Growth of Ibyuk Pingo, Western Arctic Coast, Canada, and Some Implications for Environmental Reconstructions
Ibyuk Pingo, which is 49 m high and 300 m in basal diameter, is one of the largest pingos in the world. Precise surveys carried out for the 1973 to 1983 period indicate that the lower half of the pingo, below a height of 25 m, shows no perceptible growth. From 25 m to the top, the growth steadily in...
| Published in: | Quaternary Research |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Cambridge University Press (CUP)
1986
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| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0033-5894(86)90084-0 http://api.elsevier.com/content/article/PII:0033589486900840?httpAccept=text/xml http://api.elsevier.com/content/article/PII:0033589486900840?httpAccept=text/plain https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0033589400023218 |
| Summary: | Ibyuk Pingo, which is 49 m high and 300 m in basal diameter, is one of the largest pingos in the world. Precise surveys carried out for the 1973 to 1983 period indicate that the lower half of the pingo, below a height of 25 m, shows no perceptible growth. From 25 m to the top, the growth steadily increases to a maximum of 2.3 cm/yr at the summit. The source of growth is believed to lie at a depth of about 65 m below the highest peak. Evidence based upon the depth of permafrost near the pingo, radiocarbon dating of wood in the pingo overburden, heat conduction theory, and the measured growth rate suggests an age of about 1300 ± 200 yr. Ibyuk Pingo is in an unstable state and collapse could be initiated by further slumping, a thermal disturbance to the crater, or erosion along a radial dilation crack. A study of the potential collapse pattern of Ibyuk Pingo suggests a number of criteria that might be employed in the environmental reconstruction of large circular features that might be identified as collapsed pingo remnants. |
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