EFFECT OF A BASAL WATER LAYER ON THE DIMENSIONS OF ICE SHEETS.

The effect of a basal water layer on the equilibrium dimensions of an ice sheet is examined. A thick water layer can decrease the equilibrium thickness of an ice sheet such as covers Antarctica (which contains no significant ablational areas) by a factor of the order of 2. Similar large changes in t...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Weertman,J.
Other Authors: COLD REGIONS RESEARCH AND ENGINEERING LAB HANOVER N H
Format: Text
Language:English
Published: 1966
Subjects:
Snow
Ice and Permafrost
(*GLACIERS
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES)
ANTARCTIC REGIONS
ABLATION
WATER
THICKNESS
STABILITY
Antarctic
Antarc*
Antarctica
Ice
Ice Sheet
permafrost
Online Access:http://www.dtic.mil/docs/citations/AD0644596
http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?&verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=AD0644596
Description
Summary:The effect of a basal water layer on the equilibrium dimensions of an ice sheet is examined. A thick water layer can decrease the equilibrium thickness of an ice sheet such as covers Antarctica (which contains no significant ablational areas) by a factor of the order of 2. Similar large changes in the equilibrium dimensions occur for ice-age ice sheets (which have extensive ablational areas). The extent of the ablation area of an ice-age ice sheet which may be covered with morainal debris also is calculated. (Author)

Similar Items