CPOM Staff based at Edinburgh
Steve Palmer
| email: s0576527 |
tel: 0131.650.9170
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| fax: 0131.650.2524
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Steve's research uses satellite radar data to measure the motion of Ice in Antarctica. He will perform mass balance assessments of two outlet glaciers in East Antarctica to determine if the ice flow has accelerated in the recent past. These measurements will then used to estimate what effect Antarctica will have on future sea level change.
From 2000-2003, Steven studied Earth and Space Science at University College London. It was here that he discovered his interest in the physics of the Earth and the near-Earth environment and on graduation was jointly awarded the Matthew's prize for excellence in geophysics. During the summer of 2002, he worked at Mullard Space Science Laboratory (MSSL) building a replica of Christian Birkeland's Aurora simulation for use as a teaching aid. Steven's dissertation - a study to resolve the cosmic x-ray background into discrete sources using long-duration XMM-Newton observations of the Lockman hole - was also based at MSSL.
In 2004 he completed an MSc in Astronautics and Space Engineering at Cranfield University, obtaining the EADS Astrium Prize for Spacecraft engineering. In the group design project, Steven was responsible for Systems Engineering and alternative design concepts for EARTHSHINE: a small satellite to investigate the possible link between cosmic rays and climate change on Earth. For his thesis, under the supervision of Professor Michael Rycroft, Steven studied the effects of solar and geomagnetic activity on human physiology and investigated some of the mechanisms behind the statistically significant correlations.
Project Background:
Recent advances in satellite radar techniques have allowed for more detailed studies of the cryosphere. Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) has been used to map ice motion and locate the grounding lines (the junction between ice bedrock and water) of floating glaciers. These studies help us to calculate the mass balance - mass accumulation through snowfall minus mass loss through flow across the grounding line - of individual glaciers, which is an important way of assessing the total contribution of the ice sheets to sea level rise.
Other satellite sensing techniques have revealed the existence of many lakes beneath the Antarctic Ice Sheet. The largest, Lake Vostok, is 240km long and 40km wide and lies beneath about 4km of ice in East Antarctica. With an average depth of about 400m, Lake Vostok contains enough water to raise sea level by about 6mm. Recent InSAR observations have revealed the presence of subglacial channels linking some of these lakes; this finding has important implications regarding the extent of contamination as a result of in-situ exploration. In addition, subglacial water is important for various glacial processes. For instance, it is known that saturated sediment beneath glaciers allows ice to flow rapidly - velocities of around 15km per year have been measured in East Greenland - and subglacial 'floods' could precipitate rapid and catastrophic discharges of ice from Antarctica. These large-scale ice discharges have occurred in other ice sheets in the past and are thought to have a major impact on ocean circulation and global climate.
Some aims of Steven's PhD are to perform mass balance assessments for unstable East Antarctic glaciers over two different time periods to determine if the glacier flow has accelerated. Another general aim is to investigate to what extent subglacial water transport can be monitored using InSAR. He will use specialist software to process the radar data and knowledge of glaciological processes to interpret them.
Steven's research interests include:
- Subglacial hydrology
- Rapid climate change
- Sun-Earth connections
- Spacecraft engineering