Surface Temperature in Twentieth Century at the Styx Glacier, Northern Victoria Land, Antarctica, From Borehole Thermometry

• Published in: Geophysical research letters 2018-09, Vol.45 (18), p.9834-9842
• Main Authors: Yang, Ji‐Woong, Han, Yeongcheol, Orsi, Anaïs J., Kim, Seong‐Joong, Han, Hyangsun, Ryu, Yeongjun, Jang, Youngjoon, Moon, Jangil, Choi, Taejin, Hur, Soon Do, Ahn, Jinho
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 20th century; Boreholes; Climate; Climate change; Coastal environments; Continental interfaces, environment; Data logging; Glaciers; Ice; Man-induced effects; Ocean, Atmosphere; Sciences of the Universe; Southern Hemisphere; Surface temperature; Temperature; Temperature effects; Thermometry; Well logging
• ISSN: 0094-8276; 1944-8007
• DOI: 10.1029/2018GL078770

Reconstruction of the long‐term surface temperature history in Antarctica is important for a better understanding of human‐induced climate changes, especially since the Industrial Revolution. We present here a surface temperature history spanning the last century at Styx Glacier, located on the eastern coast of northern Victoria Land, which is reconstructed using borehole logging data. Our results indicate that surface temperatures in the 20th century were 1.7 ± 0.4 °C higher than the long term averages over 1600–1900 Common Era, indicating regional warming over the eastern coast of northern Victoria Land. However, we found no evidence for significant warming across the northern Victoria Land since the mid‐20th century. A global reanalysis as well as the reconstruction of proxy records demonstrate that the climate in this region was more affected by changes in the Southern Hemisphere Annular Mode than in the Amundsen‐Bellingshausen Sea Low. Plain Language Summary The western coast of the Ross Sea, northern Victoria Land, is one of several regions around the world where the temperature history is highly uncertain. Here we provide a temperature reconstruction using borehole logging data from Styx Glacier. The reconstructed temperature history indicates that the surface temperature at Styx Glacier in the 20th century is higher than in previous centuries, although there is no significant trend since ~1950s. The lack of recent warming trend off the western Ross Sea is in contrast to the warming in the Antarctic Peninsula and West Antarctica. Key Points The surface temperature in the 20th century at Styx Glacier (western coast of the Ross Sea) is higher by 1.7 +/− 0.4 degrees than before 1900 CE No clear warming trend since the mid‐20th century was found in northern Victoria Land, Antarctica The climate over the western coast of the Ross Sea might be affected by the Southern Hemisphere Annular Mode