bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Interpretation of Radio-Echo Returns from Internal Water Bodies in Variegated Glacier, Alaska, U.S.A.
Authors: Jacobel Robert W. , Anderson Stefan K.
Published: September 2017

Radio echo-sounding studies were used to detect water-filled cavities on Variegated Glacier, Alaska, during its surge in 1983. Cavity locations were determined by spatial surveys, and changes in cavity size and water content over a 5 week period were inferred from phase and amplitude changes in the echo wave form. Data were taken at both 4 and 8 MHz central frequencies of the impulse transmitter. These bi-frequency results, together with spectral analysis of the digitized wave forms, were used to provide additional information about the cavity dimensions. Cavity response is interpreted in terms of a simplified model of a thin layer of strong dielectric contrast. Computer simulations of radar pulses encountering such layers reproduce the main features of the data.
Airborne River-Ice Thickness Profiling with Helicopter-Borne UHF Short-Pulse Radar
Authors: Arcone Steven A , Delaney Allan J
Published: September 2017

The ice-thickness profiling performance of a helicopter-mounted short-pulse radar operating at approximate center frequencies of 600 and 900 MHz was assessed. The antenna packages were mounted 1.2 m off the skid of a small helicopter whose speed and altitude were varied from about 1.8 to 9 m/s and 3 to 12 m. Clutter from the helicopter offered minimal interference with the ice data. Data were acquired in Alaska over lakes (as a proving exercise) and two rivers, whose conditions varied from open water to over 1.5 m of solid ice with numerous frazil-ice formations. The most readily interpretable data were acquired when the ice or snow surface was smooth. Detailed surface investigations on the Tanana River revealed good correlations of echo delay with solid ice depth, but an insensitivity to frazil-ice depth due to its high water content. On the Yukon River, coinciding temporally coherent surface and bottom reflections were associated with solid ice and smooth surfaces. All cases of incoherent surface returns (scatter) occurred over ice rubble. Rough-surface scattering was always followed by the appearance of bottom scattering but, in many cases, including a hanging-wall formation of solid frazil ice, bottom scattering occurred beneath coherent, smooth-surface reflections. Areas of incoherent bottom scattering investigated by drilling revealed highly variable ice conditions, including frazil ice. The minimum ice thickness that could be resolved from the raw data was about 0.2 m with the 600 MHz antenna and less than 0.15 m with the 900 MHz antenna.
Environmental Constraints on West Antarctic Ice-Sheet Formation
Authors: Lindstrom D.R. , MacAyeal D.R.
Published: September 2017

Small perturbations in Antarctic environ-mental conditions can culminate in the demise of the Antarctic ice sheet’s western sector. This may have happened during the last interglacial period, and could recur within the next millennium due to atmospheric warming from trace gas and CO2increases. In this study, we investigate the importance of sea-level, accumulation rate, and ice influx from the East Antarctic ice sheet in the re-establishment of the West Antarctic ice sheet from a thin cover using a time-dependent numerical ice-shelf model. Our results show that a precursor to the West Antarctic ice sheet can form within 3000 years. Sea-level lowering caused by ice-sheet development in the Northern Hemisphere has the greatest environmental influence. Under favorable conditions, ice grounding occurs over all parts of the West Antarctic ice sheet except up-stream of Thwaites Glacier and in the Ross Sea region.
Calculation of Mass Balance of Glaciers by Remote-Sensing Imagery Using Similarity of Accumulation and Ablation Isoline Patterns
Authors: Krenke A.N , Menshutin V.M
Published: September 2017

An investigation of the combined heat, ice, and water balances was carried out in the Marukh glacier basin (west Caucasus) in 1966–67 to 1976–77, according to the International Hydrological Decade programme. Averaged glacier mass balance for these 11 years appears to be −55 g cm−2 year−1 according to stake measurements, and −51 g cm−2 year−1 according to geodetic measurements. The variability of accumulation is estimated as Cv = 0.15 and of ablation as Cv = 0.11. Thus, the variation in accumulation governs the oscillations in glacier balance. The inner nourishment of the glacier was also taken into account. The glacier mass balance is closely related to the relation between the accumulation and ablation areas. The “transient” values of both figures during the whole period of ablation can be used for this relation. The forms of the accumulation and ablation fields are similar from year to year and from one 10 day period to another. The areas of the accumulation and ablation zones are very different from one year to another. On the contrary, the average specific balance for each zone changes very little. One can use these features for the construction of accumulation, ablation, and specific mass-balance maps from satellite imagery. Mean values for the mass-balance terms occur in the vicinity of the equilibrium line. They can be calculated by using the air temperatures. Deviations from the means in different areas of the glacier determine the typical fields of the mass-balance terms.
Two-Dimensional Spreading and Thickening of Aufeis
Authors: Schohl G.A. , Ettema R.
Published: September 2017

