Ice Flow in Antarctica

Abstract A number of measurements of ice flow in the coastal regions of Antarctica are given. Observations show that the general outward movement of the continental ice, termed “sheet flow”, is locally accelerated where “ice streams” are formed. Estimates indicate that ice streams, which only occupy...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of Glaciology
Main Author: Mellor, Malcolm
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Cambridge University Press (CUP) 1959
Subjects:
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s002214300001707x
https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S002214300001707X
Description
Summary:Abstract A number of measurements of ice flow in the coastal regions of Antarctica are given. Observations show that the general outward movement of the continental ice, termed “sheet flow”, is locally accelerated where “ice streams” are formed. Estimates indicate that ice streams, which only occupy a small fraction of the total length of coast, are responsible for the removal of more ice from the continent than the “sheet flow” over the remaining length of coast. Further estimates suggest that the great bulk of Antarctic icebergs are produced by ice shelves, but that data on ice shelf movement are inadequate at the time of writing.