G-080 - Garwood Valley Thermokarst
PI: Dr. Joe Levy
Project Lead: Joseph Levy
Funding Source: NSF/PLR 1043785, 1343835
Location: Garwood Valley, Antarctica
Dates: 2011-11-10 to 2014-01-14
Project Summary
This project has three objectives: (1) Buried Ice Inventory. Comprehensively map and sample the buried ice record present in Garwood Valley in three spatial dimensions, distinguishing buried glacier ice from interbedded river ice; (2) Buried Ice Loss. Quantify the current rate of buried ice removal where ice is exposed, being eroded by the Garwood River, or being removed through thermokarst formation; and (3) Paleo-Landscape Change. Map the sedimentary sequence overlying the buried ice, and extract datable material for environmental change rate calculations. The work entails extensive mapping and sampling activities throughout the valley and neighboring coastal sites. An autonomous meteorological station is maintained throughout the duration of the project, including over-winter.
Project Sites
Related Publications
- Joseph S. Levy, Andrew G. Fountain, James L. Dickson, James W. Head, Marianne Okal, David R. Marchant & Jaclyn Watters (2013), Accelerated thermokarst formation in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica, Scientific Reports, vol. 3, no. 2269, doi: 10.1038/srep02269