Assessment of the long term mass balance of the Antarctic Ice Sheet, and thus the determination of its contribution to sea level rise,requires an understanding of interannual variability and associated causal mechanisms. We performed a combined analysis of surface-mass and elevation changes using data from the GRACE and Envisat satellite missions, respectively. Using empirical orthogonal functions and singular value decompositions of each data set, we find a quasi 4.7-yrperiodic signal between 08/2002 and 10/2010 that accounts for ∼15–30%of the time variability of the filtered and detrended surface-mass and elevation data. Computation of the density of this variable mass load corresponds to snow or uncompacted firn. Changes reach maximum amplitude within the first 100 km from the coast where it contributes up to 30–35% of the annual rate of accumulation. Extending the analysis to 09/2014 using surface-mass changes only, we have found anomalies with a periodicity of about 4–6yrsthat circle the AIS in about 9–10 yrs. These properties connect the observed anomalies to the Antarctic Circumpolar Wave (ACW) which is known to affect several key climate variables, including precipitation. It suggests that variability in the surface-mass balance of the Antarctic Ice Sheetmay also be modulated by the ACW.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Keywords:	altimetry, GRACE, Antarctic variability, sea level
Research Division:	Earth Sciences
Research Group:	Geophysics
Research Field:	Geodesy
Objective Division:	Expanding Knowledge
Objective Group:	Expanding knowledge
Objective Field:	Expanding knowledge in the earth sciences
UTAS Author:	Memin, A (Mr Anthony Memin)
UTAS Author:	Alizier, B (Mr Benoit Alizier)
UTAS Author:	Watson, C (Dr Christopher Watson)
ID Code:	100091
Year Published:	2015
Web of Science® Times Cited:	25
Deposited By:	Geography and Environmental Studies
Deposited On:	2015-04-30
Last Modified:	2017-10-25
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