Firn Characterization of the Accumulation Zone of Kaskawulsh Glacier, Yukon Territory, Canada

• Main Author: Ochwat, Naomi
• Other Authors: Marshall, Shawn, Moorman, Brian J., Geldsetzer, Torsten, Shugar, Dan H.
• Format: Master Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: Arts 2019
• Subjects: mountain glacier; firn core; densification; stable isotopes; ions; surface lowering; Geography; Geology; Physical Geography; Engineering > Environmental; Canada; Kaskawulsh Glacier; Yukon; glacier*
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1880/110298; https://doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/36474

While glacier mass balance studies allow investigation of the changing cryosphere, large ice sheets and remote, glaciated regions often lack the potential for detailed field studies. Remote sensing techniques are applied in mass balance studies, however, these methods are challenged because of their assumptions on density. In spring 2018, I extracted two firn cores (21 m and 36 m) from the accumulation zone of Kaskawulsh Glacier, St. Elias Mountains, Yukon and analyzed refrozen ice layers, snow densification processes, and isotopic and ionic signals. Meltwater percolation and refreezing events are evident in the cores through the quantity of ice layers, the presence of a perennial firn aquifer, and the altered isotope and glaciochemical signatures. These processes resulted in surface lowering of 10 cm/yr and washed out most of the isotope and ion seasonal signal. My study advances understanding in the dynamics of a changing accumulation zone in the St. Elias Icefields.