Friday, 31 August 2007
5.PS-135
The subglacial Bed of Shirase Glacier, Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica
Daniel Steinhage1, Yoshifumi Nogi2, and Wilfried Jokat1. (1) Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research, Am Alten Hafen 26, Bremerhaven, 27568, Germany, (2) NIPR, 1-9-10 Kaga, Itabashi, Tokyo, 173-8515, Japan
In austral summer 2005/06 the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) and the National Institute for Polar Research (NIPR) Tokyo carried out the joint aerogeophysical programme WEGAS. Ice thickness, magnetics and gravity of the Shirase Glacier drainage basin and the adjacent ocean have been mapped using the ski equipped AWI aircraft POLAR2 operated from the NIPR camp S17 near Syowa. Aim of this joint survey is to reveal the tectonic structure on- and off-shore to investigate the Gondwana break-up. This contribution focuses on the subglacial bed of Shirase Glacier, covering an area of roughly 160.000km², as revealed by airborne RES. A remarkable feature of the Shirase Glacier revealed by this survey is its flat bed. This in contrast to other glaciers in DML, which exhibit deep depressions. Results of the magnetics and gravity are subject of further presentations given at the symposium by the respective investigators.