Tag

Icequakes

All articles tagged with #icequakes

Unraveling the Mystery of the Ocean's Roaring Enigma Decades Later
science-and-environment2 years ago

Unraveling the Mystery of the Ocean's Roaring Enigma Decades Later

The mysterious 'Bloop' sound that puzzled scientists since 1997 has been identified as an icequake, a noise produced by an iceberg cracking and breaking away from an Antarctic glacier. Initially thought to be from a variety of sources, including marine animals or human activity, the sound was traced by NOAA researchers to ice movements in the southern ocean. With climate change accelerating ice loss in Antarctica, icequakes are becoming more frequent, contributing to the array of strange noises recorded underwater, many of which have now been explained.

Antarctic Icequakes: Unraveling the Ocean Tide Connection
earth-science2 years ago

Antarctic Icequakes: Unraveling the Ocean Tide Connection

A study by Penn State researchers has found that icequakes in Antarctica, similar to earthquakes but caused by the movement of ice, are driven by ocean tides at the Foundation Ice Stream in West Antarctica. Seismic monitors recorded over 2,200 icequakes over a five-year period, with the majority occurring around the grounding line where the ice transitions from sitting on bedrock to floating on the ocean. The icequakes are believed to be caused by stress accumulation and release between the ice and bedrock as tides rise and push the ice upward. Understanding these processes is crucial for comprehending ice mass loss from Antarctica.