Surface velocity and mass balance of Ice Streams D and E, West Antarctica

1996 ◽  
Vol 42 (142) ◽  
pp. 461-475 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Bindschadler ◽  
Patricia Vornberger ◽  
Donald Blankenship ◽  
Ted Scambos ◽  
Robert Jacobel

AbstractOver 75 000 surface-velocity measurements are extracted from sequential satellite imagery of Ice Streams D and E to reveal a complex pattern of flow not apparent from previous measurements. Horizontal and vertical strain rates, calculated from surface velocity, indicate that the bed experiences larger basal shear where the surface of these ice streams is rougher. Ten airborne-radar profiles and one surface-based radar profile of ice thickness make possible the calculation of mass balance for longitudinal sections of each ice stream. Improved data-collection methods increase data density, substantially reducing random errors in velocity. However, systematic errors continue to limit the ability of the flux-differencing technique used here to resolve local variations in mass balance. Nevertheless, significant local variations in mass balance are revealed, while, overall, Ice Streams D and E are in approximate equilibrium. An earlier estimate of the net mass balance for Ice Stream D is improved.

1996 ◽  
Vol 42 (142) ◽  
pp. 461-475 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Bindschadler ◽  
Patricia Vornberger ◽  
Donald Blankenship ◽  
Ted Scambos ◽  
Robert Jacobel

AbstractOver 75 000 surface-velocity measurements are extracted from sequential satellite imagery of Ice Streams D and E to reveal a complex pattern of flow not apparent from previous measurements. Horizontal and vertical strain rates, calculated from surface velocity, indicate that the bed experiences larger basal shear where the surface of these ice streams is rougher. Ten airborne-radar profiles and one surface-based radar profile of ice thickness make possible the calculation of mass balance for longitudinal sections of each ice stream. Improved data-collection methods increase data density, substantially reducing random errors in velocity. However, systematic errors continue to limit the ability of the flux-differencing technique used here to resolve local variations in mass balance. Nevertheless, significant local variations in mass balance are revealed, while, overall, Ice Streams D and E are in approximate equilibrium. An earlier estimate of the net mass balance for Ice Stream D is improved.


1993 ◽  
Vol 39 (133) ◽  
pp. 528-537 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Jacobel Robert ◽  
M. Gades Anthony ◽  
L. Gottschling David ◽  
M. Hodge Steven ◽  
L. Wright David

AbstractLow-frequency surface-based radar-profiling experiments on Ice Streams Β and C, West Antarctica, have yielded high-resolution images which depict folding of the internal layers that can aid in the interpretation of ice-stream dynamics. Unlike folding seen in most earlier radar studies of ice sheets, the present structures have no relationship to bedrock topography and show tilting of their axial fold planes in the flow direction. Rather than being standing waves created by topography or local variations in basal shear stress, the data show that these folds originate upstream of the region of streaming flow and are advected into the ice streams. The mechanism for producing folds is hypothesized to be changes in the basal boundary conditions as the ice makes the transition from inland ice to ice-stream flow. Migration of this transition zone headward can then cause folds in the internal layering to be propagated down the ice streams.


2008 ◽  
Vol 54 (187) ◽  
pp. 705-714 ◽  
Author(s):  
L.M. Berliner ◽  
K. Jezek ◽  
N. Cressie ◽  
Y. Kim ◽  
C.Q. Lam ◽  
...  

AbstractOur main goal is to exemplify the study of ice-stream dynamics via Bayesian statistical analysis incorporating physical, though imperfectly known, models using data that are both incomplete and noisy. The physical–statistical models we propose account for these uncertainties in a coherent, hierarchical manner. The initial modeling assumption estimates basal shear stress as equal to driving stress, but subsequently includes a random corrector process to account for model error. The resulting stochastic equation is incorporated into a simple model for surface velocities. Use of Bayes’ theorem allows us to make inferences on all unknowns given basal elevation, surface elevation and surface velocity. The result is a posterior distribution of possible values that can be summarized in a number of ways. For example, the posterior mean of the stress field indicates average behavior at any location in the field, and the posterior standard deviations describe associated uncertainties. We analyze data from the ‘Northeast Greenland Ice Stream’ and illustrate how scientific conclusions may be drawn from our Bayesian analysis.


