scholarly journals Cauldron subsidence and subglacial floods

2007 ◽  
Vol 45 ◽  
pp. 163-168 ◽  
Author(s):  
G.W. Evatt ◽  
A.C. Fowler
Keyword(s):  
Ice Sheets ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Beam Theory ◽  
Volcanic Eruptions ◽  
Subglacial Lake ◽  
Ice Cap ◽  
Ice Surface ◽  
Flood Discharge ◽  
The Antarctic ◽  
Ice Cauldrons

AbstractIce cauldrons are depressions which form at the surface of ice sheets when an underlying subglacial lake empties, in particular when subglacial volcanic eruptions occur. Notable examples of such cauldrons occur on the surface of the Vatnajökull ice cap in Iceland. More generally, cauldrons will form when a subglacial lake empties during a jökulhlaup. The rate of subsidence of the ice surface is related to the rate at which the subglacial water empties from the lake. We use a viscous version of classical beam theory applied to the ice sheet to determine the relation between the subsidence rate and flood discharge. We use the results to make inferences concerning ring fracture spacings in cauldrons, the consequent effect on flood discharge dynamics and the likely nature of subsidence events in the Antarctic Ice Sheet.

scholarly journals Potential subglacial lake locations and meltwater drainage pathways beneath the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets

2013 ◽  
Vol 7 (6) ◽  
pp. 1721-1740 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. J. Livingstone ◽  
C. D. Clark ◽  
J. Woodward ◽  
J. Kingslake
Keyword(s):  
Ice Sheets ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
Simplified Approach ◽  
Subglacial Lake ◽  
Ice Stream ◽  
Geophysical Surveys ◽  
Subglacial Lakes ◽  
The Antarctic ◽  
Subglacial Drainage

Abstract. We use the Shreve hydraulic potential equation as a simplified approach to investigate potential subglacial lake locations and meltwater drainage pathways beneath the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets. We validate the method by demonstrating its ability to recall the locations of >60% of the known subglacial lakes beneath the Antarctic Ice Sheet. This is despite uncertainty in the ice-sheet bed elevation and our simplified modelling approach. However, we predict many more lakes than are observed. Hence we suggest that thousands of subglacial lakes remain to be found. Applying our technique to the Greenland Ice Sheet, where very few subglacial lakes have so far been observed, recalls 1607 potential lake locations, covering 1.2% of the bed. Our results will therefore provide suitable targets for geophysical surveys aimed at identifying lakes beneath Greenland. We also apply the technique to modelled past ice-sheet configurations and find that during deglaciation both ice sheets likely had more subglacial lakes at their beds. These lakes, inherited from past ice-sheet configurations, would not form under current surface conditions, but are able to persist, suggesting a retreating ice-sheet will have many more subglacial lakes than advancing ones. We also investigate subglacial drainage pathways of the present-day and former Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. Key sectors of the ice sheets, such as the Siple Coast (Antarctica) and NE Greenland Ice Stream system, are suggested to have been susceptible to subglacial drainage switching. We discuss how our results impact our understanding of meltwater drainage, basal lubrication and ice-stream formation.

scholarly journals Surface outburst of a subglacial flood from the Greenland Ice Sheet

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jade Bowling ◽  
Amber Leeson ◽  
Malcolm McMillan ◽  
Stephen Livingstone ◽  
Andrew Sole ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ice Sheets ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Arctic Climate ◽  
Ice Melting ◽  
Subglacial Lake ◽  
The Past ◽  
Ice Surface ◽  
Earth’S Climate

Abstract As Earth’s climate warms, surface melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet is projected to intensify, contributing to rising sea levels1–4. Observations5–7 and theory8–10 indicate that meltwater generated at the surface of an ice sheet can drain to its bed via crevasses and moulins, where it flows relatively unhindered to the coast. This understanding of the movement of water within, and beneath, ice sheets, underpins theoretical models which are used to make projections of ice sheet change11. In this study, we show the first evidence of a disruptive drainage pathway in Greenland, whereby a subglacial flood – triggered by a draining subglacial lake – breaks through the ice sheet surface. This unprecedented outburst of water causes fracturing of the ice sheet, and the formation of 25-metre-high ice blocks. These observations reveal a complex, bidirectional coupling between the surface and basal hydrological systems of an ice sheet, which was previously unknown in Greenland. Analysis of over 30 years of satellite imagery confirms that the subglacial lake has drained at least once previously. However, on that occasion the floodwater failed to breach the ice surface. The two contrasting drainage regimes, coupled with the increased rates of ice melting and thinning that have occurred over the past three decades years, suggest that Arctic climate warming may have facilitated a new, disruptive mode of hydrological drainage on the ice sheet. As such, our observations reveal an emerging and poorly understood phenomenon, which is not currently captured in physical ice sheet models.

