Tidewater-glacier response to supraglacial lake drainage
The flow speed of the Greenland Ice Sheet changes dramatically in inland regions when surface meltwater drains to the bed. But ice-sheet discharge to the ocean is dominated by fast-flowing outlet glaciers, where the effect of increasing surface melt on annual discharge is unknown. Observations of a...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Journal article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Springer Nature
2022
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| _version_ | 1797107865201147904 |
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| author | Stevens, L Nettles, M Davis, JL Creyts, TT Kingslake, J Hewitt, I Stubblefield, A |
| author_facet | Stevens, L Nettles, M Davis, JL Creyts, TT Kingslake, J Hewitt, I Stubblefield, A |
| author_sort | Stevens, L |
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | The flow speed of the Greenland Ice Sheet changes dramatically in inland regions when surface meltwater drains to the bed. But ice-sheet discharge to the ocean is dominated by fast-flowing outlet glaciers, where the effect of increasing surface melt on annual discharge is unknown. Observations of a supraglacial lake drainage at Helheim Glacier, and a consequent velocity pulse propagating down-glacier, provide a natural experiment for assessing the impact of changes in injected meltwater, and allow us to interrogate the subglacial hydrological system. We find a highly efficient subglacial drainage system, such that summertime lake drainage has little net effect on ice discharge. Our results question the validity of common remote-sensing approaches for inferring subglacial conditions, knowledge of which is needed for improved projections of sea-level rise. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T07:21:39Z |
| format | Journal article |
| id | oxford-uuid:a94e5b53-342c-4c6a-b090-87902ac22224 |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T07:21:39Z |
| publishDate | 2022 |
| publisher | Springer Nature |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:a94e5b53-342c-4c6a-b090-87902ac222242022-10-14T16:27:59ZTidewater-glacier response to supraglacial lake drainageJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:a94e5b53-342c-4c6a-b090-87902ac22224EnglishSymplectic ElementsSpringer Nature2022Stevens, LNettles, MDavis, JLCreyts, TTKingslake, JHewitt, IStubblefield, AThe flow speed of the Greenland Ice Sheet changes dramatically in inland regions when surface meltwater drains to the bed. But ice-sheet discharge to the ocean is dominated by fast-flowing outlet glaciers, where the effect of increasing surface melt on annual discharge is unknown. Observations of a supraglacial lake drainage at Helheim Glacier, and a consequent velocity pulse propagating down-glacier, provide a natural experiment for assessing the impact of changes in injected meltwater, and allow us to interrogate the subglacial hydrological system. We find a highly efficient subglacial drainage system, such that summertime lake drainage has little net effect on ice discharge. Our results question the validity of common remote-sensing approaches for inferring subglacial conditions, knowledge of which is needed for improved projections of sea-level rise. |
| spellingShingle | Stevens, L Nettles, M Davis, JL Creyts, TT Kingslake, J Hewitt, I Stubblefield, A Tidewater-glacier response to supraglacial lake drainage |
| title | Tidewater-glacier response to supraglacial lake drainage |
| title_full | Tidewater-glacier response to supraglacial lake drainage |
| title_fullStr | Tidewater-glacier response to supraglacial lake drainage |
| title_full_unstemmed | Tidewater-glacier response to supraglacial lake drainage |
| title_short | Tidewater-glacier response to supraglacial lake drainage |
| title_sort | tidewater glacier response to supraglacial lake drainage |
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