NSF-NERC: Geological History Constraints on the Magnitude of Grounding Line Retreat in the Thwaites Glacier System

Specifically, the project will test the hypothesis--implied by existing geological evidence from the region--that present rapid retreat of the Thwaites Glacier system is reversible. The team aims to utilize two approaches: 1. To reconstruct relative sea level during the Holocene, it will map and date raised marine and shoreline deposits throughout Pine Island Bay.

Chronological constraints on sea-level change will be provided by radiocarbon dating of organic material in landforms and sediments that are genetically related to past sea level, such as shell fragments, bones of marine fauna, and penguin guano. 2. To obtain geological evidence for past episodes of grounding-line retreat, the team will apply cosmogenic-nuclide exposure-dating of subglacial bedrock. Using drill systems recently developed for subglacial bedrock recovery, the team will obtain subglacial bedrock from sites where ice thickness is dynamically linked to grounding-line position in the Thwaites system (specifically in the Hudson Mountains, and near Mount Murphy).

Observation of significant cosmogenic-nuclide concentrations--the team will primarily measure Beryllium-10 and in situ Carbon-14--in these samples would provide direct, unambiguous evidence for past episodes of thinning linked to grounding-line retreat as well as constraints on their timing and duration.