Articles | Volume 19, issue 12
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-6827-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-6827-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
17 Dec 2025
Research article |
| 17 Dec 2025
| 17 Dec 2025
Gravity inversion for sub-ice shelf bathymetry: strengths, limitations, and insights from synthetic modeling
Matthew Davis Tankersley
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Institute of Geoscience, Kiel University, Kiel, Germany
Antarctic Research Centre, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, Palisades, NY, USA
Huw Horgan
Antarctic Research Centre, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand
Laboratory of Hydraulics, Hydrology and Glaciology (VAW), ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Sion, Switzerland
Fabio Caratori Tontini
University of Genova, Genova, Italy
Kirsty Tinto
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, Palisades, NY, USA
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Emma J. MacKie, Lu Li, Anna Ruth W. Halberstadt, Stewart S. R. Jamieson, Robert Law, Maximilian Lowe, Felicity S. McCormack, Guy J. G. Paxman, Alan R. A. Aitken, Eliza Dawson, Jeremy Ely, Michael Field, Jacqueline A. Halpin, Dougal Hansen, Yasmina M. Martos, Sophie Nowicki, Anya Reading, Niya Shao, Tobias Stål, Kirsty J. Tinto, and Ryan Venturelli
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-5815, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-5815, 2026
This preprint is open for discussion and under review for The Cryosphere (TC).
Short summary
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Antarctica’s geology controls how its ice sheet moves and responds to climate change. The landscape, rocks, sediments, water, and heat beneath the ice all influence ice flow, yet these conditions remain poorly understood and are often oversimplified in ice-sheet models. Here, we examine how geology influences ice-sheet behavior, identify gaps between geological observations and models, and explore ways to improve collaboration between geologists and ice-sheet modelers.
Huw Joseph Horgan, Andrew Robert Gorman, J. Paul Winberry, Sridhar Anandakrishnan, Howard Conway, Gavin B. Dunbar, Tina van de Flierdt, Denise K. Kulhanek, Richard H. Levy, Molly O. Patterson, and Ilaria Santin
Earth Syst. Sci. Data Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2026-723, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2026-723, 2026
Preprint under review for ESSD
Short summary
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Knowledge of the past and future of Earth's ice sheets requires us to image beneath the ice surface and into the ice, water, sediment, and rock that lies beneath. An effective way of doing this uses active source seismology. Here we present active source seismic data imaging a diverse range of subglacial environments including subglacial lakes, sub-ice ocean cavities, and geological archives preserving the history of the ice sheets.
Emily C. Glazer and Kirsty J. Tinto
The Cryosphere, 20, 5131–5156, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5131-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5131-2026, 2026
Short summary
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Surface meltwater ponds on Antarctic ice shelves can trigger ice break-up. Using satellite records of observed ponds along with temperatures, snowfall rates, and melt rates from climate models, we show that ponding occurs more widely than theory predicts. Our calibrated method identifies vulnerable areas more accurately and suggests pond coverage could be over double what standard methods predict by 2100, highlighting the need for careful evaluation of climate thresholds used to predict ponding.
Ilaria Santin, Huw J. Horgan, Raphael Moser, Nanna Bjørnholt Karlsson, Faezeh M. Nick, Andreas Vieli, Anja Rutishauser, Hansruedi Maurer, and Daniel Farinotti
The Cryosphere, 20, 3435–3441, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-3435-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-3435-2026, 2026
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Ice thickness near Greenland’s coast is still poorly measured, yet it is vital for predicting sea level rise. We flew a helicopter ice-penetrating radar over three outlet glaciers in southern Greenland and mapped the glacier bed where basal reflections were clear. We measured ice up to about 340 meters thick, with reliable penetration typically to about 300 meters, providing new constraints that can improve regional bed maps.
Francesca Baldacchino, Nicholas R. Golledge, Mathieu Morlighem, Huw Horgan, Alanna V. Alevropoulos-Borrill, Alena Malyarenko, Alexandra Gossart, Daniel P. Lowry, and Laurine van Haastrecht
The Cryosphere, 19, 107–127, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-107-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-107-2025, 2025
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Understanding how the Ross Ice Shelf flow is changing in a warming world is important for predicting ice sheet change. Field measurements show clear intra-annual variations in ice flow; however, it is unclear what mechanisms drive this variability. We show that local perturbations in basal melt can have a significant impact on ice flow speed, but a combination of forcings is likely driving the observed variability in ice flow.
