Retreat of Greenwich, Livingston, Robert and Snow Islands glaciers, Antarctica, between 1956 and 2023

Abstract Glaciers are sensitive to environmental climatic conditions and show their variability over time. This study investigates the environmental characteristics and variation in glacial cover of the Greenwich, Livingston, Robert and Snow islands, Antarctica, between 1956 and 2023. The glacier ex...

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Main Authors: DANIELLE D. SOFFIATTI, KÁTIA K. ROSA, JÚLIA L. LORENZ, FILIPE LINDAU, CARINA PETSCH, FRANCISCO E. AQUINO, JEFFERSON C. SIMÕES
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Academia Brasileira de Ciências 2024-12-01
Series:Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências
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Online Access:http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0001-37652024000401109&lng=en&tlng=en
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author DANIELLE D. SOFFIATTI
KÁTIA K. ROSA
JÚLIA L. LORENZ
FILIPE LINDAU
CARINA PETSCH
FRANCISCO E. AQUINO
JEFFERSON C. SIMÕES
author_facet DANIELLE D. SOFFIATTI
KÁTIA K. ROSA
JÚLIA L. LORENZ
FILIPE LINDAU
CARINA PETSCH
FRANCISCO E. AQUINO
JEFFERSON C. SIMÕES
author_sort DANIELLE D. SOFFIATTI
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Glaciers are sensitive to environmental climatic conditions and show their variability over time. This study investigates the environmental characteristics and variation in glacial cover of the Greenwich, Livingston, Robert and Snow islands, Antarctica, between 1956 and 2023. The glacier extension mapping was based on visual interpretation of the Landsat 4, 7 and 8 optical images and normalised difference indexes combination. The REMA 8 digital elevation model was applied to the islands’ geomorphometric analysis. Results were compared to climatic series and environmental characteristics. The glacial coverage decreased by 16.9% from 1956 to 2023, equivalent to 209.95 ± 0.113 km². Snow Island, with shallow bathymetry near glacial margins and land-terminating ice-fronts, exhibited the smallest retreat rate values. The glacial coverage of Livingston Island decreased significantly (18%, equivalent to 153.2 ± 0.113 km²) from 1956-2021, representing the highest values in the study. The changes in glacial coverage of the Robert and Greenwich islands were more substantial in the 1989-2023 period than in 1956-1989. Sectors with marine-terminating glaciers, associated with high bathymetric amplitudes, exhibited more significant variations compared to other sectors, contributing to the evolution of fjord-type bays. Glacial coverage has been lost in recent decades due to regional atmospheric and oceanic warming.
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spelling doaj-art-76d3ce0229e140e994c631dfcb3f8ad32024-12-17T07:58:12ZengAcademia Brasileira de CiênciasAnais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências1678-26902024-12-0196suppl 210.1590/0001-3765202420240555Retreat of Greenwich, Livingston, Robert and Snow Islands glaciers, Antarctica, between 1956 and 2023DANIELLE D. SOFFIATTIhttps://orcid.org/0009-0003-0381-9775KÁTIA K. ROSAhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-0977-9658JÚLIA L. LORENZhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-1695-1807FILIPE LINDAUhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-7603-7203CARINA PETSCHhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-1079-0080FRANCISCO E. AQUINOhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-2993-1100JEFFERSON C. SIMÕEShttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-5555-3401Abstract Glaciers are sensitive to environmental climatic conditions and show their variability over time. This study investigates the environmental characteristics and variation in glacial cover of the Greenwich, Livingston, Robert and Snow islands, Antarctica, between 1956 and 2023. The glacier extension mapping was based on visual interpretation of the Landsat 4, 7 and 8 optical images and normalised difference indexes combination. The REMA 8 digital elevation model was applied to the islands’ geomorphometric analysis. Results were compared to climatic series and environmental characteristics. The glacial coverage decreased by 16.9% from 1956 to 2023, equivalent to 209.95 ± 0.113 km². Snow Island, with shallow bathymetry near glacial margins and land-terminating ice-fronts, exhibited the smallest retreat rate values. The glacial coverage of Livingston Island decreased significantly (18%, equivalent to 153.2 ± 0.113 km²) from 1956-2021, representing the highest values in the study. The changes in glacial coverage of the Robert and Greenwich islands were more substantial in the 1989-2023 period than in 1956-1989. Sectors with marine-terminating glaciers, associated with high bathymetric amplitudes, exhibited more significant variations compared to other sectors, contributing to the evolution of fjord-type bays. Glacial coverage has been lost in recent decades due to regional atmospheric and oceanic warming.http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0001-37652024000401109&lng=en&tlng=enretreatmaritime antarctic regionoptical sensorsLandsatspectral indexspatial temporal analysis
spellingShingle DANIELLE D. SOFFIATTI
KÁTIA K. ROSA
JÚLIA L. LORENZ
FILIPE LINDAU
CARINA PETSCH
FRANCISCO E. AQUINO
JEFFERSON C. SIMÕES
Retreat of Greenwich, Livingston, Robert and Snow Islands glaciers, Antarctica, between 1956 and 2023
Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências
retreat
maritime antarctic region
optical sensors
Landsat
spectral index
spatial temporal analysis
title Retreat of Greenwich, Livingston, Robert and Snow Islands glaciers, Antarctica, between 1956 and 2023
title_full Retreat of Greenwich, Livingston, Robert and Snow Islands glaciers, Antarctica, between 1956 and 2023
title_fullStr Retreat of Greenwich, Livingston, Robert and Snow Islands glaciers, Antarctica, between 1956 and 2023
title_full_unstemmed Retreat of Greenwich, Livingston, Robert and Snow Islands glaciers, Antarctica, between 1956 and 2023
title_short Retreat of Greenwich, Livingston, Robert and Snow Islands glaciers, Antarctica, between 1956 and 2023
title_sort retreat of greenwich livingston robert and snow islands glaciers antarctica between 1956 and 2023
topic retreat
maritime antarctic region
optical sensors
Landsat
spectral index
spatial temporal analysis
url http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0001-37652024000401109&lng=en&tlng=en
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