Process-based modeling of ice stream shear margins and their effect on ice stream stability
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- The largest uncertainty in projections of sea-level rise is ascribed to mass loss associated with fast ice flow on Earth's ice sheets. This uncertainty is a result of an incomplete understanding of the subglacial environment, and the physics governing this interface. Regions of fast ice flow without topographic bounds, called ice streams, are particularly sensitive to the underlying subglacial properties. Here, we explore the underlying physics governing ice stream stability in several regions across the West Antarctic ice sheet. Specifically, we develop models that interrogate the role of subglacial conditions on the lateral bounds of ice streams, known as shear margins. Shear margins are liable to migrate, and their location is often controlled by dynamic processes. First, we demonstrate that rapidly evolving subglacial processes, such as meltwater drainage, have the potential to induce changes in large-scale ice dynamics on decadal timescales. Next, we develop a model to investigate the relative role of sediment and hardrock on ice stream stability. We then develop a technique to generate synthetic radargrams in regions of complex ice deformation. Finally, we develop a method that includes both dynamic shear margins, and grounding lines to enable research into potential coupling of these two sensitive boundaries. In each of these cases, we connect the model to targeted areas of interest across Antarctica, and connect the underlying physics to observations at the surface. Through these investigations, this thesis develops a more detailed understanding of the role of the subglacial environment on ice stream stability.
Description
| Type of resource | text |
|---|---|
| Form | electronic resource; remote; computer; online resource |
| Extent | 1 online resource. |
| Place | California |
| Place | [Stanford, California] |
| Publisher | [Stanford University] |
| Copyright date | 2019; ©2019 |
| Publication date | 2019; 2019 |
| Issuance | monographic |
| Language | English |
Creators/Contributors
| Author | Elsworth, Cooper Wheeler | |
|---|---|---|
| Degree supervisor | Suckale, Jenny | |
| Thesis advisor | Suckale, Jenny | |
| Thesis advisor | Dunham, Eric | |
| Thesis advisor | Schroeder, Dustin | |
| Degree committee member | Dunham, Eric | |
| Degree committee member | Schroeder, Dustin | |
| Associated with | Stanford University, Department of Geophysics. |
Subjects
| Genre | Theses |
|---|---|
| Genre | Text |
Bibliographic information
| Statement of responsibility | Cooper Wheeler Elsworth. |
|---|---|
| Note | Submitted to the Department of Geophysics. |
| Thesis | Thesis Ph.D. Stanford University 2019. |
| Location | electronic resource |
Access conditions
- Copyright
- © 2019 by Cooper Wheeler Elsworth
- License
- This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC).
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