Articles | Volume 17, issue 9
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-4021-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-4021-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
18 Sep 2023
Research article |
| 18 Sep 2023
| 18 Sep 2023
Reconciling ice dynamics and bed topography with a versatile and fast ice thickness inversion
Department of Earth Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
Ward J. J. van Pelt
Department of Earth Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
Jack Kohler
Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre, Tromsø, Norway
Related authors
Thomas Frank, Henning Åkesson, Basile de Fleurian, Mathieu Morlighem, and Kerim H. Nisancioglu
The Cryosphere, 16, 581–601, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-581-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-581-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
The shape of a fjord can promote or inhibit glacier retreat in response to climate change. We conduct experiments with a synthetic setup under idealized conditions in a numerical model to study and quantify the processes involved. We find that friction between ice and fjord is the most important factor and that it is possible to directly link ice discharge and grounding line retreat to fjord topography in a quantitative way.
Andrea Spolaor, Federico Scoto, Catherine Larose, Elena Barbaro, Francois Burgay, Mats P. Bjorkman, David Cappelletti, Federico Dallo, Fabrizio de Blasi, Dmitry Divine, Giuliano Dreossi, Jacopo Gabrieli, Elisabeth Isaksson, Jack Kohler, Tonu Martma, Louise S. Schmidt, Thomas V. Schuler, Barbara Stenni, Clara Turetta, Bartłomiej Luks, Mathieu Casado, and Jean-Charles Gallet
The Cryosphere, 18, 307–320, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-307-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-307-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
We evaluate the impact of the increased snowmelt on the preservation of the oxygen isotope (δ18O) signal in firn records recovered from the top of the Holtedahlfonna ice field located in the Svalbard archipelago. Thanks to a multidisciplinary approach we demonstrate a progressive deterioration of the isotope signal in the firn core. We link the degradation of the δ18O signal to the increased occurrence and intensity of melt events associated with the rapid warming occurring in the archipelago.
Alice C. Frémand, Peter Fretwell, Julien A. Bodart, Hamish D. Pritchard, Alan Aitken, Jonathan L. Bamber, Robin Bell, Cesidio Bianchi, Robert G. Bingham, Donald D. Blankenship, Gino Casassa, Ginny Catania, Knut Christianson, Howard Conway, Hugh F. J. Corr, Xiangbin Cui, Detlef Damaske, Volkmar Damm, Reinhard Drews, Graeme Eagles, Olaf Eisen, Hannes Eisermann, Fausto Ferraccioli, Elena Field, René Forsberg, Steven Franke, Shuji Fujita, Yonggyu Gim, Vikram Goel, Siva Prasad Gogineni, Jamin Greenbaum, Benjamin Hills, Richard C. A. Hindmarsh, Andrew O. Hoffman, Per Holmlund, Nicholas Holschuh, John W. Holt, Annika N. Horlings, Angelika Humbert, Robert W. Jacobel, Daniela Jansen, Adrian Jenkins, Wilfried Jokat, Tom Jordan, Edward King, Jack Kohler, William Krabill, Mette Kusk Gillespie, Kirsty Langley, Joohan Lee, German Leitchenkov, Carlton Leuschen, Bruce Luyendyk, Joseph MacGregor, Emma MacKie, Kenichi Matsuoka, Mathieu Morlighem, Jérémie Mouginot, Frank O. Nitsche, Yoshifumi Nogi, Ole A. Nost, John Paden, Frank Pattyn, Sergey V. Popov, Eric Rignot, David M. Rippin, Andrés Rivera, Jason Roberts, Neil Ross, Anotonia Ruppel, Dustin M. Schroeder, Martin J. Siegert, Andrew M. Smith, Daniel Steinhage, Michael Studinger, Bo Sun, Ignazio Tabacco, Kirsty Tinto, Stefano Urbini, David Vaughan, Brian C. Welch, Douglas S. Wilson, Duncan A. Young, and Achille Zirizzotti
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 2695–2710, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-2695-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-2695-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
This paper presents the release of over 60 years of ice thickness, bed elevation, and surface elevation data acquired over Antarctica by the international community. These data are a crucial component of the Antarctic Bedmap initiative which aims to produce a new map and datasets of Antarctic ice thickness and bed topography for the international glaciology and geophysical community.
