Basal Melting of the Riiser-Larsen Ice Shelf in East Antarctica and its Contribution to Sea Level Rise by 2300

We are in a period of rapidly accelerating change across the Antarctic continent and Southern Ocean, with land ice loss leading to sea level rise and climate impacts.

The ice-ocean interactions that dominate the current ice loss signal are a key underdeveloped area of knowledge, which is a reflection of a scarcity of consistent and direct observations.

This causes high uncertainty in the required glaciological, oceanographic, and atmospheric variables and a lack of standardised protocols for integrating observations across different platforms and technologies.

This project, part of a multidisciplinary initiative by the Swedish Polar Research Secretariat, targets a comprehensive analysis of melting beneath the Riiser-Larsen Ice Shelf in East Antarctica.

Utilizing state-of-the-art phase-sensitive radars alongside snow- and ice sensors, this research will bridge the observational gap between satellite-derived melt estimates and in-situ measurements.

The overarching aim is to improve our understanding of basal melt processes through the integration of novel observational techniques and model simulations.

This effort is crucial for validating coupled ocean and ice sheet models, thereby advancing projections of ice shelf stability and sea level rise.

Collaboration with international experts and institutions, including a mobility phase to Australia, will refine methodologies and data integration techniques, ensuring the timely distribution of high-quality, open-access data.