HR: 1330h
AN: C32A-0417    [PDF]
TI: Glaciology From ICESat - West Antarctic Divide
AU: * Suchdeo, V P
EM: vsuchdeo@icesat2.gsfc.nasa.gov
AF: NVI, Inc., Oceans and Ice Branch, Laboratory for Hydrospheric Processes, NASA Goddard Space Flight, Code 971, Building 33, Room B209B, Greenbelt, MD 20771 United States
AU: Shuman, C A
EM: Christopher.A.Shuman@nasa.gov
AF: Oceans and Ice Branch, Laboratory for Hydrospheric Processes, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Code 971, Building 33, Room A210, Greenbelt, MD 20771 United States
AB: On January 12, 2003, NASA launched the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) which is carrying the Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS). Orbiting at nearly 17,000 miles per hour (~6 km/sec), ICESat/GLAS is providing data with unprecedented accuracy on the globe's third dimension, elevation. ICESat is the latest in a series of NASA's robotic Earth-orbiting spacecraft designed to study the environment of our home planet and how it may be changing. The main mission of ICESat is to measure the surface elevation of the large ice sheets covering Antarctica and Greenland. While several years of measurements are needed to determine mass balance changes, ICESat is already revealing details of ice sheet surface features from deep in the interior out to the surrounding sea ice. This presentation is based on 14 descending tracks from cycles 1-6 from ICESat's first mission phase (GLAS Laser 1 of 3) that occurred February 20 to March 29, 2003. Although the data are not yet fully calibrated, the Release 11 product utilized here is quite mature. Data from ICESat's second mission phase (Laser 2 of 3) is not included here. Using a technique that matches elevation data to gain and energy values enables rapid initial quality assessments. These assessments show that a substantial number of these West Antarctic elevation profiles are partially or substantially impacted by meteorological phenomena (clouds or blowing snow). This presentation will: 1) define the West Antarctic ice sheet's divide location and elevation; 2) illustrate the overall topography of a portion of West Antarctica; 3) demonstrate repeat track elevation analysis and composite track development; 4) discuss factors influencing selection of profiles for analysis; and 5) show other specific features of interest observed within the area.
DE: 0933 Remote sensing
DE: 1243 Space geodetic surveys
DE: 1827 Glaciology (1863)
DE: 1863 Snow and ice (1827)
SC: Cryosphere [C]
MN: 2003 Fall Meeting