The 'footloose' mechanism: iceberg decay from hydrostatic stresses
We study a mechanism of iceberg breakup that may act together with the recognized melt and wave-induced decay processes. Our proposal is based on observations from a recent field experiment on a large ice island in Baffin Bay, East Canada. We observed that successive collapses of the overburden from...
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ftnerc:oai:nora.nerc.ac.uk:507402 2023-05-15T15:35:03+02:00 The 'footloose' mechanism: iceberg decay from hydrostatic stresses Wagner, Till J.W. Wadhams, Peter Bates, Richard Elosegui, Pedro Stern, Alon Vella, Dominic Abrahamsen, E. Povl Crawford, Anna Nicholls, Keith W. 2014-08-16 text http://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/507402/ https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/507402/1/grl51926.pdf en eng Wiley https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/507402/1/grl51926.pdf Wagner, Till J.W.; Wadhams, Peter; Bates, Richard; Elosegui, Pedro; Stern, Alon; Vella, Dominic; Abrahamsen, E. Povl orcid:0000-0001-5924-5350 Crawford, Anna; Nicholls, Keith W. orcid:0000-0002-2188-4509 . 2014 The 'footloose' mechanism: iceberg decay from hydrostatic stresses. Geophysical Research Letters, 41 (15). 5522-5529. https://doi.org/10.1002/2014GL060832 <https://doi.org/10.1002/2014GL060832> Publication - Article PeerReviewed 2014 ftnerc https://doi.org/10.1002/2014GL060832 2023-02-04T19:39:45Z We study a mechanism of iceberg breakup that may act together with the recognized melt and wave-induced decay processes. Our proposal is based on observations from a recent field experiment on a large ice island in Baffin Bay, East Canada. We observed that successive collapses of the overburden from above an unsupported wavecut at the iceberg waterline created a submerged foot fringing the berg. The buoyancy stresses induced by such a foot may be sufficient to cause moderate-sized bergs to break off from the main berg. A mathematical model is developed to test the feasibility of this mechanism. The results suggest that once the foot reaches a critical length, the induced stresses are sufficient to cause calving. The theoretically predicted maximum stable foot length compares well to the data collected in situ. Further, the model provides analytical expressions for the previously observed “rampart-moat” iceberg surface profiles. Article in Journal/Newspaper Baffin Bay Baffin Bay Baffin Natural Environment Research Council: NERC Open Research Archive Baffin Bay Canada Geophysical Research Letters 41 15 5522 5529 |
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Open Polar |
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Natural Environment Research Council: NERC Open Research Archive |
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ftnerc |
language |
English |
description |
We study a mechanism of iceberg breakup that may act together with the recognized melt and wave-induced decay processes. Our proposal is based on observations from a recent field experiment on a large ice island in Baffin Bay, East Canada. We observed that successive collapses of the overburden from above an unsupported wavecut at the iceberg waterline created a submerged foot fringing the berg. The buoyancy stresses induced by such a foot may be sufficient to cause moderate-sized bergs to break off from the main berg. A mathematical model is developed to test the feasibility of this mechanism. The results suggest that once the foot reaches a critical length, the induced stresses are sufficient to cause calving. The theoretically predicted maximum stable foot length compares well to the data collected in situ. Further, the model provides analytical expressions for the previously observed “rampart-moat” iceberg surface profiles. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Wagner, Till J.W. Wadhams, Peter Bates, Richard Elosegui, Pedro Stern, Alon Vella, Dominic Abrahamsen, E. Povl Crawford, Anna Nicholls, Keith W. |
spellingShingle |
Wagner, Till J.W. Wadhams, Peter Bates, Richard Elosegui, Pedro Stern, Alon Vella, Dominic Abrahamsen, E. Povl Crawford, Anna Nicholls, Keith W. The 'footloose' mechanism: iceberg decay from hydrostatic stresses |
author_facet |
Wagner, Till J.W. Wadhams, Peter Bates, Richard Elosegui, Pedro Stern, Alon Vella, Dominic Abrahamsen, E. Povl Crawford, Anna Nicholls, Keith W. |
author_sort |
Wagner, Till J.W. |
title |
The 'footloose' mechanism: iceberg decay from hydrostatic stresses |
title_short |
The 'footloose' mechanism: iceberg decay from hydrostatic stresses |
title_full |
The 'footloose' mechanism: iceberg decay from hydrostatic stresses |
title_fullStr |
The 'footloose' mechanism: iceberg decay from hydrostatic stresses |
title_full_unstemmed |
The 'footloose' mechanism: iceberg decay from hydrostatic stresses |
title_sort |
'footloose' mechanism: iceberg decay from hydrostatic stresses |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2014 |
url |
http://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/507402/ https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/507402/1/grl51926.pdf |
geographic |
Baffin Bay Canada |
geographic_facet |
Baffin Bay Canada |
genre |
Baffin Bay Baffin Bay Baffin |
genre_facet |
Baffin Bay Baffin Bay Baffin |
op_relation |
https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/507402/1/grl51926.pdf Wagner, Till J.W.; Wadhams, Peter; Bates, Richard; Elosegui, Pedro; Stern, Alon; Vella, Dominic; Abrahamsen, E. Povl orcid:0000-0001-5924-5350 Crawford, Anna; Nicholls, Keith W. orcid:0000-0002-2188-4509 . 2014 The 'footloose' mechanism: iceberg decay from hydrostatic stresses. Geophysical Research Letters, 41 (15). 5522-5529. https://doi.org/10.1002/2014GL060832 <https://doi.org/10.1002/2014GL060832> |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1002/2014GL060832 |
container_title |
Geophysical Research Letters |
container_volume |
41 |
container_issue |
15 |
container_start_page |
5522 |
op_container_end_page |
5529 |
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1766365351141965824 |