The growth of two-dimensional, or laterally confined (flume), aufeis is shown from laboratory data to depend primarily on seven, independent, dimensionless parameters. During the early, two-dimensional, phase of its growth, aufeis consists of a mixture of ice and water, or ice-water slush, forming on a frigid base. Its early growth depends on four parameters: those expressing position along aufeis, period of spreading, slope of frigid base over which aufeis forms, and magnitude of heat flux to air from the surface of aufeis relative to latent heat release during freezing. The influences of two of the three remaining parameters, those expressing magnitude of heat flux to air relative to heat flux to frigid base and confined width of aufeis growth, are not felt until after a transition time has passed. The transition time apparently coincides with the beginning of the processes by which the ice-water slush on the surface of aufeis freezes solid. After a slush layer on aufeis begins to freeze solid, a new slush layer forms over its frozen surface. The continuing, cyclic process by which slush layers form and eventually freeze results in the ice laminations that are a feature of aufeis. The influence of the seventh governing parameter, a Reynolds number, cannot be discerned in the laboratory data.
BEPERS pilot study: an experiment with X-band synthetic aperture radar over Baltic Sea ice
Authors: Leppäranta Matti , Kuittinen Rlsto , Askne Jan
Published: September 2017

Remote-sensing methods are the primary ones used for ice mapping in the Baltic Sea. A major methodological improvement is now being introduced by satellite radars due to their weather independency and high resolution. To learn how to use ERS-1 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data, an extensive field programme BEPERS (Bothnian Experiment in Preparation for ERS-1) with airborne SARs has been arranged. The BEPERS pilot study was undertaken in 1987 using the French VARAN-S X-band SAR. The SAR was flown on 1 day over four study areas of size approximately 10 km x 50 km, and intensive validation observations were made. The data were most useful for the education they provided on how to work with SAR in sea-ice mapping. They have been used for developing SAR image-analysis methods, back-scatter modelling investigations and geophysical validation of SAR imagery. Cleaning-up of images consisted of speckle reduction and segmentation. Back-scatter characteristics of undeformed ice and ridges were examined. Ice-type classification was based on the box-classification method. Eight ice types were defined but basically only two types, undeformed ice/open water and deformed ice, could be discriminated. Two basic problems of high practical importance remained: how to discriminate between (1) open water and undeformed ice, and (2) ridged ice and brash ice. The data further showed illustrative examples of SAR imagery over sea ice.
Predicted time-scales for GISP2 and GRIP boreholes at Summit, Greenland
Authors: Schøtt Christine , Waddington E. D. , Raymond C. F.
Published: September 2017

Two deep-drilling projects (GISP2 and GRIP) in central Greenland will provide ice cores for paleoclimate studies. Drilling decisions and preliminary interpretations require age-depth curves (time-scales). Using a finite-element momentum-balance model, we calculate the modern ice-flow pattern on the flowline through the two drill sites. Our model appears to require relatively soft ice either throughout the ice sheet or below the Wisconsinan-Holocene transition in order to match the modern geometry and mass balance. By scaling the ice velocity to an assumed mass-balance history throughout the past 200 000 years, we estimate the time-scales at both sites. At GISP2, a flank site, we place the 10 000 years BP isochrone (representing the Wisconsinan-Holocene transition) at 1535 m ice-equivalent depth. At GRIP, on the ice divide, the corresponding depth is 1377 m. Our calculations show ice older than 200 000 years at 100 m above the bed at both coring sites. The time-scale calculation can be used for drilling decisions and preliminary interpretations. It should be refined as more regional-survey and ice-core data become available.
How can low-pressure channels and deforming tills coexist subglacially?
Authors: Alley Richard B.
Published: September 2017

Deforming till and low-pressure water channels are observed to coexist subglacially, but till also is observed to creep rapidly into low-pressure subglacial regions. A simple model shows that these observations are not contradictory. Creep of a thin till to a low-pressure region can occur from a narrow zone only, and will lead to isolation of channels from till farther away.
Snow Clearance on Railways
Authors: Wallace W. K.
Published: September 2017

The prevention of snow accumulation on the tracks of railways in Great Britain. Various methods of removal, once lines have been blocked, are discussed in the light of the comparatively small snowfalls in the British Isles.
Ice Fabrics in a Vertical Flow Plane, Barnes Ice Cap, Canada
Authors: Hooke Roger Leb. , Hudleston Peter J.
Published: September 2017

At a depth of about 75 m in the lower part of the accumulation area of the Barnes Ice Cap there is a change from fine-grained ice with a weakly-oriented c-axis fabric to coarser ice with a broad single-maximum fabric. At a depth of about 150 m the single maximum becomes elongate perpendicular to the direction of bubble elongation, and then splits into two distinct maxima making an angle of about 40–45° with respect to one another. At greater depths a third and finally a fourth maximum appear, forming the well known diamond pattern. Mean crystal size does not seem to increase in the transitions from one to two and thence to three maxima, but it may become more uniform. Crystal size does increase in the transition from three to four maxima, however. At the base of the glacier there is a 10–20 m thick layer of unusually-bubbly, fine-grained white ice with a strong single-maximum fabric.

The depths to the transitions increase up-glacier and in place of the single-maximum fabric a small-circle pattern is found. Down-glacier the depths to the transitions decrease, systematically eliminating the higher zones. Thus in the lower part of the ablation area, ice with a four-maximum fabric appears at the surface.