scholarly journals Boundary conditions of an active West Antarctic subglacial lake: implications for storage of water beneath the ice sheet

2013 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 2979-2999 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. J. Siegert ◽  
N. Ross ◽  
H. Corr ◽  
B. Smith ◽  
T. Jordan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Surface Elevation ◽  
Altimeter Data ◽  
Radar Altimeter ◽  
Local Flow ◽  
Antarctic Ice Sheet ◽  
Subglacial Lake ◽  
West Antarctic ◽  
Ice Surface ◽  
The Antarctic

Abstract. Repeat-pass IceSat altimetry has revealed 124 discrete surface height changes across the Antarctic Ice Sheet, interpreted to be caused by subglacial lake discharges (surface lowering) and inputs (surface uplift). Few of these active lakes have been confirmed by radio-echo sounding (RES) despite several attempts (notable exceptions are Lake Whillans and three in the Adventure Subglacial Trench). Here we present targeted RES and radar altimeter data from an "active lake" location within the upstream Institute Ice Stream, into which 0.12 km3 of water is calculated to have flowed between October 2003 and February 2008. We use a series of transects to establish an accurate appreciation of the influences of bed topography and ice-surface elevation on water storage potential. The location of surface height change is over the downslope flank of a distinct topographic hollow, where RES reveals no obvious evidence for deep (> 10 m) water. The regional hydropotential reveals a sink coincident with the surface change, however. Governed by the location of the hydrological sink, basal water will likely "drape" over existing topography in a manner dissimilar to subglacial lakes where flat strong specular RES reflections are measured. The inability of RES to detect the active lake means that more of the Antarctic ice sheet bed may contain stored water than is currently appreciated. Variation in ice surface elevation datasets leads to significant alteration in calculations of the local flow of basal water indicating the value of, and need for, high resolution RES datasets in both space and time to establish and characterise subglacial hydrological processes.

scholarly journals Boundary conditions of an active West Antarctic subglacial lake: implications for storage of water beneath the ice sheet

2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. J. Siegert ◽  
N. Ross ◽  
H. Corr ◽  
B. Smith ◽  
T. Jordan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Surface Elevation ◽  
Altimeter Data ◽  
Radar Altimeter ◽  
Local Flow ◽  
Antarctic Ice Sheet ◽  
Subglacial Lake ◽  
West Antarctic ◽  
Ice Surface ◽  
The Antarctic

Abstract. Repeat-pass ICESat altimetry has revealed 124 discrete surface height changes across the Antarctic Ice Sheet, interpreted to be caused by subglacial lake discharges (surface lowering) and inputs (surface uplift). Few of these active lakes have been confirmed by radio-echo sounding (RES) despite several attempts (notable exceptions are Lake Whillans and three in the Adventure Subglacial Trench). Here we present targeted RES and radar altimeter data from an "active lake" location within the upstream Institute Ice Stream, into which at least 0.12 km3 of water was previously calculated to have flowed between October 2003 and February 2008. We use a series of transects to establish an accurate depiction of the influences of bed topography and ice surface elevation on water storage potential. The location of surface height change is downstream of a subglacial hill on the flank of a distinct topographic hollow, where RES reveals no obvious evidence for deep (> 10 m) water. The regional hydropotential reveals a sink coincident with the surface change, however. Governed by the location of the hydrological sink, basal water will likely "drape" over topography in a manner dissimilar to subglacial lakes where flat strong specular RES reflections are measured. The inability of RES to detect the active lake means that more of the Antarctic ice sheet bed may contain stored water than is currently appreciated. Variation in ice surface elevation data sets leads to significant alteration in calculations of the local flow of basal water indicating the value of, and need for, high-resolution altimetry data in both space and time to establish and characterise subglacial hydrological processes.

scholarly journals Predicting subglacial lakes and meltwater drainage pathways beneath the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets

2013 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 1177-1213 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. J. Livingstone ◽  
C. D. Clark ◽  
J. Woodward
Keyword(s):  
Interpolation Method ◽  
Ice Sheets ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
Ice Surface ◽  
Ice Stream ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Subglacial Lakes ◽  
The Antarctic ◽  
Modelling Approach

Abstract. In this paper we use the Shreve hydraulic potential equation to predict subglacial lakes and meltwater drainage pathways beneath the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets. For the Antarctic Ice Sheet we are able to predict known subglacial lakes with a >70% success rate, which demonstrates the validity of this method. Despite the success in predicting known subglacial lakes the calculations produce two-orders of magnitude more lakes than are presently identified, covering 4% of the ice-sheet bed. The difference is thought to result from our poor knowledge of the bed (which has resulted in artefacts associated with the interpolation method), intrinsic errors associated with the simplified modelling approach and because thousands of subglacial lakes, particularly smaller ones, remain to be found. Applying the same modelling approach to the Greenland Ice Sheet predicts only 90 lakes under the present-day ice-sheet configuration, covering 0.2% of the bed. The paucity of subglacial lakes in Greenland is thought to be a function of steeper overall ice-surface gradients. As no lakes have currently been located under Greenland, model predictions will make suitable targets for radar surveys of Greenland to identify subglacial lakes. During deglaciation from the Last Glacial Maximum both ice sheets had more subglacial lakes at their beds, though many of these lakes have persisted to present conditions. These lakes, inherited from past ice-sheet configurations would not form under current surface conditions, suggesting a retreating ice-sheet will have many more subglacial lakes than an advancing ice sheet. This hysteresis effect has implications for ice-stream formation and flow, bed lubrication and meltwater drainage. The lake model also allows modelling of the drainage pathways of the present-day and former Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. Significantly, key sectors of the ice sheets, such as the Siple Coast (Antarctica) and NE Greenland Ice Stream system, are shown to have been susceptible to drainage switches and capture by neighbouring networks during deglaciation thus far.

scholarly journals Attention Multi-Scale Network for Automatic Layer Extraction of Ice Radar Topological Sequences

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 2425
Author(s):  
Yiheng Cai ◽  
Dan Liu ◽  
Jin Xie ◽  
Jingxian Yang ◽  
Xiangbin Cui ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Deep Learning ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Ice Sheets ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Sheet Thickness ◽  
Learning Methods ◽  
Convolutional Network ◽  
Multi Scale ◽  
Ice Surface ◽  
Layer Extraction

Analyzing the surface and bedrock locations in radar imagery enables the computation of ice sheet thickness, which is important for the study of ice sheets, their volume and how they may contribute to global climate change. However, the traditional handcrafted methods cannot quickly provide quantitative, objective and reliable extraction of information from radargrams. Most traditional handcrafted methods, designed to detect ice-surface and ice-bed layers from ice sheet radargrams, require complex human involvement and are difficult to apply to large datasets, while deep learning methods can obtain better results in a generalized way. In this study, an end-to-end multi-scale attention network (MsANet) is proposed to realize the estimation and reconstruction of layers in sequences of ice sheet radar tomographic images. First, we use an improved 3D convolutional network, C3D-M, whose first full connection layer is replaced by a convolution unit to better maintain the spatial relativity of ice layer features, as the backbone. Then, an adjustable multi-scale module uses different scale filters to learn scale information to enhance the feature extraction capabilities of the network. Finally, an attention module extended to 3D space removes a redundant bottleneck unit to better fuse and refine ice layer features. Radar sequential images collected by the Center of Remote Sensing of Ice Sheets in 2014 are used as training and testing data. Compared with state-of-the-art deep learning methods, the MsANet shows a 10% reduction (2.14 pixels) on the measurement of average mean absolute column-wise error for detecting the ice-surface and ice-bottom layers, runs faster and uses approximately 12 million fewer parameters.

scholarly journals Last Interglacial climate and sea-level evolution from a coupled ice sheet–climate model