1993 ◽  
Vol 39 (133) ◽  
pp. 528-537 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Jacobel Robert ◽  
M. Gades Anthony ◽  
L. Gottschling David ◽  
M. Hodge Steven ◽  
L. Wright David

AbstractLow-frequency surface-based radar-profiling experiments on Ice Streams Β and C, West Antarctica, have yielded high-resolution images which depict folding of the internal layers that can aid in the interpretation of ice-stream dynamics. Unlike folding seen in most earlier radar studies of ice sheets, the present structures have no relationship to bedrock topography and show tilting of their axial fold planes in the flow direction. Rather than being standing waves created by topography or local variations in basal shear stress, the data show that these folds originate upstream of the region of streaming flow and are advected into the ice streams. The mechanism for producing folds is hypothesized to be changes in the basal boundary conditions as the ice makes the transition from inland ice to ice-stream flow. Migration of this transition zone headward can then cause folds in the internal layering to be propagated down the ice streams.


2012 ◽  
Vol 53 (60) ◽  
pp. 193-201 ◽  
Author(s):  
Geir Moholdt ◽  
Torborg Heid ◽  
Toby Benham ◽  
Julian A. Dowdeswell

AbstractIce sheets and smaller ice caps appear to behave in dynamically similar ways; both contain slow-moving ice that is probably frozen to the bed, interspersed with fast-flowing ice streams and outlet glaciers that terminate into the ocean. Academy of Sciences Ice Cap (Akademii Nauk ice cap; 5570 km2), Severnaya Zemlya, Russian High Arctic, provides a clear example of this varied flow regime. We have combined satellite measurements of elevation change and surface velocity to show that variable ice-stream dynamics dominate the mass balance of the ice cap. Since 1988, the ice cap has lost 58±16 Gt of ice, corresponding to ~3% of its mass or 0.16mm of sea-level rise. The climatic mass balance is estimated to be close to zero, and terminus positions have remained stable to within a few kilometers, implying that almost all mass loss has occurred through iceberg calving. The ice-cap calving rate increased from ~0.6 Gt a–1 in 1995 to ~3.0 Gt a–1 in 2000–02, but has recently decreased to ~1.4 Gt a–1 due to a likely slowdown of the largest ice stream. Such highly variable calving rates have not been reported before from High Arctic ice caps, suggesting that these ice masses may be less stable than previously thought.


2012 ◽  
Vol 58 (210) ◽  
pp. 741-752 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ginny Catania ◽  
Christina Hulbe ◽  
Howard Conway ◽  
T.A. Scambos ◽  
C.F. Raymond

AbstractWe synthesize previously published remote-sensing observations, radar data and model output to obtain a ~1000 year ice flow history for the Siple Coast ice-stream system in West Antarctica to investigate the timing and magnitude of changes in mass flux. The synthesized history shows significant short-term variability in ice-stream shear margin and grounding line position due to internal variability of the coupled system. The chronology highlights the interplay between adjacent ice streams, which implies that the behavior of any individual ice stream should not be examined in isolation. Furthermore, individual events cannot be fully interpreted without an understanding of the broad-scale, long-term variability in the ice sheet. In the context of this millennium-scale history, we interpret the relatively recent stagnation of Kamb Ice Stream (KIS) as just one stage in the thermodynamic cycle of an ice stream in this region. The changes in mass balance that result from the KIS stagnation may thus be viewed as century-scale 'noise' relative to the longer-term trend. Understanding and characterizing this noise is a necessary step before accurate model-based predictions of ice-sheet mass balance for the next century can be made.


2003 ◽  
Vol 36 ◽  
pp. 257-262 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian R. Joughin ◽  
Slawek Tulaczyk ◽  
Hermann F. Engelhardt

AbstractWe have used a recently derived map of the velocity of Whillans Ice Stream and Ice Streams A and C, West Antarctica, to help estimate basal melt. Ice temperature was modeled with a simple vertical advection–diffusion equation,“tuned” to match temperature profiles. We find that most of the melt occurs beneath the tributaries, where larger basal shear stresses and thicker ice favor greater melt (e.g. 10–20mm a−1). The occurrence of basal freezing is predicted beneath much of the ice plains of Ice Stream C andWhillans Ice Stream. Modeled melt rates for when Ice Stream C was active suggest there was enough meltwater generated in its tributaries to balance basal freezing on its ice plain. Net basal melt for Whillans Ice Stream is greater due to less steep basal temperature gradients. Modeled temperatures on Whillans Ice Stream, however, were constrained by a single temperature profile at UpB. Basal temperature gradients for Whillans branch 1 and Ice Stream A may have conditions more similar to those beneath Ice Streams C and D, in which case, there may not be sufficient melt to sustain motion. This would be consistent with the steady deceleration of Whillans Ice Stream over the last few decades.


