Collaborative Research: THE MCMURDO DRY VALLEYS: A landscape on the Threshold of Change

合作研究：麦克默多干谷：变革门槛上的景观

• 批准号: 1245991
• 负责人: David Van Horn
• 金额: $ 8.03万
• 依托单位: University of New Mexico
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2013
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2013-09-01 至 2018-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1245991&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; MCMURDO; DRY; VALLEYS

Collaborative Research: THE MCMURDO DRY VALLEYS: A Landscape on the Threshold of Change is supported by the Antarctic Integrated System Science (AISS) program in the Antarctic Sciences Section of the Division of Polar Programs within the Geosciences Directorate of the National Sciences Foundation (NSF). The funds will support the collection of state-of-the-art high resolution LIDAR (combining the terms light and radar) imagery of the Dry Valleys of Antarctica in the 2014/2015 Antarctic field season, with LIDAR data collection and processing being provided by the NSF-supported NCALM (National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping) facility. LIDAR images collected in 2014/2015 will be compared to images from 2001 in order to detect decadal change. Additional fieldwork will look at the distribution of buried massive ice, and the impacts that major changes like slumping are having on the biota. All field data will be used to improve models on energy balance, and hydrology.Intellectual Merit: There have been dramatic changes over the past decade in the McMurdo Dry Valleys: glaciers are deflating by tens of meters, rivers are incising by more than three meters, and thermokarst slumps are appearing near several streams and lakes. These observations have all been made by researchers in the field, but none of the changes have been mapped on a valley-wide scale. This award will provide a new baseline map for the entire Dry Valley system, with high-resolution imagery provided for the valley floors, and lower resolution imagery available for the higher elevation areas that are undergoing less change. The project will test the idea that sediment-covered ice is associated with the most dramatic changes, due to differential impacts of the increased solar radiation on sediment-covered compared to clean ice, and despite the current trend of slightly cooling air temperatures within the Dry Valleys. Information collected on the topography, coupled with the GPR determined buried ice distributions, will also be incorporated into improved energy and hydrological models. In addition to providing the new high-resolution digital elevation model (DEM), the project will ultimately result in identification of areas that are susceptible to sediment-enhanced melt-driven change, providing a powerful prediction tool for the impacts of climate change.Broader Impacts: The new DEM will be immediately useful to a wide range of disciplines, and will provide a comprehensive new baseline against which future changes will be compared. The project will provide a tool for the whole community to use, and the investigators will work with the community to make them aware of the new assets via public presentations, and perhaps via a workshop. The map will have international interest, and will also serve as a tool for environmental managers to draw on as they consider conservation plans. Several undergraduate and graduate students will participate in the project, and one of the co-PIs is a new investigator. The imagery collected is expected to be of interest to the general public in addition to scientific researchers, and venues for outreach such as museum exhibits and the internet will be explored. The proposed work is synergistic with 1) the co-located McMurdo LTER program, and 2) the NCALM facility that is also funded by the Geosciences Directorate.

合作研究：《麦克默多干谷：变化阈值上的景观》得到美国国家科学基金会 (NSF) 地球科学局极地项目部南极科学科的南极综合系统科学 (AISS) 项目的支持。 这些资金将支持在 2014/2015 南极野外季节收集南极干谷最先进的高分辨率激光雷达（光和雷达术语）图像，激光雷达数据收集和处理由 NSF 支持的 NCALM（国家机载激光测绘中心）设施提供。 2014/2015 年收集的 LIDAR 图像将与 2001 年的图像进行比较，以检测年代际变化。其他实地工作将着眼于埋藏的大块冰的分布，以及塌陷等重大变化对生物群的影响。所有现场数据都将用于改进能量平衡和水文模型。 智力价值：过去十年麦克默多干谷发生了巨大变化：冰川萎缩了数十米，河流下切了三米多，几条溪流和湖泊附近出现了热喀斯特塌陷。这些观察结果都是由该领域的研究人员进行的，但没有任何变化能够在整个山谷范围内绘制出来。该奖项将为整个干谷系统提供新的基线地图，为谷底提供高分辨率图像，为变化较小的较高海拔区域提供较低分辨率的图像。 该项目将测试这样一种观点，即沉积物覆盖的冰与最剧烈的变化有关，因为与干净的冰相比，太阳辐射增加对沉积物覆盖的冰的影响不同，尽管目前干谷内气温略有下降的趋势。收集的地形信息以及探地雷达确定的埋冰分布也将被纳入改进的能源和水文模型中。除了提供新的高分辨率数字高程模型 (DEM) 之外，该项目最终还将识别出容易受到沉积物增强的融化驱动变化影响的区域，为气候变化的影响提供强大的预测工具。 更广泛的影响：新的 DEM 将立即对广泛的学科有用，并将提供一个全面的新基线，用于比较未来的变化。该项目将为整个社区提供一个可供使用的工具，研究人员将与社区合作，通过公开演示甚至研讨会让他们了解新资产。该地图将引起国际关注，也将作为环境管理者在考虑保护计划时借鉴的工具。 几名本科生和研究生将参与该项目，其中一位联合 PI 是一名新研究员。除了科学研究人员之外，收集的图像预计也会引起公众的兴趣，并且将探索博物馆展览和互联网等推广场所。拟议的工作与 1) 位于同一地点的 McMurdo LTER 计划和 2) 同样由地球科学理事会资助的 NCALM 设施具有协同作用。