Coline Bouchayer, Ugo Nanni, Pierre-Marie Lefeuvre, John Hulth, Louise Steffensen Schmidt, Jack Kohler, François Renard, and Thomas V. Schuler
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-618, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-618, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Glaciers can experience intermittent phases of accelerated movement, called surges, primarily caused by changes occuring beneath the ice, particularly at the ice-bed interface. Studying these subglacial conditions is challenging because of the difficulty of accessing the glacier bed. To overcome this challenge, we monitored changes in the subglacial environment of Kongsvegen Glacier in Svalbard for one year. We discuss our results in the context of glacier destabilization.
Marlene Kronenberg, Ward van Pelt, Horst Machguth, Joel Fiddes, Martin Hoelzle, and Felix Pertziger
The Cryosphere, 16, 5001–5022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-5001-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-5001-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
The Pamir Alay is located at the edge of regions with anomalous glacier mass changes. Unique long-term in situ data are available for Abramov Glacier, located in the Pamir Alay. In this study, we use this extraordinary data set in combination with reanalysis data and a coupled surface energy balance–multilayer subsurface model to compute and analyse the distributed climatic mass balance and firn evolution from 1968 to 2020.
Johannes Oerlemans, Jack Kohler, and Adrian Luckman
The Cryosphere, 16, 2115–2126, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2115-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2115-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Tunabreen is a 26 km long tidewater glacier. It is the most frequently surging glacier in Svalbard, with four documented surges in the past 100 years. We have modelled this glacier to find out how it reacts to future climate change. Careful calibration was done against the observed length record for the past 100 years. For a 50 m increase in the equilibrium line altitude (ELA) the length of the glacier will be shortened by 10 km after about 100 years.
Thomas Frank, Henning Åkesson, Basile de Fleurian, Mathieu Morlighem, and Kerim H. Nisancioglu
The Cryosphere, 16, 581–601, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-581-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-581-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
The shape of a fjord can promote or inhibit glacier retreat in response to climate change. We conduct experiments with a synthetic setup under idealized conditions in a numerical model to study and quantify the processes involved. We find that friction between ice and fjord is the most important factor and that it is possible to directly link ice discharge and grounding line retreat to fjord topography in a quantitative way.
Enrico Mattea, Horst Machguth, Marlene Kronenberg, Ward van Pelt, Manuela Bassi, and Martin Hoelzle
The Cryosphere, 15, 3181–3205, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3181-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3181-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
In our study we find that climate change is affecting the high-alpine Colle Gnifetti glacier (Swiss–Italian Alps) with an increase in melt amounts and ice temperatures.
In the near future this trend could threaten the viability of the oldest ice core record in the Alps.
To reach our conclusions, for the first time we used the meteorological data of the highest permanent weather station in Europe (Capanna Margherita, 4560 m), together with an advanced numeric simulation of the glacier.
Christian Zdanowicz, Jean-Charles Gallet, Mats P. Björkman, Catherine Larose, Thomas Schuler, Bartłomiej Luks, Krystyna Koziol, Andrea Spolaor, Elena Barbaro, Tõnu Martma, Ward van Pelt, Ulla Wideqvist, and Johan Ström
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 3035–3057, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-3035-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-3035-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Black carbon (BC) aerosols are soot-like particles which, when transported to the Arctic, darken snow surfaces, thus indirectly affecting climate. Information on BC in Arctic snow is needed to measure their impact and monitor the efficacy of pollution-reduction policies. This paper presents a large new set of BC measurements in snow in Svalbard collected between 2007 and 2018. It describes how BC in snow varies across the archipelago and explores some factors controlling these variations.
Baptiste Vandecrux, Ruth Mottram, Peter L. Langen, Robert S. Fausto, Martin Olesen, C. Max Stevens, Vincent Verjans, Amber Leeson, Stefan Ligtenberg, Peter Kuipers Munneke, Sergey Marchenko, Ward van Pelt, Colin R. Meyer, Sebastian B. Simonsen, Achim Heilig, Samira Samimi, Shawn Marshall, Horst Machguth, Michael MacFerrin, Masashi Niwano, Olivia Miller, Clifford I. Voss, and Jason E. Box
The Cryosphere, 14, 3785–3810, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-3785-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-3785-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
In the vast interior of the Greenland ice sheet, snow accumulates into a thick and porous layer called firn. Each summer, the firn retains part of the meltwater generated at the surface and buffers sea-level rise. In this study, we compare nine firn models traditionally used to quantify this retention at four sites and evaluate their performance against a set of in situ observations. We highlight limitations of certain model designs and give perspectives for future model development.
