Modelling the propagation of crevasses and calving in ice shelves ...

• Main Author: Zarrinderakht, Maryam
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: University of British Columbia 2023
• Subjects: Ice Shelves
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.14288/1.0431371; https://doi.library.ubc.ca/10.14288/1.0431371

Ice shelves are floating extensions of glaciers and ice sheets that terminate in the ocean, and their stability and mass balance play a crucial role in controlling the sea level. One of the major processes affecting their stability is the calving of icebergs, which is a complex and poorly understood phenomenon. In order to understand and predict the mass balance of ice shelves, it is essential to investigate the physical processes that control iceberg calving. Despite the challenging nature of this problem, due to the lack of observational data and the mathematical and numerical difficulties involved in modeling crevasses penetration, this topic remains of great scientific and practical importance. This Ph.D. thesis focuses on the investigation of the fundamental parameters that influence crack growth and, as a result, the rate of iceberg calving. The study considers the effect of hydrological parameters, such as water table height, as well as geometry aspect ratio, basal and surface crevasse positions, and ...