surface elevation increased at 5.5 cm/yr. The more recent stages of surface elevation growth have been influenced by reductions in the summer basal melt, which is related to the decreases in ocean heat content.
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institution OA Journals
issn 1674-9847
language English
publishDate 2025-05-01
publisher KeAi Communications Co., Ltd.
record_format Article
series Geodesy and Geodynamics
spelling doaj-art-18015bfd7e614c729fe48f8f969ed0d72025-08-20T01:52:55ZengKeAi Communications Co., Ltd.Geodesy and Geodynamics1674-98472025-05-0116333134010.1016/j.geog.2024.11.002Constructing seasonal records of Ross Ice Shelf elevation changes using ICESat altimetry dataLexian Yuan0Shengkai Zhang1Feng Xiao2Xiao Li3Tingguo Lu4Hui Luo5Fei Li6Chinese Antarctic Center of Surveying and Mapping, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China; School of Electrical Engineering, Naval University of Engineering, Wuhan 430033, ChinaChinese Antarctic Center of Surveying and Mapping, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China; Key Laboratory of Polar Environment Monitoring and Public Governance (Wuhan University), Ministry of Education, Wuhan 430072, ChinaChinese Antarctic Center of Surveying and Mapping, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China; Key Laboratory of Polar Environment Monitoring and Public Governance (Wuhan University), Ministry of Education, Wuhan 430072, China; State Key Laboratory of Geodesy and Earth's Dynamics, Innovation Academy for Precision Measurement Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430062, China; Corresponding author. Chinese Antarctic Center of Surveying and Mapping, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China.Institute of Environmental Engineering, ETH Zurich, Zurich 8093, SwitzerlandChinese Antarctic Center of Surveying and Mapping, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China; Key Laboratory of Polar Environment Monitoring and Public Governance (Wuhan University), Ministry of Education, Wuhan 430072, ChinaChinese Antarctic Center of Surveying and Mapping, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China; Key Laboratory of Polar Environment Monitoring and Public Governance (Wuhan University), Ministry of Education, Wuhan 430072, ChinaChinese Antarctic Center of Surveying and Mapping, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China; Department of Earth and Space Sciences, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, ChinaIce shelves are important passageways for ice sheets flowing into the ocean. Through iceberg calving and basal melting, ice shelves exert considerable influence on the mass balance of the Antarctic Ice Sheet and glacier stability. The Ross Ice Shelf (RIS), the largest body of floating ice on Earth, plays an essential role in any changes in the mass balance of the Antarctic Ice Sheet. The long-term elevation change trend of RIS has been calculated with multiple satellite altimetry in previous studies. However, the seasonal variations were less revealed. Based on crossover analysis and indirect observation adjustments, this study proposed a new method for constructing seasonal records for surface elevation changes in the RIS using ICESat laser altimetry data from 2003 to 2009. The results showed that surface elevation changes exhibited seasonal variations with fluctuations over 20 cm, and the seasonal change characteristics were closely related to the temperature. Interannual variations in RIS surface elevation decreased from 2003 to 2009 at a rate of 2 cm/yr. From March 2003 to April 2007, the surface elevation decreased at 3.7 cm/yr; however, after April 2007, the surface elevation increased at 5.5 cm/yr. The more recent stages of surface elevation growth have been influenced by reductions in the summer basal melt, which is related to the decreases in ocean heat content.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674984724001186Ross Ice ShelfElevation changeICESatSeasonal variationsAntarctic
spellingShingle Lexian Yuan
Shengkai Zhang
Feng Xiao
Xiao Li
Tingguo Lu
Hui Luo
Fei Li
Constructing seasonal records of Ross Ice Shelf elevation changes using ICESat altimetry data
Geodesy and Geodynamics
Ross Ice Shelf
Elevation change
ICESat
Seasonal variations
Antarctic
title Constructing seasonal records of Ross Ice Shelf elevation changes using ICESat altimetry data
title_full Constructing seasonal records of Ross Ice Shelf elevation changes using ICESat altimetry data
title_fullStr Constructing seasonal records of Ross Ice Shelf elevation changes using ICESat altimetry data
title_full_unstemmed Constructing seasonal records of Ross Ice Shelf elevation changes using ICESat altimetry data
title_short Constructing seasonal records of Ross Ice Shelf elevation changes using ICESat altimetry data
title_sort constructing seasonal records of ross ice shelf elevation changes using icesat altimetry data
topic Ross Ice Shelf
Elevation change
ICESat
Seasonal variations
Antarctic
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674984724001186
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