bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Reaction Of The Heat Regime Of Antarctic Ice Sheet Inland Regions On Long-Term Changes Of Climate
Authors: Barbash Vitaly
Published: September 2017

A nonstationary mathematical model of thermics and dynamics of the Antarctic ice sheet has been developed, taking into consideration the influence of long-term changes of climate.

The influence of climatic variations during the last 100 000 years on the temperature field within the ice sheet has been analysed. Information about climatic changes is based on paleographic data and isotope analyses of ice samples from bore holes at Vostok and Byrd stations.

The input data used include results from field surveys of accumulation, temperatures of upper surface, relief of the base and thickness of the ice sheet along the flowlines in the western and eastern parts of the ice sheet, as well as experimental data on ice rheology.

The computations show that traces of the climatic minimum that took place about 18 000 years ago are found in the temperature field of the Antarctic ice sheet.

The model developed has proved that warming of climate due to the “greenhouse effect” leads to significant changes in the thermal regime in the upper parts of the ice sheet, but will not lead to conditions threatening bottom layers.
Potential For Basal Melting Under The Summit Coring Site, Central Greenland
Authors: Firestone John , Waddington Ed , Cunningham Jim
Published: September 2017

The climatic record from Greenland boreholes is likely to extend well beyond the last interglacial only if the basal ice near the drilling sites has never reached its pressure melting point (−2°C). A simplified one-dimensional analysis (Paterson and Waddington, 1986) suggested that this would be true at Crête, Greenland, if the geothermal flux was less than 48 mW m−2. In that study, the vertical velocity pattern for an isothermal ice sheet was used. We have repeated the Crête calculations using the vertical velocity pattern derived by a finite element analysis. Using this temperature-dependent velocity pattern lowered the basal temperature by about 3°C.

We have carried out a similar analysis for the Summit coring site further north on the Greenland ice divide. Here we find that the basal ice does not melt if the geothermal flux is less than 54 mW m−2, using the same mass balance and surface temperature histories as the previous study. We are repeating these one-dimensional calculations with more recently compiled histories and plan to present results from a full two-dimensional temperature model that includes processes only parameterized in the one-dimensional models. Using two dimensions, we will more realistically incorporate the special ice-flow patterns found at divides (e.g. Raymond, 1983; Dahl-Jensen, 1989). In steady-state flow models these patterns lead to significant horizontal temperature gradients and a “hot spot” beneath an ice divide (Paterson and Waddington, 1986). In addition, we will more accurately determine the transient effects on basal temperature resulting from the interaction of these flow patterns and the changing climate. Our discussion will include sensitivity to geothermal heat flux, ice thickness and paleoenvironmental history.
Numerical Modelling Of Rutford Ice Stream, Antarctica
Authors: Frolich R.M , MacAyeal D.R.
Published: September 2017

A two-dimensional finite element model has been applied to Rutford Ice Stream, Antarctica, and part of Ronne Ice Shelf into which the ice stream flows. The model is an extension of one describing ice-shelf flow, and relies on vertical shear in the ice stream being small in some mathematically defined sense. This is equivalent to requiring the vertical shear to be confined to a basal layer or a deformable substrate.

Although there is no direct observational evidence for such a layer beneath Rutford Ice Stream, extensive surface surveys and estimates of the strength of the overlying ice show that some dynamically equivalent mechanism must occur. If basal shear stress is parameterised in terms of the thickness and viscosity of a linearly viscous substrate, as may be the case beneath Ice Stream Β in Antarctica, then going upstream from the grounding line, the thickness of this layer must decrease, and the viscosity increase (to retain a realistic thickness at the upstream limit), in order to reproduce the observed surface velocities. This physically reasonable picture is currently adopted as a working hypothesis.

Vertical shear in the body of the ice stream appears to be negligible for approximately 70 km above the grounding line. Sensitivity tests show that, in this lower section, ice-shelf back stress is an important restraining influence. A 10% reduction in back stress would produce an immediate 15% increase in grounding line flux. Further upstream, however, higher surface slopes and slightly lower surface velocities suggest that the neglect of vertical shear may be less appropriate. The effect of a reduction in ice-shelf back stream is not felt in this region immediately, as the gravitational driving force is almost balanced by local basal shear traction.

A complex surface morphology has been revealed by satellite imagery below the grounding line of Rutford Ice Stream. On the basis that this may be evidence of time dependent behaviour, the finite element model is being used to investigate the origin of the pattern. Ice-shelf back stress, basal melting, mass flux from tributary glaciers and substrate properties can all be varied in physically realistic ways to try to reproduce, qualitatively, the observed surface morphology.
Variability Of Thermohaline Circulation Under An Ice Shelf
Authors: Hellmer H.H.
Published: September 2017

The production of Antarctic Bottom Water is mainly influenced by Ice Shelf Water, which is formed through the modification of shelf water masses under huge ice shelves. To simulate this modification a two-dimensional thermohaline circulation model has been developed for a section perpendicular to the ice-shelf edge. Hydrographic data from the Filchner Depression enter into the model as boundary conditions. In the outflow region they also serve as a verification of model results.