Ankit Pramanik, Jack Kohler, Katrin Lindbäck, Penelope How, Ward Van Pelt, Glen Liston, and Thomas V. Schuler
The Cryosphere Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-2020-197, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-2020-197, 2020
Revised manuscript not accepted
Short summary
Short summary
Freshwater discharge from tidewater glaciers influences fjord circulation and fjord ecosystem. Glacier hydrology plays crucial role in transporting water underneath glacier ice. We investigated hydrology beneath the tidewater glaciers of Kongsfjord basin in Northwest Svalbard and found that subglacial water flow differs substantially from surface flow of glacier ice. Furthermore, we derived freshwater discharge time-series from all the glaciers to the fjord.
Ward van Pelt, Veijo Pohjola, Rickard Pettersson, Sergey Marchenko, Jack Kohler, Bartłomiej Luks, Jon Ove Hagen, Thomas V. Schuler, Thorben Dunse, Brice Noël, and Carleen Reijmer
The Cryosphere, 13, 2259–2280, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2259-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2259-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
The climate in Svalbard is undergoing amplified change compared to the global mean, which has a strong impact on the climatic mass balance of glaciers and the state of seasonal snow in land areas. In this study we analyze a coupled energy balance–subsurface model dataset, which provides detailed information on distributed climatic mass balance, snow conditions, and runoff across Svalbard between 1957 and 2018.
Sergey Marchenko, Gong Cheng, Per Lötstedt, Veijo Pohjola, Rickard Pettersson, Ward van Pelt, and Carleen Reijmer
The Cryosphere, 13, 1843–1859, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-1843-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-1843-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Thermal conductivity (k) of firn at Lomonosovfonna, Svalbard, is estimated using measured temperature evolution and density. The optimized k values (0.2–1.6 W (m K)−1) increase downwards and over time and are most sensitive to systematic errors in measured temperature values and their depths, particularly in the lower part of the profile. Compared to the density-based parameterizations, derived k values are consistently larger, suggesting a faster conductive heat exchange in firn.
Katrin Lindbäck, Jack Kohler, Rickard Pettersson, Christopher Nuth, Kirsty Langley, Alexandra Messerli, Dorothée Vallot, Kenichi Matsuoka, and Ola Brandt
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 10, 1769–1781, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-10-1769-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-10-1769-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
Tidewater glaciers terminate directly into the sea and the glacier fronts are important feeding areas for birds and marine mammals. Svalbard tidewater glaciers are retreating, which will affect fjord circulation and ecosystems when glacier fronts end on land. In this paper, we present digital maps of ice thickness and topography under five tidewater glaciers in Kongsfjorden, northwestern Svalbard, which will be useful in studies of future glacier changes in the area.
Solveig H. Winsvold, Andreas Kääb, Christopher Nuth, Liss M. Andreassen, Ward J. J. van Pelt, and Thomas Schellenberger
The Cryosphere, 12, 867–890, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-867-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-867-2018, 2018
Dorothée Vallot, Jan Åström, Thomas Zwinger, Rickard Pettersson, Alistair Everett, Douglas I. Benn, Adrian Luckman, Ward J. J. van Pelt, Faezeh Nick, and Jack Kohler
The Cryosphere, 12, 609–625, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-609-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-609-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
This paper presents a new perspective on the role of ice dynamics and ocean interaction in glacier calving processes applied to Kronebreen, a tidewater glacier in Svalbard. A global modelling approach includes ice flow modelling, undercutting estimation by a combination of glacier energy balance and plume modelling as well as calving by a discrete particle model. We show that modelling undercutting is necessary and calving is influenced by basal friction velocity and geometry.
Penelope How, Douglas I. Benn, Nicholas R. J. Hulton, Bryn Hubbard, Adrian Luckman, Heïdi Sevestre, Ward J. J. van Pelt, Katrin Lindbäck, Jack Kohler, and Wim Boot
The Cryosphere, 11, 2691–2710, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-2691-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-2691-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
This study provides valuable insight into subglacial hydrology and dynamics at tidewater glaciers, which remains a poorly understood area of glaciology. It is a unique study because of the wealth of information provided by simultaneous observations of glacier hydrology at Kronebreen, a tidewater glacier in Svalbard. All these elements build a strong conceptual picture of the glacier's hydrological regime over the 2014 melt season.
