Articles | Volume 15, issue 8
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3731-2021
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3731-2021
Research article
 | 
12 Aug 2021
Research article |  | 12 Aug 2021

Development of a subglacial lake monitored with radio-echo sounding: case study from the eastern Skaftá cauldron in the Vatnajökull ice cap, Iceland

Eyjólfur Magnússon, Finnur Pálsson, Magnús T. Gudmundsson, Thórdís Högnadóttir, Cristian Rossi, Thorsteinn Thorsteinsson, Benedikt G. Ófeigsson, Erik Sturkell, and Tómas Jóhannesson

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Cited articles

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Bell, R. E., Studinger, M., Shuman, C. A., Fahnestock, M. A., and Joughin, I.: Large subglacial lakes in East Antarctica at the onset of fast-flowing ice streams, Nature, 445, 904–907, https://doi.org/10.1038/nature05554, 2007. 
Björnsson, H.: The cause of jökulhlaups in the Skaftá river, Vatnajökull, Jökull, 27, 71–78, 1977. 
Björnsson, H.: Hydrology of ice caps in volcanic regions, Reykjavík, Vísindafélag Íslendinga, 45, 139 pp., 1988. 
Björnsson, H.: Jökulhlaups in Iceland: Prediction, characteristics and simulation, Ann. Glaciol., 16, 95–106, https://doi.org/10.3189/1992AoG16-1-95-106, 1992. 
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Short summary
We present a unique insight into the shape and development of a subglacial lake over a 7-year period, using repeated radar survey. The lake collects geothermal meltwater, which is released in semi-regular floods, often referred to as jökulhlaups. The applicability of our survey approach to monitor the water stored in the lake for a better assessment of the potential hazard of jökulhlaups is demonstrated by comparison with independent measurements of released water volume during two jökulhlaups.
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