scholarly journals Contribution to the Movement and the form of Ice Sheets in the Arctic and Antarctic

1961 ◽  
Vol 3 (30) ◽  
pp. 1133-1151 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Haefeli
Keyword(s):  
Average Rate ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Surface Profile ◽  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
Present Theory ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Small Influence ◽  
Horizontal Velocity Component ◽  
Flow Law ◽  
Set Up

AbstractStarting from Glen’s flow law for ice and from a series of assumptions based in part on observations in Greenland and in the Jungfraujoch, the velocity distribution (horizontal velocity component) and surface configuration is derived for a strip-shaped ice sheet in a stationary state. For the choice n = 3 − 4 of the exponent in the power-law flow relation, there is extensive agreement between the theoretically calculated surface profile and the east-west profile measured through “Station Centrale” by Expéditions Polaires Françaises. The corresponding theoretical solution for a circular ice sheet is also given. As a first application of this theory, an attempt is made to calculate the average rate of accumulation in Antarctica from its surface profile (assumed circular in plan) and from the flow-law parameters derived from the Greenland Ice Sheet. It is also shown that a change in accumulation has only a small influence on the total ice thickness of an ice sheet. A method of calculating approximately the age of ice in an ice sheet, based on the foregoing theory, is illustrated by applying it to the Greenland Ice Sheet. After comparing the present theory with that of Nye, a general expression for the surface profile of an ice sheet with constant accumulation is set up and discussed by means of comparison with two profiles through Antarctica.

scholarly journals Contribution to the Movement and the form of Ice Sheets in the Arctic and Antarctic

1961 ◽  
Vol 3 (30) ◽  
pp. 1133-1151 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Haefeli
Keyword(s):  
Average Rate ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Surface Profile ◽  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
Present Theory ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Small Influence ◽  
Horizontal Velocity Component ◽  
Flow Law ◽  
Set Up

Abstract Starting from Glen’s flow law for ice and from a series of assumptions based in part on observations in Greenland and in the Jungfraujoch, the velocity distribution (horizontal velocity component) and surface configuration is derived for a strip-shaped ice sheet in a stationary state. For the choice n = 3 − 4 of the exponent in the power-law flow relation, there is extensive agreement between the theoretically calculated surface profile and the east-west profile measured through “Station Centrale” by Expéditions Polaires Françaises. The corresponding theoretical solution for a circular ice sheet is also given. As a first application of this theory, an attempt is made to calculate the average rate of accumulation in Antarctica from its surface profile (assumed circular in plan) and from the flow-law parameters derived from the Greenland Ice Sheet. It is also shown that a change in accumulation has only a small influence on the total ice thickness of an ice sheet. A method of calculating approximately the age of ice in an ice sheet, based on the foregoing theory, is illustrated by applying it to the Greenland Ice Sheet. After comparing the present theory with that of Nye, a general expression for the surface profile of an ice sheet with constant accumulation is set up and discussed by means of comparison with two profiles through Antarctica.

scholarly journals Steady-State Temperatures at the Bottom of Ice Sheets and Computation of the Bottom Ice Flow Law from the Surface Profile

1968 ◽  
Vol 7 (51) ◽  
pp. 363-376 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Lliboutry
Keyword(s):  
Steady State ◽  
Ice Sheets ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Surface Profile ◽  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
Bottom Temperature ◽  
Ice Flow ◽  
Actual Surface ◽  
Flow Law ◽  
Strain Heating

AbstractA solution for the steady flow of a cold ice sheet is recalled, which takes account of the heat released by deformation. As this strain heating increases the strain velocity, the bottom temperature may be unstable. A set of five equations with five unknowns is written, which allows the surface profile and the bottom temperature to be computed step by step by an iterative process. This has been done by computer for three very different models of ice sheets. and in each case with three distinct values of the constant B in Glen’s ice flow law. It was found in every case that steady-state temperature profiles could not be computed beyond a moderate distance from the ice divide. The correct value of B for bottom ice may be deduced from the actual surface profile. At the bottom of Greenland ice sheet, B ≈ 2.18 bar −3 year−1. This is about thirteen times bigger than for the bulk of the alpine glaciers.