The standard solution reveals two circulation cells. The dominant one transports shelf water near the bottom toward the grounding line, where it begins to ascend along the inclined ice shelf. The contact with the ice shelf causes melting with a maximum rate of 1.5 m a−1 at the grounding line. Freezing and therefore the accumulation of “sea ice” at the bottom of the ice shelf occurs at the end of the melting zone at a rate on the order of 0.1 ma−1. Both rates are comparable with values estimated or predicted by models concerning ice-shelf dynamics.

As one example of model sensitivity to changing boundary conditions, a higher sea-ice production in the southern Weddell Sea, as might be expected for a general climatic cooling event, is assumed. The resultant decrease/ increase in temperature/salinity of the inflow (Western Shelf Water) reduces the circulation under the ice shelf and therefore the outflow of Ice Shelf Water by 40%. The maximum melting and freezing rate decreases by 0.1 ma−1 and 0.01 m a−1, respectively. and the freezing zone shifts toward the grounding line by 100 km.

In general the intensity of the circulation cells, the characteristics of Ice Shelf Water, the distribution of melting and freezing zones and the melting and freezing rates differ from the standard results with changing boundary conditions. These are the temperature and salinity of the inflow, the surface temperature at the top, and the extension and morphology of the ice shelf.
On The Interannual Variability Of A Diagnostic Ice-Ocean Model
Authors: Hibler W.D , Ranelli Peter
Published: September 2017

Sea-ice drift and dynamics can significantly affect the exchanges of heat between the atmosphere and ocean and salt fluxes into the ocean. The ice drift and dynamics, in turn, can be modified by the ocean circulation. This is especially true of the ice margin location whose seasonal characteristics are largely controlled by the substantial oceanic heat flux in the Greenland Sea due to convective overturning.

A useful framework to analyze the interannual variability of ice–ocean interaction effects relevant to climatic change is the diagnostic ice–ocean model developed by Hibler and Bryan (1987). In this model, the oceanic temperature and salinity is weakly relaxed (except in the upper layer of the ocean which is essentially driven by the ice dynamic-thermodynamic sea-ice model) to climatological temperature and salinity data. This procedure allows seasonal and interannual variability to be simulated while still preventing the baroclinic characteristics of the ocean circulation from gradually drifting off into a total model defined state. However, in the work of Hibler and Bryan only the seasonal equilibrium characteristics of this model with the same forcing repeated year after year have been considered.

In order to begin to examine the interannual behavior of this model, we have carried out a three-year simulation for the Arctic Greenland and Norwegian seas over the time period 1981–83. (The geographical region is essentially the same as used by Hibler and Bryan.) This three year simulation is carried out after an initial two year spin up using the 1981 atmospheric forcing data. For comparison purposes, an ice model simulation with only a fixed depth mixed layer was also carried out over this time interval.

The results of these two simulations are analyzed with special attention to the ice margin characteristics in the Greenland and Norwegian seas to determine the role of ocean circulation on the variability there. The ice margin results are also compared to the variability in the northward transports of heat through the Faero-Shetland passage which in the fully-coupled model are calculated rather than specified.
The Effect Of Rheology On Seasonal Sea-Ice Simulations
Authors: Ip Bill , Hibler W.D. , Flato Greg
Published: September 2017

On the seasonal time scales relevant to numerical investigations of climate, the rheology used in large-scale sea ice models significantly affects the ice thickness build-up and ice velocity fields. Plastic rheologies with a normal flow rule have been used to-date in seasonal dynamic thermodynamic simulations. These rheologies have proved useful in simulating discontinuous slip near the coast while still supplying relatively robust velocity fields in the central Arctic Basin. However, as indicated by limited numerical sensitivity studies with different types of elliptical yield curves, the amount of shear strength significantly affects the ice build-up and can possibly cause a stoppage of the ice outflow through Fram Strait. In addition to the shear strength issue, there is also the possibility that non-normal flow rule rheologies, such as the Mohr Coulomb failure criterion used in soil mechanics, may cause somewhat different types of flow patterns, especially in the Fram Strait region. However, to date no seasonal simulations with such non-normal flow rule rheologies have been carried out.

In order to investigate the role of different rheologies on the large-scale flow patterns in the Arctic Basin, a more general numerical scheme than that of Hibler (1979) is developed, which allows the simulation of the dynamic thermodynamic behavior of sea ice with a wide variety of different non linear rheologies. Using this numerical scheme, comparative simulations are carried out to seasonal equilibrium with several variations of the Mohr Coulomb rheology and compared to the more standard Elliptical yield curve results. In particular, the main control Mohr Coulomb case is a capped rheology in which the shear strength is taken to be proportional to the compressive stress. In this capped case only shear flow is allowed until a maximum allowable compressive stress is reached. This cap strength is parameterized to be a function of the ice thickness and compactness. For comparison, a simulation with a very large cap strength is also carried out, and an experiment with a similar compressive cap but much lower shear strength. Overall the results are analyzed to determine the sensitivity of the ice build-up to flow rule and shear strength magnitude. In addition special attention is given to the character of the flow and stoppage (if any) through Fram Strait.
Past Temperature Record From The Analysis of Melt Features In The Dye 3, Greenland, Ice Core
Authors: Langway Chester C. , Shoji Hitoshi
Published: September 2017