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 2195-2213 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heiko Goelzer ◽  
Philippe Huybrechts ◽  
Marie-France Loutre ◽  
Thierry Fichefet
Keyword(s):  
Surface Temperature ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Ice Sheets ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
Last Interglacial ◽  
A Minor ◽  
The Antarctic ◽  
The Impact ◽  
And Sea Level

Abstract. As the most recent warm period in Earth's history with a sea-level stand higher than present, the Last Interglacial (LIG,  ∼  130 to 115 kyr BP) is often considered a prime example to study the impact of a warmer climate on the two polar ice sheets remaining today. Here we simulate the Last Interglacial climate, ice sheet, and sea-level evolution with the Earth system model of intermediate complexity LOVECLIM v.1.3, which includes dynamic and fully coupled components representing the atmosphere, the ocean and sea ice, the terrestrial biosphere, and the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. In this setup, sea-level evolution and climate–ice sheet interactions are modelled in a consistent framework.Surface mass balance change governed by changes in surface meltwater runoff is the dominant forcing for the Greenland ice sheet, which shows a peak sea-level contribution of 1.4 m at 123 kyr BP in the reference experiment. Our results indicate that ice sheet–climate feedbacks play an important role to amplify climate and sea-level changes in the Northern Hemisphere. The sensitivity of the Greenland ice sheet to surface temperature changes considerably increases when interactive albedo changes are considered. Southern Hemisphere polar and sub-polar ocean warming is limited throughout the Last Interglacial, and surface and sub-shelf melting exerts only a minor control on the Antarctic sea-level contribution with a peak of 4.4 m at 125 kyr BP. Retreat of the Antarctic ice sheet at the onset of the LIG is mainly forced by rising sea level and to a lesser extent by reduced ice shelf viscosity as the surface temperature increases. Global sea level shows a peak of 5.3 m at 124.5 kyr BP, which includes a minor contribution of 0.35 m from oceanic thermal expansion. Neither the individual contributions nor the total modelled sea-level stand show fast multi-millennial timescale variations as indicated by some reconstructions.

The response of large ice sheets to climatic change

1992 ◽  
Vol 338 (1285) ◽  
pp. 235-242 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Ice Sheets ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Sea Level Change ◽  
Mixing Ratio ◽  
Ice Dynamics ◽  
Environmental Models ◽  
Level Change ◽  
The Antarctic

The prediction of short-term (100 year) changes in the mass balance of ice sheets and longer-term (1000 years) variations in their ice volumes is important for a range of climatic and environmental models. The Antarctic ice sheet contains between 24 M km 3 and 29 M km 3 of ice, equivalent to a eustatic sea level change of between 60m and 72m. The annual surface accumulation is estimated to be of the order of 2200 Gtonnes, equivalent to a sea level change of 6 mm a -1 . Analysis of the present-day accumulation regime of Antarctica indicates that about 25% ( ca. 500 Gt a -1 ) of snowfall occurs in the Antarctic Peninsula region with an area of only 6.8% of the continent. To date most models have focused upon solving predictive algorithms for the climate-sensitivity of the ice sheet, and assume: (i) surface mass balance is equivalent to accumulation (i.e. no melting, evaporation or deflation); (ii) percentage change in accumulation is proportional to change in saturation mixing ratio above the surface inversion layer; and (iii) there is a linear relation between mean annual surface air tem perature and saturation mixing ratio. For the A ntarctic Peninsula with mountainous terrain containing ice caps, outlet glaciers, valley glaciers and ice shelves, where there can be significant ablation at low levels and distinct climatic regimes, models of the climate response must be more complex. In addition, owing to the high accumulation and flow rates, even short- to medium -term predictions must take account of ice dynamics. Relationships are derived for the mass balance sensitivity and, using a model developed by Hindmarsh, the transient effects of ice dynamics are estimated. It is suggested that for a 2°C rise in mean annual surface tem perature over 40 years, ablation in the A ntarctic Peninsula region would contribute at least 1.0 mm to sea level rise, offsetting the fall of 0.5 mm contributed by increased accum ulation.

scholarly journals Are longitudinal ice-surface structures on the Antarctic Ice Sheet indicators of long-term ice-flow configuration?