scholarly journals Steady-State Temperatures at the Bottom of Ice Sheets and Computation of the Bottom Ice Flow Law from the Surface Profile

1968 ◽  
Vol 7 (51) ◽  
pp. 363-376 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Lliboutry
Keyword(s):  
Steady State ◽  
Ice Sheets ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Surface Profile ◽  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
Bottom Temperature ◽  
Ice Flow ◽  
Actual Surface ◽  
Flow Law ◽  
Strain Heating

AbstractA solution for the steady flow of a cold ice sheet is recalled, which takes account of the heat released by deformation. As this strain heating increases the strain velocity, the bottom temperature may be unstable. A set of five equations with five unknowns is written, which allows the surface profile and the bottom temperature to be computed step by step by an iterative process. This has been done by computer for three very different models of ice sheets. and in each case with three distinct values of the constantBin Glen’s ice flow law. It was found in every case that steady-state temperature profiles could not be computed beyond a moderate distance from the ice divide. The correct value ofBfor bottom ice may be deduced from the actual surface profile. At the bottom of Greenland ice sheet,B≈ 2.18 bar−3year−1. This is about thirteen times bigger than for the bulk of the alpine glaciers.

scholarly journals A new bedrock and surface elevation dataset for modelling the Greenland ice sheet

2003 ◽  
Vol 37 ◽  
pp. 351-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan L. Bamber ◽  
Duncan J. Baldwin ◽  
S. Prasad Gogineni
Keyword(s):  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
Detailed Comparison ◽  
Radar Data ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Surface Model ◽  
Rock Outcrops ◽  
Bed Topography ◽  
Elevation Model

AbstractA new digital elevation model of the surface of the Greenland ice sheet and surrounding rock outcrops has been produced from a comprehensive suite of satellite and airborne remote-sensing and cartographic datasets. The surface model has been regridded to a resolution of 5 km, and combined with a new ice-thickness grid derived from ice-penetrating radar data collected in the 1970s and 1990s. A further dataset, the International Bathymetric Chart of the Arctic Ocean, was used to extend the bed elevations to include the continental shelf. The new bed topography was compared with a previous version used for ice-sheet modelling. Near the margins of the ice sheet and, in particular, in the vicinity of small-scale features associated with outlet glaciers and rapid ice motion, significant differences were noted. This was highlighted by a detailed comparison of the bed topography around the northeast Greenland ice stream.

Early Holocene ocean conditions off the Zachariæ Isstrøm, Northeast Greenland

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanna Davies ◽  
Anders Møller Mathiasen ◽  
Kristiane Kristensen ◽  
Christof Pearce ◽  
Marit-Solveig Seidenkrantz
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
Atlantic Water ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Future Climate Change ◽  
Polar Regions ◽  
Ice Shelf ◽  
Outlet Glacier ◽  
The Impact

<p>The polar regions exhibit some of the most visible signs of climate change globally; annual mass loss from the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) has quadrupled in recent decades, from 51 ± 65 Gt yr<sup>−1</sup> (1992-2001) to 211 ± 37 Gt yr<sup>−1</sup> (2002-2011). This can partly be attributed to the widespread retreat and speed-up of marine-terminating glaciers. The Zachariae Isstrøm (ZI) is an outlet glacier of the Northeast Greenland Ice Steam (NEGIS), one of the largest ice streams of the GrIS (700km), draining approximately 12% of the ice sheet interior. Observations show that the ZI began accelerating in 2000, resulting in the collapse of the floating ice shelf between 2002 and 2003. By 2014, the ice shelf extended over an area of 52km<sup>2</sup>, a 95% decrease in area since 2002, where it extended over 1040km<sup>2</sup>. Paleo-reconstructions provide an opportunity to extend observational records in order to understand the oceanic and climatic processes governing the position of the grounding zone of marine terminating glaciers and the extent of floating ice shelves. Such datasets are thus necessary if we are to constrain the impact of future climate change projections on the Arctic cryosphere.</p><p>A multi-proxy approach, involving grain size, geochemical, foraminiferal and sedimentary analysis was applied to marine sediment core DA17-NG-ST8-92G, collected offshore of the ZI, on  the Northeast Greenland Shelf. The aim was to reconstruct changes in the extent of the ZI and the palaeoceanographic conditions throughout the Early to Mid Holocene (c.a. 12,500-5,000 cal. yrs. BP). Evidence from the analysis of these datasets indicates that whilst there has been no grounded ice at the site over the last 12,500 years, the ice shelf of the ZI extended as a floating ice shelf over the site between 12,500 and 9,200 cal. yrs. BP, with the grounding line further inland from our study site. This was followed by a retreat in the ice shelf extent during the Holocene Thermal Maximum; this was likely to have been governed, in part, by basal melting driven by Atlantic Water (AW) recirculated from Svalbard or from the Arctic Ocean. Evidence from benthic foraminifera suggest that there was a shift from the dominance of AW to Polar Water at around 7,500 cal. yrs. BP, although the ice shelf did not expand again despite of this cooling of subsurface waters.</p>