The independent variables governing these fabric transitions appear to be temperature T, stress τ, and cumulative strain ³oc. In a tentative stability diagram showing the fields in which given fabrics are stable in T–τ–³oc space, multiple-maximum fabrics occur at high temperatures (> —10°C) and at moderate to high stresses, weakly-oriented fabrics at low stresses or low cumulative strains, broad single-maximum fabrics at moderate stresses or moderate cumulative strains, and strong single-maximum fabrics at high stresses or large cumulative strains.
A Comparison between the Modern and Composite Pleistocene Snow-lines, Absaroka and Beartooth Mountains, Montana-wyoming, U.S.A.
Authors: Zwick Thomas T.
Published: September 2017

The modern and composite Pleistocene snow-lines of the Absaroka and Beartooth Mountains, Montana-Wyoming, were established from a population of 135 north-facing cirques and cirque glaciers distributed across Boulder River, Stillwater River, Rosebud, and Rock Creeks. The 3110 m elevation of the modern snow-line was established by connecting the accumulation-area ratios of 35 existing cirque glaciers. The composite Pleistocene snow-line was established by joining the mean floor elevations of the lowest abandoned cirques.

Comparison of the modern and composite Pleistocene snow-lines indicates that the composite Pleistocene snow-line was depressed, at minimum, 305 m during the Pleistocene. The 305 m depression suggests that the mean Pleistocene temperatures were, at a minimum, 1.9 deg lower than the present mean annual temperatures found in the study area.

Both the modern and Pleistocene snow-lines slope towards lower elevations in the Boulder and Stillwater drainages than in the Rosebud–Rock Creek drainages. Modern precipitation rates also show greater precipitation in the Boulder–Stillwater drainages than the Rosebud–Rock Creek drainages. The parallelism of the modern and composite Pleistocene snow-lines, and present precipitation rates suggest that temperature rather than precipitation is the controlling factor causing the depression of the snow-lines.

The distribution of cirque elevations indicates that snow-lines fluctuated a minimum of four times during the Pleistocene.
Large Salt Beds on the Surface of the Ross Ice Shelf Near Black Island, Antarctica
Authors: Brady Howard Thomas , Batts Barry
Published: September 2017

An extensive system of mirabilite (Na2SO4 · 10H2O) beds has been mapped on the Ross Ice Shelf near Black Island. The salt beds are normally underlain by a thin layer of mud and their surface is covered by a non-marine algal mat and boulder lag. These authors suggest the salt has been formed by the displacement of sub-ice-shelf brines to the ice-shelf surface. Evidence also suggests that other terrestrial mirabilite beds in the McMurdo Sound area were formed in the same manner and deposited by the Ross Ice Shelf during its Wisconsin retreat from McMurdo Sound. Mirabilite salt in the dry valleys, southern Victoria Land, may have also originated from melt waters which dissolved ice-shelf mirabilite beds.
Variational Methods for Glacier Mechanics Problems
Authors: Oakberg Robert G.
Published: September 2017

The object of the research is to determine whether direct methods from the calculus of variations can provide convenient approximate solutions of complex problems in glacier mechanics. The Ritz technique is used to minimize an appropriate functional. Coordinate functions obtained from a finite-element model are combined with a coordinate function that is the solution of a related problem. The finite-element coordinate functions make localized adjustments to the related solution. Solutions of two sample problems are presented. An analysis of the closure of an intergranular vein in ice at the melting point is based upon a variational principle for velocities. An analysis of the flow of ice in a cylindrical channel is based upon a variational principle for stresses.
The Steady Profile of an Axisymmetric Ice Sheet
Authors: Johnson I. R.
Published: September 2017

Steady plane flow under gravity of an axisymmetric ice sheet resting on a horizontal rigid bed, subject to surface accumulation and ablation, basal drainage, and basal sliding is treated according to a power law between shear traction and velocity. The surface accumulation is taken to depend on height, and the drainage and sliding coefficient also depend on the height of overlying ice. The ice is described as a general non-linearly viscous incompressible fluid, and temperature variation through the ice sheet is neglected. Illustrations are presented for Glen’s power law (including the special case of a Newtonian fluid), and the polynomial law of Colbeck and Evans. The analysis follows that of Morland and Johnson (1980) where the analogous problem for an ice sheet deforming under plane flow was considered. Comparisons are made between the two models and it is found that the effect of the third dimension is to reduce (or leave unchanged) the aspect ratio for the cases considered, although no general formula can be obtained. This reduction is seen to depend on both the surface accumulation and the sliding law.
Application of the Gravity Flow Theory to the Percolation of Melt Water Through Firn
Authors: Ambach W. , Blumthaler M. , Kirchlechner P.
Published: September 2017

Application of the gravity flow theory to the percolation of melt water through the firn in the accumulation area of a temperate glacier explains the occurrence of shock fronts in the melt-water flux. The time of propagation of a shock front moving from the surface through the entire firn was calculated under various assumptions. Various time input functions of melt-water flux at the surface with constant total input volumes yield only slight differences in the time of propagation of the shock front at greater depths. The dependence of the time of propagation of a shock front on the input volume, on snow parameters, and on the total thickness of the firn was calculated. An approximately linear relation was found to exist between the time of propagation of a shock front moving through the firn and the total thickness of the firn. The drainage of melt water from the firn after the summer ablation period is also quantitatively explained by the gravity flow theory. All results are in good agreement with experimental data.
Triaxial Testing of Frozen Sand
Authors: Parameswaran V. R. , Jones S. J.
Published: September 2017

