NASA Operation IceBridge

NASA Operation IceBridge
Name	Operation IceBridge
Caption	Aerial survey aircraft used in polar research
Dates	2009–2019
Organization	NASA
Region	Arctic; Antarctic
Type	Airborne geophysical survey

NASA Operation IceBridge Operation IceBridge was a decade-long airborne campaign conducted by NASA to monitor polar ice changes across the Arctic and Antarctic regions using aircraft-borne sensors. The campaign bridged observational gaps between the ICESSat-1 mission and the ICESat-2 mission while supporting studies tied to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the National Snow and Ice Data Center, and polar research programs at institutions such as the University of Colorado Boulder and the British Antarctic Survey. Flights collected multi-instrument datasets that informed research at agencies and projects including the European Space Agency, the National Science Foundation, and the U.S. Geological Survey.

Overview

Operation IceBridge began in 2009 as a response to the decommissioning of the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite mission and operated until 2019 to provide sustained airborne observations over the Greenland Ice Sheet, the Antarctic Peninsula, and Arctic sea ice regions. The campaign deployed aircraft such as the Lockheed P-3 Orion, the Douglas DC-8, and the NASA ER-2 outfitted with instruments developed by teams from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the Goddard Space Flight Center, and university partners including Columbia University and University of Washington. IceBridge missions coordinated with field programs like the Arctic Observing Network and satellite missions including CryoSat-2 and Landsat for cross-validation and time-series continuity.

Objectives and Scientific Goals

Primary goals included quantifying ice-sheet elevation change, characterizing sea-ice thickness and morphology, and improving mass-balance estimates for the Greenland Ice Sheet and the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. The program sought to reduce uncertainties in projections produced by the IPCC assessments, support numerical models developed at centers such as the National Center for Atmospheric Research and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, and inform studies of glacial dynamics at research sites like Jakobshavn Glacier and Thwaites Glacier. IceBridge objectives targeted improved parameterizations used in Community Earth System Model simulations, enhanced calibration of sensors on missions such as ICESat and Sentinel-3, and better understanding of processes observed during expeditions like Operation Deep Freeze.

Instruments and Aircraft Platforms

IceBridge employed a suite of active and passive instruments including laser altimeters, radar sounders, photogrammetric cameras, and gravimeters manufactured or operated by groups at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the Ohio State University, and the British Antarctic Survey. Key instruments included airborne laser altimeters similar in principle to those on ICESat-1, shallow- and deep-penetrating ice-penetrating radars developed by teams at Brigham Young University and the University of Kansas, and high-resolution digital mapping cameras linked to mapping efforts like OpenStreetMap collaborations in polar regions. Aircraft platforms included long-range systems such as the DC-8 used by the NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center, the P-3 Orion operated in collaboration with NOAA, and smaller platforms supported by institutions like University of Alaska Fairbanks that allowed targeted surveys of outlet glaciers such as Helheim Glacier.

Flight Operations and Survey Design

Flight planning integrated satellite track crossovers with repeated transects over features such as glacier grounding lines, ice shelves, and sea-ice leads to support intercomparison with missions like CryoSat and operations by the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites. Survey design emphasized repeatability over targets including the Pine Island Glacier and Ross Ice Shelf and coordinated airborne campaigns with research cruises from programs such as the British Antarctic Survey and the R/V Polarstern. Logistics involved staging from polar hubs including Thule Air Base, McMurdo Station, and Svalbard, with support from partner institutions such as the Norwegian Polar Institute and Scott Polar Research Institute for ground validation and field measurements.

Key Findings and Contributions

IceBridge produced high-resolution time series that revealed rapid elevation changes and accelerating mass loss from regions including Greenland and West Antarctica, documenting phenomena at outlet glaciers like Pine Island Glacier and Thwaites Glacier. The datasets elucidated sea-ice thickness variability in areas such as the Beaufort Sea and Weddell Sea, improved estimates of ice-shelf basal melt beneath features like the Filchner–Ronne Ice Shelf, and informed iceberg calving studies observed near Jakobshavn Isbræ. Contributions included enhanced calibration of satellite altimetry for missions such as ICESat-2 and CryoSat-2, advances in understanding grounding line migration studied in collaborations with the Plymouth Marine Laboratory, and support for policy-relevant assessments in reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

Collaboration and Data Management

Operation IceBridge was a multinational effort involving partners including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the British Antarctic Survey, the Norwegian Polar Institute, and university consortia such as University of Colorado Boulder and Columbia University. Data management followed protocols aligned with the National Snow and Ice Data Center and NASA data centers, providing open-access datasets used by modelers at institutions like the National Center for Atmospheric Research and analysts at agencies including the U.S. Geological Survey. Long-term stewardship enabled cross-disciplinary use by projects such as PAGES and the Global Cryosphere Watch, supporting ongoing research in glaciology, sea-ice physics, and polar oceanography conducted by laboratories including the Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

Category:Polar research Category:Earth science expeditions Category:NASA programs