Articles | Volume 12, issue 9
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-3033-2018
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-3033-2018
Research article
 | 
26 Sep 2018
Research article |  | 26 Sep 2018

Modeling the effect of Ross Ice Shelf melting on the Southern Ocean in quasi-equilibrium

Xiying Liu

Data sets

RIS data X. Liu http://ddl.escience.cn/f/QUO4

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Short summary
Numerical experiments have been performed to study the effect of basal melting of the Ross Ice Shelf on the ocean southward of 35° S. It is shown that the melt rate averaged over the entire Ross Ice Shelf is 0.253 m year-1, which is associated with a freshwater flux of 3150 m3 s-1. The extra freshwater flux decreases the salinity in the Southern Ocean substantially, leading to anomalies in circulation, sea ice, and heat transport in certain parts of the ocean.