Triaxial testing of frozen saturated Ottawa sand under confined compression was carried out under hydrostatic pressures varying between 0.1 and 75 MPa at a temperature of -10°C and strain-rate 7.7×10-5s-1. Yield and failure stresses increased with increasing hydrostatic pressures up to about 40 MPa, beyond which the stresses dropped. The results are analysed according to the Mohr-Coulomb failure criterion and compared with past results in the literature.
Field Measurement of the Liquid-Water Content of Snow
Authors: Morris E. M.
Published: September 2017

Field trials show that the liquid-water content of snow can be determined simply and cheaply by a version of Bader’s solution method.
An Active Rock Glacier, Wavbal Pass, Jammu and Kashmir Himalaya, India
Authors: Mayewski P. A. , Jeschke P. A. , Ahmad N.
Published: September 2017

A currently active rock glacier with a snout elevation of 4055 m was observed in the Jammu and Kashmir Himalaya. Its formation is ascribed to stagnation of the terminal area of a true glacier.
First Glaciological Studies on the James Ross Island Ice Cap, Antarctic Peninsula
Authors: Aristarain A. J. , Delmas R.
Published: September 2017

A 10 m deep core and a 2 m pit were achieved in December 1977 on the ice cap of James Ross Island (Antarctic Peninsula) 3 km westward of the main dome at an altitude of 1 500 m. The 10 m temperature was −14.2°C. The core was cut into 106 samples which have been used for density, total β radioactivity, electroconductivity, and deuterium-content measurements. The age at the bottom of the bore hole has been estimated to be 1 965±1 year and a mean annual snow accumulation rate 37.7±3.0 g cm−2 a−1 is calculated over the last 13 years. By comparing our results with those obtained in other areas of the Peninsula, the climate of the upper part of James Ross Island seems to follow the climatic regime of the western coast. A preliminary chemical analysis of the pit samples leads us to conclude that the snow impurities are mainly sea-salt derived. The conductivity measurements show a clearly defined peak at the end of 1967 which could be linked with the volcanic eruption of the Deception Island volcano in December 1967. The interest of the studied location is discussed in view of further more extended glaciological investigations and particularly a possible coring to the bottom.
On Glacier Energy Balance, Ablation, and Air Temperature
Authors: Braithwaite Roger J.
Published: September 2017

The paper tries to reconcile the facts that there are often useful correlations between ablation or run-off and air temperature while net radiation is usually the major source of ablation energy. Equations are derived from the energy balance to describe statistics for the ablation-temperature relation in terms of statistics for the relations between individual energy fluxes and air temperature. As examples, statistics are evaluated for four published series from Arctic Canada. Although the net radiation is the largest energy source in all four cases, the ablation rate is moderately well correlated with temperature and poorly correlated with net radiation. This is because the sensible heat flux is more variable than the radiation in three cases and is itself better correlated with temperature in all four cases. The major contributions to the increase of ablation rate with temperature (on average 6.3 kg m−2d−1deg−1) are due to sensible heat, followed by latent heat with a small contribution from net radiation. The resulting ablation-temperature model explains about half the variance of ablation rate. The main application of such a simple model is for the estimation of ablation totals in areas where glaciological and hydrological data are sparse.
Creep Slump in Glacier Reservoirs—Theory and Experiment
Authors: Shoemaker E. M.
Published: September 2017

Frequently the reservoir region of a cold surge-type glacier has a temperate base, while in a region surrounding the reservoir the base is cold. We analyse the slump process in such a reservoir region— that is, the process whereby material flows toward the lower end of the region and forms a critical wave profile there. The model agrees qualitatively with observations of Trapridge Glacier, Yukon Territory, Canada, which is currently experiencing a critical pre-surge condition. Calculations based on the model give good agreement with the surge cycle time of Rusty Glacier, Yukon Territory. Laboratory experiments show that a large-amplitude slump-induced wave profile forms prior to a surge. Experimental surges were produced with velocity increases of order one hundred.
Conjectures, Hypotheses, and Theories of Drumlin Formation (In memory of Stanislaw Baranowski)
Authors: Smalley Ian J.
Published: September 2017

Recent investigations have shown that various factors may affect the shear strength of glacial till and that these factors may be involved in the drumlin-forming process. The presence of frozen till in the deforming zone, variation in pore-water pressure in the till, and the occurrence of random patches of dense stony-till texture have been considered. The occurrence of dense stony till may relate to the dilatancy hypothesis and can be considered a likely drumlin-forming factor within the region of critical stress levels. The up-glacier stress level now appears to be the more important, and to provide a sharper division between drumlin-forming and non-drumlin-forming conditions.
Ice Segregation as an Origin for Lenses of Non-Glacial Ice in “Ice-Cemented” Rock Glaciers
Authors: Wayne William J.
Published: September 2017