The layered sequences of melt features preserved in inland polar ice sheets provide valuable proxy data on past variations in summer temperature. A continuous detailed light-table examination was made on the 2037 m-deep Dye 3 ice core immediately after core recovery. Melt features are products of high air temperatures or solar insolation which occur only at or near the snow surface during summer months. A correlation is made between these features and the extent and intensity of summer temperatures. Care must be exercised to identify and distinguish between all mm-thick radiation crusts and wind crusts contained in the record. The absence or presence of these discrete features serve respectively as indicators of total summer cloud cover and the extent of winter storm activity although they are difficult to differentiate from only light-table observations. In this analysis both thin radiation crusts and wind crusts are not in themselves significant indicators of long-term temperature trends, but may serve as incipient subsurface horizons or barrier crusts for the formation of thicker ice melt features caused by downward melt percolation during elevated surface temperature conditions.

More than 10 000 individual melt features, including ice layers, ice lenses and ice wedges (but excluding ice glands) were measured down to a depth of 1278 m; below this depth transformation of air bubbles to transparent air hydrate inclusions occurs (Shoji and Langway, 1987) and the megascopic melt features become obscure. The melt-feature data extends back to 1883 B.c. or approximately 3900 years B.P., based on the accurate time scale of continuous δ18O measurements (Dansgaard and others, 1985) For the entire core profile investigated the annual melt percentage is 5.7. Individual melt features range in thickness from 1 mm to 100 mm. A mean value for melt-feature thickness was calculated for continuous 30-year time intervals to consider the general long-term summer temperature trends with corrections made for progressive annual accumulation layer thinning due to ice flow.

Since the AMP parameter includes noise from radiation and wind crusts it appears that the simple average of melt-feature thickness per longer time-units is a better indication of air temperature paleodata. The average melt-feature thickness is 1.2 cm. The complete curve obtained shows a higher thickness value of about 1.5 cm for the period 1800 B.C. to 1300 B.C. A lower, almost constant thickness value of about 1cm is shown for the period 1000 B.c. to 1800 A.D., with a slight reduction in thickness recorded around 200 B.C., 400 A.D. and 1600 A.D. These long-term trends are coherent with those recorded in the δ18O profile for the same ice core.
Atmospheric Chemistry Changes Over The Last Climatic Cycle (180 000 Years) Inferred From The Vostok (Antarctica) Ice-Core Study
Authors: Legrand M. , Feniet-Saigne C. , Petit J.R.
Published: September 2017

A 2 200 m-deep ice core from Vostok Station (East Antarctica) has been used for a comprehensive study of a series of ions (Na+ NH4+, K+, H+, Ca2+, Mg2+, C1−, F−, NO3− and SO42−) originating from impurities deposited over the whole last climatic cycle (180 000 years) as depicted from the isotopic composition of the ice.

Concentration profiles confirm that both marine and terrestrial aerosol inputs were higher (up to five and 30 times the Holocene values respectively) during cold climatic conditions. Such large variations of marine and terrestrial aerosol concentrations measured in ice mainly reflect global (source strength and atmospheric transport efficiency) changes, and to a lesser extent local (deposition) changes.

As opposed to these primary aerosols, secondary aerosols or gases (HNO3, HC1) exhibit more moderate variations. Finally, variations of other minor ions such as NH4+ provide information on the capacity of ammonia to neutralize the natural acidity of the past background atmosphere.

Spectral analyses performed on our chemical profiles (200 samples) exhibit several specific periodicities (around 20 and 40 k year) close to the Earth's orbit tilt and precession frequencies which are discussed in terms of atmospheric response to climatic fluctuations.
Free Oscillations of the Earth Climate System: A Theory of the 100 kyr Climate Cycle
Authors: MacKay R.M. , Khalil M.A.K.
Published: September 2017

A physically plausible theory of the 100 kyr climate cycle is proposed. Free oscillations between the mean ocean temperature and the marine ice-margin colatitude are shown to exist without requiring orbital forcing. It is shown that the curvature of the Earth causes two effects: (1) as the marine ice margin grows towards the equator, the net emmision of radiation (solar and terrestrial) per unit surface area increases; and (2) as the poleward extent of the ocean decreases, the net absorption of radiation per unit surface area increases. These radiation balance considerations, included with a realistic meridional transport of energy from the ocean to the marine-ice region and an atmospheric feedback process enhancing the ocean warming, are combined to form two nonlinear differential equations coupling the mean ocean temperature with the marine-ice margin colatitude. Using physically realistic parameters we are able to reproduce the major features of the 100 kyr climate cycle. This can be seen from Figure I which shows the δ18O record as given by Imbrie and others (1984), plotted against the model output. In addition we have found that the parameters used to obtain the general features of the ice-volume record also predict temperature “spikes” (1 to 2 K. above average) of relatively short duration (5 to 10 kyr) in the mean ocean temperature. We find that there is good qualitative agreement between the model's predicted mean ocean temperature and the estimation of summer sea-surface temperature at RC11-120 presented by Martinson and others (1987).
Ice-Core Evidence For Weddell Sea Ice Extent During The Past 200 Years
Authors: Mulvaney R. , Reid A.P. , Peel D A.
Published: September 2017

