BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//Talks.cam//talks.cam.ac.uk//
X-WR-CALNAME:Talks.cam
BEGIN:VEVENT
SUMMARY:Using radar to measure and monitor the rate of melting at the base
  of ice shelves - Keith Nicholls (British Antarctic Survey)
DTSTART:20150528T120000Z
DTEND:20150528T123000Z
UID:TALK59010@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Dr Dan Jones
DESCRIPTION:In recent years the idea that the drainage of ice from the Ant
 arctic Ice Sheet into the ocean can be affected by changes in the ice shel
 ves that fringe the continent has become widely accepted.  For the majorit
 y of Antarctic ice shelves\, the most likely cause of long-term change is 
 the response to a changing oceanographic environment of the rate and patte
 rn of basal melting.  To have confidence in our predictions of the future 
 evolution of the ice sheet we need to be able to make detailed measurement
 s of ice-shelf basal melting to help test ideas about its dependence on oc
 ean conditions.  In this talk I will describe a radar-based technique that
  has been developed to measure time-averaged basal melt rates directly\, a
 nd a recent extension to allow the monitoring of melt rates on timescales 
 down to hours. I will describe the development of the instrument\, its ext
 ension to the glaciological problem of measuring vertical strain rates dir
 ectly\, and show some results from recent Antarctic field seasons that dem
 onstrate the power of the technique.  I’ll conclude with a discussion of
  what the future holds for further developments.
LOCATION:British Antarctic Survey\, conference room
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR