Collaborative Research: Integrative Study of Marine Ice Sheet Stability and Subglacial Life Habitats - Robotic Access to Grounding-zones for Exploration and Science (RAGES)

合作研究：海洋冰盖稳定性和冰下生命栖息地的综合研究 - 机器人进入勘探和科学接地区（RAGES）

• 批准号: 0839107
• 负责人: Ross Powell
• 金额: $ 217.59万
• 依托单位: Northern Illinois University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2009
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2009-09-01 至 2015-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0839107&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Integrative; Study; Marine

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5). The RAGES project (Robotic Access to Grounding zones for Exploration and Science) is one of three research components of the WISSARD (Whillans Ice Stream Subglacial Access Research Drilling) integrative initiative that is being funded by the Antarctic Integrated System Science Program of NSF's Office of Polar Programs, Antarctic Division. The overarching scientific objective of WISSARD is to assess the role of water beneath a West Antarctic ice stream in interlinked glaciological, geological, microbiological, geochemical, and oceanographic systems. The RAGES component of WISSARD concentrates on the stability of ice stream grounding zones (GZ), the area where the ice, ocean waters and glacial and sea floor sediment interact. Based on our present limited data and modeling efforts, GZs can be perturbed by (i) internal ice stream dynamics, (ii) filling/draining cycles of subglacial lakes, (iii) increased melting by warming ocean waters, and/or (iv) rates of subglacial sediment (till) supply to the GZ. GZs are seen as high priority targets to investigate due to their unknown contributions to ice sheet stability under future global warming scenarios. The three main science goals for RAGES are to assess: (a) West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) stability relative to the magnitudes of the four main variables listed above; (b) the degree to which grounding-zone sedimentary systems house important records of past WAIS dynamics; and (c) the importance of microbial activity and subglacial geochemical weathering in supplying nutrients to the WAIS grounding zone, the Ross Ice Shelf (RIS) cavity, and the highly productive Southern Ocean that may ultimately influence global biogeochemical cycles. The RAGES field sampling plan integrates surface geophysical surveys with borehole and subglacial sampling and measurements. The boreholes provide: (1) samples of subglacial water, sediments, and basal ice for biological, geochemical, glaciological, sedimentological, and micropaleontological analyses; (2) measures of subglacial and sub-ice-shelf cavity physical and chemical conditions and their spatial variability; and (3) data on sediment types, state and change of the subglacial water discharge, oceanography, and basal ice at the grounding line and within the nearby sub-ice-shelf cavity. Unique tools to be deployed include a multisensor Sub-Ice ROVer (Remotely Operated Vehicle) and long-term, sub-ice oceanographic moorings.INTELLECTUAL MERIT: The latest report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recognized that the greatest uncertainties in assessing future global sea-level change stem from a poor understanding of ice sheet dynamics and ice sheet vulnerability to oceanic and atmospheric warming. Disintegration of the WAIS (West Antarctic Ice Sheet) alone would contribute 3-5 m to global sea-level rise, making WAIS a focus of scientific concern due to its potential susceptibility to internal or ocean-driven instability. The overall WISSARD project will test the overarching hypothesis that active water drainage connects various subglacial environments and exerts major control on ice sheet flow, geochemistry, metabolic and phylogenetic diversity, and biogeochemical transformations. BROADER IMPACTS: Societal Relevance: Global warming, melting of ice sheets and consequential sea-level rise are of high societal relevance. Science Resource Development: After a 9-year hiatus WISSARD will provide the US-science community with a renewed capability to access and study sub-ice sheet environments. Developing this technological infrastructure will benefit the broader science community and assets will be accessible for future use through the NSF-OPP drilling contractor. The RAGES project represents a significant advance in polar technology by incorporating the use of complex new instrumentation like the Sub-Ice ROVer and subglacial ocean/lake mooring systems. Furthermore, these projects will pioneer an approach implementing recommendations from the National Research Council committee on Principles of Environmental Stewardship for the Exploration and Study of Subglacial Environments (2007). Education and Outreach (E/O): These activities are grouped into four categories: i) increasing student participation in polar research by fully integrating them in our research programs; ii) introducing new investigators to the polar sciences by incorporating promising young investigators in our programs, iii) promotion of K-12 teaching and learning programs by incorporating various teachers and NSTA programs, and iv) reaching a larger public audience through such venues as popular science magazines, museum based activities and videography and documentary films. In summary, WISSARD will promote scientific exploration of Antarctica by conveying to the public the excitement of accessing and studying what may be some of the last unexplored aquatic environments on Earth, and which represent a potential analogue for extraterrestrial life habitats on Europa and Mars.