In order to flow with the gradients observed (10° to 15°) rock glaciers cannot be simply ice-cemented rock debris, but probably contain masses or lenses of debris-free ice. The nature and origin of the ice in rock glaciers that are in no way connected to ice glaciers has not been adequately explained. Rock glaciers and talus above them are permeable. Water from snow-melt and rain flows through the lower part of the debris on top of the bedrock floor. In the headward part of a rock glacier, where the total thickness is not great, if this groundwater flow is able to maintain water pressure against the base of an aggrading permafrost, segregation of ice lenses should take place. Ice segregation on a large scale would produce lenses of clear ice of sufficient size to permit the streams or lobes of rock debris to flow with gradients comparable to those of glaciers. It would also account for the substantial loss in volume that takes place when a rock glacier stabilizes and collapses.
Hoar-Crystal Method for Ice Fabrics
Authors: Shoji Hitoshi , Langway Chester C
Published: September 2017

A new method has been developed for the observation of crystal axes orientation in fine-grained polycrystalline ice (grain-size approximately one millimetre). A two per cent ethylene dichloride solution of polyvinyl formal (Formvar) is applied to the surface of a sample. This solution produces adequate density of small holes in the Formvar coating and subsequently the nucleation sites for hoar crystal growth. The geometrical shape of each hoar crystal reveals both the c-axis and a-axes orientations using an optical microscope.
Melting–Refreezing at the Glacier Sole and the Isotopic Composition of the Ice
Authors: Jouzel J. , Souchez R. A.
Published: September 2017

A model for the isotopic composition in δD and δ18O of ice formed by refreezing at the glacier sole is developed. This model predicts relatively well the distribution of points representing samples from basal layers of an Arctic and an Alpine glacier on a δD–δ18O diagram. The frozen fraction which is the part of the liquid that refreezes can be determined for each basal ice layer. This may have implications on the study of the ice–water system at the ice–rock interface.
Geomorphology of the Gor Garang Glaciers, Himachal Pradesh, India
Authors: Kaul M. K. , Sharma A. R. , Bhattacharya D. N.
Published: September 2017

The Gor Garung group of glaciers constitute an ice cover of over 4 km2 in a basin of 27 km2 area, lying in the Sutlej River catchment of the north–western Himalaya. This paper, the first record of these glaciers, their moraines and lakes observed in this area, is the result of mapping the glaciers and the pro–glacial field.

An attempt has been made to utilize lichenometry for establishing relative antiquity of various terminal moraine ridges generated by these glaciers, and six groups have been determined.
Motion of Sub-Freezing Ice Past Particles, with Applications to Wire Regelation and Frozen Soils
Authors: Walder Joseph S.
Published: September 2017

Existence of a very thin layer of adsorbed water adjacent to particles embedded in ice allows relative motion between ice and particles even at sub-freezing temperatures if there are either applied stresses or macroscopic temperature gradients. Theoretical analysis of such motion involving a single sphere demonstrates that such motion is dominantly due either to “viscous” deformation in the ice or to mass transport in the liquid layer at temperatures below the nominal pressure melting-point, depending on the ratio of the sphere’s radius to a temperature-dependent “transition radius”. This result should also hold for motion of a cylinder (for which the creeping flow problem has no known analytical solution). Reviewing data on wire regelation at sub-freezing temperatures in the context of this analysis suggests that all “anomalous” data correspond to cases in which wire radii were greater than the transition radius, leading to dominance of ice-deformation effects. Ice motion past very small particles, on the other hand, is essentially accommodated entirely by mass transfer through the liquid layer. This result lends support to the “rigid-ice” model of frost heaving as proposed by R.D. Miller and co-workers, and permits approximate analysis of ice movement through a porous soil. In all cases involving relative motion between ice and particles at sub-freezing temperatures, the existence of macroscopic temperature gradients plays an important role.
Grain Growth in Polar Ice: II. Application
Authors: Alley R.B. , Perepezko J.H. , Bentley C.R.
Published: September 2017

Grain growth observed in polar ice that is not deforming rapidly can be accounted for if concentrations and distributions of extrinsic materials (microparticles, bubbles, and dissolved impurities) are characterized fully. Dissolved impurities segregate to grain boundaries and slow grain growth in all cold glacial ice. The high concentration of soluble impurities in Wisconsinan ice from the Dome C (Antarctica) ice core (and perhaps other ice cores) probably causes the small grain-sizes observed in that ice. Microparticles have little effect on grain growth in ordinary ice. In ice layers that appear dirty owing to concentrations of volcanic tephra (such as in the Byrd Station (Antarctica) ice core) or of morainal material, micro particles reduce grain-growth rates significantly. The relatively high vapor pressure of ice allows rapid growth and high mobility of intergranular necks, so grain growth in firn is limited by boundary migration rather than by neck growth. Bubbles formed by pore close-off at the firn-ice transition are less mobile than grain boundaries, causing bubble-boundary separation whenever geometric constraints are satisfied; however, such separation reduces grain-growth rates by only about 10%. The observed linear increase of grain area with time is thus predicted by theory, but the growth rate depends on soluble-impurity concentrations as well as on temperature.
Hydraulics of Subglacial Cavities
Authors: Walder Joseph S.
Published: September 2017

