Katabatic wind influence on meltwater supply to fuel glacier-substrate interactions at grounding line, Terra Nova Bay, Antarctica

The co-isotopic composition, both in δD and in δ18O, of interbedded debris-rich and clear ice layers, thought to have been formed at the grounding line of Hells Gate Ice Shelf, indicates freezing by a double-diffusion effect between continental meltwater and sea water within a subglacial sediment. A...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Bouzette, Ariane, Souchez, Roland
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: 1999
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/2013/ULB-DIPOT:oai:dipot.ulb.ac.be:2013/173121
https://dipot.ulb.ac.be/dspace/bitstream/2013/173121/3/doi_156751.pdf
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Summary:The co-isotopic composition, both in δD and in δ18O, of interbedded debris-rich and clear ice layers, thought to have been formed at the grounding line of Hells Gate Ice Shelf, indicates freezing by a double-diffusion effect between continental meltwater and sea water within a subglacial sediment. A source of meltwater is required to sustain the process, since the temperature of the bed is below the freshwater melting point. The most likely source is a surficially frozen meltwater lake.Rock outcrops, kept mostly snow-free by the action of katabatic winds, absorb solar radiation so local production of liquid water becomes possible in an area with year-round subfreezing air-temperature conditions. The meltwater accumulated in a marginal lake can eventually reach the subglacial substratum near a pinning point where the ice is relatively thin and fractured info:eu-repo/semantics/published