Development of a GIA (Glacial Isostatic Adjustment) - Fault Model of Greenland

Abstract:

The increase in sea level due to climate change is an intensely discussed phenomenon, while less attention is being paid to the change in earthquake activity that may accompany disappearing ice masses. The melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet, for example, induces changes in the crustal stress field, which could result in the activation of existing faults and the generation of destructive earthquakes. Such glacially induced earthquakes are known to have occurred in Fennoscandia 10,000 years ago. Within a new project (“Glacially induced earthquakes in Greenland”, start in October 2015), we will analyse the potential for glacially induced earthquakes in Greenland due to the ongoing melting. The objectives include the development of a three-dimensional (3D) subsurface model of Greenland, which is based on geologic, geophysical and geodetic datasets, and which also fulfils the boundary conditions of glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) modelling. Here we will present an overview of the project, including the most recently available datasets and the methodologies needed for model construction and the simulation of GIA induced earthquakes.