Natural variability and recent warming in central Greenland ice cores

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Hoerhold ◽  
Thomas Münch ◽  
Stefanie Weißbach ◽  
Sepp Kipfstuhl ◽  
Bo Vinther ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Variability ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
Ice Cores ◽  
Natural Variability ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Last Millennium ◽  
Recent Warming ◽  
Temperature Reconstructions ◽  
Firn Core

<p>Climate variability of the Arctic region has been investigated by means of temperature reconstructions based on proxies from various climate archives around the Arctic, compiled over the last 2000a in the so called Arctic2k record. However, the representativeness of the Arctic2k reconstruction for central Greenland remains unclear, since only a few ice cores have been included in the reconstruction, and observations from the Greenland Ice Sheet (GIC) report ambiguous warming trends for the end of the 20th and the beginning of the 21st century which are not displayed by Arctic2k. Today, the GIC experiences periods with temperatures close to or above the freezing point at high elevations, area-wide melting and mass loss. In order to assess the recent warming as signature of global climate change, records of past climate changes with appropriate temporal and spatial coverage can serve as a benchmark for naturally driven climate variability. Instrumental records for Greenland are short and geographically sparse, and existing temperature reconstructions from single ice cores are noisy, leading to an inconclusive assessment of the recent warming for Greenland.</p><p>Here, we provide a Greenland firn-core stack covering the time span of the last millennium until the first decade of the 21<sup>st </sup>century in unprecedented quality by re-drilling as well as analyzing 16 existing firn core sites. We find a strong decadal to bi-decadal natural variability in the record, and, while the record exhibits several warming events with trends that show a similar amplitude as the recent one, we find that the recent absolute values of stable oxygen isotope composition are unprecedented for the last 1000 years.</p><p> </p><p>Comparing our Greenland record with the Arctic 2k temperature reconstruction shows that the correlation between the two records changes throughout the last millennium. While in the periods of 1200-1300 and 1400-1650 CE the records correlate positively, between 1300 and 1400 and 1650-1700 CE shorter periods with negative correlation are found. Since then the correlation is characterized by alternation between positive and zero correlation, with a drop towards negative values at the end of the 20<sup>th</sup> century. Including re-analysis data, we hypothesize that the climate on top of the GIC was decoupled from the surrounding Arctic for the last decades, leading to the observed mismatch in observations of warming trends.</p><p>We suggest that the recently observed Greenland temperatures are a superposition of a strong natural variability with an anthropogenic long-term trend. Our findings illustrate that global warming has reached the interior of the Greenland ice sheet, which will have implications for its surface mass balance and Greenland’s future contribution to sea level rise.</p><p>Our record complements the Arctic 2k record to a profound view on the Arctic climate variability, where regional compilations may not be representative for specific areas.</p>

scholarly journals Heterogeneous CO<sub>2</sub> and CH<sub>4</sub> content of glacial meltwater from the Greenland Ice Sheet and implications for subglacial carbon processes

