The climate sensitivity of Antarctic blue-ice areas

Abstract

On time-scales of less than about 100 years, when the ice topography can be considered stationary, the extent of Antarctic blue-ice areas is governed mainly by the surface mass balance. In and near high-elevation blue-ice areas, ablation is due entirely to sublimation. An estimate of the mass-balance profile ranging from a blue-ice area to the adjacent snow surface is presented. By considering changes in sublimation induced by variations in local climate, the deviation from the mass-balance profile is evaluated. It is concluded that even for considerable changes in local climate these deviations remain relatively small and have only little effect on the extent of a blue-ice area. This can be attributed mainly to the steep mass-balance profile.