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Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Recent understanding of Antarctic supraglacial lakes using satellite remote sensing
AU - Arthur, J.F.
AU - Stokes, C.
AU - Jamieson, S.S.R.
AU - Carr, J.R.
AU - Leeson, A.A.
PY - 2020/5/19
Y1 - 2020/5/19
N2 - Supraglacial lakes (SGLs) are now known to be widespread in Antarctica, where they represent an important component of ice sheet mass balance. This paper reviews how recent progress in satellite remote sensing has substantially advanced our understanding of SGLs in Antarctica, including their characteristics, geographic distribution and impacts on ice sheet dynamics. Important advances include: (a) the capability to resolve lakes at sub-metre resolution at weekly timescales; (b) the measurement of lake depth and volume changes at seasonal timescales, including sporadic observations of lake drainage events and (c) the integration of multiple optical satellite datasets to obtain continent-wide observations of lake distributions. Despite recent progress, however, there remain important gaps in our understanding, most notably: (a) the relationship between seasonal variability in SGL development and near-surface climate; (b) the prevalence and impact of SGL drainage events on both grounded and floating ice and (c) the sensitivity of individual ice shelves to lake-induced hydrofracture. Given that surface melting and SGL development is predicted to play an increasingly important role in the surface mass balance of Antarctica, bridging these gaps will help constrain predictions of future rapid ice loss from Antarctica. © The Author(s) 2020.
AB - Supraglacial lakes (SGLs) are now known to be widespread in Antarctica, where they represent an important component of ice sheet mass balance. This paper reviews how recent progress in satellite remote sensing has substantially advanced our understanding of SGLs in Antarctica, including their characteristics, geographic distribution and impacts on ice sheet dynamics. Important advances include: (a) the capability to resolve lakes at sub-metre resolution at weekly timescales; (b) the measurement of lake depth and volume changes at seasonal timescales, including sporadic observations of lake drainage events and (c) the integration of multiple optical satellite datasets to obtain continent-wide observations of lake distributions. Despite recent progress, however, there remain important gaps in our understanding, most notably: (a) the relationship between seasonal variability in SGL development and near-surface climate; (b) the prevalence and impact of SGL drainage events on both grounded and floating ice and (c) the sensitivity of individual ice shelves to lake-induced hydrofracture. Given that surface melting and SGL development is predicted to play an increasingly important role in the surface mass balance of Antarctica, bridging these gaps will help constrain predictions of future rapid ice loss from Antarctica. © The Author(s) 2020.
KW - Antarctica
KW - hydrology
KW - remote sensing
KW - Supraglacial lakes
U2 - 10.1177/0309133320916114
DO - 10.1177/0309133320916114
M3 - Journal article
JO - Progress in Physical Geography
JF - Progress in Physical Geography
SN - 0309-1333
ER -