Meri M. Ruppel, Joana Soares, Jean-Charles Gallet, Elisabeth Isaksson, Tõnu Martma, Jonas Svensson, Jack Kohler, Christina A. Pedersen, Sirkku Manninen, Atte Korhola, and Johan Ström
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 12779–12795, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-12779-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-12779-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
Black carbon (BC) deposition enhances Arctic warming and melting. We present Svalbard ice core BC data from 2005 to 2015, comparing the results with chemical transport model data. The ice core and modelled BC deposition trends clearly deviate from measured and observed atmospheric concentration trends, and thus meteorological processes such as precipitation and scavenging efficiency seem to have a stronger influence on the BC deposition trend than BC emission or atmospheric concentration trends.
Daniel Farinotti, Douglas J. Brinkerhoff, Garry K. C. Clarke, Johannes J. Fürst, Holger Frey, Prateek Gantayat, Fabien Gillet-Chaulet, Claire Girard, Matthias Huss, Paul W. Leclercq, Andreas Linsbauer, Horst Machguth, Carlos Martin, Fabien Maussion, Mathieu Morlighem, Cyrille Mosbeux, Ankur Pandit, Andrea Portmann, Antoine Rabatel, RAAJ Ramsankaran, Thomas J. Reerink, Olivier Sanchez, Peter A. Stentoft, Sangita Singh Kumari, Ward J. J. van Pelt, Brian Anderson, Toby Benham, Daniel Binder, Julian A. Dowdeswell, Andrea Fischer, Kay Helfricht, Stanislav Kutuzov, Ivan Lavrentiev, Robert McNabb, G. Hilmar Gudmundsson, Huilin Li, and Liss M. Andreassen
The Cryosphere, 11, 949–970, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-949-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-949-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
ITMIX – the Ice Thickness Models Intercomparison eXperiment – was the first coordinated performance assessment for models inferring glacier ice thickness from surface characteristics. Considering 17 different models and 21 different test cases, we show that although solutions of individual models can differ considerably, an ensemble average can yield uncertainties in the order of 10 ± 24 % the mean ice thickness. Ways forward for improving such estimates are sketched.
Luc Girod, Christopher Nuth, Andreas Kääb, Bernd Etzelmüller, and Jack Kohler
The Cryosphere, 11, 827–840, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-827-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-827-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
While gathering data on a changing environment is often a costly and complicated endeavour, it is also the backbone of all research. What if one could measure elevation change by just strapping a camera and a hiking GPS under an helicopter or a small airplane used for transportation and gather data on the ground bellow the flight path? In this article, we present a way to do exactly that and show an example survey where it helped compute the volume of ice lost by a glacier in Svalbard.
Torbjørn Ims Østby, Thomas Vikhamar Schuler, Jon Ove Hagen, Regine Hock, Jack Kohler, and Carleen H. Reijmer
The Cryosphere, 11, 191–215, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-191-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-191-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
We present modelled climatic mass balance for all glaciers in Svalbard for the period 1957–2014 at 1 km resolution using a coupled surface energy balance and snowpack model, thereby closing temporal and spatial gaps in direct and geodetic mass balance estimates.
Supporting previous studies, our results indicate increased mass loss over the period.
A detailed analysis of the involved energy fluxes reveals that increased mass loss is caused by atmospheric warming further amplified by feedbacks.
Carmen P. Vega, Elisabeth Schlosser, Dmitry V. Divine, Jack Kohler, Tõnu Martma, Anja Eichler, Margit Schwikowski, and Elisabeth Isaksson
The Cryosphere, 10, 2763–2777, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-10-2763-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-10-2763-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
Surface mass balance and water stable isotopes from firn cores on three ice rises at Fimbul Ice Shelf are reported. The results suggest that the ice rises are suitable sites for the retrieval of longer firn and ice cores. The first deuterium excess data for the area suggests a possible role of seasonal moisture transport changes on the annual isotopic signal. Large-scale atmospheric circulation patterns most likely provide the dominant influence on water stable isotope ratios at the sites.
