Reversal of ice motion during the outburst of a glacier-dammed lake on Gornergletscher, Switzerland

Authors: Sugiyama, Shin; Bauder, Andreas; Weiss, Patrik; Funk, Martin

Source: Journal of Glaciology, Volume 53, Number 181, March 2007 , pp. 172-180(9)

Publisher: International Glaciological Society

Buy & download fulltext article:

OR

Price: $36.29 plus tax (Refund Policy)

Abstract:

During the outburst flood of a glacier-dammed lake on Gornergletscher, Switzerland, in July 2004, the drained lake water triggered anomalous glacier motion. At the onset of the outburst, the ice-flow direction in the vicinity of the lake became closer to the central flowline. When the lake discharge magnitude decreased, the flow direction altered such that the ice moved back to the azimuth of the initial motion. At one of the survey points, where the ice flows parallel to the central flowline, the ice accelerated along the pre-event flow direction followed by a 180° backward motion that lasted over 2 days. These observations indicate the impact of the lake outburst on the subglacial and englacial stress conditions; however, the reversal in the flow direction is difficult to explain by drawing on our current understanding of glacier mechanics. The timing and the timescale of the flow-direction changes suggest that the elastic glacier motion and its rebound played a role under the rapidly changing stress conditions, but the Young's modulus of ice is too large to cause the observed ice motion. Other processes, including basal separation and subglacial sediment deformation, are discussed as possible mechanisms for the reversal of the ice motion.

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3189/172756507782202847

Publication date: 2007-03-01

More about this publication?
  • The Journal of Glaciology is published six times per year. It accepts submissions from any discipline related to the study of snow and ice. All articles are peer reviewed. The Journal is included in the ISI Science Citation Index.
  • Editorial Board
  • Information for Authors
  • ingentaconnect is not responsible for the content or availability of external websites
Related content

Tools

Key

Free Content
Free content
New Content
New content
Open Access Content
Open access content
Subscribed Content
Subscribed content
Free Trial Content
Free trial content

Text size:

A | A | A | A
Share this item with others: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages. print icon Print this page