Antarctica is the least understood continent on Earth due to its ice sheet cover and remoteness. Despite these challenges the international geophysical and geological communities are making remarkable progress in investigating several Antarctic frontiers.
The results are transforming our knowledge of: i) crustal and lithospheric architecture; ii) the geodynamic processes that were responsible for the evolution of the continent and their linkages with the Gondwana, Rodinia and Columbia supercontinental cycle; iii) the opening of ocean gateways surrounding Antarctica; iv) the influence of geological boundary conditions on cryosphere evolution and ice sheet dynamics.
This session will provide a broad forum to present studies of the Antarctic lithosphere. Examples include: airborne, marine and satellite exploration efforts; active and passive seismic research; GPS and seismic networks; deep electrical conductivity studies; structural geology, geochronology and geochemical investigations; thermochronology and sediment provenance studies; regional and continental-scale geophysical and geological mapping; models of crustal and lithospheric structure; studies of tectonic and geodynamic controls on topography, sedimentary basins and geothermal heat flux, contributing towards a better understanding of Solid Earth influences on ice sheet and climate evolution.