Greenland ice-sheet wide glacier classification based on two distinct seasonal ice velocity behaviors

• Published in: Journal of Glaciology
• Main Authors: Vijay, Saurabh, King, Michalea D., Howat, Ian M., Solgaard, Anne M., Khan, Shfaqat Abbas, Noël, Brice
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge University Press 2021
• Subjects: Glacier fluctuations; ice dynamics; ice velocity; ice/atmosphere interactions; remote sensing; Earth-Surface Processes; Physical; chemical; mathematical & earth Sciences; Earth sciences & physical geography; Physique; chimie; mathématiques & sciences de la terre; Sciences de la terre & géographie physique; glacier; Greenland; Ice Sheet; Journal of Glaciology
• Online Access: https://orbi.uliege.be/handle/2268/301947; https://orbi.uliege.be/bitstream/2268/301947/1/Vijay_2021_JoG.pdf; https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2021.89

peer reviewed Greenland glaciers exhibit variable seasonal velocity signals that may reflect differences in subglacial hydrology. Here, we conduct a first GrIS-wide glacier classification based on seasonal velocity patterns derived from 2017 Sentinel-1 radar data. Our classification focuses on two distinct seasonal ice velocity patterns, with the first (type-2 from Moon and others, 2014) showing periods of both speedup and slowdown during the melt season, and the second (type-3) instead showing a longer period of slowdown from elevated velocities in the winter and spring. We analyze 221 glaciers in 2017 and show that 48 exhibit type-2 behavior, and 72 exhibit type-3 behavior. We extend the classification to 2018 and 2019 and find that while the glaciers meeting each criterion vary year to year, type-2 is consistently more common in the northern regions and type-3 is more common in the south. Our results highlight the varied impact of meltwater on subglacial drainage systems and glacier flow in Greenland.