A glaciological model of the Younger Dryas event in Scandinavia

Abstract A finite-element method solution of the continuity equation is used to investigate complex features of the Younger Dryas period. By comparing results of the model with field evidence, we conclude that the climatic event responsible for the Younger Dryas stillstand was probably short (less t...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of Glaciology
Main Authors: Fastook, James L., Holmlund, Per
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Cambridge University Press (CUP) 1994
Subjects:
Ela
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0022143000003889
https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0022143000003889
Description
Summary:Abstract A finite-element method solution of the continuity equation is used to investigate complex features of the Younger Dryas period. By comparing results of the model with field evidence, we conclude that the climatic event responsible for the Younger Dryas stillstand was probably short (less than 500 years). The assumption of a general sliding condition for elevations below 100 m, with an enhanced sliding zone through the center of the Baltic and Gulf of Bothnia, yields broad agreement for marginal positions in Sweden and Finland during a simulated termination. A stillstand near the Younger Dryas moraine position is attained with a climatic equilibrium-line altitude (ELA) depression of 600 m for a time period of 500 years. Agreement of simulated behavior with observed behavior is less consistent in the more maritime western Sweden and western Norway.