Ice-marginal lake hydrology and the seasonal dynamical evolution of Kennicott Glacier, Alaska
Abstract Glacier basal motion is responsible for the majority of ice flux on fast-flowing glaciers, enables rapid changes in glacier motion and provides the means by which glaciers shape alpine landscapes. In an effort to enhance our understanding of basal motion, we investigate the evolution of gla...
Published in: | Journal of Glaciology |
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Language: | English |
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Cambridge University Press (CUP)
2020
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/jog.2020.41 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0022143020000416 |
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crcambridgeupr:10.1017/jog.2020.41 2024-09-30T14:35:19+00:00 Ice-marginal lake hydrology and the seasonal dynamical evolution of Kennicott Glacier, Alaska Armstrong, William H. Anderson, Robert S. 2020 http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/jog.2020.41 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0022143020000416 en eng Cambridge University Press (CUP) http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Journal of Glaciology volume 66, issue 259, page 699-713 ISSN 0022-1430 1727-5652 journal-article 2020 crcambridgeupr https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2020.41 2024-09-18T04:03:45Z Abstract Glacier basal motion is responsible for the majority of ice flux on fast-flowing glaciers, enables rapid changes in glacier motion and provides the means by which glaciers shape alpine landscapes. In an effort to enhance our understanding of basal motion, we investigate the evolution of glacier velocity and ice-marginal lake stage on Kennicott Glacier, Alaska, during the spring–summer transition, a time when subglacial drainage is undergoing rapid change. A complicated record of > 50 m fill-and-drain sequences on a hydraulically-connected ice-marginal lake likely reflects the punctuated establishment of efficient subglacial drainage as the melt season begins. The rate of change of lake stage generally correlates with diurnal velocity maxima, both in timing and magnitude. At the seasonal scale, the up-glacier progression of enhanced summer basal motion promotes uniformity of daily glacier velocity fluctuations throughout the 10 km study reach, and results in diurnal velocity patterns suggesting increasingly efficient meltwater delivery to and drainage from the subglacial channel system. Our findings suggest the potential of using an ice-marginal lake as a proxy for subglacial water pressure, and show how widespread basal motion affects bulk glacier behavior. Article in Journal/Newspaper glacier glaciers Journal of Glaciology Alaska Cambridge University Press Marginal Lake ENVELOPE(163.500,163.500,-74.600,-74.600) Journal of Glaciology 66 259 699 713 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Cambridge University Press |
op_collection_id |
crcambridgeupr |
language |
English |
description |
Abstract Glacier basal motion is responsible for the majority of ice flux on fast-flowing glaciers, enables rapid changes in glacier motion and provides the means by which glaciers shape alpine landscapes. In an effort to enhance our understanding of basal motion, we investigate the evolution of glacier velocity and ice-marginal lake stage on Kennicott Glacier, Alaska, during the spring–summer transition, a time when subglacial drainage is undergoing rapid change. A complicated record of > 50 m fill-and-drain sequences on a hydraulically-connected ice-marginal lake likely reflects the punctuated establishment of efficient subglacial drainage as the melt season begins. The rate of change of lake stage generally correlates with diurnal velocity maxima, both in timing and magnitude. At the seasonal scale, the up-glacier progression of enhanced summer basal motion promotes uniformity of daily glacier velocity fluctuations throughout the 10 km study reach, and results in diurnal velocity patterns suggesting increasingly efficient meltwater delivery to and drainage from the subglacial channel system. Our findings suggest the potential of using an ice-marginal lake as a proxy for subglacial water pressure, and show how widespread basal motion affects bulk glacier behavior. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Armstrong, William H. Anderson, Robert S. |
spellingShingle |
Armstrong, William H. Anderson, Robert S. Ice-marginal lake hydrology and the seasonal dynamical evolution of Kennicott Glacier, Alaska |
author_facet |
Armstrong, William H. Anderson, Robert S. |
author_sort |
Armstrong, William H. |
title |
Ice-marginal lake hydrology and the seasonal dynamical evolution of Kennicott Glacier, Alaska |
title_short |
Ice-marginal lake hydrology and the seasonal dynamical evolution of Kennicott Glacier, Alaska |
title_full |
Ice-marginal lake hydrology and the seasonal dynamical evolution of Kennicott Glacier, Alaska |
title_fullStr |
Ice-marginal lake hydrology and the seasonal dynamical evolution of Kennicott Glacier, Alaska |
title_full_unstemmed |
Ice-marginal lake hydrology and the seasonal dynamical evolution of Kennicott Glacier, Alaska |
title_sort |
ice-marginal lake hydrology and the seasonal dynamical evolution of kennicott glacier, alaska |
publisher |
Cambridge University Press (CUP) |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/jog.2020.41 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0022143020000416 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(163.500,163.500,-74.600,-74.600) |
geographic |
Marginal Lake |
geographic_facet |
Marginal Lake |
genre |
glacier glaciers Journal of Glaciology Alaska |
genre_facet |
glacier glaciers Journal of Glaciology Alaska |
op_source |
Journal of Glaciology volume 66, issue 259, page 699-713 ISSN 0022-1430 1727-5652 |
op_rights |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2020.41 |
container_title |
Journal of Glaciology |
container_volume |
66 |
container_issue |
259 |
container_start_page |
699 |
op_container_end_page |
713 |
_version_ |
1811638635317952512 |