Browse by author
Lookup NU author(s): Professor Neil RossORCiD, Professor Matt King
Full text for this publication is not currently held within this repository. Alternative links are provided below where available.
Subglacial Lake Ellsworth has been proposed as a candidate for direct measurement and sampling, to identify microbial life and extract sedimentary climate records. We present a detailed characterization of the physiography of this subglacial lake from geophysical surveys, allowing bathymetry and geomorphic setting to be established. Lake Ellsworth is 14.7 km x 3.1 km with an area of 28.9 km(2). Lake depth increases downlake from 52 m to 156 m, with a water body volume of 1.37 km(3). The ice thickness suggests an unusual thermodynamic characteristic, with the critical pressure boundary intersecting the lake. Numerical modeling of water circulation has allowed accretion of basal ice to be estimated. We collate this physiographic and modeling information to confirm that Lake Ellsworth is ideal for direct access and propose an optimal drill site. The likelihood of dissolved gas exchange between the lake and the borehole is also assessed. Citation: Woodward, J., A. M. Smith, N. Ross, M. Thoma, H. F. J. Corr, E. C. King, M. A. King, K. Grosfeld, M. Tranter, and M. J. Siegert (2010), Location for direct access to subglacial Lake Ellsworth: An assessment of geophysical data and modeling, Geophys. Res. Lett., 37, L11501, doi: 10.1029/2010GL042884.
Author(s): Woodward J, Smith AM, Ross N, Thoma M, Corr HFJ, King EC, King MA, Grosfeld K, Tranter M, Siegert MJ
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Geophysical Research Letters
Year: 2010
Volume: 37
Issue: 11
Print publication date: 02/06/2010
ISSN (print): 0094-8276
ISSN (electronic): 1944-8007
Publisher: American Geophysical Union
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2010GL042884
DOI: 10.1029/2010GL042884
Altmetrics provided by Altmetric
