Calving on tidewater glaciers amplified by submarine frontal melting
| Autor: | Martin O'Leary, Poul Christoffersen |
|---|---|
| Přispěvatelé: | Christoffersen, Poul [0000-0003-2643-8724], Apollo - University of Cambridge Repository |
| Jazyk: | angličtina |
| Rok vydání: | 2013 |
| Předmět: |
Glacier terminus
010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences Flow (psychology) FOS: Physical sciences Ice calving 010502 geochemistry & geophysics 01 natural sciences Physics - Geophysics Geomorphology lcsh:Environmental sciences Earth-Surface Processes Water Science and Technology 0105 earth and related environmental sciences Tidewater lcsh:GE1-350 geography geography.geographical_feature_category lcsh:QE1-996.5 Tidewater glacier cycle Front (oceanography) Glacier Glacier morphology Geophysics (physics.geo-ph) lcsh:Geology Physics - Atmospheric and Oceanic Physics Temperature gradient Arctic 13. Climate action Atmospheric and Oceanic Physics (physics.ao-ph) Geology |
| Zdroj: | The Cryosphere, Vol 7, Iss 1, Pp 119-128 (2013) |
| ISSN: | 1994-0424 1994-0416 |
| Popis: | While it has been shown repeatedly that ocean conditions exhibit an important control on the behaviour of grounded tidewater glaciers, modelling studies have focused largely on the effects of basal and surface melting. Here, a finite-element model of stresses near the front of a tidewater glacier is used to investigate the effects of frontal melting on calving, independently of the calving criterion used. Applications of the stress model to idealized scenarios reveal that undercutting of the ice front due to frontal melting can drive calving at up to ten times the mean melt rate. Factors which cause increased frontal melt-driven calving include a strong thermal gradient in the ice, and a concentration of frontal melt at the base of the glacier. These properties are typical of both Arctic and Antarctic tidewater glaciers. The finding that frontal melt near the base is a strong driver of calving leads to the conclusion that water temperatures near the bed of the glacier are critically important to the glacier front, and thus the flow of the glacier. These conclusions are robust against changes in the basal boundary condition and the choice of calving criterion, as well as variations in the glacier size or level of crevassing. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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