A continuous, detailed, 200-years record of the anionic species, chloride, nitrate and sulphate, has been measured on an ice core from Dolleman Island (70°35.2′ S, 60°55.5′ W), Antarctic Peninsula. The site lies on the east coast of the Peninsula, and the chemistry of the core is dominated by the changing pattern of sea-ice distribution and storm activity in the Wed dell Sea. Strong annual cycles in chloride and non sea salt sulphate reflect the dominance of the seasonal cycle in sea-ice distribution in the Weddell Sea, observed in time series derived from satellite imagery since the early 1970s. However, in the case of chloride there is also an exceptionally strong interannual variability, which in many parts of the core dominates the seasonal cycle.

Secular variations in the sea-ice extent appear to have a strong influence on the climate of the region and may play a major role in determining how long-term climate change in the Antarctic Peninsula relates to global climate change. The paper examines documented evidence for sea-ice extent in the Weddell Sea sector, and evaluates the usefulness of ice-core data for reconstructing this parameter in the earlier period.
Late Pleistocene Glacier Dynamics and Paleoclimate Of South-Western Montana and North-Eastern Idaho. U.S.A.
Authors: Murray Donald R.
Published: September 2017

Reliable reconstructions of paleoglaciers using topographic maps and aerial photographs allow calculation of effective basal shear stresses along the longitudinal profiles of these glaciers. Glacial flow theory applied to these shear stresses provides an estimate of the component of mass flux due to internal deformation. Assuming basal slip to be zero at the point where deformation mass flux is a maximum, minimum average accumulation gradients (above the equilibrium-line altitude (ELA)) and ablation gradients (below the ELA) can be calculated and minimum mass flux at the ELA can be estimated using the continuity equation. Average net winter accumulation can also be calculated by dividing the mass flux at the ELA by the accumulation area. Because local climate controls the mass balance of a glacier, and therefore the accumulation and ablation gradients, this model provides information on the climatic setting of these paleoglaciers.

This model also allows estimation of basal slip as a factor in point estimates of glacial flow. Application of the continuity model above and below the ELA generates additional estimates of mass flux at discrete points along the glacier. The difference between deformation mass flux and continuity flux at these points yields a first approximation of basal slip, which is highly variable along the glacier.

The model was tested on the Big Timber glacier of west-central Montana and applied to several other late Pleistocene glaciers in the northern Rocky Mountains of south-western Montana and north-eastern Idaho. Low ablation gradients (<4.0 mm m-1) suggest a climate during the late Pleistocene comparable to the present-day climate of the Brooks Range in Alaska. Calculated average net winter accumulation for the area is well below modern values, again indicating that the climate was much drier during the full glacial period. Basal sliding accounts for most (>90%) of the glacial flow near the terminus of each glacier but is variable along the rest of the glacier. While the mass-balance values are minima, they are assumed to be reasonable approximations of the actual values unless very high basal slip rates occurred along the entire length of each glacier.
200-Hundred Year Climate Record From Antarctic Peninsula
Authors: Peel D.A. , Mulvaney R.
Published: September 2017

A stable isotope record extending back to 1795 is now available from Dolleman Island (70°35.2′S, 60°55.5′W), a small ice rise on the Weddell Sea coast of Antarctic Peninsula. An accurate chronology has been achieved by combined stratigraphic analysis of clear seasonal cycles in δ18O and excess SO4. Previous work (Peel and others, 1988) has shown that, since 1947, there is generally a satisfactory correlation between interannual variations in δ18O and air temperature (T) as recorded at weather stations in various parts of the region, suggesting that the derived δ18O/T ratio may be used to reconstruct air temperatures for the earlier period.

Taken together with previously-reported data (Aristarain and others, 1986) for an ice core from James Ross Island it is now possible to propose a regional climatic signal for the Weddell Sea coastal sector of the region. The most striking feature is a broad maximum in δ18O for the mid-19th century, implying decadal average temperature at least as high as the present. This contrasts with available evidence from elsewhere in the southern hemisphere which suggest that this period was cooler than today. Tentative explanations for the anomaly are proposed based on evidence for a period (1974–80), where climatic shifts are clearly amplified in the isotopic records.
Changes In Glacier Length Induced By Climate Changes
Authors: Raymond C.F. , Waddington E.D. , Jøhannesson Tómas
Published: September 2017

Time scales for adjustment in the length of a glacier to changing climate may be described in terms of a relatively short time scale, TS and a longer memory time, Tm. The memory Tm represents the time scale needed for asymptotic approach of the glacier to a steady state following a climate change event. Tm is determined by simple continuity considerations concerning the total volume change that must occur to reach steady state and the balance rate that drives the change. We show that Tm is relatively independent of the size of the climate change or to details of how ice flow is related to the geometry of the glacier. The time scale TS represents the time between a climate event and the occurrence of substantial changes in the glacier length. We show that, in contrast to Tm, Ts is highly dependent on the size of the climate change and on details of ice dynamics. This dependence is investigated by several ice-flow models including a simple one in which ice transport is determined by local thickness and slope, as in the analysis of kinematic waves, and a finite element representation that fully includes longitudinal stress gradients. The ice-flow models are subjected to mass-balance perturbations of varying size — from small, for which linearization approximations are valid, to large, for which linearization breaks down.

