How sensitive are mountain glaciers to climate change? Insights from a block model
Simple models of glacier volume evolution are important in understanding features of glacier response to climate change, due to the scarcity of data adequate for running more complex models on a global scale. Two quantities of interest in a glacier's response to climate changes are its response...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Cambridge University Press
2018-04-01
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| Series: | Journal of Glaciology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0022143018000151/type/journal_article |
| _version_ | 1811155882754441216 |
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| author | EVIATAR BACH VALENTINA RADIĆ CHRISTIAN SCHOOF |
| author_facet | EVIATAR BACH VALENTINA RADIĆ CHRISTIAN SCHOOF |
| author_sort | EVIATAR BACH |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Simple models of glacier volume evolution are important in understanding features of glacier response to climate change, due to the scarcity of data adequate for running more complex models on a global scale. Two quantities of interest in a glacier's response to climate changes are its response time and its volume sensitivity to changes in the equilibrium line altitude (ELA). We derive a simplified, computationally inexpensive model of glacier volume evolution based on a block model with volume–area–length scaling. After analyzing its steady-state properties, we apply the model to each mountain glacier worldwide and estimate regionally differentiated response times and sensitivities to ELA changes. We use a statistical method from the family of global sensitivity analysis methods to determine the glacier quantities, geometric and climatic, that most influence the model output. The response time is dominated by the climatic setting reflected in the mass-balance gradient in the ablation zone, followed by the surface slope, while volume sensitivity is mainly affected by glacier size, followed by the surface slope. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T04:41:05Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-be068a1450cc45dda5005bcfbc71e06d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0022-1430 1727-5652 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T04:41:05Z |
| publishDate | 2018-04-01 |
| publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Glaciology |
| spelling | doaj.art-be068a1450cc45dda5005bcfbc71e06d2023-03-09T12:40:32ZengCambridge University PressJournal of Glaciology0022-14301727-56522018-04-016424725810.1017/jog.2018.15How sensitive are mountain glaciers to climate change? Insights from a block modelEVIATAR BACH0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9725-0203VALENTINA RADIĆ1CHRISTIAN SCHOOF2Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USADepartment of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, CanadaDepartment of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, CanadaSimple models of glacier volume evolution are important in understanding features of glacier response to climate change, due to the scarcity of data adequate for running more complex models on a global scale. Two quantities of interest in a glacier's response to climate changes are its response time and its volume sensitivity to changes in the equilibrium line altitude (ELA). We derive a simplified, computationally inexpensive model of glacier volume evolution based on a block model with volume–area–length scaling. After analyzing its steady-state properties, we apply the model to each mountain glacier worldwide and estimate regionally differentiated response times and sensitivities to ELA changes. We use a statistical method from the family of global sensitivity analysis methods to determine the glacier quantities, geometric and climatic, that most influence the model output. The response time is dominated by the climatic setting reflected in the mass-balance gradient in the ablation zone, followed by the surface slope, while volume sensitivity is mainly affected by glacier size, followed by the surface slope.https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0022143018000151/type/journal_articleclimate changeglacier modelingglaciological model experimentsmountain glaciers |
| spellingShingle | EVIATAR BACH VALENTINA RADIĆ CHRISTIAN SCHOOF How sensitive are mountain glaciers to climate change? Insights from a block model Journal of Glaciology climate change glacier modeling glaciological model experiments mountain glaciers |
| title | How sensitive are mountain glaciers to climate change? Insights from a block model |
| title_full | How sensitive are mountain glaciers to climate change? Insights from a block model |
| title_fullStr | How sensitive are mountain glaciers to climate change? Insights from a block model |
| title_full_unstemmed | How sensitive are mountain glaciers to climate change? Insights from a block model |
| title_short | How sensitive are mountain glaciers to climate change? Insights from a block model |
| title_sort | how sensitive are mountain glaciers to climate change insights from a block model |
| topic | climate change glacier modeling glaciological model experiments mountain glaciers |
| url | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0022143018000151/type/journal_article |
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