A theoretical model is developed to describe the steady-state behavior of interconnected, water-filled cavities at the glacier bed. Physically plausible cavities should contain constrictions along the flow path, with flow in the wider sections being relatively sluggish. Mean flow rates in cavities may be at least one order of magnitude less than in channels incised into the basal ice (R channels). Melting due to viscous dissipation - the process that allows R channels to exist - probably plays a minor or negligible role, as compared to glacier sliding, in determining the size of cavities. Furthermore, a system of subglacial cavities should not show a tendency for localization of flow in a few main conduits, as does an R-channel system. If water pressure rises to within several bars of overburden pressure, the rate of cavity closure by creep falls below the rate of cavity opening by sliding and melting, with cavities then becoming unstable. Subsequent evolution of the drainage system should depend upon the total melt-water flux. Circumstances may arise in which cavities and channels act as conduits for melt water; such a configuration would probably show unusual transient behavior.
Basal Water and High-Pressure Basal Ice
Authors: Weertman J.
Published: September 2017

Expressions are found for the water pressure in channels and cavities under a temperate glacier in a steady state. By steady state is meant that not only is the sliding velocity constant but also the basal water flow as well as the basal water production. The calculations are based on a simplified bimodal obstacle bed. One-size obstacles are of the magnitude of the conventional “controlling” obstacles size. The other obstacle size is several orders of magnitude larger than the controlling size. The large obstacles are introduced in order to investigate the storage of large amounts of water at the bed. The effect of the missing obstacles is mimicked by adding a friction stress whose values decrease linearly with ice–rock separation. It is found that water flow is primarily in a water film if the water flux is below a critical limit. The physical reason for this result is that a minimum water flow must be exceeded in order to keep a water channel open in high ice-pressure regions in front of obstacles. The new ingredient in our analysis of water flow is the explicit account taken of the effect of excess ice pressure (at the up-stream side of obstacles) on the closing of water channels. The excess ice-pressure regions play a critical role in the development of water films. The recognition of the possible importance of high-pressure basal ice regions to the regulation of water flow is the primary result of this paper. It is found that, in steady state, the water pressure is close to the overburden ice pressure provided that water transported through Nye channels is only a minor part of the total. The water flows primarily in a water film. If a large flux of upper-surface melt water descends to the bed, this water could cause a reduction of the water pressure and a channelization of the water flow.
The Recent Advance of the Ross Ice Shelf Antarctica
Authors: Jacobs S. S. , Macayeal D. R. , Ardai J. L.
Published: September 2017

The seaward edge of the Ross Ice Shelf advanced northward at a minimum average velocity of 0.8 km a–1 between 1962 and 1985. That advance approximated velocities that have been obtained from glaciological data, indicating little recent wastage by iceberg calving. West of long. 178° E., the ice shelf has attained its most northerly position in the past 145 years, and has not experienced a major calving episode for at least 75 years. Since 1841 the ice-front position has advanced and retreated within a zone from about lat. 77° 10’S. (near long. 171° E.) to lat. 78° 40’ S. (near long. 164° W.). The central ice front is now farthest south but has the highest advance rate. Calving may occur at more frequent intervals in that sector, which also overlies the warmest ocean currents that flow into the sub-ice-shelf cavity. Available information on ice-shelf advance, thickness, spreading rate, and surface accumulation indicates a basal melting rate around 3 m a–1 near the ice front. These data and independent estimates imply that basal melting is nearly as large a factor as iceberg calving in maintaining the ice-shelf mass balance. In recent years, the Ross, Ronne, and Filchner Ice Shelves have contributed few icebergs to the Southern Ocean, while projections from a contemporaneous iceberg census are that circumpolar calving alone may exceed accumulation on the ice sheet. Large-scale ice-shelf calving may have preceded historical sightings of increased numbers of icebergs at sea.
A Crystallographic Study of the Perennially Frozen Ice Surface of Patterned Lake, Framnes Mountains, East Antarctica
Authors: Chambers J.L.C. , Wilson C.J.L. , Adamson D.A.
Published: September 2017

Interlocking rectangular ice patterns, with dimensions of several metres, on the surface of a perennial frozen lake in East Antarctica can be related to a strong crystallographic orientation in the underlying ice. Most of the surface patterns are characterized by parallel centimetre-scale ridges and furrows that correspond to an aggregate of tabular-shaped grains. Grain elongation is parallel to the basal plane. The c-axis distribution within each ice pattern lies in a horizontal plane. It defines a discrete maximum perpendicular to the surface ridges and to the long axis of the rectangular pattern. Areas exhibiting no patterning are composed of variably orientated ice grains. The strong c-axis horizontal orientation and the distinctive morphology of these ice patterns are interpreted as having developed by a geometric enhancement over a long period of time.
The Ice of Crown Prince Gustav Channel, Graham Land, Antarctica
Authors: Reece Alan
Published: September 2017

The author describes the ice in Crown Prince Gustav Channel on the east coast of Graham Land, Antarctica, based mainly on observations made by members of the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey in 1945–48. He considers that the ice in the northern half of the Channel is landfast sea ice which may persist for more than one season, and, that in the southern half it is shelf ice of the same origin as the Larsen Shelf Ice. He concludes that this shelf ice in the southern part of the Channel is part of the Larsen Shelf Ice.
Refraction Seismic Investigation at Zemu Glacier, Sikkim
Authors: Bose R.N. , Dutta N.P. , Lahiri S.M.
Published: September 2017