该奖项是根据2009年《美国复苏与再投资法》（公法111-5）资助的。 RAGE项目（机器人通往探索和科学的接地区域）是Wissard的三个研究组成部分之一（Whillans Ice Stream Ice Stream冰川亚冰川访问研究钻探），该计划由NSF极性计划办公室的南极综合系统科学计划资助，该计划由NSF的南极综合系统科学计划，南极分区。 维萨德的总体科学目标是评估南极冰流下的水在相互联系的冰川，地质，微生物，地球化学和海洋学系统中的作用。 Wissard的愤怒组成部分集中在冰流接地区（GZ）的稳定性上，冰，海水，冰川和海底沉积物相互作用的区域。基于我们目前的有限数据和建模工作，（i）内部冰流动力学，（ii）填充/排水周期的GZ可以扰动，（ii）填充/排水周期，（iii）通过变暖的海水和/或（iv）冰色沉积物的速度增加熔融（iii）（iiv）（iv）冰色（IV）速度（till）供应Gz。由于在未来的全球变暖方案下，GZ将GZ视为调查的高优先级目标。愤怒的三个主要科学目标是评估：（a）相对于上面列出的四个主要变量的幅度，南极冰盖（WAIS）稳定性； （b）接地区沉积系统的程度是过去WAIS动力学的重要记录； （c）微生物活性和冰川下的地球化学风化的重要性在为WAIS接地带，Ross Ice Beself（RIS）腔和高效的南方海洋提供营养中，最终可能影响全球生物地球化学周期。愤怒的场采样计划将表面地球物理调查与钻孔和冰川下采样和测量相结合。钻孔提供：（1）用于生物学，地球化学，冰川学，沉积和微岩石学分析的冰川水，沉积物和基础冰的样品； （2）测量亚冰和冰壳的物理和化学条件及其空间变异性的测量； （3）关于沉积物类型，状态和变化的数据，地下线和附近的亚冰架腔内的水下水排放，海洋学和基底冰的数据。要部署的独特工具包括多传感器的子冰漫游车（远程操作的车辆）和长期的，亚冰海洋学的系泊设备。启动性优点：跨越气候变化间的最新报告认识到，在评估未来的全球海平面变化方面，最大的不确定性在评估未来的全球海平面变化源于对冰床的较差的冰柜动力和冰上的动态性和冰上的氛围和冰上的氛围和冰上的氛围，并源于Oceanic和Ocean的气氛。仅WAIS（南极西部冰盖）的瓦解将使全球海平面上升3-5 m，这使WAIS成为科学关注的焦点，因为它可能对内部或海洋驱动的不稳定敏感。 整个Wissard项目将检验总体假设，即主动排水连接各种冰川下环境，并对冰片流，地球化学，代谢和系统发育多样性以及生物地球化学转化产生重大控制。 更广泛的影响：社会相关性：全球变暖，冰盖的融化和相应的海平面上升具有很高的社会相关性。科学资源开发：经过9年的休假之后，Wissard将为美国科学家社区提供可访问和研究子夹纸环境的新能力。开发这种技术基础设施将使更广泛的科学界受益，并且可以通过NSF-OPP钻探承包商获得资产，以供将来使用。 rage项目代表了极地技术的重大进步，它通过使用复杂的新仪器（例如子冰和冰河下海洋/湖泊系泊系统）。此外，这些项目将开拓国家研究委员会环境管理原理委员会的建议，以探索和研究冰川环境的探索和研究（2007年）。教育与外展（E/O）：这些活动分为四类：i）通过将它们完全融入我们的研究计划中，从而增加学生参与极地研究； ii）通过将有前途的年轻研究者纳入我们的计划，iii）促进K-12教学计划，通过合并各种教师和NSTA计划来促进K-12的教学计划，以及IV）通过流行的科学杂志，基于博物馆的活动和摄像机和文档电影来促进更大的公众观众。总而言之，Wissard将通过向公众传达访问和研究地球上最后一个未开发的水生环境的兴奋和研究，这代表了欧洲和火星上的外星生命栖息地的潜在类似物，从而促进对南极的科学探索。