In January 2026, Dr. Felicity McCormack from the Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future, an Australian Antarctic research program and Monash University together with Prof. Dr Ricarda Winkelmann and Lena Nicola from MPI-GEA and PIK will jointly conduct fieldwork in East Antarctica to better understand a central question in climate science: That is, to what extent the melting of the Antarctic Ice Sheet will contribute to global sea-level rise and over what timescales. The planned project will be supported by the White Desert Science Foundation Grant, valued at a maximum of US$ 200,000 in logistical support.
The project will generate new insights into the refreezing of surface meltwater within the snowpack of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet. Through detailed analysis of the structure and characteristics of melt layers, they aim to improve key inputs used in models of how Antarctica gains and loses ice. Field measurements will be collected along a transect in Dronning Maud Land and supported by data from two automated weather stations. By filling this knowledge gap, it will help improve how models simulate these surface mass balance processes, ultimately enhancing forecasts of Antarctica’s future contribution to global sea-level rise.
