Snow Surface Elevation in the Filchner Ice Shelf Area, Antarctica

Abstract

Altimeter observations made on flights during the austral summer 1963–64 in the vicinity of the Filchner Ice Shelf have allowed the construction of a new topographic map of the snow surface in that area. The ice stream flowing into the ice shelf from the polar plateau is more clearly defined. A previously shown connection from Berkner Island to the grounded ice to the west-south-west appears not to exist. The mass flux from the drainage basin on the polar plateau can be accounted for by a reasonable ice-shelf flow rate. The area of the ice shelf shown on the map is 0.43×106 km.2.