RT Journal Article
T1 Holocene deglaciation of the northern Fildes Peninsula, King George Island, Antarctica
A1 Oliva, Marc
A1 Palacios Estremera, David
A1 Fernández Fernández, José María
A1 Fernandes, Marcelo
A1 Schimmelpfennig, Irene
A1 Vieira, Gonçalo
A1 Antoniades, Dermot
A1 Pérez‐Alberti, Augusto
A1 García‐Oteyza, Julia
A1 Team, ASTER
AB The timing and magnitude of Holocene glacial oscillations in most currently ice-free areas of Antarctica remain unknown. This work focuses on the recent deglaciation in the northern sector of the Fildes Peninsula, King George Island, northern Antarctic Peninsula. The ice cap covering ca. 90% of the island has receded since the Last Glacial Maximum and exposed ca. 29 km2 of ice-free land. We reconstruct its glacial history based on a dataset of 12 36Cl exposure ages obtained through cosmic-ray exposure (CRE) dating of moraine boulders, polished surfaces and erratic boulders surrounding the peninsula's northern plateau. Results reveal that the deglaciation of the northern Fildes Peninsula took place during the Holocene Thermal Maximum at 7–6 ka, when warm conditions promoted a massive glacial retreat. The present arrangement of ice-free areas was in place by 6 ka. Small cirque moraines suggest the subsequent occurrence of favourable climate conditions for glacial expansion fed by intense snow deflation at 4.6 and 1 ka at the foot of the northern plateau. The deglaciation pattern of the Fildes Peninsula resulted from the combined shrinkage of different ice masses, rather than of the long-term retreat of the King George Ice Cap. No evidence of glacier expansion during more recent cold periods (i.e. the Little Ice Age) was found. These results fit well with regional deglacial histories inferred from lacustrine sediments and raised beaches and complement the existing chronological framework to help better understand the peninsula's Holocene geoecological dynamics.
PB Wiley
SN 1085-3278
SN 1099-145X
YR 2023
FD 2023-05-05
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/123375
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/123375
LA eng
NO Oliva, M., Palacios, D., Fernández-Fernández, J. M., Fernandes, M., Schimmelpfennig, I., Vieira, G., Antoniades, D., Pérez-Alberti, A., García-Oteyza, J., & ASTER TEAM (2023). Holocene deglaciation of the northern Fildes Peninsula, King George Island, Antarctica. Land Degradation & Development, 34(13), 3973–3990
NO Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (España)
NO Agència de Gestió d'Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca (Generalitat de Catalunya, España)
NO Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (Portugal)
NO College on Polar and Extreme Environments (Universidade de Lisboa)
NO Centre Nationale de la Recherche Scientifique (Francia)
NO IRD (Francia)
NO INSU (Francia)
DS Docta Complutense
RD 21 ene 2026