Mechanisms driving variability in the ocean forcing of Pine Island Glacier

Benjamin G.M. Webber; Karen J. Heywood; David P. Stevens; Pierre Dutrieux; E. Povl Abrahamsen; Adrian Jenkins; Stanley S. Jacobs; Ho Kyung Ha; Sang Hoon Lee; Tae Wan Kim

doi:10.1038/ncomms14507

Mechanisms driving variability in the ocean forcing of Pine Island Glacier

Benjamin G.M. Webber^*, Karen J. Heywood, David P. Stevens, Pierre Dutrieux, E. Povl Abrahamsen, Adrian Jenkins, Stanley S. Jacobs, Ho Kyung Ha, Sang Hoon Lee, Tae Wan Kim

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

90 Citations (Scopus)

33 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

Pine Island Glacier (PIG) terminates in a rapidly melting ice shelf, and ocean circulation and temperature are implicated in the retreat and growing contribution to sea level rise of PIG and nearby glaciers. However, the variability of the ocean forcing of PIG has been poorly constrained due to a lack of multi-year observations. Here we show, using a unique record close to the Pine Island Ice Shelf (PIIS), that there is considerable oceanic variability at seasonal and interannual timescales, including a pronounced cold period from October 2011 to May 2013. This variability can be largely explained by two processes: cumulative ocean surface heat fluxes and sea ice formation close to PIIS; and interannual reversals in ocean currents and associated heat transport within Pine Island Bay, driven by a combination of local and remote forcing. Local atmospheric forcing therefore plays an important role in driving oceanic variability close to PIIS.

Original language	English
Article number	14507
Journal	Nature Communications
Volume	8
Issue number	1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms14507
Publication status	Published - 17 Feb 2017
Externally published	Yes

Keywords

Climate-change impacts
Cryospheric science
Physical oceanography

Access to Document

10.1038/ncomms14507Licence: CC BY

Mechanisms driving variability in the ocean forcing of Pine Island GlacierFinal published version, 8.78 MBLicence: CC BY

Cite this

@article{938c94b952a149f381530d3254cceb10,

title = "Mechanisms driving variability in the ocean forcing of Pine Island Glacier",

abstract = "Pine Island Glacier (PIG) terminates in a rapidly melting ice shelf, and ocean circulation and temperature are implicated in the retreat and growing contribution to sea level rise of PIG and nearby glaciers. However, the variability of the ocean forcing of PIG has been poorly constrained due to a lack of multi-year observations. Here we show, using a unique record close to the Pine Island Ice Shelf (PIIS), that there is considerable oceanic variability at seasonal and interannual timescales, including a pronounced cold period from October 2011 to May 2013. This variability can be largely explained by two processes: cumulative ocean surface heat fluxes and sea ice formation close to PIIS; and interannual reversals in ocean currents and associated heat transport within Pine Island Bay, driven by a combination of local and remote forcing. Local atmospheric forcing therefore plays an important role in driving oceanic variability close to PIIS.",

keywords = "Climate-change impacts, Cryospheric science, Physical oceanography",

author = "Webber, {Benjamin G.M.} and Heywood, {Karen J.} and Stevens, {David P.} and Pierre Dutrieux and Abrahamsen, {E. Povl} and Adrian Jenkins and Jacobs, {Stanley S.} and Ha, {Ho Kyung} and Lee, {Sang Hoon} and Kim, {Tae Wan}",

note = "The work was supported by funding from the UK Natural Environment Research Council{\textquoteright}s iSTAR Programme through NERC Grant Numbers NE/J005703/1 (B.G.M.W., K.J.H., D.P.S.), NE/J005746/1 (A.J.) and NE/J005770/1 (P.D., A.J.). Support for the BSR5 mooring and S.S.J. was provided by the NSF Amundsen Sea Embayment Project (ANT06-32282). Support for H.K.H. was provided by NRF of Korea (NRF-2015K2A3A1000201). Support for S.H.L., T.W.K., and the iSTAR mooring deployment was provided by the Korean Polar Research Institute grant KOPRI PP16020.",

year = "2017",

month = feb,

day = "17",

doi = "10.1038/ncomms14507",

language = "English",

volume = "8",

journal = "Nature Communications",

issn = "2041-1723",

publisher = "Nature Publishing Group",

number = "1",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - Mechanisms driving variability in the ocean forcing of Pine Island Glacier

AU - Webber, Benjamin G.M.

AU - Heywood, Karen J.

AU - Stevens, David P.

AU - Dutrieux, Pierre

AU - Abrahamsen, E. Povl

AU - Jenkins, Adrian

AU - Jacobs, Stanley S.

AU - Ha, Ho Kyung

AU - Lee, Sang Hoon

AU - Kim, Tae Wan

N1 - The work was supported by funding from the UK Natural Environment Research Council’s iSTAR Programme through NERC Grant Numbers NE/J005703/1 (B.G.M.W., K.J.H., D.P.S.), NE/J005746/1 (A.J.) and NE/J005770/1 (P.D., A.J.). Support for the BSR5 mooring and S.S.J. was provided by the NSF Amundsen Sea Embayment Project (ANT06-32282). Support for H.K.H. was provided by NRF of Korea (NRF-2015K2A3A1000201). Support for S.H.L., T.W.K., and the iSTAR mooring deployment was provided by the Korean Polar Research Institute grant KOPRI PP16020.

PY - 2017/2/17

Y1 - 2017/2/17

N2 - Pine Island Glacier (PIG) terminates in a rapidly melting ice shelf, and ocean circulation and temperature are implicated in the retreat and growing contribution to sea level rise of PIG and nearby glaciers. However, the variability of the ocean forcing of PIG has been poorly constrained due to a lack of multi-year observations. Here we show, using a unique record close to the Pine Island Ice Shelf (PIIS), that there is considerable oceanic variability at seasonal and interannual timescales, including a pronounced cold period from October 2011 to May 2013. This variability can be largely explained by two processes: cumulative ocean surface heat fluxes and sea ice formation close to PIIS; and interannual reversals in ocean currents and associated heat transport within Pine Island Bay, driven by a combination of local and remote forcing. Local atmospheric forcing therefore plays an important role in driving oceanic variability close to PIIS.

AB - Pine Island Glacier (PIG) terminates in a rapidly melting ice shelf, and ocean circulation and temperature are implicated in the retreat and growing contribution to sea level rise of PIG and nearby glaciers. However, the variability of the ocean forcing of PIG has been poorly constrained due to a lack of multi-year observations. Here we show, using a unique record close to the Pine Island Ice Shelf (PIIS), that there is considerable oceanic variability at seasonal and interannual timescales, including a pronounced cold period from October 2011 to May 2013. This variability can be largely explained by two processes: cumulative ocean surface heat fluxes and sea ice formation close to PIIS; and interannual reversals in ocean currents and associated heat transport within Pine Island Bay, driven by a combination of local and remote forcing. Local atmospheric forcing therefore plays an important role in driving oceanic variability close to PIIS.

KW - Climate-change impacts

KW - Cryospheric science

KW - Physical oceanography

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85013216744&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1038/ncomms14507

DO - 10.1038/ncomms14507

M3 - Article

C2 - 28211473

AN - SCOPUS:85013216744

SN - 2041-1723

VL - 8

JO - Nature Communications

JF - Nature Communications

IS - 1

M1 - 14507

ER -

Mechanisms driving variability in the ocean forcing of Pine Island Glacier

Abstract

Keywords

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Cite this