Imperial College London

ProfessorMartinSiegert

Faculty of Natural SciencesThe Grantham Institute for Climate Change

Visiting Professor
 
 
 
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Contact

 

+44 (0)20 7594 9666m.siegert Website

 
 
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Assistant

 

Ms Gosia Gayer +44 (0)20 7594 9666

 
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Location

 

Grantham Directors OfficeSherfield BuildingSouth Kensington Campus

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Summary

 

Publications

Citation

BibTex format

@inbook{Ross:2013:10.1002/9781118670354.ch13,
author = {Ross, N and Siegert, MJ and Rivera, A and Bentley, MJ and Blake, D and Capper, L and Clarke, R and Cockell, CS and Corr, HFJ and Harris, W and Hill, C and Hindmarsh, RCA and Hodgson, DA and King, EC and Lamb, H and Maher, B and Makinson, K and Mowlem, M and Parnell, J and Pearce, DA and Priscu, J and Smith, AM and Tait, A and Tranter, M and Wadham, JL and Whalley, WB and Woodward, J},
booktitle = {Antarctic Subglacial Aquatic Environments},
doi = {10.1002/9781118670354.ch13},
pages = {221--233},
title = {Ellsworth Subglacial Lake, West Antarctica: A Review of Its History and Recent Field Campaigns},
url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/9781118670354.ch13},
year = {2013}
}

RIS format (EndNote, RefMan)

TY  - CHAP
AB - Ellsworth Subglacial Lake, first observed in airborne radio echo sounding data acquired in 1978, is located within a long, deep subglacial trough within the Ellsworth Subglacial Highlands of West Antarctica. Geophysical surveys have characterized the lake, its subglacial catchment, and the thickness, structure, and flow of the overlying ice sheet. Covering 28.9 km2, Ellsworth Subglacial Lake is located below 2.9 to 3.3 km of ice at depths of -1361 to -1030 m. Seismic reflection data have shown the lake to be up to 156 m deep and underlain by unconsolidated sediments. Ice sheet flow over the lake is characterized by low velocities (<6 m yr-1), flow convergence, and longitudinal extension. The lake appears to be in steady state, although the hydrological balance may vary over glacial-interglacial cycles. Direct access, measurement, and sampling of Ellsworth Subglacial Lake are planned for the 2012/2013 Antarctic field season. The aims of this access experiment are to determine (1) the presence, character, and maintenance of microbial life in Antarctic subglacial lakes and (2) the Quaternary history of the West Antarctic ice sheet. Geophysical data have been used to define a preferred lake access site. The factors that make this location suitable for exploration are (1) a relatively thin overlying ice column (~3.1 km), (2) a significant measured water depth (~143 m), (3) >2 m of sediment below the lake floor, (4) water circulation modeling suggesting a melting ice-water interface, and (5) coring that can target the deepest point of the lake floor away from marginal, localized sediment sources.
AU - Ross,N
AU - Siegert,MJ
AU - Rivera,A
AU - Bentley,MJ
AU - Blake,D
AU - Capper,L
AU - Clarke,R
AU - Cockell,CS
AU - Corr,HFJ
AU - Harris,W
AU - Hill,C
AU - Hindmarsh,RCA
AU - Hodgson,DA
AU - King,EC
AU - Lamb,H
AU - Maher,B
AU - Makinson,K
AU - Mowlem,M
AU - Parnell,J
AU - Pearce,DA
AU - Priscu,J
AU - Smith,AM
AU - Tait,A
AU - Tranter,M
AU - Wadham,JL
AU - Whalley,WB
AU - Woodward,J
DO - 10.1002/9781118670354.ch13
EP - 233
PY - 2013///
SN - 9780875904825
SP - 221
TI - Ellsworth Subglacial Lake, West Antarctica: A Review of Its History and Recent Field Campaigns
T1 - Antarctic Subglacial Aquatic Environments
UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/9781118670354.ch13
ER -