Noble gas measurements beneath Filchner-Ronne Ice Sheet

Using a novel gas‐tight in situ water sampler, noble gas samples have been collected from six locations beneath the Filchner Ice Shelf, the first such samples from beneath an Antarctic ice shelf.

Helium and neon are uniquely suited as tracers of glacial meltwater in the ocean. Basal meltwater fractions range from 3.6% near the ice shelf base to 0.5% near the sea floor, with distinct regional differences. We estimate an average basal melt rate for the Filchner‐Ronne Ice Shelf of 177 ± 95 Gt/year, independently confirming previous results.