Antarctica Has California-Sized Melt

A study conducted over a six year span (1999-2005) detected heavy melt in Antarctica. The unlikely melt had ice melting from high latitudes, elevations and far inland throughout different areas. The discovered melt was as far inland as 560 miles from the ocean and as high as 6,600 miles above sea level. It is unusual for ice to melt in these places. In 2005, temperatures melted a section of western Antarctica's ice that was roughly the size of the state of California. The discovery was made by NASA and the University of Colorado at Boulder, by the teams led by Son Nghiem of NASA and Konrad Steffen of University of Colorado at Boulder.

Using NASA's QuikScat satellite, it was the first time the device found large amounts of melting over such a wide area, and it was the most significant detection using satellites in 30 years. The QuikScat sends radar signals to the surface and measure the echoing, bouncing signals that return. Melted snow refreezes, turning to ice and crystallizes when left out long and is refrozen. This is similar to having ice cream bought, forgotten, started to melt and stuck back in the freezer. QuikScat is capable of detecting that icy crystallization in the snow cover, and can map how strong a snow melt was over formed ice. Ground stations are used to validate the QuikScat.

There were sustained air temperatures of 41 degrees F in one area. A temperature that stayed for roughly a week. Air temperatures in other areas affected were also high. The 2005 melt was enough to form an intense ice layer once the melted water refroze again. Thankfully, the melt did not last long enough for the water to reach the ocean. Antarctica's ice mass, which is the largest freshwater source on Earth, is important for scientists in understanding global sea rise. According to scientists, if large amounts of Antarctica's fresh water was to reach the ocean, then, it could affect ocean salinity, ocean currents and the global climate.

Since the study, there has been no further evidence of melting to March 2007. The results from the study, "Snow Accumulation and Snow melt Monitoring in Greenland and Antarctica", are published in the book "Dynamic Planet -- Monitoring and Understanding a Dynamic Planet with Geodetic and Oceanographic Tools". Quikscat is operated by University of Colorado at Boulder's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics for NASA. Information on QuikScat can be found at winds.jpl.nasa.gov/index.cfm.