Dr Paul Tregoning
Stream Leader: The Antarctic ice sheet
Phone: +612 6125 5510
Fax: +612 6125 5443
email: paul.tregoning@anu.edu.au
Research interests
My research involves using satellite measurements to study changes in the Earth, with a current focus on present-day melting of the polar ice sheets and hydrological changes in Australia, related to climate change. With a background in geodesy, I am interested in extracting geophysical signals from space geodetic missions and understanding and interpreting what the changes mean.
Observations from space gravity missions such as GRACE can be used to “weigh” the Antarctic continent and thus determine the rate of melting of the ice sheet. Satellite altimetry missions such as Cryosat 2 can measure changes in the height of ice sheets. Ground-based GPS measurements measure vertical movement of Antarctica’s bedrock. These observing techniques provide the means of estimating continental-scale mass balance changes that are occurring today.
All of these techniques also sense the ongoing changes to Antarctica as a result of melting that occurred thousands of years ago. Thus, a particular challenge in our research is to separate the present-day melting from the ongoing glacial isostatic adjustment, from past melting events.
I went to Davis in the 1991-92 summer season to operate a GPS receiver at the station and, since 1998, have been running remote, solar-powered GPS receivers in the Prince Charles Mountains to measure present-day uplift rates.
Current projects
Past projects
- Crustal rebound in the Lambert Glacier area (#1112)
- Glacial isostatic rebound in East Antarctica (#2516)
- IPY: Coordinated research into Antarctic calving (#2909)
International/national representations or collaborations
- Associate Editor, Journal of Geophysical Research
- National delegate, International Association for Geodesy
- AuScope Geospatial Steering Committee member
Key outcome areas
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
Related links
- ANU Antarctic GPS website
- GRACE Follow On Project funded by Australian Space Research Program:
- GPS system remote data breakthrough (Australian Antarctic Magazine)
- Full publication list
G. Blewitt, Z. Altamimi, J. Davis, R. Gross, C. Kuo, F. Lemoine, A. Moore, R. Nielan, H.P. Plag, M. Rothacher, C. Shum, M.G. Sideris, T. Schone, P. Tregoning and S. Zerbini. Geodetic Observations and Global Reference Frame Contributions to Understanding Sea-Level Rise and Variability In Understanding Sea-level Rise and Variability, Eds. John A. Church, Philip L. Woodworth, Thorkild Aarup and W. Stanley Wilson. Blackwells Publishing, London. Wiley Blackwell, 2009.
Watson, C.S., N. White, J. Church, R. Burgette, P. Tregoning and R. Coleman. Absolute Calibration in Bass Strait, Australia: TOPEX/Poseidon, Jason-1 and OSTM/Jason-2, Marine Geodesy (in press).
Watson, C., R. Burgette, P. Tregoning, N. White, J. Hunter, R. Coleman, R. Handsworth and H. Brolsma. Twentieth Century constraints on sea level change and earthquake deformation at Macquarie Island. Geophys. J. Int.
Tregoning, P. and C. Watson, 2009. Atmospheric effects and spurious signals in GPS analyses. J. Geophys. Res. 114. B09403.
Tregoning, P., G. Ramillien, H. McQueen and D. Zwartz, 2009. Glacial isostatic adjustment and non-stationary signals observed by GRACE. J. Geophys. Res.114 B06406.
Tregoning, P., K. Lambeck and G. Ramillien, 2008. GRACE estimates of sea surface height anomalies in the Gulf of Carpentaria, Australia. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 271: 241-244
Tregoning, P., Welsh, A., McQueen, H. and Lambeck, K., 2000. The search for postglacial rebound near the Lambert Glacier, Antarctica. Earth Planets Space 52: 1037-1041.
Tregoning, P., B. Twilley, M. Hendy and D. Zwartz, 1999. Monitoring isostatic rebound in Antarctica with the use of continuous remote GPS observations. GPS Solutions 2: 70-75.