Carmen P. Vega, Veijo A. Pohjola, Emilie Beaudon, Björn Claremar, Ward J. J. van Pelt, Rickard Pettersson, Elisabeth Isaksson, Tõnu Martma, Margit Schwikowski, and Carl E. Bøggild
The Cryosphere, 10, 961–976, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-10-961-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-10-961-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
To quantify post-depositional relocation of major ions by meltwater in snow and firn at Lomonosovfonna, Svalbard, consecutive ice cores drilled at this site were used to construct a synthetic core. The relocation length of most of the ions was on the order of 1 m between 2007 and 2010. Considering the ionic relocation lengths and annual melt percentages, we estimate that the atmospheric ionic signal remains preserved in recently drilled Lomonosovfonna ice cores at an annual or bi-annual resolution.
W. J. J. van Pelt, J. Oerlemans, C. H. Reijmer, R. Pettersson, V. A. Pohjola, E. Isaksson, and D. Divine
The Cryosphere, 7, 987–1006, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-7-987-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-7-987-2013, 2013
Related subject area
Discipline: Glaciers | Subject: Numerical Modelling
A 3D glacier dynamics–line plume model to estimate the frontal ablation of Hansbreen, Svalbard
Impact of the Nares Strait sea ice arches on the long-term stability of the Petermann Glacier ice shelf
Exploring the ability of the variable-resolution Community Earth System Model to simulate cryospheric–hydrological variables in High Mountain Asia
Modelling the development and decay of cryoconite holes in northwestern Greenland
Increasing numerical stability of mountain valley glacier simulations: implementation and testing of free-surface stabilization in Elmer/Ice
Thermal regime of the Grigoriev ice cap and the Sary-Tor glacier in the inner Tien Shan, Kyrgyzstan
Modelling supraglacial debris-cover evolution from the single-glacier to the regional scale: an application to High Mountain Asia
The 21st-century fate of the Mocho-Choshuenco ice cap in southern Chile
Modelling steady states and the transient response of debris-covered glaciers
Twentieth century global glacier mass change: an ensemble-based model reconstruction
Mapping the age of ice of Gauligletscher combining surface radionuclide contamination and ice flow modeling
Modelling the evolution of Djankuat Glacier, North Caucasus, from 1752 until 2100 CE
Brief communication: Time step dependence (and fixes) in Stokes simulations of calving ice shelves
Modelling regional glacier length changes over the last millennium using the Open Global Glacier Model
The contrasting response of outlet glaciers to interior and ocean forcing
Deep learning applied to glacier evolution modelling
Initialization of a global glacier model based on present-day glacier geometry and past climate information: an ensemble approach
Contrasting thinning patterns between lake- and land-terminating glaciers in the Bhutanese Himalaya
Impact of frontal ablation on the ice thickness estimation of marine-terminating glaciers in Alaska
Modeling the response of Greenland outlet glaciers to global warming using a coupled flow line–plume model
Buoyant forces promote tidewater glacier iceberg calving through large basal stress concentrations
Global glacier volume projections under high-end climate change scenarios
José M. Muñoz-Hermosilla, Jaime Otero, Eva De Andrés, Kaian Shahateet, Francisco Navarro, and Iván Pérez-Doña
The Cryosphere, 18, 1911–1924, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-1911-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-1911-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
A large fraction of the mass loss from marine-terminating glaciers is attributed to frontal ablation. In this study, we used a 3D ice flow model of a real glacier that includes the effects of calving and submarine melting. Over a 30-month simulation, we found that the model reproduced the seasonal cycle for this glacier. Besides, the front positions were in good agreement with observations in the central part of the front, with longitudinal differences, on average, below 15 m.
Abhay Prakash, Qin Zhou, Tore Hattermann, and Nina Kirchner
The Cryosphere, 17, 5255–5281, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-5255-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-5255-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Sea ice arch formation in the Nares Strait has shielded the Petermann Glacier ice shelf from enhanced basal melting. However, with the sustained decline of the Arctic sea ice predicted to continue, the ice shelf is likely to be exposed to a year-round mobile and thin sea ice cover. In such a scenario, our modelled results show that elevated temperatures, and more importantly, a stronger ocean circulation in the ice shelf cavity, could result in up to two-thirds increase in basal melt.
