EGU24-8534, updated on 08 Mar 2024
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu24-8534
EGU General Assembly 2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Firn aquifer properties of Wilkins ice shelf from multi-source spaceborne microwave observations

Xinyi Shang1, Xiao Cheng2, Lei Zheng2, Qi Liang2, and Teng Li2
Xinyi Shang et al.
  • 1College of Global Change and Earth System Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing,100875, China
  • 2School of Geospatial Engineering and Science, Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), Sun Yat-sen University, Zhuhai, 519082, China

The potential impact of increased snowmelt and related hydrological processes on ice sheet stability has become a focus of academic attention. Hydro-fracture caused by liquid water is one of the main triggers of ice shelf disintegration. Recent discoveries of firn aquifer (FA) in the Wilkins Ice Shelf (WIS) have updated our understanding of surface hydrological processes, mass and energy balance. However, the limited field and airborne radar observations of FA cannot provide a complete picture of their distribution and characteristics. Microwave remote sensing is highly sensitive to the dielectric constant change caused by the dynamics in buried liquid water. However, it is challenging to obtain the buried depth of FA from space. In this study, the extent and depth to the water table (DWT) of FA are investigated with the combination of active and passive microwave observations, as well as airborne radar measurements. First, with the verification points from airborne radar, the extent of FA is mapped from satellite-derived snowmelt and accumulation conditions based on a K-Nearest Neighbors classification model (OA=97.2%, Kappa=0.94). Next, we use a Gaussian Process Regression model to estimate the DWT of FA (R=0.8, RMSE=2.17 m). The results show that FA occurred in most areas of WIS in 2014, with a DWT of 12.8±2.9 m. The DWT increased from north to south. Further study will examine the dynamics in FA and their hydro-fracture effect on ice shelf calving and the stability of the Antarctic ice sheet.

How to cite: Shang, X., Cheng, X., Zheng, L., Liang, Q., and Li, T.: Firn aquifer properties of Wilkins ice shelf from multi-source spaceborne microwave observations, EGU General Assembly 2024, Vienna, Austria, 14–19 Apr 2024, EGU24-8534, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu24-8534, 2024.