A general theory of glacier surges
We present the first general theory of glacier surging that includes both temperate and polythermal glacier surges, based on coupled mass and enthalpy budgets. Enthalpy (in the form of thermal energy and water) is gained at the glacier bed from geothermal heating plus frictional heating (expenditure...
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Cambridge University Press
2019
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Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2019.62 https://doaj.org/article/0042fdf2443e4a97ad0c6f1747e2bccf |
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:0042fdf2443e4a97ad0c6f1747e2bccf 2023-05-15T16:57:35+02:00 A general theory of glacier surges D. I. Benn A. C. Fowler I. Hewitt H. Sevestre 2019-10-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2019.62 https://doaj.org/article/0042fdf2443e4a97ad0c6f1747e2bccf EN eng Cambridge University Press https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0022143019000625/type/journal_article https://doaj.org/toc/0022-1430 https://doaj.org/toc/1727-5652 doi:10.1017/jog.2019.62 0022-1430 1727-5652 https://doaj.org/article/0042fdf2443e4a97ad0c6f1747e2bccf Journal of Glaciology, Vol 65, Pp 701-716 (2019) Dynamics enthalpy balance theory glacier surge Environmental sciences GE1-350 Meteorology. Climatology QC851-999 article 2019 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2019.62 2023-03-12T01:30:57Z We present the first general theory of glacier surging that includes both temperate and polythermal glacier surges, based on coupled mass and enthalpy budgets. Enthalpy (in the form of thermal energy and water) is gained at the glacier bed from geothermal heating plus frictional heating (expenditure of potential energy) as a consequence of ice flow. Enthalpy losses occur by conduction and loss of meltwater from the system. Because enthalpy directly impacts flow speeds, mass and enthalpy budgets must simultaneously balance if a glacier is to maintain a steady flow. If not, glaciers undergo out-of-phase mass and enthalpy cycles, manifest as quiescent and surge phases. We illustrate the theory using a lumped element model, which parameterizes key thermodynamic and hydrological processes, including surface-to-bed drainage and distributed and channelized drainage systems. Model output exhibits many of the observed characteristics of polythermal and temperate glacier surges, including the association of surging behaviour with particular combinations of climate (precipitation, temperature), geometry (length, slope) and bed properties (hydraulic conductivity). Enthalpy balance theory explains a broad spectrum of observed surging behaviour in a single framework, and offers an answer to the wider question of why the majority of glaciers do not surge. Article in Journal/Newspaper Journal of Glaciology Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Journal of Glaciology 65 253 701 716 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Dynamics enthalpy balance theory glacier surge Environmental sciences GE1-350 Meteorology. Climatology QC851-999 |
spellingShingle |
Dynamics enthalpy balance theory glacier surge Environmental sciences GE1-350 Meteorology. Climatology QC851-999 D. I. Benn A. C. Fowler I. Hewitt H. Sevestre A general theory of glacier surges |
topic_facet |
Dynamics enthalpy balance theory glacier surge Environmental sciences GE1-350 Meteorology. Climatology QC851-999 |
description |
We present the first general theory of glacier surging that includes both temperate and polythermal glacier surges, based on coupled mass and enthalpy budgets. Enthalpy (in the form of thermal energy and water) is gained at the glacier bed from geothermal heating plus frictional heating (expenditure of potential energy) as a consequence of ice flow. Enthalpy losses occur by conduction and loss of meltwater from the system. Because enthalpy directly impacts flow speeds, mass and enthalpy budgets must simultaneously balance if a glacier is to maintain a steady flow. If not, glaciers undergo out-of-phase mass and enthalpy cycles, manifest as quiescent and surge phases. We illustrate the theory using a lumped element model, which parameterizes key thermodynamic and hydrological processes, including surface-to-bed drainage and distributed and channelized drainage systems. Model output exhibits many of the observed characteristics of polythermal and temperate glacier surges, including the association of surging behaviour with particular combinations of climate (precipitation, temperature), geometry (length, slope) and bed properties (hydraulic conductivity). Enthalpy balance theory explains a broad spectrum of observed surging behaviour in a single framework, and offers an answer to the wider question of why the majority of glaciers do not surge. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
D. I. Benn A. C. Fowler I. Hewitt H. Sevestre |
author_facet |
D. I. Benn A. C. Fowler I. Hewitt H. Sevestre |
author_sort |
D. I. Benn |
title |
A general theory of glacier surges |
title_short |
A general theory of glacier surges |
title_full |
A general theory of glacier surges |
title_fullStr |
A general theory of glacier surges |
title_full_unstemmed |
A general theory of glacier surges |
title_sort |
general theory of glacier surges |
publisher |
Cambridge University Press |
publishDate |
2019 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2019.62 https://doaj.org/article/0042fdf2443e4a97ad0c6f1747e2bccf |
genre |
Journal of Glaciology |
genre_facet |
Journal of Glaciology |
op_source |
Journal of Glaciology, Vol 65, Pp 701-716 (2019) |
op_relation |
https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0022143019000625/type/journal_article https://doaj.org/toc/0022-1430 https://doaj.org/toc/1727-5652 doi:10.1017/jog.2019.62 0022-1430 1727-5652 https://doaj.org/article/0042fdf2443e4a97ad0c6f1747e2bccf |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2019.62 |
container_title |
Journal of Glaciology |
container_volume |
65 |
container_issue |
253 |
container_start_page |
701 |
op_container_end_page |
716 |
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1766049147134148608 |