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Seasonal speedup along the western flank of the Greenland ice sheet
journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-17, 15:21 authored by Joughin, I, Das, SB, Matt KingMatt King, Smith, BE, Howat, IM, Moon, TIt has been widely hypothesized that a warmer climate in Greenland would increase the volume of lubricating surface meltwater reaching the ice-bedrock interface, accelerating ice flow and increasing mass loss. We have assembled a data set that provides a synoptic-scale view, spanning ice-sheet to outlet-glacier flow, with which to evaluate this hypothesis. On the ice sheet, these data reveal summer speedups (50 to 100%) consistent with, but somewhat larger than, earlier observations. The relative speedup of outlet glaciers, however, is far smaller (<15%). Furthermore, the dominant seasonal influence on Jakobshavn Isbrae's flow is the calving front's annual advance and retreat. With other effects producing outlet-glacier speedups an order of magnitude larger, seasonal melt's influence on ice flow is likely confined to those regions dominated by ice-sheet flow.
History
Publication title
ScienceVolume
320Issue
5877Pagination
781-783ISSN
0036-8075Department/School
School of Geography, Planning and Spatial SciencesPublisher
Amer Assoc Advancement SciencePlace of publication
1200 New York Ave, Nw, Washington, USA, Dc, 20005Repository Status
- Restricted