| 1. |
- Fuerst, Johannes Jakob, et al.
(författare)
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Application of a two-step approach for mapping ice thickness to various glacier types on Svalbard
- 2017
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Ingår i: The Cryosphere. - : Copernicus GmbH. - 1994-0416 .- 1994-0424. ; 11:5, s. 2003-2032
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The basal topography is largely unknown beneath most glaciers and ice caps, and many attempts have been made to estimate a thickness field from other more accessible information at the surface. Here, we present a two-step reconstruction approach for ice thickness that solves mass conservation over single or several connected drainage basins. The approach is applied to a variety of test geometries with abundant thickness measurements including marine-and landterminating glaciers as well as a 2400 km(2) ice cap on Svalbard. The input requirements are kept to a minimum for the first step. In this step, a geometrically controlled, non-local flux solution is converted into thickness values relying on the shallow ice approximation (SIA). In a second step, the thickness field is updated along fast-flowing glacier trunks on the basis of velocity observations. Both steps account for available thickness measurements. Each thickness field is presented together with an error-estimate map based on a formal propagation of input uncertainties. These error estimates point out that the thickness field is least constrained near ice divides or in other stagnant areas. Withholding a share of the thickness measurements, error estimates tend to overestimate mismatch values in a median sense. We also have to accept an aggregate uncertainty of at least 25% in the reconstructed thickness field for glaciers with very sparse or no observations. For Vestfonna ice cap (VIC), a previous ice volume estimate based on the same measurement record as used here has to be corrected upward by 22 %. We also find that a 13% area fraction of the ice cap is in fact grounded below sea level. The former 5% estimate from a direct measurement interpolation exceeds an aggregate maximum range of 6-23% as inferred from the error estimates here.
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| 2. |
- Fuerst, Johannes J., et al.
(författare)
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The Ice-Free Topography of Svalbard
- 2018
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Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 45:21, s. 11760-11769
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present a first version of the Svalbard ice-free topography (SVIFT1.0) using a mass conserving approach for mapping glacier ice thickness. SVIFT1.0 is informed by more than 1 million point measurements, totalling more than 8,700 km of thickness profiles. SVIFT1.0 is publicly available and represents the geometric state around the year 2010. Our estimate for the total ice volume is 6,199 km(3), equivalent to 1.5-cm sea level rise. The thickness map suggests that 13% of the glacierized area is grounded below sea level. A complementary map of error estimates comprises uncertainties in the thickness surveys as well as in other input variables. Aggregated error estimates are used to define a likely ice-volume range of 5,200-7,300 km(3). The ice front thickness of marine-terminating glaciers is a key quantity for ice loss attribution because it controls the potential ice discharge by iceberg calving into the ocean. We find a mean ice front thickness of 135 m for the archipelago (likely range 123-158 m). Plain Language Summary Svalbard is an archipelago in the Arctic, north of Norway, which is comparable in size to the New York metropolitan area. Roughly half of it is covered by glacier ice. Yet to this day, the ice volume stored in the many glaciers on Svalbard is not well known. Many attempts have been made to infer a total volume estimate, but results differ substantially. This surprises because of the long research activity in this area. A large record of more than 1 million thickness measurements exists, making Svalbard an ideal study area for the application of a state-of-the-art mapping approach for glacier ice thickness. The mapping approach computes an ice volume that will raise global sea level by more than half an inch if instantaneously melted. If spread over the metropolitan area, New York would be buried beneath a 100-m ice cover. The asset of this approach is that it provides not only a thickness map for each glacier on the archipelago but also an error map that defines the likely local thickness range. Finally, we provide the first well-informed estimate of the ice front thickness of all marine-terminating glaciers that loose icebergs to the ocean. The archipelago-wide mean ice front cliff is 135 m.
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| 3. |
- Ignatiuk, Dariusz, et al.
(författare)
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Ground penetrating radar measurement of snow in Svalbard - past, present, future (SnowGPR)
- 2023
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Ingår i: SESS report 2022 - The State of Environmental Science in Svalbard - an annual report. - : Svalbard Integrated Arctic Earth Observing System (SIOS).
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Bokkapitel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This is chapter 5 of the State of Environmental Science in Svalbard (SESS) report 2022.Snowpack covers 60-100% of all land in Svalbard, depending on the season, and it is very sensitive to changes in climate. Knowledge about the snowpack is important not just in itself, but also to understand how snow cover affects other components of Svalbard’s natural environment – land, sea, permafrost, glaciers, and the ecosystems that they support. Monitoring the evolution of Svalbard’s snow cover will be crucial as the world’s climate continues to warm.Ground-penetrating radars (GPRs) towed by snowmobile across glaciers and snowfields provide vital information about snowpack thickness and structure. Ideally, such surveys should be repeated annually for continuous monitoring of climate-induced change. Three decades ago, a GPR programme catalogued regional variations in snow accumulation. This should be repeated and expanded to cover all of Svalbard. The GPR method should also be further developed e.g. by mounting GPRs on drones, giving access to parts of glaciers that are too dangerous for researchers to visit. Lastly, women are encouraged to join the field of GPR-based research on snow.Most of the GPR data collected so far are not currently available in any data repository. The comprehensive compilation of available studies presented in this report, and the recommendations for metadata and data quality, are important first steps to making GPR data more accessible.
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| 4. |
- Moeller, Marco, et al.
(författare)
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Snowpack Characteristics of Vestfonna and De Geerfonna (Nordaustlandet, Svalbard) : A Spatiotemporal Analysis Based on Multiyear Snow-Pit Data
- 2011
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Ingår i: Geografiska Annaler. Series A, Physical Geography. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0435-3676 .- 1468-0459. ; 93A:4, s. 273-285
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Extensive glaciological field measurements were carried out on the ice cap Vestfonna as well as on the minor ice body De Geerfonna (Nordaustlandet, Svalbard) within the framework of IPY Kinnvika. Field campaigns were conducted during the period 20072010 in spring (April/May) and summer (August). In this study we compile and present snow cover information obtained from 22 snow pits that were dug on Vestfonna during this period. Locations are along two transects on the northwestern, land terminating slope of the ice cap, on its central summit, Ahlmann Summit, and at a set of several other locations in the eastern and northern part of the ice cap. Snow-cover information acquired from four snow pits on adjacent De Geerfonna is also incorporated in this study. Field data are analysed regarding snow stratigraphy, snow density, snow hardness and snow temperature. Results reveal mean snow densities of around 400 kg m-3 for the snowpack of Vestfonna with no apparent spatial or interannual variability. A distinctly higher value of more than 450 kg m-3 was obtained for De Geerfonna. A spatial comparison of snow water equivalents above the previous end-of-summer surface serves for obtaining insights into the spatial distribution of snow accumulation across Vestfonna. Altitude was found to be the only significant spatial parameter for controlling snow accumulation across the ice cap.
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