The following behavior may be identified. Increasing the size of a mass-balance rate change causes a more rapid initial response of a glacier terminus, which tends to shorten Ts. Longitudinal stress gradients damp local variations in velocity and thereby slow the propagation and diffusion of kinematic waves and retard the response of the terminus, which tends to lengthen Ts. Longitudinal stress gradients transmit forces to the terminus region and influence the terminus motion without the necessity of redistributing mass from the glacier length into the terminus zone, which tends to shorten Ts. These various results indicate that accurate modeling of the short term responses of glaciers to climate change requires fairly sophisticated ice-flow models, However, for purposes of tracking glacier lengths (or areas) over time scales considerably great than Ts, fairly simple ice-flow models may suffice.
A Detailed Oxygen-18 Profile From The Greenland Ice-Sheet Margin Through The Wisconsinan-Holocene Transition
Authors: Reeh Niels , Letréguilly Anne , Oerter Hans
Published: September 2017

About 1500 surface-ice samples for δ18O analysis were collected in the 1988 field season along a 750 m profile perpendicular to the margin of the Greenland ice sheet at Pakitsoq, ca 40 km north-east of Jakobshavn, central West Greenland. The purpose of the study was to evaluate how well the continuity of the layer sequence is preserved in ice-margin records, a question of crucial importance for evaluating the potential yield of using ice margins as “mining areas” for easily accessible old ice for climate and environmental studies.

More than half of the 1500 samples were taken continuously as 20 cm samples along a 170 m section through the Wisconsinan-Holocene transition which, previously, had been located at the surface of the ice margin. Along this transition section δ18O values decrease by about 6‰ from −31.5 to 37.5‰ on an average. Detailed studies were made of surface elevations and surface structures (e.g. blue bands) along the “horizontal core” profile which, moreover, was photographed section by section, thus enabling the δ-record to be correlated with surface features.

Results of the δ18O analyses are promising. Even though ice from the blue bands has δ-values that are 7–8‰ higher than those of the surrounding white ice, there seems to be no discontinuity in the white-ice δ-record across the blue bands.
Can Milankovitch Variations Initiate The Growth Of Ice Sheets In A Global Circulation Model?
Authors: Rind David
Published: September 2017

The GISS climate model is used to investigate whether the growth of ice sheets could have been initiated by solar insolation variations. Three different orbital configurations are used, corresponding to 116 000 yr B.P., 106 000 yr B.P., and a modified insolation field with greater reductions in summer insolation at high northern latitudes. The time periods chosen are those in which geophysical evidence implies that ice sheets were growing rapidly.

The results show that the model fails to maintain snow cover through the summer at locations of suspected initiation of the major ice sheets, despite the reduced summer insolation. When 10 m-thick ice was inserted in all locations where continental ice sheets existed during the last glacial maximum, the model failed to maintain it as well: the ice would melt away in less than five years. Only cooling the ocean to its full ice-age value allowed the model to keep any of the additional ice, and then only in a very restricted region in northern Baffin Island.

The experiments indicate there is a wide discrepancy between the model’s response to Milankovitch variations and the geophysical evidence of ice sheet initiation. As the model failed to grow or sustain low-elevation ice during the time of high latitude maximum solar radiation reduction (120 000–100 000 yr B.P.), it is unlikely it could have done so at any time within the last several hundred thousand years. Either the model is not nearly sensitive enough, or we do not understand the connection between Milankovitch variations and the growth of ice sheets.
A 3500-Year Ice Chemistry Record From The Dominion Range, Antarctica: Linkages Between Climatic Variations and Precipitation Chemistry
Authors: Jo Spencer Mary , Mayewski Paul A. , Berry Lyons W. , Twickler Mark S. , Grootes Pieter
Published: September 2017

In 1984 a 200-m ice core was collected from a local accumulation basin in the Dominion Range, Transantarctic Mountains, Antarctica. A complete oxygen isotope record has been obtained and a considerable portion of the core has been analyzed in detail for chloride, nitrate, sulfate, and sodium. About half of the chloride is due to sea salt with the remainder originating as gaseous HCl. Nitrate levels have increased markedly over the last 1000 years whereas the levels of the other constituents have remained fairly constant.