Alice C. Frémand, Peter Fretwell, Julien A. Bodart, Hamish D. Pritchard, Alan Aitken, Jonathan L. Bamber, Robin Bell, Cesidio Bianchi, Robert G. Bingham, Donald D. Blankenship, Gino Casassa, Ginny Catania, Knut Christianson, Howard Conway, Hugh F. J. Corr, Xiangbin Cui, Detlef Damaske, Volkmar Damm, Reinhard Drews, Graeme Eagles, Olaf Eisen, Hannes Eisermann, Fausto Ferraccioli, Elena Field, René Forsberg, Steven Franke, Shuji Fujita, Yonggyu Gim, Vikram Goel, Siva Prasad Gogineni, Jamin Greenbaum, Benjamin Hills, Richard C. A. Hindmarsh, Andrew O. Hoffman, Per Holmlund, Nicholas Holschuh, John W. Holt, Annika N. Horlings, Angelika Humbert, Robert W. Jacobel, Daniela Jansen, Adrian Jenkins, Wilfried Jokat, Tom Jordan, Edward King, Jack Kohler, William Krabill, Mette Kusk Gillespie, Kirsty Langley, Joohan Lee, German Leitchenkov, Carlton Leuschen, Bruce Luyendyk, Joseph MacGregor, Emma MacKie, Kenichi Matsuoka, Mathieu Morlighem, Jérémie Mouginot, Frank O. Nitsche, Yoshifumi Nogi, Ole A. Nost, John Paden, Frank Pattyn, Sergey V. Popov, Eric Rignot, David M. Rippin, Andrés Rivera, Jason Roberts, Neil Ross, Anotonia Ruppel, Dustin M. Schroeder, Martin J. Siegert, Andrew M. Smith, Daniel Steinhage, Michael Studinger, Bo Sun, Ignazio Tabacco, Kirsty Tinto, Stefano Urbini, David Vaughan, Brian C. Welch, Douglas S. Wilson, Duncan A. Young, and Achille Zirizzotti
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 2695–2710, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-2695-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-2695-2023, 2023
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This paper presents the release of over 60 years of ice thickness, bed elevation, and surface elevation data acquired over Antarctica by the international community. These data are a crucial component of the Antarctic Bedmap initiative which aims to produce a new map and datasets of Antarctic ice thickness and bed topography for the international glaciology and geophysical community.
Francesca Baldacchino, Mathieu Morlighem, Nicholas R. Golledge, Huw Horgan, and Alena Malyarenko
The Cryosphere, 16, 3723–3738, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3723-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3723-2022, 2022
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Understanding how the Ross Ice Shelf will evolve in a warming world is important to the future stability of Antarctica. It remains unclear what changes could drive the largest mass loss in the future and where places are most likely to trigger larger mass losses. Sensitivity maps are modelled showing that the RIS is sensitive to changes in environmental and glaciological controls at regions which are currently experiencing changes. These regions need to be monitored in a warming world.
Molly O. Patterson, Richard H. Levy, Denise K. Kulhanek, Tina van de Flierdt, Huw Horgan, Gavin B. Dunbar, Timothy R. Naish, Jeanine Ash, Alex Pyne, Darcy Mandeno, Paul Winberry, David M. Harwood, Fabio Florindo, Francisco J. Jimenez-Espejo, Andreas Läufer, Kyu-Cheul Yoo, Osamu Seki, Paolo Stocchi, Johann P. Klages, Jae Il Lee, Florence Colleoni, Yusuke Suganuma, Edward Gasson, Christian Ohneiser, José-Abel Flores, David Try, Rachel Kirkman, Daleen Koch, and the SWAIS 2C Science Team
Sci. Dril., 30, 101–112, https://doi.org/10.5194/sd-30-101-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/sd-30-101-2022, 2022
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How much of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet will melt and how quickly it will happen when average global temperatures exceed 2 °C is currently unknown. Given the far-reaching and international consequences of Antarctica’s future contribution to global sea level rise, the SWAIS 2C Project was developed in order to better forecast the size and timing of future changes.
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Short summary
We studied how gravity data can be used to estimate the shape of the seafloor beneath Antarctica’s floating ice shelves, where direct measurements are difficult. Using computer models based on real data, we tested when this method works well and where it has limits. We found that it could greatly improve seafloor maps for most ice shelves with high-quality gravity data. Better models of the seafloor will help us understand how ocean water melts ice from below, affecting future sea level rise.
We studied how gravity data can be used to estimate the shape of the seafloor beneath...
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