A Theoretical and Experimental Investigation of Ice-Shelf Flow Dynamics

Abstract:

Ice-shelf buttressing is a major control on the rate of ice discharged from fast-flowing ice streams that drain the Antarctic Ice Sheet. The collapse of an ice shelf can lead to dramatic acceleration and thinning of the ice streams and glaciers that flowed into the former shelf. The magnitude of the buttressing force depends on the shelf geometry and confinement. This geometry is determined by the ice-shelf extent, resulting from retreat due to iceberg calving and shelf advance due to flow. In contrast to large-scale ice-sheet models, which require high resolution datasets, we aim to gain insight using simple idealized models, focusing on the transition from lateral confinement to non-confinement. By considering a confined shelf with lateral shear stresses controlling the flow, steady-state analytical solutions can be calculated. These solutions are then compared to a numerical model for a confined flow, which incorporates both shear and extensional stresses. A boundary layer close to the calving front is identified, where both extensional and shear stresses control the dynamics. We test these idealized models against fluid-mechanical laboratory experiments, designed to simulate the flow of an ice shelf in a narrow channel. From these experiments velocity fields and altimetry for the ice-shelf are collected, allowing for comparison with the theoretical models and geophysical data.