The oxygen isotope results suggest that this region of Antarctica is responding to long-term global climate forcing as well as to shorter-term climatic variations. This data will be compared with the anion and sodium records in order to determine the effects of climatic forcing on these other records. In particular, nitrate appears to vary in concert with fluctuations in long-term climate. Additionally, variations in each constituent over the 3500 year period will be examined in detail to determine the influence of other processes which affect their concentrations.
Secular Trends Of Accumulation Rate On Ice Cores From Dunde Ice Cap, China Over The Last 1000 Years
Authors: Xiaoling Wu , Zhongqin Li , Zichu Xie
Published: September 2017

Cooperative research programs were conducted on the Dunde Ice Cap (38°06′N, 96°26′E), China, in 1984, 1986, 1987, by the Lanzhou Institute of Glaciology and Geocryology (LIGG), China and the Byrd Polar Research Center (BPRC), U.S.A. This paper gives the preliminary results of the analysis on accumulation rate of the ice cap over the last 1000 years. Three ice cores were recovered to bedrock from the ice-cap summit (5324 m a.s.l.). Core D-1 (139.8 m long) was divided in the field along the entire length and was shared equally between LIGG and BPRC. Core D-2 (136.6 m long) was returned frozen complete to the LIGG for ice-core measurements. In Core D-3 (138.4 m long) the upper sectors were melted and bottled in the field and the lower sectors were returned frozen to the BPRC, U.S.A. Core D-1 was analyzed in China along the entire length for oxygen isotope, liquid conductivity and pH. A year-by-year dating of the ice cores has been made with Dansgaard-Johnsen’s flow pattern by using the data of surface strain-rate (August 1986 to August 1987) and tritium measurements. The resulting time-scales of the ice cores in Dunde Ice Cap yield an age of 4600 yr B.P. The annual layer thicknesses of core D-1 were measured mainly by δ18O analysis and liquid conductivity. The lower δ18O is generally associated with higher electrical conductivity. Annual layer thickness was converted to accumulation rates and compared with meteorological records from Delingxa Meteorological Station. The mean accumulation rate is 518 mm in ice-equivalent. Particular attention is given to the possible impact of the Little Ice Age. Based on spectral analysis of time series for the accumulation variation with depth, short-term (30, 33 year at 0.01 level) and intermediate-term variation (120 year) were discussed. The ice-core research program has been supported by the Chinese National Foundation of Natural Science under Grant DO125-4860011.
Static Dielectric Constant as a Textural Index of Snow
Authors: Denoth A.
Published: September 2017

The dielectric constants of alpine snow samples with different stages of metamorphism and with different liquid water saturations have been measured in the frequency range of 10Hz to 50MHz using a plate condenser and network-analyzer. The limiting static dielectric constant, €s’, has been derived from the measured frequency dependence of the complex permittivity of snow by a least-square-fit using the model of Cole-Cole. A strong dependence of e on porosity, liquid water content and on the shape of the snow grains was found. Calculations of shape factors from the measured static permittivity based on the model of Polder and van Santen are given, and are compared to shape factors derived from an analysis of photographs of the snow samples.
Internal Freezing of Snow Cover due to its Own Cold Heat Sources (Abstract)
Authors: Yamada Y. , Ikarashi T.
Published: September 2017

This report discusses the one-dimensional freezing of dry snow/ wet snow systems for the condition first examined by Stefan: the problem of heat conduction with phase change. There are two systems of internal freezing: one is a closed system of temperature rise in a dry snow layer sandwiched between upper and lower wet snow layers; the other an open system of freezing of a thin wet layer provoked mainly by an upper dry snow layer facing the atmosphere at its surface. The latter negatively concerns the release of some avalanches, because the weak layers of surface avalanches in districts where the melt-freeze metamorphism prevails (as in the Horuriku district of Japan) may be the thin wet granular snow layers.

Numerical results are given for different conditions of internal freezing. A comparison with field observations reveals the fundamental aspect of this phenomenon and the possibility of avalanche release.
Snowfall series of Turin, 1784–1992: climatological analysis and action on structures
Authors: Leporati Ezio , Luca Mercalli
Published: September 2017

The snowfall series of Turin, northwest Italy, is one of the longest available for Europe, with daily observations starting in 1784 and continuous since 1788. The unpublished 207 years data set was carefully obtained from original manuscripts and filed on magnetic media. Mean yearly snowfall amount is 48.9 cm showing a high interannual variability (variation coefficient 79%), with about seven snow days from October through April; the maximum amount was measured in winter 1784–85 (233 cm), followed by 1808–9 with 163 cm. Maximum daily amount was on 4 December 1844 with 64 cm. During the whole period a negative trend is exhibited, increasing in the years following 1890. This pattern is confirmed by the Mann-Kendall test. The change derives from regional climate rather than expansion of the urban area. Return periods of yearly maximum snow loads are calculated in order to contribute to the definition of new values for structural design. A case study of heavy snowfall in January 1987 is examined.
A striped pattern of snowfall and snow cover
Authors: Nohguchi Yasuaki , Ikarashi Takashi , Abe Osamu , Sato Atsushi
Published: September 2017

A striped pattern can be seen by spraying ink on a vertical wall of a snow pit to observe the layered structure of a snow cover. This pattern is caused by variations of snowfall in time, particularly pauses in snowfall, and its structure is related to a kind of fractal. In this paper, we consider snowfall and snow cover from a viewpoint of fractals and show that the layered structure of snow cover is a record of fractals on atmospheric-turbulence phenomena through the time variation of snowfall.
Measuring sea-ice concentration and floe-size distribution by image processing
Authors: Muramoto Ken-Ichiro , Matsuura Kohki , Endoh Tatsuo
Published: September 2017