Refraction seismic studies conducted on the Zemu Glacier in Sikkim at an altitude of 4 570 m (15 000 ft), indicate that the thickness of the glacier ice varies from about 125 m at the edge of the glacier to about 300 m at the centre. The bedrock section across the glacial valley as drawn on the basis of the seismic data corroborates the fact that the glacier has undergone considerable lateral shrinkage. The observed seismic velocity in the glacier ice, which ranges between 3 500 m/s and 3 700 m/s is in good agreement with the values obtained on glaciers in various parts of the world.
Observations on a Surging Glacier in East Greenland
Authors: Rutishauser Heinz
Published: September 2017

Recent observations on Bjornbo Gletscher (lat. 71°., long. 25° W.), East Greenland, have revealed that it has several features characteristic of a surging glacier. One outstanding feature is the occurrence of drop-like ice masses in the lower part of the glacier which do not appear to belong to the main glacier. A detailed petrographic comparison between the morainic debris surrounding these drop-like ice masses and the rocks occurring in the upper part of the glacier has been made. The results indicate that these drop-like ice masses have been inserted into the main glacier. This drop-like form is explained as being due to ice transport from the side valleys, and this occurred over a short period of time during the movement (or surge) of the main glacier. Because of the highly variable rock types occurring in the respective accumulation zones, petrographic examinations of other moraines in the ablation zone have been used to trace them back to their respective firn fields.

The main glacier and the tributary glaciers are today static. Bjørnbo Gletscher is therefore characterized by both static and moving phases, and its dynamics are the same as those of surging glaciers. The quiescent phase is estimated to have been about 100 years. The next surge will presumably occur around 1990,
On the Pleistocene Snow-Line Depression in the Arid Regions of the South American Andes
Authors: Hastenrath Stefan L.
Published: September 2017

Field observations during a journey through the arid regions of the South American Andes in June-July 1969 are evaluated in conjunction with available air photographs and reports from adjacent regions of the High Andes. Results indicate an increase of the Pleistocene snow-line depression in the western Cordillera from about 700 m at lat. 12° S. to more than 1 500 m at lat. 30° S. The Pleistocene snow-line depression decreases from the Pacific to the Atlantic side of the Andes, but particularly strongly so on the poleward fringe of the arid region. From this geomorphic evidence it is suggested that the atmospheric circulation during the glacial period was characterized by an Equatorward displacement of the boundary between tropical easterlies and temperate-latitude westerlies.
Concerning the Effect of Anisotropic Scattering and Finite Depth on the Distribution of Solar Radiation in Snow
Authors: Barkstrom Bruce R. , Querfeld Charles W.
Published: September 2017

It is shown that anisotropic scattering with a strong forward peak can give reasonable agreement with angular reflectance data for snow. As a result of the forward peak, solar radiation penetrates deeper into the medium, when measured in terms of photon mean free paths, than it does for isotropic scattering. The radiation transmitted directly through finite slabs can be seen to an optical depth of seven, and decreases much more rapidly with optical depth than does the diffusely transmitted (scattered) radiation.
Measurements of Acoustic Properties of Hard-Pack Snow
Authors: Lang Theodore E.
Published: September 2017

Three experiments were conducted to assess acoustic properties of hard-pack snow. One
test involved transmission of acoustic signals in the frequency range 100-20 000 Hz through
natural snow-pack in order to measure signal loss of a point acoustic source. At all
frequencies the relatively high-energy input signal decays rapidly by energy dissipation, with
nominal diffusion occurring at large distances from the source. Signal persistence is greatest
in the frequency range 100-200 Hz, In a second test, acoustic bursts in snow columns under
deformation were recorded. Spectrum analysis in the frequency range 500-14000 Hz reveals
dominance of signal amplitudes at frequencies between 1 000 and 10 000 Hz. This dominance is
attributed to the strong attenuation properties of snow and suggests the use of waveguide or
collector techniques to monitor natural acoustic emissions in snow-pack. In a third test
several waveguide geometries and materials were evaluated for their acoustic signal
interception and transmission characteristics. In general, metallic waveguides show the least
attenuation of the configurations tested.
A Note on the Contribution of Rime and Surface Hoar to the Accumulation on the Ross Ice
Shelf, Antarctica
Authors: Linkletter G. O. , Warburton J. A.
Published: September 2017

Observations and measurements made on the Ross Ice Shelf during 1974 suggest that rime
and surface hoar deposited on the surface during fogs may contribute 5-10% of the annual
accumulation. Layers formed during such fogs may be mistaken for depth hoar layers in the
snow-pack.
Glacier Sliding Down an Inclined Wavy Bed
Authors: Morland L. W.
Published: September 2017

