The influence of glacial landscape evolution on Scandinavian ice-sheet dynamics and dimensions
<p>The Scandinavian topography and bathymetry have been shaped by ice through numerous glacial cycles in the Quaternary. In this study, we investigate how the changing morphology has influenced the Scandinavian ice sheet (SIS) in return. We use a higher-order ice-sheet model to simulate the SI...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Copernicus Publications
2024-04-01
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| Series: | The Cryosphere |
| Online Access: | https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/18/1517/2024/tc-18-1517-2024.pdf |
| _version_ | 1827292596732428288 |
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| author | G. Jungdal-Olesen J. L. Andersen A. Born V. K. Pedersen |
| author_facet | G. Jungdal-Olesen J. L. Andersen A. Born V. K. Pedersen |
| author_sort | G. Jungdal-Olesen |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <p>The Scandinavian topography and bathymetry have been shaped by ice through numerous glacial cycles in the Quaternary. In this study, we investigate how the changing morphology has influenced the Scandinavian ice sheet (SIS) in return. We use a higher-order ice-sheet model to simulate the SIS through a glacial period on three different topographies, representing different stages of glacial landscape evolution in the Quaternary. By forcing the three experiments with the same climate conditions, we isolate the effects of a changing landscape morphology on the evolution and dynamics of the ice sheet. We find that early Quaternary glaciations in Scandinavia were limited in extent and volume by the pre-glacial bathymetry until glacial deposits filled depressions in the North Sea and built out the Norwegian shelf. From middle–late Quaternary (<span class="inline-formula">∼0.5</span> Ma) the bathymetry was sufficiently filled to allow for a faster southward expansion of the ice sheet causing a relative increase in ice-sheet volume and extent. Furthermore, we show that the formation of The Norwegian Channel during recent glacial periods restricted southward ice-sheet expansion, only allowing for the ice sheet to advance into the southern North Sea close to glacial maxima. Finally, our experiments indicate that different stretches of The Norwegian Channel may have formed in distinct stages during glacial periods since <span class="inline-formula">∼0.5</span> Ma. These results highlight the importance of accounting for changes in landscape morphology through time when inferring ice-sheet history from ice-volume proxies and when interpreting climate variability from past ice-sheet extents.</p> |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T13:07:22Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-79c888647dbd46058ba1106cb439121e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1994-0416 1994-0424 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T13:07:22Z |
| publishDate | 2024-04-01 |
| publisher | Copernicus Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | The Cryosphere |
| spelling | doaj.art-79c888647dbd46058ba1106cb439121e2024-04-05T06:21:22ZengCopernicus PublicationsThe Cryosphere1994-04161994-04242024-04-01181517153210.5194/tc-18-1517-2024The influence of glacial landscape evolution on Scandinavian ice-sheet dynamics and dimensionsG. Jungdal-Olesen0J. L. Andersen1A. Born2V. K. Pedersen3Department of Geoscience, Aarhus University, Aarhus, DenmarkDepartment of Physical Geography, Stockholm University, Stockholm, SwedenDepartment of Earth Science and Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research, University of Bergen, Bergen, NorwayDepartment of Geoscience, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark<p>The Scandinavian topography and bathymetry have been shaped by ice through numerous glacial cycles in the Quaternary. In this study, we investigate how the changing morphology has influenced the Scandinavian ice sheet (SIS) in return. We use a higher-order ice-sheet model to simulate the SIS through a glacial period on three different topographies, representing different stages of glacial landscape evolution in the Quaternary. By forcing the three experiments with the same climate conditions, we isolate the effects of a changing landscape morphology on the evolution and dynamics of the ice sheet. We find that early Quaternary glaciations in Scandinavia were limited in extent and volume by the pre-glacial bathymetry until glacial deposits filled depressions in the North Sea and built out the Norwegian shelf. From middle–late Quaternary (<span class="inline-formula">∼0.5</span> Ma) the bathymetry was sufficiently filled to allow for a faster southward expansion of the ice sheet causing a relative increase in ice-sheet volume and extent. Furthermore, we show that the formation of The Norwegian Channel during recent glacial periods restricted southward ice-sheet expansion, only allowing for the ice sheet to advance into the southern North Sea close to glacial maxima. Finally, our experiments indicate that different stretches of The Norwegian Channel may have formed in distinct stages during glacial periods since <span class="inline-formula">∼0.5</span> Ma. These results highlight the importance of accounting for changes in landscape morphology through time when inferring ice-sheet history from ice-volume proxies and when interpreting climate variability from past ice-sheet extents.</p>https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/18/1517/2024/tc-18-1517-2024.pdf |
| spellingShingle | G. Jungdal-Olesen J. L. Andersen A. Born V. K. Pedersen The influence of glacial landscape evolution on Scandinavian ice-sheet dynamics and dimensions The Cryosphere |
| title | The influence of glacial landscape evolution on Scandinavian ice-sheet dynamics and dimensions |
| title_full | The influence of glacial landscape evolution on Scandinavian ice-sheet dynamics and dimensions |
| title_fullStr | The influence of glacial landscape evolution on Scandinavian ice-sheet dynamics and dimensions |
| title_full_unstemmed | The influence of glacial landscape evolution on Scandinavian ice-sheet dynamics and dimensions |
| title_short | The influence of glacial landscape evolution on Scandinavian ice-sheet dynamics and dimensions |
| title_sort | influence of glacial landscape evolution on scandinavian ice sheet dynamics and dimensions |
| url | https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/18/1517/2024/tc-18-1517-2024.pdf |
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