Korea Polar Research Institute · Principal Research Scientist
Won Sang Lee이원상
Geophysicist of the cryosphere. Coupled ice–ocean–solid Earth processes across Antarctica’s most consequential glaciers.
I am a geophysicist of the cryosphere, working at the intersection of field science, technology, and international polar collaboration. My research focuses on how warm ocean water reaches grounding zones, drives ice-shelf basal melting, and contributes to future sea-level rise — with current focus on Terra Nova Bay, Thwaites Glacier, and the Getz Ice Shelf system.
Beyond the science, I am building infrastructure that outlasts any single expedition: observational systems, scientific knowledge, and a generation of early-career researchers who will carry both forward.
More about my workThe Hole in the Ice at the End of the Earth
An eight-week embedded narrative of the 2025–26 Thwaites Glacier hot-water drilling expedition, of which I served as Chief Scientist.
Read the feature