Antarctica provides a unique environment to study the interactions of glaciation and climate without interferences of habitation, industry and pollution. Glaciological studies in Antarctica were initiated in 1982-83 by the First and Second Indian Antarctic Expeditions1-5 and most of these results were published by 1985. The initial observations recorded fluctuations of polar continental ice margin, ablation and accumulation patterns on the ice shelf, details of stratigraphic zonation within the shelf ice, melting rates on shelf ice during the polar day etc. In the subsequent expeditions, most of these studies were fine tuned and some long-term investigations were continued6-8. As a part of the programme on monitoring fluctuations in continental ice margin, a prominent glacial tongue was identified in Western Schirmacher Range in 1983 and it was named Dakshin Gangotri Glacier Snout1. The snout was monitored from fixed survey points on an yearly basis9-10 and average annual recession rates were computed for this glacier. In 1996, many peripheral points were added along this snout to enhance the details of the observations11. Also, the advance and retreat patterns along the periphery of the glacier were recorded in every month during the wintering12. This established the overall model of recession of the glacier. Under the influence of global warming, huge ice shelves are breaking off; the evidence for such calving is available from the Antarctic coast. But the steady recession of this glacial tongue is a significant supportive evidence from an inland glacier13. These monthly trends were verified in the year 2000 by another prolonged observation during the wintering14 and the decadal rates of glacial recession were calculated. In 2001, the area of observation was increased by many km to cover the entire western wall of polar continental ice margin in Schirmacher Oasis. The succeeding years, till date, have shown that not only the snout of the glacier but the entire ice wall is strikingly receding. This uninterrupted observation for the last two decades is providing a valuable input for studying the impact of global warming in Antarctica. Another long term project initiated in the Second Expedition2 was to record the ablation and accumulation patterns on the ice shelf. These observations have been carried out by fixing a network of stakes. These observations have continued on an yearly basis15-17 and sometimes details of monthly patterns are available from wintering teams also. The results of these observations have quantified the rate of ablation during polar summer (November to January) and the rate of accumulation during the polar winter (February to October). The average annual net accumulation18 on the ice shelf has also been calculated. Antarctic ice sheet is an exceptional repository of the climatic record of the past thousands of years. The proxy indicators of palaeoclimatic records are preserved as air bubbles, gases, pollen, dust, volcanic particles, pollutants within the icy layers. To obtain this serial information, raising of ice cores is necessary. The initial attempts at recovery of ice cores were limited19-21 to the hand auger and the ice shelf. These cores provided useful information about isotopic composition of ice samples. First use of a motorized electromechanical drill22 was made in 1993 and in subsequent years, shallow ice core drilling (i.e. within a depth of 100 m) has been undertaken in many expeditions23-24. The analysis of these ice cores has provided useful insights about changes in the earth’s climate during the past two centuries25. All these drilling operations were carried out during the polar winter months. However, in 2003, ice core drilling was successfully tried during the polar summer (January-February) by going farther inland towards the Antarctic continental interior26. In addition to the isotopic analysis, these ice cores are being subjected to TL-dating processes. The arrival of polar cold front induces significant changes in various ground media. In one of the earlier studies27, a comparative study of these thermal changes in ice, firn and permafrost was carried out. Based on these inputs, a more ambitious project was undertaken. A small glacier was drilled through its entire thickness till bedrock was encountered. Thermal sensors were placed from the surface of the glacier down to the bedrock-depths. These were monitored for one full year and it generated information about the effect of the polar cold front, its maximum penetration depth, response pattern within the layers of the glacier, the 10-m depth average annual temperature and thermal inversion point within the glacier28. Similar year-long thermal observations were also made in permafrost29 and information was gained about active layers of permafrost, penetration effect of polar cold front, penetration time lag within different layers of permafrost and annual trends of permafrost migration. By installation of automatic weather stations on ice shelf and on polar continental ‘blue’ ice, glacio-meteorological data was collected. Supporting these data with ground based observations, albedo studies were carried out, resulting in surface energy balance models for different snow and ice media30-32. During these studies, complementary data on snowdrift profiles, radiative properties of various media, micro-structural fabric of ice types was also collected33. Geomorphological studies were initiated in the Fifth Expedition34 in the Wohlthat Mountains. These have been followed up in successive expeditions35-37. Various polar and peri-glacial landforms have been identified and characteristic diagnostic units have been mapped. Glacial debris and moraines of different generations have been plotted and sampled. After de-glaciation, the isostatic rebound has resulted in formation of raised beaches far above the present day coast38. The imprint of these glacial processes on the landscape provides inferences about peak glaciation, stages of its recession and the rate of recession39-41. The palaeo-paths and migration routes of glaciers over Schirmacher Oasis have been plotted42. The morainal samples are being probed by TL-dating methods and precise quantification of the stages of de-glaciation is expected soon. A geomorphological map of Schirmacher Oasis, incorporating these dates and details, is under preparation43. Utilizing the modern precision instruments like the satellite based GPS, movement patterns, velocity, direction, stress of present day glaciers are being mapped44. Neo-tectonic features in Schirmacher Oasis are also being analyzed by these methods. GPS-based techniques have also been used in preparation of detailed topographic maps around Indian Antarctic Station, Maitri, which have been published45. In the coastal area of India Bay, hydrographic charts and ice shelf coastal delineation work has been carried out46. Antarctic coast-line is in a state of dynamic equilibrium and great chunks from floating ice shelf keep breaking off into the sea. Successive satellite imageries, for the past 30 years, have been utilized for studying the changing face of Antarctic coast-line near India Bay47. There are numerous fresh water lakes in Schirmacher Oasis. These have been plotted on the map, genetically classified and each lake has been given a specific reference number48. Thermal variations within the lake waters have been studied49. Isotope analysis for some of the lake waters is also published50. Lake sediment coring has been carried out and palaeoclimatic models for changes in the Holocene, back to the last glacial maxima, have been made51-52. Fine resolution palynostratigraphic studies of lake sediments have provided insights to late Quaternary climatic cycles in the polar region53. Supraglacial sediments have also been studied for grain-size behaviour and morphoscopy using the SEM. Mechanical and chemical textural characteristics imprinted on these grains have been linked to the micro-environments and transportation agents54. During the voyages to Antarctica and back, icebergs have been monitored from the ships. The first and last sighting of icebergs are marked. The concentration zones have been plotted, numbers have been counted, various sizes and shapes have been classified55. An attempt has been made to find out the relationship between global climatic change and iceberg sightings56.
References:
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