A technique for analyzing sea-ice concentration and floe-size distribution by means of image processing is proposed. The sea ice was photographed by video camera from the ship. The technique proposed for analyzing sea-ice images can be applied on line or off line. In on-line analysis, sea-ice images photographed by a video camera are digitized in real time. Ice concentration is calculated by summing ice pixels of each row of a digital image and ice shape can be obtained roughly by a composition of each row. In off-line analysis, sea-ice images recorded to a video recorder are processed. Both ice shape and ice concentration can be obtained accurately by analyzing predetermined square regions of an image. Although the off-line method requires more time to calculate, it is useful for detailed analysis of regional ice properties. Computations of ice concentration and floe-size distribution are performed using images obtained between Breid Bay and Syowa Station in 1988.
Depth-hoar crystal growth in the surface layer under high temperature gradient
Authors: Fukuzawa Takuya , Akitaya Eizi
Published: September 2017

The quick growth of depth-hoar crystals was observed at night-time just below the snow surface on a south-facing slope. This growth was due to a high temperature gradient (> 100 K m−1) near the snow surface under clear skies after a thin deposition of new snow on older and denser snow. The temperature gradient was greater when internal melting had taken place during daytime, keeping the sub-surface snow temperature at 0°C even after sunset until all liquid water had frozen. To understand the relationship between the crystal growth rate and the temperature gradient, a series of experiments was carried out in the laboratory. The snow sample was set under a constant temperature gradient between 100 and 300 K m− and sustained for about 50 h. The average crystal size increased linearly with time and the crystal growth rate increased as the given temperature gradient increased. The growth rates were in the order of 10−9 m s−1, which gave a good agreement with the results of the field observation.
Theoretical approach describing the thermal regime of snow-covered sea ice
Authors: Ono Nobuo , Krass Maxim S.
Published: September 2017

As the greater part of sea-ice area is covered with snow, the thermal regime of sea ice is characterized by the thermal behavior of snow-covered sea ice. In this paper the thermal regime of snow-covered sea ice is quantitatively investigated with a one-dimensional non-linear boundary model which contains: compaction of snow cover; internal absorption of solar radiation; evaporation–condensation within snow cover; equilibrium phase change of brine within sea ice; and vertical oceanic heat flux from seawater to ice. Penetration of air temperature oscillations into the snow-covered sea ice increases remarkably with increasing snow density. As internal melting within the snow-covered sea ice appears with increasing solar radiation, the rise in air temperature and increase of solar radiation in the springtime produce a corresponding change in the thermal state of sea ice, causing a drastic retreat of sea-ice cover. A case study for warm sea ice is presented describing the thermal state during the melting season.
Isotopic fractionation during grain coarsening of wet snow
Authors: Nakawo Masayoshi , Chiba Shigeru , Satake Hiroshi , Kinouchi Shigeru
Published: September 2017

Isotopic composition of solid and liquid portions of wet snow was investigated experimentally. The compositions changed with time, δ values of ice becoming heavier than those for water. A simple model was proposed to explain their temporal variation. It predicted, however, a more rapid change of δ values than the trend obtained in the experiments. This suggests the presence of a “diffusion layer” adjacent to growing snow particles, where isotope concentration has dropped at the ice-water interface because of the fractionation during grain coarsening. The slope in δD–δ18O diagram estimated by the model is compatible with the experimental data. It is considered, therefore, that the freezing fraction, the part of the liquid which refreezes to relatively large particles during grain coarsening, could be estimated by measuring the isotope concentration.
Structures of snow cloud in dry-snow avalanches
Authors: Nishimura K. , Maeno N. , Kawada K. , Izumi K.
Published: September 2017

During two winter seasons, we observed avalanche winds and the air movement in the snow dust region. The wind velocity near the avalanche front was comparable to the averaged internal velocity of the front region. The avalanche wind blew down the valley. However, there was a rising air current just before the avalanche front. The wind velocity and direction showed a periodic change in the snow cloud region, from which the size of the ordered structure (vortex) was estimated to be 35–70 m. The density of the frontal part of one avalanche was estimated to be 1.9–3.8 kg m−3.
Estimated seasonal snow cover and snowfall in Japan
Authors: Nakamura Tsutomu , Abe Osamu
Published: September 2017

The average amounts of seasonal snow cover and snowfall in Japan were calculated as 7.9 × 1013kg and 1.2 × 1014kg, respectively. The mass of seasonal snow cover of a heavy-snowfall winter, 1980–81 (56-Gosetsu), was calculated as 1.3 × 1014kg. The amount of 7.9 × 1013kg was converted to water equivalent of 230 mm on the whole snow-covered area, including snow-prone area. A mean of 370 mm in snow water equivalent was calculated for the snow area where mean snow depth on the ground was more than 10 cm.
The influence of the layered character of snow cover on the triggering of slab avalanches
Authors: Schweizer Jürg
Published: September 2017

