Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Middle Miocene Grounding Events On The Ross Sea Outer Continental Shelf, Antarctica, Juan Manuel Chow

LSU Master's Theses

The middle Miocene δ¹⁸O enrichments from deep-sea data and eustatic sea level falls are traditionally attributed to expansion of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet. Interpretations of such data have led many to conclude that the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) was not well-developed until the late Miocene. In such a scenario, middle Miocene glaciation on the Ross Sea shelf would have had to be minimal, perhaps in the form of ice caps, to be consistent with proxy data. New seismic-stratigraphic analysis of the Ross Sea outer continental shelf suggests that at least five grounding events (ice sheet advances …