Going against the flow: testing the hypothesis of pulsed axial glacier flow

SWIFT, Darrel A. and JONES, Andrew (2018). Going against the flow: testing the hypothesis of pulsed axial glacier flow. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 43 (13), 2754-2761.

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Official URL: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/es...
Link to published version:: https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.4430

Abstract

Hypothesised lobe‐like flow of a temperate glacier in southeast Iceland, proposed from an analysis of ice surface crevassing patterns, is appraised from both empirical and theoretical perspectives. The hypothesis comprises the migration of individual lobes (or ‘pulses’) of ice through the glacier body, with central lobes migrating more rapidly along a narrow, central, ‘axial flow corridor’. Our alternative hypothesis is that crevasse patterns at this glacier instead reflect simple surface ice responses to stresses caused by flow over uneven bed topography. To substantiate our rejection of the lobe‐like, pulsed axial flow hypothesis, we provide: (a) evidence for a prominent transverse foliation that exhibits no evidence of shear of the required magnitude to support the hypothesis; and (b) an analysis of ice surface displacement, obtained by feature tracking, that shows a uniform flow field throughout the glacier tongue. We argue that caution needs to be exercised when interpreting glacier flow solely from crevasse patterns and observations of minor displacements along near‐surface fractures and other features.

Item Type: Article
Additional Information: ** From Crossref via Jisc Publications Router.
Uncontrolled Keywords: glaciology; glacier flow; crevasses; foliation; thrusting; Iceland
Departments - Does NOT include content added after October 2018: Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities > Department of Natural and Build Environment
Identification Number: https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.4430
Page Range: 2754-2761
SWORD Depositor: Margaret Boot
Depositing User: Margaret Boot
Date Deposited: 05 Jun 2018 11:51
Last Modified: 18 Mar 2021 05:14
URI: https://shura.shu.ac.uk/id/eprint/21428

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