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 1627-1644
Author(s):  
Andrea J. Pain ◽  
Jonathan B. Martin ◽  
Ellen E. Martin ◽  
Åsa K. Rennermalm ◽  
Shaily Rahman
Keyword(s):  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
Mineral Weathering ◽  
Atmospheric Co2 ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Co2 Concentrations ◽  
Geochemical Models ◽  
Atmospheric Co2 Concentrations ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. Accelerated melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet has increased freshwater delivery to the Arctic Ocean and amplified the need to understand the impact of Greenland Ice Sheet meltwater on Arctic greenhouse gas budgets. We evaluate subglacial discharge from the Greenland Ice Sheet for carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) concentrations and δ13C values and use geochemical models to evaluate subglacial CH4 and CO2 sources and sinks. We compare discharge from southwest (a sub-catchment of the Isunnguata Glacier, sub-Isunnguata, and the Russell Glacier) and southern Greenland (Kiattut Sermiat). Meltwater CH4 concentrations vary by orders of magnitude between sites and are saturated with respect to atmospheric concentrations at Kiattut Sermiat. In contrast, meltwaters from southwest sites are supersaturated, even though oxidation reduces CH4 concentrations by up to 50 % during periods of low discharge. CO2 concentrations range from supersaturated at sub-Isunnguata to undersaturated at Kiattut Sermiat. CO2 is consumed by mineral weathering throughout the melt season at all sites; however, differences in the magnitude of subglacial CO2 sources result in meltwaters that are either sources or sinks of atmospheric CO2. At the sub-Isunnguata site, the predominant source of CO2 is organic matter (OM) remineralization. However, multiple or heterogeneous subglacial CO2 sources maintain atmospheric CO2 concentrations at Russell but not at Kiattut Sermiat, where CO2 is undersaturated. These results highlight a previously unrecognized degree of heterogeneity in greenhouse gas dynamics under the Greenland Ice Sheet. Future work should constrain the extent and controls of heterogeneity to improve our understanding of the impact of Greenland Ice Sheet melt on Arctic greenhouse gas budgets, as well as the role of continental ice sheets in greenhouse gas variations over glacial–interglacial timescales.

scholarly journals Variations in snowpack melt on the Greenland ice sheet based on passive-microwave measurements

1995 ◽  
Vol 41 (137) ◽  
pp. 51-60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas L. Mote ◽  
Mark R. Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
Ablation Rate ◽  
Passive Microwave ◽  
Microwave Emission ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Emission Model ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Microwave Data

AbstractA simple microwave-emission model is used to simulate 37 GHz brightness temperatures associated with snowpack-melt conditions for locations across the Greenland ice sheet. The simulated values are utilized as threshold values and compared to daily, gridded SMMR and SSM/I passive-microwave data, in order to reveal regions experiencing melt. The spatial extent of the area classified as melting is examined on a daily, monthly and seasonal (May-August) basis for 1979–91. The typical seasonal cycle of melt coverage shows melt beginning in late April, a rapid increase in the melting area from mid-May to mid-July, a rapid decrease in melt extent from late July through mid-August, and cessation of melt in late September. Seasonal averages of the daily melt extents demonstrate an apparent increase in melt coverage over the 13 year period of approximately 3.8% annually (significant at the 95% confidence interval). This increase is dominated by statistically significant positive trends in melt coverage during July and August in the west and southwest of the ice sheet. We find that a linear correlation between microwave-derived melt extent and a surface measure of ablation rate is significant in June and July but not August, so caution must be exercised in using the microwave-derived melt extents in August. Nevertheless, knowledge of the variability of snowpack melt on the Greenland ice sheet as derived from microwave data should prove useful in detecting climate change in the Arctic and examining the impact of climate change on the ice sheet.

scholarly journals Retrieval of Snow Properties from the Sentinel-3 Ocean and Land Colour Instrument

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (19) ◽  
pp. 2280 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Kokhanovsky ◽  
Maxim Lamare ◽  
Olaf Danne ◽  
Carsten Brockmann ◽  
Marie Dumont ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Grain Size ◽  
Specific Surface ◽  
Surface Area ◽  
Specific Surface Area ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Observation Data ◽  
Snow Properties

