Investigations of the mass balance of the southeastern Ronne Ice Shelf, Antarctica

Abstract

2000 m close to the grounding line of Foundation Ice Stream. The measurements also revealed that the position of this grounding line is 40 km further south than previously thought. New mass-flux calculations result in an estimate of 51 km3 a-1 for the ice-stream transport from the ice sheet into the eastern ice shelf. The Mollereisstrom (MES), west of Foundation Ice Stream, shows a maximum ice thickness of 1100-1200 m in the grounding-line area and a mass flux of 23 km3 a-1. Assuming steady-state conditions, mass-balance calculations based on the new data result in a mean melt rate of about 1 m a-1 at the ice-shelf base for the entire southeastern part of the RIS. The melt rate in the grounding-line area of Foundation Ice Stream exceeds 9 m a-1. In contrast, other ice streams draining into the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf show maximum melt rates from 1-2 m a-1 (MES) to 4 m a-1 (Rutford Ice Stream). Our calculations indicate that nearly all of the ice deposited in the drainage area of the eastern RIS on the ice sheet does not reach the ice-shelf front as original meteoric ice, but is melted at the ice-shelf base.