The treatments by Nye and Kamb of glacier sliding over a wavy bed with small slope, which assume the ice to be approximated by a Newtonian fluid of high viscosity, are complemented by the inclusion of the glacier depth and the inclination of the bed to the horizontal. The driving force of the motion, gravity, is therefore present in the flow equations and defines immediately the mean drag on the bed. A geothermal heal flux is also included in order to estimate its possible effect on the flow. A complex variable method is used to determine the velocity and temperature fields to second order in the bed slope. These fields satisfy the zero shear traction and pressure-melting-regelation conditions to the same order on the actual bed profile. It is the balance of the second-order term which determines explicitly the (zero order) basal-sliding velocity and surface velocity in terms of the geometry and physical properties of both ice and bed. An explicit solution is illustrated for a sinusoidal bed. and a simple criterion for the onset of cavitation is obtained.
Origin of the Basal Ice Layer from Alpine Glaciers Indicated by its Chemistry
Authors: Souchez R. A. , Lorrain R. D.
Published: September 2017

The basal ice layer of Alpine glaciers, the thickness of which can reach more than one metre, generally appears as a sequence composed of layers of bubble-poor ice 0.5-3 cm thick and dirt layers containing dispersed rock fragments. Locally, debris-free bubbly ice is also present in the sequence. This basal layer exists on the lee side of rock protuberances or along the marginal part of the glacier. Three geochemical characteristics shed some light on its origin:

(a)

The high calcium content of basal ice sliding over limestones from the north side of Glacier do Tsanfleuron can be successfully predicted from considerations of the phase relations in regelating subglacial solutions in approximate equilibrium with subglacial calcite deposits.

(b)

The (Na + K)/(Ca+Mg) ratio of bubble-poor basal ice from Glacier de Tsijiore Nouve which flows over gneissic rocks is significantly higher than this ratio in other samples taken in the same environment (glacier ice, melt water). This may be explained by refreezing of squeezed water, the ionic composition of which is governed by selective diffusion of ions during squeezing and/or by the water being forced through mud layers as demonstrated by us at the base of Glacier d'Argentière (Souchez and Lorrain. 1975).

(c)

The Lead-210 activity per kg of basal ice from the south side of Glacier de Tsanfleuron is greater than that of the glacier ice immediately above, which indicates that it is younger despite percolation effects. This can be explained if recent ice accretion has occurred at the base of relatively old glacier ice. Accretion of blowing snow has been found to occur under the southern margin of the glacier.
Determination of the Mean Number of Bonds per snow grain And of the Dependence of the Tensile Strength of Snow on Stereological Parameters
Authors: Gubler H.
Published: September 2017

A theoretical density distribution of the Dumber of bonds per grain as a function of the mean number of bonds per grain is derived from the assumption of randomness and isotropy of grain and grain-bond location and orientation. The knowledge of the theoretical density distribution allows the determination of the effective distribution parameters from section planes or thin sections. The concept of the fundamental unit to describe the strength of snow is introduced. Structural parameters developed on the basis of the fundamental units show improved correlations with the tensile strength.
Application of Numerical Transient Fluid Dynamics to Snow Avalanche Flow. Part I. Development of Computer Program Avalnch
Authors: Lang T. E. , Dawson K. L. , Martinelli M.
Published: September 2017

A two-dimensional, transient fluid-dynamics computer code has been modified for specific application to the avalanche-runout problem. This code, called AVALNCH, permits the separation of path geometry effects from such flow factors as friction and viscosity. The longitudinal profile of the avalanche path is divided into cells, 10 to 20 m long, each of which can be assigned specific values for slope gradient, surface friction, and internal kinematic viscosity. The program gives average avalanche speed cell-by-cell down the path and the location and depth of avalanche debris. Internal kinematic viscosity and surface friction were modeled on an avalanche path of simple geometry and were found to be of about equal significance in predicting runout distance. Additionally, surface friction is represented by an exponentially increasing function as speed decreases in the runout zone, in order to model observed avalanche terminal-motion characteristics. Program AVALNCH is reduced to a basic algorithm that is efficient to run, and contains the essential mechanics to model avalanche flow accurately. The most pressing need is for more physical data to permit the matching of program output to observed results under a variety of conditions.
The Interpretation of a Tertiary Tillite at Mount Feather, Southern Victoria Land, Antarctica
Authors: Brady Howard , McKelvey Barrie
Published: September 2017

A Tertiary tillite occurs at an altitude of 2750 m on Mount Feather in southern Victoria Land. The tillite mantles a remnant of the floor of a south-east-trending glacial valley that pre-dates the cutting of the existing glacial drainage system in southern Victoria Land. Petrographic evidence suggests that ice which deposited the tillite drained a relatively distant source area.
Acidity of Polar Ice Cores in Relation to Absolute Dating, Past Volcanism, and Radio–Echoes
Authors: Hammer C. U.
Published: September 2017

A simple method is described for detecting annual stratification of ice cores, and layers of high acidity due to violent volcanic eruptions in the past. The method is based on a relationship between the H3O+ concentration (pH) of melted samples and the electrical current between two brass electrodes moved along the cleaned ice-core surface. The “conductivity” is explained in terms of the initial current in the build-up of space charges. Acidity and current profiles are shown through layers deposited soon after historically well-known volcanic eruptions, such as Katmai, a.d. 1912, Tambora, a.d. 1815, Laki, a.d. 1783, Hekla, a.d. 1104, and Thera (Santorin) c. 1400 b.c. High-acidity layers seem to be the cause for the internal radio-echo layers in polar ice sheets.