The Sentinel Application Platform (SNAP) architecture facilitates Earth Observation data processing. In this work, we present results from a new Snow Processor for SNAP. We also describe physical principles behind the developed snow property retrieval technique based on the analysis of Ocean and Land Colour Instrument (OLCI) onboard Sentinel-3A/B measurements over clean and polluted snow fields. Using OLCI spectral reflectance measurements in the range 400–1020 nm, we derived important snow properties such as spectral and broadband albedo, snow specific surface area, snow extent and grain size on a spatial grid of 300 m. The algorithm also incorporated cloud screening and atmospheric correction procedures over snow surfaces. We present validation results using ground measurements from Antarctica, the Greenland ice sheet and the French Alps. We find the spectral albedo retrieved with accuracy of better than 3% on average, making our retrievals sufficient for a variety of applications. Broadband albedo is retrieved with the average accuracy of about 5% over snow. Therefore, the uncertainties of satellite retrievals are close to experimental errors of ground measurements. The retrieved surface grain size shows good agreement with ground observations. Snow specific surface area observations are also consistent with our OLCI retrievals. We present snow albedo and grain size mapping over the inland ice sheet of Greenland for areas including dry snow, melted/melting snow and impurity rich bare ice. The algorithm can be applied to OLCI Sentinel-3 measurements providing an opportunity for creation of long-term snow property records essential for climate monitoring and data assimilation studies—especially in the Arctic region, where we face rapid environmental changes including reduction of snow/ice extent and, therefore, planetary albedo.

scholarly journals Multi-modal albedo distributions in the ablation area of the southwestern Greenland Ice Sheet

2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 905-923 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. E. Moustafa ◽  
A. K. Rennermalm ◽  
L. C. Smith ◽  
M. A. Miller ◽  
J. R. Mioduszewski ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Surface Albedo ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
Arctic Region ◽  
Bimodal Distribution ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Remotely Sensed Data ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Ablation Area

Abstract. Surface albedo is a key variable controlling solar radiation absorbed at the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) surface and, thus, meltwater production. Recent decline in surface albedo over the GrIS has been linked to enhanced snow grain metamorphic rates, earlier snowmelt, and amplified melt–albedo feedback from atmospheric warming. However, the importance of distinct surface types on ablation area albedo and meltwater production is still relatively unknown. In this study, we analyze albedo and ablation rates using in situ and remotely sensed data. Observations include (1) a new high-quality in situ spectral albedo data set collected with an Analytical Spectral Devices Inc. spectroradiometer measuring at 325–1075 nm along a 1.25 km transect during 3 days in June 2013; (2) broadband albedo at two automatic weather stations; and (3) daily MODerate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) albedo (MOD10A1) between 31 May and 30 August 2012 and 2013. We find that seasonal ablation area albedos in 2013 have a bimodal distribution, with snow and ice facies characterizing the two peaks. Our results show that a shift from a distribution dominated by high to low albedos corresponds to an observed melt rate increase of 51.5% (between 10–14 July and 20–24 July 2013). In contrast, melt rate variability caused by albedo changes before and after this shift was much lower and varied between ~10 and 30% in the melting season. Ablation area albedos in 2012 exhibited a more complex multimodal distribution, reflecting a transition from light to dark-dominated surface, as well as sensitivity to the so called "dark-band" region in southwest Greenland. In addition to a darkening surface from ice crystal growth, our findings demonstrate that seasonal changes in GrIS ablation area albedos are controlled by changes in the fractional coverage of snow, bare ice, and impurity-rich surface types. Thus, seasonal variability in ablation area albedos appears to be regulated primarily as a function of bare ice expansion at the expense of snow, surface meltwater ponding, and melting of outcropped ice layers enriched with mineral materials, enabling dust and impurities to accumulate. As climate change continues in the Arctic region, understanding the seasonal evolution of ice sheet surface types in Greenland's ablation area is critical to improve projections of mass loss contributions to sea level rise.

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