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Twentieth century increase in snowfall in coastal West Antarctica
Author(s) -
Thomas E. R.,
Hosking J. S.,
Tuckwell R. R.,
Warren R. A.,
Ludlow E. C.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1002/2015gl065750
Subject(s) - snow , context (archaeology) , ice sheet , future sea level , geology , climatology , oceanography , antarctic ice sheet , physical geography , sea ice , cryosphere , antarctic sea ice , geography , geomorphology , paleontology
The Amundsen Sea sector of the West Antarctic ice sheet has been losing mass in recent decades; however, long records of snow accumulation are needed to place the recent changes in context. Here we present 300 year records of snow accumulation from two ice cores drilled in Ellsworth Land, West Antarctica. The records show a dramatic increase in snow accumulation during the twentieth century, linked to a deepening of the Amundsen Sea Low (ASL), tropical sea surface temperatures, and large‐scale atmospheric circulation. The observed increase in snow accumulation and interannual variability during the late twentieth century is unprecedented in the context of the past 300 years and evidence that the recent deepening of the ASL is part of a longer trend.