Cracking Antarctica’s Iceberg Code
RIFT-TIP is investigating iceberg calving on the Brunt Ice Shelf. It uses field monitoring, lab testing, and modelling to predict when icebergs will form.
Emma Pearce
Ice Fracture Geophysicist
I am an Ice Fracture Geophysicist in the Ice Dynamics and Palaeoclimate team at British Antarctic Survey. My research uses geophysical observations to understand how the structure and mechanical properties of snow and ice control fracture, deformation and ice-shelf stability in Antarctica. As part of the RIFT-TIP project, I lead the geophysical component of research on the Brunt Ice Shelf, integrating seismic observations with ground-penetrating radar, GPS, Distributed Acoustic Sensing, ApRES and ice-core analysis to investigate fracture processes and rift propagation.
My background is in environmental geophysics, with a particular focus on applying seismology to glaciological questions. During my PhD at the University of Leeds, I developed seismic Full Waveform Inversion methods for glaciology and used them to investigate firn densification and melt layers. I later worked at the University of Strasbourg, where I developed and applied ambient-noise correlation and Distributed Acoustic Sensing approaches to improve imaging of snow and ice structure. Across my research, I combine field surveys, laboratory analysis and computational modelling to understand how ice properties evolve and how these influence glacier and ice-shelf behaviour.
I work closely with collaborators at University College London and the University of Otago. Through these collaborations, I link geophysical measurements with ice-core analysis, microstructure, fracture mechanics and modelling, with the aim of improving understanding of ice dynamics under a changing climate.
Research interests
- Environmental and cryosphere geophysics
- Seismology of snow, firn and ice (Active and passive seismic methods)
- Ice fracture, deformation and calving processes
- Full Waveform Inversion and seismic imaging
- Firn densification, melt layers and anisotropy
- Ice-shelf structure and stability
- Geophysical monitoring of environmental change
- Integration of field observations, laboratory experiments and modelling
First-author publications
- Pearce, E., Marsh, O. J., Mitchell, T. M., Tuhkuri, J., Thomas, E. R. and Johnson, S. 2025. Impact of surface melt and brine infiltration on fracture toughness of ice shelves. The Cryosphere https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-4904.
- Pearce, E*., Agnew, R. S*., Karplus, M., Ranganathan, M., Hoffman, A. O., Hunt, M., Pretorius, A., Shanly, S. E., Beres, M., Pradhan, K. K., Seldon, Y., Booth, A. D., Clark, R. A. and Young, T. J. 2026. Active and passive seismic surveys over the grounding zone of Eastwind Glacier, Antarctica. Seismological Research Letters, 97(1), 591–605. https://doi.org/10.1785/0220250024
- Pearce, E., Zigone, D., Hofstede, C., Fichtner, A., Rimpot, J., Olander Rasmussen, S., Freitag, J. and Eisen, O. 2024. Firn seismic anisotropy in the Northeast Greenland Ice Stream from ambient-noise surface waves. The Cryosphere, 18, 4917–4932. https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-4917-2024.
- Pearce, E., Booth, A. D., Rost, S., Sava, P., Konuk, T., Brisbourne, A., Hubbard, B. and Jones, I. 2023. Characterising ice slabs in firn using seismic full waveform inversion, a sensitivity study. Journal of Glaciology, 85(2). https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2023.30.
- Pearce, E., Booth, A. D., Rost, S., Sava, P., Konuk, T., Brisbourne, A., Hubbard, B. and Jones, I. 2023. A synthetic study of acoustic full waveform inversion to improve seismic modelling of firn. Annals of Glaciology, 63(87–89), 44–48. https://doi.org/10.1017/aog.2023.10.
- Pearce, E. 2021. Hammering the ice. Nature Reviews Earth & Environment. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43017-021-00176-6.
Co-authored publications
- The Firn Symposium team. 2024. Firn on ice sheets. Nature Reviews Earth & Environment, 5(2), 79–99. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43017-023-00507-9.
- Brisbourne, A., Kulessa, B., Hudson, T., Harrison, L., Holland, P., Luckman, A., Bevan, S., Ashmore, D., Hubbard, B., Pearce, E., White, J., Booth, A., Nicholls, K. and Smith, A. 2020. An updated seabed bathymetry beneath Larsen C Ice Shelf, Antarctic Peninsula. Earth System Science Data, 12(2), 887–896. https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-887-2020.
Publications from NERC Open Research Archive
2025
Agnew, Ronan S. ORCID record for Agnew, Ronan S.. Pearce, Emma ORCID record for Pearce, Emma. Karplus, Marianne. Ranganathan, Meghana. Hoffman, Andrew O. Hunt, Madeline. Pretorius, Andrew. Shanly, Sooraj E. Beres, Mitchel. Pradhan, Kaushik Kumar. Seldon, Yeshey. Booth, Adam D. Clark, Roger A. Young, Tun Jan. (2025) Active and Passive Seismic Surveys over the Grounding Zone of Eastwind Glacier, Antarctica.
Booth, A., Agnew, R., Pretorius, A., Pearce, E., Cameron, E., Hehlen, M., Karplus, M., May, D., Nakata, N., Seldon, Y., Summers, P., Tulaczyk, S., & Young, T. (2025). Passive- and active-source seismic data recorded with Distributed Acoustic Sensing on Eastwind Glacier, Antarctica, February 2024 (Version 1.0) [Data set]. NERC EDS UK Polar Data Centre. https://doi.org/10.5285/23dbd529-3a57-4933-bb9d-16ee1c85fda0
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Role: Ice Fracture Geophysicist
Led the geophysical component of a multi-disciplinary project investigating fracture processes, rift propagation and ice-shelf stability on the Brunt Ice Shelf. Integrated seismic observations with ice-core analysis, ground-penetrating radar and satellite data to understand how ice structure and mechanical properties control fracture and calving.
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Role: Seismologist
Led seismic deployments and analysis within the EastGRIP consortium, working with collaborators from the University of Strasbourg, AWI and the University of Copenhagen. Research focused on firn structure, densification and anisotropy using active and passive seismic methods, helping to improve understanding of the internal structure and mechanical behaviour of the ice stream.
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Role: Seismologist
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EGGS on TOAST (Eastwind Glacier Geophysical Surveys on Top Of Antarctic ice Shelf Transition)
Role: Co-PI
Co-led an NSF-supported project focused on high-resolution geophysical surveys across the grounding zone of Eastwind Glacier. Delivered active and passive seismic and GPS datasets to constrain deformation, structure and fracture processes.
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