An ancient river landscape preserved beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet
Abstract The East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS) has its origins ca. 34 million years ago. Since then, the impact of climate change and past fluctuations in the EAIS margin has been reflected in periods of extensive vs. restricted ice cover and the modification of much of the Antarctic landscape. Resolv...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nature Portfolio
2023-10-01
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| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-42152-2 |
| _version_ | 1797558449334124544 |
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| author | Stewart S. R. Jamieson Neil Ross Guy J. G. Paxman Fiona J. Clubb Duncan A. Young Shuai Yan Jamin Greenbaum Donald D. Blankenship Martin J. Siegert |
| author_facet | Stewart S. R. Jamieson Neil Ross Guy J. G. Paxman Fiona J. Clubb Duncan A. Young Shuai Yan Jamin Greenbaum Donald D. Blankenship Martin J. Siegert |
| author_sort | Stewart S. R. Jamieson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS) has its origins ca. 34 million years ago. Since then, the impact of climate change and past fluctuations in the EAIS margin has been reflected in periods of extensive vs. restricted ice cover and the modification of much of the Antarctic landscape. Resolving processes of landscape evolution is therefore critical for establishing ice sheet history, but it is rare to find unmodified landscapes that record past ice conditions. Here, we discover an extensive relic pre-glacial landscape preserved beneath the central EAIS despite millions of years of ice cover. The landscape was formed by rivers prior to ice sheet build-up but later modified by local glaciation before being dissected by outlet glaciers at the margin of a restricted ice sheet. Preservation of the relic surfaces indicates an absence of significant warm-based ice throughout their history, suggesting any transitions between restricted and expanded ice were rapid. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T17:31:36Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-6055859aefcc4f1c87517a5b85bbf38e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2041-1723 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T17:31:36Z |
| publishDate | 2023-10-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature Communications |
| spelling | doaj.art-6055859aefcc4f1c87517a5b85bbf38e2023-11-20T10:00:01ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232023-10-0114111210.1038/s41467-023-42152-2An ancient river landscape preserved beneath the East Antarctic Ice SheetStewart S. R. Jamieson0Neil Ross1Guy J. G. Paxman2Fiona J. Clubb3Duncan A. Young4Shuai Yan5Jamin Greenbaum6Donald D. Blankenship7Martin J. Siegert8Department of Geography, Durham UniversitySchool of Geography, Politics and Sociology, Newcastle UniversityDepartment of Geography, Durham UniversityDepartment of Geography, Durham UniversityUniversity of Texas Institute for Geophysics, Jackson School of Geosciences, University of Texas at AustinUniversity of Texas Institute for Geophysics, Jackson School of Geosciences, University of Texas at AustinScripps Institute for Oceanography, University of California at San DiegoUniversity of Texas Institute for Geophysics, Jackson School of Geosciences, University of Texas at AustinTremough House, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, PenrynAbstract The East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS) has its origins ca. 34 million years ago. Since then, the impact of climate change and past fluctuations in the EAIS margin has been reflected in periods of extensive vs. restricted ice cover and the modification of much of the Antarctic landscape. Resolving processes of landscape evolution is therefore critical for establishing ice sheet history, but it is rare to find unmodified landscapes that record past ice conditions. Here, we discover an extensive relic pre-glacial landscape preserved beneath the central EAIS despite millions of years of ice cover. The landscape was formed by rivers prior to ice sheet build-up but later modified by local glaciation before being dissected by outlet glaciers at the margin of a restricted ice sheet. Preservation of the relic surfaces indicates an absence of significant warm-based ice throughout their history, suggesting any transitions between restricted and expanded ice were rapid.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-42152-2 |
| spellingShingle | Stewart S. R. Jamieson Neil Ross Guy J. G. Paxman Fiona J. Clubb Duncan A. Young Shuai Yan Jamin Greenbaum Donald D. Blankenship Martin J. Siegert An ancient river landscape preserved beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet Nature Communications |
| title | An ancient river landscape preserved beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet |
| title_full | An ancient river landscape preserved beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet |
| title_fullStr | An ancient river landscape preserved beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet |
| title_full_unstemmed | An ancient river landscape preserved beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet |
| title_short | An ancient river landscape preserved beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet |
| title_sort | ancient river landscape preserved beneath the east antarctic ice sheet |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-42152-2 |
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