2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 911-933 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. F. Glasser ◽  
S. J. A. Jennings ◽  
M. J. Hambrey ◽  
B. Hubbard
Keyword(s):  
Flow Line ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Surface Structures ◽  
Surface Velocity ◽  
Ice Flow ◽  
Antarctic Ice Sheet ◽  
Ice Surface ◽  
Ice Stream ◽  
The Antarctic

Abstract. Continent-wide mapping of longitudinal ice-surface structures on the Antarctic Ice Sheet reveals that they originate in the interior of the ice sheet and are arranged in arborescent networks fed by multiple tributaries. Longitudinal ice-surface structures can be traced continuously down-ice for distances of up to 1200 km. They are co-located with fast-flowing glaciers and ice streams that are dominated by basal sliding rates above tens of m yr-1 and are strongly guided by subglacial topography. Longitudinal ice-surface structures dominate regions of converging flow, where ice flow is subject to non-coaxial strain and simple shear. Associating these structures with the AIS' surface velocity field reveals (i) ice residence times of ~ 2500 to 18 500 years, and (ii) undeformed flow-line sets for all major flow units analysed except the Kamb Ice Stream and the Institute and Möller Ice Stream areas. Although it is unclear how long it takes for these features to form and decay, we infer that the major ice-flow and ice-velocity configuration of the ice sheet may have remained largely unchanged for several thousand years, and possibly even since the end of the last glacial cycle. This conclusion has implications for our understanding of the long-term landscape evolution of Antarctica, including large-scale patterns of glacial erosion and deposition.

scholarly journals The influence of ice sheets on temperature during the past 38 million years inferred from a one-dimensional ice sheet–climate model

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 1243-1257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lennert B. Stap ◽  
Roderik S. W. van de Wal ◽  
Bas de Boer ◽  
Richard Bintanja ◽  
Lucas J. Lourens
Keyword(s):  
Climate Model ◽  
Ice Sheets ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Atmospheric Temperature ◽  
Temperature Changes ◽  
One Dimensional ◽  
Ice Volume ◽  
The Past ◽  
Polar Amplification ◽  
The Antarctic

Abstract. Since the inception of the Antarctic ice sheet at the Eocene–Oligocene transition (∼ 34 Myr ago), land ice has played a crucial role in Earth's climate. Through feedbacks in the climate system, land ice variability modifies atmospheric temperature changes induced by orbital, topographical, and greenhouse gas variations. Quantification of these feedbacks on long timescales has hitherto scarcely been undertaken. In this study, we use a zonally averaged energy balance climate model bidirectionally coupled to a one-dimensional ice sheet model, capturing the ice–albedo and surface–height–temperature feedbacks. Potentially important transient changes in topographic boundary conditions by tectonics and erosion are not taken into account but are briefly discussed. The relative simplicity of the coupled model allows us to perform integrations over the past 38 Myr in a fully transient fashion using a benthic oxygen isotope record as forcing to inversely simulate CO2. Firstly, we find that the results of the simulations over the past 5 Myr are dependent on whether the model run is started at 5 or 38 Myr ago. This is because the relation between CO2 and temperature is subject to hysteresis. When the climate cools from very high CO2 levels, as in the longer transient 38 Myr run, temperatures in the lower CO2 range of the past 5 Myr are higher than when the climate is initialised at low temperatures. Consequently, the modelled CO2 concentrations depend on the initial state. Taking the realistic warm initialisation into account, we come to a best estimate of CO2, temperature, ice-volume-equivalent sea level, and benthic δ18O over the past 38 Myr. Secondly, we study the influence of ice sheets on the evolution of global temperature and polar amplification by comparing runs with ice sheet–climate interaction switched on and off. By passing only albedo or surface height changes to the climate model, we can distinguish the separate effects of the ice–albedo and surface–height–temperature feedbacks. We find that ice volume variability has a strong enhancing effect on atmospheric temperature changes, particularly in the regions where the ice sheets are located. As a result, polar amplification in the Northern Hemisphere decreases towards warmer climates as there is little land ice left to melt. Conversely, decay of the Antarctic ice sheet increases polar amplification in the Southern Hemisphere in the high-CO2 regime. Our results also show that in cooler climates than the pre-industrial, the ice–albedo feedback predominates the surface–height–temperature feedback, while in warmer climates they are more equal in strength.

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