One of the principal aims of avalanche warning is to prevent slab avalanches triggered by skiers. Other than explosives, the best practical tool for stability evaluation is the Rutschblock test. Whether the slab may be triggered by a skier depends on various slab characteristics. Important factors seem to be depth of the weak layer, slab hardness and sublayering of the slab. The stress distribution induced by a skier is calculated by the finite element method for typical snow-cover configurations. The additional shear stress is of the same order of magnitude as the shear strength of weak layers. Besides the critical weak layer — prerequisite for a slab avalanche — hard layers seem to be important. The analysis suggests that a shear failure is most probable at the transition from a hard to a soft layer. This corresponds well to observations of slab-avalanche profiles. The results may help to improve and quantify the analysis of snow profiles.
Air-gap formation by snow melting
Authors: Nohguchi Yasuaki
Published: September 2017

This paper describes theoretically the formation of air gaps at the lower boundary of a snow cover during basal melting. In general, initiation of the formation of air gaps is dependent on both the horizontal heterogeneity of the snowmelt rate and viscous deformation. From this point of view, we propose a dimensionless parameter ξ (bridge-effect ratio) which is a function of the amplitude and wavelength of the heterogeneity of the snowmelt rate at the base, and the density, thickness and viscosity of the snow. This parameter expresses the heterogeneity of the normal stress at the base. We derive a necessary condition for air-gap formation in terms of the bridge-effect ratio, and show that a large amplitude, a small wavelength, a high density, a thin layer and/or high viscosities are favorable for air-gap formation.
A microstructure-based constitutive law for snow
Authors: Mahajan Puneet , Brown Robert L.
Published: September 2017

A constitutive theory of snow is developed to describe the mechanical properties of snow in terms of the properties of the ice grains and the necks that interconnect them. The principle of virtual work is used to calculate the stresses in the particles and necks. A number of different deformation mechanisms are investigated and, depending upon the deformation mechanism which is dominant for given load conditions, different equations are used to calculate the strains in the grains and necks. These strains around a representative ice grain are then averaged and scaled to obtain the global strains in the snow. The theory is then compared with experimental data to determine if the mechanical properties of snow can be adequately represented. Results show that the constitutive theory does work, but that it is cumbersome to implement, and that for practical use substantial computational capability is needed.
Comparison of snow-removal technologies practised in the cities along the Sea of Japan
Authors: Hayakawa Norio , Umemura Teruyoshi , Fukushima Yusuke
Published: September 2017

The region along the Sea of Japan is unusual in that it has very heavy snow and rather mild winter temperatures. Three major snow-removal technologies currently practised in the region, i.e. use of snow-removal machines, snow-melting pipe system and snow-dumping channel network, are described and their practice, engineering and economical aspects discussed.
Observations of the dynamic structure of snow avalanches
Authors: Nishimura K. , Maeno N. , Sandersen F. , Kristensen K. , Norem H. , Lied K.
Published: September 2017

During two winters, 1990–92, the dynamic structures of snow avalanches were studied in western Norway. Artificially released wet-snow avalanches ran down the avalanche chute and stopped in front of the retaining dam. Running velocity distributions were obtained not only by video tape recorder, but also by various other recording instruments. Internal velocity was derived for the last avalanche by frequency analysis of impact pressure and optical sensor data. The vertical velocity shear of the avalanche flow has been estimated to be in the range 1–10 s−1.
New methods to study snowfall using remote sensing
Authors: Koike Tosio , Goto Iwao , Hayakawa Norio , Wakatsuki Kazuto
Published: September 2017

Methods for monitoring cloud development over the Sea of Japan under the winter monsoon are presented for the purpose of developing a snowfall forecasting system. The three-dimensional shape of aligned cumulus rows has been identified using Landsat TM data. Data on water vapor and cloud liquid-water contents over the Sea of Japan have also been obtained, but for a different case, using two microwave bands of MSR (23.8 GHz and 31.4 GHz) and two thermal infrared bands of VTIR aboard MOS-1. Using these data, characteristics of the streak-like cloud under a winter monsoon airflow are identified.
Predicted response of the calving glacier Svartisheibreen, Norway, and outbursts from it, to future changes in climate and lake level
Authors: Kennett Michael , Laumann Tron , Kjøllmoen Bjarne
Published: September 2017

The Svartisheibreen glacier in northern Norway has been investigated since 1988 in connection with a proposed hydropower scheme. The scheme includes regulation of the lake into which the glacier calves. A one-dimensional flow model has been used to estimate the response of the glacier to changes in mass balance and lake level. The model predicts that a net balance, excluding calving, of 0 m a−1 will cause the glacier to retreat approximately 400 m over 50 years if lake level is maintained at 774 m a.s.l., but that the glacier front will not move significantly if lake level is lowered to 720 m a.s.l. In 1989 and 1991, lake outbursts occurred beneath the glacier. The 1991 outburst was monitored, and culminated in a peak discharge of only 3.5 m3 s−1, much less than for other reported outbursts. This outburst can be explained in a model in which the outburst tunnel passes over a subglacial threshold approximately 70 m behind the 1991 calving front. The model shows that outbursts will probably increase dramatically in size if the front retreats beyond this threshold.