The Motion of Ice Sheets and Glaciers
Abstract The distribution of velocity along a vertical line in Greenland is calculated. Almost all the relative shear motion is concentrated at and very near to the bottom, and this result is thought to apply generally in Greenland and Antarctica. It is due to the relatively high temperature of the...
Published in: | Journal of Glaciology |
---|---|
Main Author: | |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Cambridge University Press (CUP)
1959
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s002214300001724x https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S002214300001724X |
id |
crcambridgeupr:10.1017/s002214300001724x |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
crcambridgeupr:10.1017/s002214300001724x 2024-04-28T07:58:26+00:00 The Motion of Ice Sheets and Glaciers Nye, J. F. 1959 http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s002214300001724x https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S002214300001724X en eng Cambridge University Press (CUP) Journal of Glaciology volume 3, issue 26, page 493-507 ISSN 0022-1430 1727-5652 Earth-Surface Processes journal-article 1959 crcambridgeupr https://doi.org/10.1017/s002214300001724x 2024-04-09T06:56:14Z Abstract The distribution of velocity along a vertical line in Greenland is calculated. Almost all the relative shear motion is concentrated at and very near to the bottom, and this result is thought to apply generally in Greenland and Antarctica. It is due to the relatively high temperature of the lowest layers and the strong dependence of creep rate on temperature. The outward velocity being thus almost constant with depth, it is assumed proportional to the m th power of the shear stress on the bed; the results previously obtained by the approximation of perfect plasticity then correspond to m →∞. Steady-state solutions for finite m are derived, and non-steady states are discussed by use of Weertman’s perturbation method. The steady-state height of an ice sheet is found to be very insensitive to the rate of accumulation. Surface waves in Antarctica are attributed to mountains buried beneath the ice, and it is shown how the height and form of a buried mountain ridge may be calculated from the associated surface disturbance. The application of a law of sliding to glaciers leads to an expression for the longitudinal strain-rate, hitherto an undetermined parameter. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctica Greenland Ice Sheet Journal of Glaciology Cambridge University Press Journal of Glaciology 3 26 493 507 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Cambridge University Press |
op_collection_id |
crcambridgeupr |
language |
English |
topic |
Earth-Surface Processes |
spellingShingle |
Earth-Surface Processes Nye, J. F. The Motion of Ice Sheets and Glaciers |
topic_facet |
Earth-Surface Processes |
description |
Abstract The distribution of velocity along a vertical line in Greenland is calculated. Almost all the relative shear motion is concentrated at and very near to the bottom, and this result is thought to apply generally in Greenland and Antarctica. It is due to the relatively high temperature of the lowest layers and the strong dependence of creep rate on temperature. The outward velocity being thus almost constant with depth, it is assumed proportional to the m th power of the shear stress on the bed; the results previously obtained by the approximation of perfect plasticity then correspond to m →∞. Steady-state solutions for finite m are derived, and non-steady states are discussed by use of Weertman’s perturbation method. The steady-state height of an ice sheet is found to be very insensitive to the rate of accumulation. Surface waves in Antarctica are attributed to mountains buried beneath the ice, and it is shown how the height and form of a buried mountain ridge may be calculated from the associated surface disturbance. The application of a law of sliding to glaciers leads to an expression for the longitudinal strain-rate, hitherto an undetermined parameter. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Nye, J. F. |
author_facet |
Nye, J. F. |
author_sort |
Nye, J. F. |
title |
The Motion of Ice Sheets and Glaciers |
title_short |
The Motion of Ice Sheets and Glaciers |
title_full |
The Motion of Ice Sheets and Glaciers |
title_fullStr |
The Motion of Ice Sheets and Glaciers |
title_full_unstemmed |
The Motion of Ice Sheets and Glaciers |
title_sort |
motion of ice sheets and glaciers |
publisher |
Cambridge University Press (CUP) |
publishDate |
1959 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s002214300001724x https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S002214300001724X |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctica Greenland Ice Sheet Journal of Glaciology |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctica Greenland Ice Sheet Journal of Glaciology |
op_source |
Journal of Glaciology volume 3, issue 26, page 493-507 ISSN 0022-1430 1727-5652 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1017/s002214300001724x |
container_title |
Journal of Glaciology |
container_volume |
3 |
container_issue |
26 |
container_start_page |
493 |
op_container_end_page |
507 |
_version_ |
1797569493929558016 |