Modelling the influence of supraglacial debris on the behavior of mountain glaciers using a 3D higher-order ice flow model

Autor: Verhaegen, Y., Huybrechts, P.
Rok vydání: 2023
Zdroj: XXVIII General Assembly of the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG)
DOI: 10.57757/iugg23-1670
Popis: We have modelled the influence of a supraglacial debris cover on the behavior of an idealized reference mountain glacier. A calibrated 3D coupled ice flow-mass balance-supraglacial debris cover model is used to assess the impact of the melt-altering effect of various supraglacial debris deposit rates on the overall steady state characteristics of the glacier. Additional experiments are also carried out to simulate the behavior of the debris-covered glacier in a warming future climate. The main results show that, when compared to its clean-ice version, the debris-covered version of the glacier exhibits longer but thinner ablation zones, accompanied by lower ice flow velocities, lower runoff production, as well as a dampening of the mass balance-elevation profile over the debris-covered ice. Experiments for warming climatic conditions primarily point out towards a significant delay of glacier retreat, as the dominant process for ice mass loss encompasses thinning out of the ablation zone rather than retreat. The above-mentioned effects are modelled to be increasingly pronounced with an increasing thickness and extent of the superimposed supraglacial debris cover. 
The 28th IUGG General Assembly (IUGG2023) (Berlin 2023)
Databáze: OpenAIRE