Abstract

Global atmospheric warming and rising ocean temperatures can contribute to the acceleration of glacier melting and influence the generation and physical characteristics of sediment flows in bays and fjords of the Antarctic Peninsula. During the First Scientific Expedition of Colombia to the Antarctic, carried out between January and February 2015, hydrographic variables (temperature, salinity, pressure and turbidity) were measured in the water column, from very close to the main glacier front towards the offshore, on 5 bays of the Danco Coast, Western Antarctic Peninsula. Glacimarine sediment plumes from the tidewater glacier were identified in all bays, however, with varying spatial extensions as well as the concentration of sediments, being those of the central area of the Danco Coast, the most extensive and concentrated. By comparison with previous years, in this work higher average particle concentrations were recorded. The greater flow of glaciomarine sediments could be associated with greater glacial melting, among other possible factors.