Workshop on Aerogeophysical Research in Antarctica

Project: Research project

Project Details

Description

Anandakrishnan 9633601 Abstract This award supports a workshop on Aerogeophysical Research in Antarctica to be held 18-19 March, 1996, at the National Science Foundation offices in Arlington, Virginia. The National Science Foundation has established a facility to collect airborne geophysical data in Antarctica. The Support Office for Aerogeophysical Research (SOAR) (administered by the Institute for Geophysics of the University of Texas at Austin) operates state-of-the-art instruments for ice-surface elevation, ice thickness, gravity, and magnetics on board a ski-equipped Twin Otter aircraft. This workshop will bring together earth scientists and glaciologists to discuss the best possible use of these tools and these types of data. To date the facility has been used with great success in the West Antarctic to image the Byrd Basin/Ross Embayment region. This area is a key to both glaciologic problems of ice sheet stability and ice stream flow as well as tectonic problems of Gondwana reconstructions and West Antarctic rifting. Identifying other such intersections of cross-discipline problems will be of great importance in the long-term viability of SOAR. This facility can be used in reconnaisance mode to map the magnetic, gravity, and ice-thickness signatures of large areas or as a high-resolution mapper to characterize in detail areas of particular interest. These two modes of operation are distinct in philosophy and we will discuss the pros and cons of each mode. The practical aspects of data handling, data visualization, and final product delivery from SOAR will also be discussed. The different customers of SOAR require different levels of analysis or integration of the data streams available. These and other issues of data delivery will be discussed. The specific goals of the workshop are: 1) Educate the Antarctic science community on the capabilities and limitations of the SOAR facility; 2) Identify and prioritize research objectives of b road interest and possibly global applicability that would be best studied in the Antarctic using aerogeophysical data; 3) Link the research goals of geologists and glaciologists to identify areas of the Antarctic where these data would be of value to both communities; and 4) Encourage the development of coordinated proposals for future use of SOAR.

StatusFinished
Effective start/end date6/1/965/31/97

Funding

  • National Science Foundation: $15,655.00

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