René R. Wijngaard, Adam R. Herrington, William H. Lipscomb, Gunter R. Leguy, and Soon-Il An
The Cryosphere, 17, 3803–3828, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-3803-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-3803-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
We evaluate the ability of the Community Earth System Model (CESM2) to simulate cryospheric–hydrological variables, such as glacier surface mass balance (SMB), over High Mountain Asia (HMA) by using a global grid (~111 km) with regional refinement (~7 km) over HMA. Evaluations of two different simulations show that climatological biases are reduced, and glacier SMB is improved (but still too negative) by modifying the snow and glacier model and using an updated glacier cover dataset.
Yukihiko Onuma, Koji Fujita, Nozomu Takeuchi, Masashi Niwano, and Teruo Aoki
The Cryosphere, 17, 3309–3328, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-3309-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-3309-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
We established a novel model that simulates the temporal changes in cryoconite hole (CH) depth using heat budgets calculated independently at the ice surface and CH bottom based on hole shape geometry. The simulations suggest that CH depth is governed by the balance between the intensity of the diffuse component of downward shortwave radiation and the wind speed. The meteorological conditions may be important factors contributing to the recent ice surface darkening via the redistribution of CHs.
André Löfgren, Thomas Zwinger, Peter Råback, Christian Helanow, and Josefin Ahlkrona
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-1507, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-1507, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
This paper investigates a stabilization method for free-surface flows in the context of glacier simulations. Previous applications of the stabilization on ice flows have only considered simple ice-sheet benchmark problems; in particular the method has not been tested on real-world glacier domains. This work addresses this shortcoming by demonstrating that the stabilization works well also in this case, and increases stability and robustness without negatively impacting computation times.
Lander Van Tricht and Philippe Huybrechts
The Cryosphere, 16, 4513–4535, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4513-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4513-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
We examine the thermal regime of the Grigoriev ice cap and the Sary-Tor glacier, both located in the inner Tien Shan in Kyrgyzstan. Our findings are important as the ice dynamics can only be understood and modelled precisely if ice temperature is considered correctly in ice flow models. The calibrated parameters of this study can be used in applications with ice flow models for individual ice masses as well as to optimise more general models for large-scale regional simulations.
Loris Compagno, Matthias Huss, Evan Stewart Miles, Michael James McCarthy, Harry Zekollari, Amaury Dehecq, Francesca Pellicciotti, and Daniel Farinotti
The Cryosphere, 16, 1697–1718, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-1697-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-1697-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
We present a new approach for modelling debris area and thickness evolution. We implement the module into a combined mass-balance ice-flow model, and we apply it using different climate scenarios to project the future evolution of all glaciers in High Mountain Asia. We show that glacier geometry, volume, and flow velocity evolve differently when modelling explicitly debris cover compared to glacier evolution without the debris-cover module, demonstrating the importance of accounting for debris.
Matthias Scheiter, Marius Schaefer, Eduardo Flández, Deniz Bozkurt, and Ralf Greve
The Cryosphere, 15, 3637–3654, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3637-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3637-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We simulate the current state and future evolution of the Mocho-Choshuenco ice cap in southern Chile (40°S, 72°W) with the ice-sheet model SICOPOLIS. Under different global warming scenarios, we project ice mass losses between 56 % and 97 % by the end of the 21st century. We quantify the uncertainties based on an ensemble of climate models and on the temperature dependence of the equilibrium line altitude. Our results suggest a considerable deglaciation in southern Chile in the next 80 years.
James C. Ferguson and Andreas Vieli
The Cryosphere, 15, 3377–3399, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3377-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3377-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Debris-covered glaciers have a greater extent than their debris-free counterparts due to insulation from the debris cover. However, the transient response to climate change remains poorly understood. We use a numerical model that couples ice dynamics and debris transport and varies the climate signal. We find that debris cover delays the transient response, especially for the extent. However, adding cryokarst features near the terminus greatly enhances the response.
Jan-Hendrik Malles and Ben Marzeion
The Cryosphere, 15, 3135–3157, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3135-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3135-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
To better estimate the uncertainty in glacier mass change modeling during the 20th century we ran an established model with an ensemble of meteorological data sets. We find that the total ensemble uncertainty, especially in the early 20th century, when glaciological and meteorological observations at glacier locations were sparse, increases considerably compared to individual ensemble runs. This stems from regions with a lot of ice mass but few observations (e.g., Greenland periphery).
