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| Shirase Glacier | |
|---|---|
| Name | Shirase Glacier |
| Type | outlet glacier |
| Location | Queen Maud Land, East Antarctica |
| Terminus | Shirase Bay |
| Status | changing |
Shirase Glacier Shirase Glacier is a major Antarctic outlet glacier draining portions of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet into the coastal embayment adjacent to Shirase Bay. The glacier links interior plateau flow systems to the ocean margin and has been the focus of multinational Antarctica research, polar logistics, and maritime navigation studies involving Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition, United States Antarctic Program, Norwegian Polar Institute, British Antarctic Survey, and Australian Antarctic Division teams. Its dynamics influence regional sea-ice, marine ecosystems, and contributions to studies coordinated by bodies such as the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Shirase Glacier sits on the coast of Queen Maud Land in East Antarctica, draining northward toward the coast near Shirase Bay and adjacent to features mapped during expeditions by Explorers of Antarctica and later surveys by US Geological Survey and SCAR Composite Gazetteer of Antarctica efforts. The glacier lies within the sector claimed by Norway as part of territorial delineations in Antarctic governance discussed at the Antarctic Treaty System meetings attended by delegations from Japan, United Kingdom, United States, Australia, and Russia. Nearby named coastal and inland landmarks include Prince Olav Coast, Sør Rondane Mountains, Lützow-Holm Bay, and survey stations such as Showa Station and Maitri Station used by Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition and Indian Antarctic Programme teams.
The glacier is characterized as a large outlet draining the East Antarctic Ice Sheet toward the ocean near Shirase Bay and shows morphological relationships with neighboring ice streams mapped by NSIDC and aerial photographic campaigns by Operation Highjump. Surface features include crevasse fields, shear margins adjacent to rock outcrops like nunataks cataloged by the USGS and morainal limits recorded during field seasons by Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition. Bathymetric surveys by research vessels from Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, NOAA, and CSIRO document the submarine extension of the glacier front and glacially scoured seafloor topography affecting benthic habitats monitored by Australian Antarctic Division and Institute of Marine Research teams.
Ice flow at Shirase Glacier is part of regional circulation influenced by upstream ice divides mapped by GLIMS and satellite missions including Landsat, ICESat, CryoSat, and Sentinel-1. Studies incorporate ice-penetrating radar profiles from platforms operated by National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, and European Space Agency to resolve basal conditions, subglacial hydrology, and bed topography tied to models developed at University of Colorado Boulder, University of Cambridge, University of Washington, and Scott Polar Research Institute. Interactions with nearby ice streams exhibit stick-slip behavior and grounding-line migration documented in publications from Nature Geoscience, Journal of Glaciology, and reports to SCAR working groups on ice-shelf and grounding-zone evolution.
Regional climate variability affecting Shirase Glacier has been analyzed in the context of atmospheric modes such as the Southern Annular Mode and oceanographic forcing tied to the Southern Ocean and Antarctic Circumpolar Current circulation described in studies led by British Antarctic Survey and CSIRO. Changes in mass balance and calving rates are assessed relative to projections used by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and coupled models from NOAA Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory and Met Office climate teams. Ecological impacts on marine food webs near the glacier front involve interactions with krill and penguin colonies monitored by Polar Biology programs at University of Cape Town, University of Tasmania, and Scripps Institution of Oceanography, with sea-ice changes observed by NSIDC satellites.
The coastal sector around Shirase Glacier was charted during early 20th-century Antarctic voyages including expeditions contemporaneous with Norge (airship expedition), surveys by Roald Amundsen-era explorers, and later mapped by Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition parties led by officers trained in polar navigation and commemorated by geographic names entered in the SCAR Composite Gazetteer of Antarctica. Cartographic and toponymic work involved institutions such as Geoscience Australia, Norwegian Polar Institute, and the United Kingdom Hydrographic Office which standardized place names used by research stations like Syowa Station and historic field parties.
Ongoing research programs at Shirase Glacier involve multidisciplinary teams from University of Tokyo, Tohoku University, National Institute of Polar Research (Japan), Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory, Alfred Wegener Institute, and the British Antarctic Survey. Instrumentation includes GPS networks deployed under projects supported by IRIS, autonomous underwater vehicles operated by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and oceanographic moorings from JAMSTEC and Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Data contribute to public repositories managed by NSIDC, PANGAEA, and collaborative model intercomparisons convened by SCAR and the World Climate Research Programme.
Field access to the glacier is staged from logistics hubs such as Syowa Station, Showa Station, and ports used by icebreakers including Shirase (AGB-5003) and international vessels chartered by Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition and United States Antarctic Program. Air support has been provided by LC-130 Hercules aircraft and ski-equipped aircraft operated by New Zealand Antarctic Programme and Australian Antarctic Division, while over-snow traverses employ tracked vehicles and snowmobiles maintained according to standards from Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting guidance. Safety, permitting, and environmental protocols follow measures administered by national operators including Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Japan) delegations coordinating under the Antarctic Treaty System.
Category:Glaciers of Queen Maud Land