Ice-Shelf Response to Ice-Stream Discharge Fluctuation: I. Unconfined Ice Tongues,

Abstract

Unsteady thickness and flow observed on the Ross Ice Shelf are thought to result primarily from fluctuations of ice streams and outlet glaciers that feed the ice shelf at its inland boundaries. Ice-stream discharge fluctuations constitute an independent means of forcing unsteady ice-shelf behavior, and their effect must be distinguished from those of oceanic and atmospheric climate to understand ice-shelf change. Ice-stream-generated fluctuations of a one-dimensional ice shelf are found to propagate through the ice shelf environment along the two characteristics of the hyperbolic governing equations. One characteristic permits instantaneous transmission of grounding-line velocity changes to all points downstream. The other characteristic represents slow transmission of grounding-line thickness changes along Lagrangian particle paths.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 1987
Accession Number
ADA188147

Entities

People

  • Douglas R. Macayeal
  • Victor Barcilon

Organizations

  • University of Chicago

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Aspect Ratio
  • Boundaries
  • Differential Equations
  • Equations
  • Glaciers
  • Glaciology
  • Ice
  • Intervals
  • Oceans
  • Regions
  • Sea Water
  • Steady State
  • Strain Rate
  • Temperature Gradients
  • Thickness
  • Time Intervals
  • Trajectories

Readers

  • Atmospheric Science / Meteorology, specifically Wind Wave Turbulence.
  • Fluid Dynamics.
  • Polar and Arctic Studies