PRELIMINARY SCALE-MODEL SNOWDRIFT STUDIES. SERIES II.

• Main Authors: Brier,Frank W., Stehle,Nancy S.
• Other Authors: NAVAL CIVIL ENGINEERING LAB PORT HUENEME CALIF
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 1968
• Subjects: Snow; Ice and Permafrost; *BUILDINGS; *SNOW; POLAR REGIONS; WIND; DUCTS; SCALE; SIMULATION; BORATES; SODIUM COMPOUNDS; SPHERES; MCMURDO STATION; McMurdo Station; Ross Ice Shelf; Ice; Ice Shelf; permafrost
• Online Access: http://www.dtic.mil/docs/citations/AD0680427; http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?&verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=AD0680427

On perennial snowfields, the problem of windblown snow is particularly acute because there is no depletion of the yearly snow accumulation. In an effort to alleviate drift problems, preliminary scale-model drift studies were conducted in a wind duct with a 2-foot-square cross section, using borax as a snow simulator. This series of tests was directed principally toward developing information on long-duration drift around spheres, hemispheres, cylinders, and multisided shapes. Because of the limited size of the wind duct, the building models were restricted to scale of 1/100; this, in turn, limited comparison of building heights and sizes. To alleviate this problem, a new 5-foot-wide, 2-foot-high wind duct was designed. Another scaling problem developed because of the lack of field data on snow-accumulation rates with which to compare the laboratory accumulation rate. Preliminary measurements concluded that 3 hours of wind-duct operation simulated 3 years of snow accumulation on the Ross Ice Shelf near McMurdo Station, which has an average annual accumulation of about 1 foot. Additional field measurements are being made to provide information drift where the annual accumulation is near 1/2 foot and 2 feet. (Author)