RECENT CHANGES IN GLACIERS AND PARAGLACIAL SYSTEMS, ANTARCTIC MARITIME
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21680/2447-3359.2020v6n2ID19301Abstract
The article investigates changes in paraglacial systems and interconnections with glacial shrinkage on King George Island, Maritime Antarctica. The proglacial environment, as a result of recent deglaciation, was analyzed, and the types of landforms and at different scales were identified. These records are useful for successive evolutionary stages paraglacial system reconstruction. Glaciers and paraglacial systems showed rapid changes and new landscapes were detected on King George Island. Glaciers presented an important change between 2000 and 2018, where its classification has changed from marine-terminating to land-terminating glacier (no-marine). There are currently 21 glaciers land-terminating on King George Island (corresponding to 31% of the glaciers) and 11 are present in Admiralty Bay. 25% of these glaciers were marine in 2000. The new paraglacial environments (since 2000) has 1.7 km2 of the total area. Ecology, Wanda, Windy, Anna South and Baranowski Glaciers showed outwash plain, talus slopes and fluvial channels landforms in recent paraglacial system. Geomorphological mapping shows that paraglacial processes which differ between environments marginal to glacier ice are not standardized.