2021-2022 Science Planning Summaries
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2021-2022 USAP Field Season
Project Detail

Project Title

NSFGEO-NERC: Accelerating Thwaites Ecosystem Impacts for the Southern Ocean (ARTEMIS)


Trace metal CTD in front of the Dotson Ice Shelf. Photo by Patricia Yager.
B-465-N Research Location(s): Thwaites Glacier

Summary

Event Number:
B-465-N

Program Director:
Dr. Karla Heidelberg

ASC POC/Implementer:
David Rivera / Jamee Johnson


Principal Investigator(s)

Dr. Patricia Yager
pyager@uga.edu
University of Georgia
Marine Sciences
Athens, Georgia


Location

Supporting Stations: RV/IB Nathaniel B. Palmer
Research Locations: Thwaites Glacier


Description

In collaboration with a UK-funded physical oceanographic sampling program, this team is using biogeochemical sampling to evaluate the contributions of iron, carbon, and microorganisms from both glacial meltwater and upwelling deep water on ecosystem productivity and carbon cycling. Measurements will be incorporated into models to better predict ecosystem responses to increased glacial melting. Results will help predict future impacts on the region and determine whether the climate sensitivity of the Amundsen Sea ecosystem represents the front line of processes generalizable to the greater Antarctic. This study is aligned with the large International Thwaites Glacier Collaboration (ITGC). The program will provide training for undergraduate, graduate, post-doctoral, and early-career scientists in both science and communication. The team will also develop out-of-school science experiences for middle and high schoolers related to climate change and Antarctica.


Field Season Overview

As part of a collaborative effort with the International Thwaites Glacier Collaboration (ITGC), an eight-person ARTEMIS team will join the 2021-22 Thwaites expedition aboard the RV/IB Nathaniel B. Palmer to characterize the glacial meltwater-driven iron, carbon, and microbial contributions that support primary productivity and atmospheric CO2 drawdown in the Amundsen Sea. This effort will occur through the addition of biogeochemical observations to the already funded Thwaites-Amundsen Regional Survey and Network Integrating Atmosphere-Ice-Ocean (TARSAN) program currently scheduled for the expedition. Four additional ship days will be allocated to the cruise for this project to complete shipboard Trace Metal Clean (TMC) CTD surveys along the north to south transit between the Antarctic Circumpolar Current and the ice shelf. The team will also deploy an underway towfish for surface water sampling and deploy two Seagliders with the TARSAN team to augment shipboard TMC surveys.


Deploying Team Members

  • Giovanna Azarias Utsumi
  • Lisa Herbert
  • Patricia Medeiros (Co-PI)
  • Hilde Oliver
  • Robert Sherrell (Co-PI)
  • Sharon Stammerjohn (Co-PI)
  • Janelle Steffen
  • Patricia Yager (PI)