2002 ◽  
Vol 48 (163) ◽  
pp. 552-558 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marjorie Schmeltz ◽  
Eric Rignot ◽  
Todd K. Dupont ◽  
Douglas R. MacAyeal

AbstractWe use a finite-element model of coupled ice-stream/ice-shelf flow to study the sensitivity of Pine Island Glacier, West Antarctica, to changes in ice-shelf and basal conditions. By tuning a softening coefficient of the ice along the glacier margins, and a basal friction coefficient controlling the distribution of basal shear stress underneath the ice stream, we are able to match model velocity to that observed with interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR). We use the model to investigate the effect of small perturbations on ice flow. We find that a 5.5–13% reduction in our initial ice-shelf area increases the glacier velocity by 3.5–10% at the grounding line. The removal of the entire ice shelf increases the grounding-line velocity by > 70%. The changes in velocity associated with ice-shelf reduction are felt several tens of km inland. Alternatively, a 5% reduction in basal shear stress increases the glacier velocity by 13% at the grounding line. By contrast, softening of the glacier side margins would have to be increased a lot more to produce a comparable change in ice velocity. Hence, both the ice-shelf buttressing and the basal shear stress contribute significant resistance to the flow of Pine Island Glacier.


2003 ◽  
Vol 36 ◽  
pp. 66-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Truffer ◽  
Keith A. Echelmeyer

AbstractFast-flowing ice streams and outlet glaciers provide the major avenues for ice flow from past and present ice sheets. These ice streams move faster than the surrounding ice sheet by a factor of 100 or more. Several mechanisms for fast ice-stream flow have been identified, leading to a spectrum of different ice-stream types. In this paper we discuss the two end members of this spectrum, which we term the “ice-stream” type (represented by the Siple Coast ice streams in West Antarctica) and the “isbræ” type (represented by Jakobshavn Isbræ in Greenland). The typical ice stream is wide, relatively shallow (∼1000 m), has a low surface slope and driving stress (∼10 kPa), and ice-stream location is not strongly controlled by bed topography. Fast flow is possible because the ice stream has a slippery bed, possibly underlain by weak, actively deforming sediments. The marginal shear zones are narrow and support most of the driving stress, and the ice deforms almost exclusively by transverse shear. The margins seem to be inherently unstable; they migrate, and there are plausible mechanisms for such ice streams to shut down. The isbræ type of ice stream is characterized by very high driving stresses, often exceeding 200 kPa. They flow through deep bedrock channels that are significantly deeper than the surrounding ice, and have steep surface slopes. Ice deformation includes vertical as well as lateral shear, and basal motion need not contribute significantly to the overall motion. The marginal shear zone stend to be wide relative to the isbræ width, and the location of isbræ and its margins is strongly controlled by bedrock topography. They are stable features, and can only shut down if the high ice flux cannot be supplied from the adjacent ice sheet. Isbræs occur in Greenland and East Antarctica, and possibly parts of Pine Island and Thwaites Glaciers, West Antarctica. In this paper, we compare and contrast the two types of ice streams, addressing questions such as ice deformation, basal motion, subglacial hydrology, seasonality of ice flow, and stability of the ice streams.


2013 ◽  
Vol 54 (64) ◽  
pp. 105-114 ◽  
Author(s):  
S.R. Harland ◽  
J.-M. Kendall ◽  
G.W. Stuart ◽  
G.E. Lloyd ◽  
A.F. Baird ◽  
...  

Abstract Ice streams provide major drainage pathways for the Antarctic ice sheet. The stress distribution and style of flow in such ice streams produce elastic and rheological anisotropy, which informs ice-flow modelling as to how ice masses respond to external changes such as global warming. Here we analyse elastic anisotropy in Rutford Ice Stream, West Antarctica, using observations of shear-wave splitting from three-component icequake seismograms to characterize ice deformation via crystal-preferred orientation. Over 110 high-quality measurements are made on 41 events recorded at five stations deployed temporarily near the ice-stream grounding line. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first well-documented observation of shear-wave splitting from Antarctic icequakes. The magnitude of the splitting ranges from 2 to 80 ms and suggests a maximum of 6% shear-wave splitting. The fast shear-wave polarization direction is roughly perpendicular to ice-flow direction. We consider three mechanisms for ice anisotropy: a cluster model (vertical transversely isotropic (VTI) model); a girdle model (horizontal transversely isotropic (HTI) model); and crack-induced anisotropy (HTI model). Based on the data, we can rule out a VTI mechanism as the sole cause of anisotropy – an HTI component is needed, which may be due to ice crystal a-axis alignment in the direction of flow or the alignment of cracks or ice films in the plane perpendicular to the flow direction. The results suggest a combination of mechanisms may be at play, which represent vertical variations in the symmetry of ice crystal anisotropy in an ice stream, as predicted by ice fabric models.


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