Modeling the Greenland englacial stratigraphy
Radar reflections from the interior of the Greenland ice sheet contain a comprehensive archive of past accumulation rates, ice dynamics, and basal melting. Combining these data with dynamic ice sheet models may greatly aid model calibration, improve past and future sea level estimates, and enable in...
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2021
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Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2989596 https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4539-2021 |
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ftunivbergen:oai:bora.uib.no:11250/2989596 2023-05-15T16:27:09+02:00 Modeling the Greenland englacial stratigraphy Born, Andreas Robinson, Alexander 2021 application/pdf https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2989596 https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4539-2021 eng eng Copernicus Publications urn:issn:1994-0416 https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2989596 https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4539-2021 cristin:1951084 The Cryosphere. 2021, 15 (9), 4539-4556. Navngivelse 4.0 Internasjonal http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.no Copyright Author(s) 2021 The Cryosphere 4539-4556 15 9 Journal article Peer reviewed 2021 ftunivbergen https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4539-2021 2023-03-14T17:43:12Z Radar reflections from the interior of the Greenland ice sheet contain a comprehensive archive of past accumulation rates, ice dynamics, and basal melting. Combining these data with dynamic ice sheet models may greatly aid model calibration, improve past and future sea level estimates, and enable insights into past ice sheet dynamics that neither models nor data could achieve alone. Unfortunately, simulating the continental-scale ice sheet stratigraphy represents a major challenge for current ice sheet models. In this study, we present the first three-dimensional ice sheet model that explicitly simulates the Greenland englacial stratigraphy. Individual layers of accumulation are represented on a grid whose vertical axis is time so that they do not exchange mass with each other as the flow of ice deforms them. This isochronal advection scheme does not influence the ice dynamics and only requires modest input data from a host thermomechanical ice sheet model, making it easy to transfer to a range of models. Using an ensemble of simulations, we show that direct comparison with the dated radiostratigraphy data yields notably more accurate results than calibrating simulations based on total ice thickness. We show that the isochronal scheme produces a more reliable simulation of the englacial age profile than traditional age tracers. The interpretation of ice dynamics at different times is possible but limited by uncertainties in the upper and lower boundary conditions, namely temporal variations in surface mass balance and basal friction. publishedVersion Article in Journal/Newspaper Greenland Ice Sheet The Cryosphere University of Bergen: Bergen Open Research Archive (BORA-UiB) Greenland The Cryosphere 15 9 4539 4556 |
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Open Polar |
collection |
University of Bergen: Bergen Open Research Archive (BORA-UiB) |
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ftunivbergen |
language |
English |
description |
Radar reflections from the interior of the Greenland ice sheet contain a comprehensive archive of past accumulation rates, ice dynamics, and basal melting. Combining these data with dynamic ice sheet models may greatly aid model calibration, improve past and future sea level estimates, and enable insights into past ice sheet dynamics that neither models nor data could achieve alone. Unfortunately, simulating the continental-scale ice sheet stratigraphy represents a major challenge for current ice sheet models. In this study, we present the first three-dimensional ice sheet model that explicitly simulates the Greenland englacial stratigraphy. Individual layers of accumulation are represented on a grid whose vertical axis is time so that they do not exchange mass with each other as the flow of ice deforms them. This isochronal advection scheme does not influence the ice dynamics and only requires modest input data from a host thermomechanical ice sheet model, making it easy to transfer to a range of models. Using an ensemble of simulations, we show that direct comparison with the dated radiostratigraphy data yields notably more accurate results than calibrating simulations based on total ice thickness. We show that the isochronal scheme produces a more reliable simulation of the englacial age profile than traditional age tracers. The interpretation of ice dynamics at different times is possible but limited by uncertainties in the upper and lower boundary conditions, namely temporal variations in surface mass balance and basal friction. publishedVersion |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Born, Andreas Robinson, Alexander |
spellingShingle |
Born, Andreas Robinson, Alexander Modeling the Greenland englacial stratigraphy |
author_facet |
Born, Andreas Robinson, Alexander |
author_sort |
Born, Andreas |
title |
Modeling the Greenland englacial stratigraphy |
title_short |
Modeling the Greenland englacial stratigraphy |
title_full |
Modeling the Greenland englacial stratigraphy |
title_fullStr |
Modeling the Greenland englacial stratigraphy |
title_full_unstemmed |
Modeling the Greenland englacial stratigraphy |
title_sort |
modeling the greenland englacial stratigraphy |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2989596 https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4539-2021 |
geographic |
Greenland |
geographic_facet |
Greenland |
genre |
Greenland Ice Sheet The Cryosphere |
genre_facet |
Greenland Ice Sheet The Cryosphere |
op_source |
The Cryosphere 4539-4556 15 9 |
op_relation |
urn:issn:1994-0416 https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2989596 https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4539-2021 cristin:1951084 The Cryosphere. 2021, 15 (9), 4539-4556. |
op_rights |
Navngivelse 4.0 Internasjonal http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.no Copyright Author(s) 2021 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4539-2021 |
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The Cryosphere |
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15 |
container_issue |
9 |
container_start_page |
4539 |
op_container_end_page |
4556 |
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1766016245887401984 |