Guillaume Jouvet, Stefan Röllin, Hans Sahli, José Corcho, Lars Gnägi, Loris Compagno, Dominik Sidler, Margit Schwikowski, Andreas Bauder, and Martin Funk
The Cryosphere, 14, 4233–4251, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4233-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4233-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
We show that plutonium is an effective tracer to identify ice originating from the early 1960s at the surface of a mountain glacier after a long time within the ice flow, giving unique information on the long-term former ice motion. Combined with ice flow modelling, the dating can be extended to the entire glacier, and we show that an airplane which crash-landed on the Gauligletscher in 1946 will likely soon be released from the ice close to the place where pieces have emerged in recent years.
Yoni Verhaegen, Philippe Huybrechts, Oleg Rybak, and Victor V. Popovnin
The Cryosphere, 14, 4039–4061, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4039-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4039-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
We use a numerical flow model to simulate the behaviour of the Djankuat Glacier, a WGMS reference glacier situated in the North Caucasus (Republic of Kabardino-Balkaria, Russian Federation), in response to past, present and future climate conditions (1752–2100 CE). In particular, we adapt a more sophisticated and physically based debris model, which has not been previously applied in time-dependent numerical flow line models, to look at the impact of a debris cover on the glacier’s evolution.
Brandon Berg and Jeremy Bassis
The Cryosphere, 14, 3209–3213, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-3209-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-3209-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Computer models of ice sheets and glaciers are an important component of projecting sea level rise due to climate change. For models that seek to simulate the full balance of forces within the ice, if portions of the glacier are allowed to quickly break off in a process called iceberg calving, a numerical issue arises that can cause inaccurate results. We examine the issue and propose a solution so that future models can more accurately predict the future behavior of ice sheets and glaciers.
David Parkes and Hugues Goosse
The Cryosphere, 14, 3135–3153, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-3135-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-3135-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Direct records of glacier changes rarely go back more than the last 100 years and are few and far between. We used a sophisticated glacier model to simulate glacier length changes over the last 1000 years for those glaciers that we do have long-term records of, to determine whether the model can run in a stable, realistic way over a long timescale, reproducing recent observed trends. We find that post-industrial changes are larger than other changes in this time period driven by recent warming.
John Erich Christian, Alexander A. Robel, Cristian Proistosescu, Gerard Roe, Michelle Koutnik, and Knut Christianson
The Cryosphere, 14, 2515–2535, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-2515-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-2515-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
We use simple, physics-based models to compare how marine-terminating glaciers respond to changes at their marine margin vs. inland surface melt. Initial glacier retreat is more rapid for ocean changes than for inland changes, but in both cases, glaciers will continue responding for millennia. We analyze several implications of these differing pathways of change. In particular, natural ocean variability must be better understood to correctly identify the anthropogenic role in glacier retreat.
Jordi Bolibar, Antoine Rabatel, Isabelle Gouttevin, Clovis Galiez, Thomas Condom, and Eric Sauquet
The Cryosphere, 14, 565–584, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-565-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-565-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
We introduce a novel approach for simulating glacier mass balances using a deep artificial neural network (i.e. deep learning) from climate and topographical data. This has been added as a component of a new open-source parameterized glacier evolution model. Deep learning is found to outperform linear machine learning methods, mainly due to its nonlinearity. Potential applications range from regional mass balance reconstructions from observations to simulations for past and future climates.
Julia Eis, Fabien Maussion, and Ben Marzeion
The Cryosphere, 13, 3317–3335, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-3317-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-3317-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
To provide estimates of past glacier mass changes, an adequate initial state is required. However, information about past glacier states at regional or global scales is largely incomplete. Our study presents a new way to initialize the Open Global Glacier Model from past climate information and present-day geometries. We show that even with perfectly known but incomplete boundary conditions, the problem of model initialization leads to nonunique solutions, and we propose an ensemble approach.
Shun Tsutaki, Koji Fujita, Takayuki Nuimura, Akiko Sakai, Shin Sugiyama, Jiro Komori, and Phuntsho Tshering
The Cryosphere, 13, 2733–2750, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2733-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2733-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
We investigate thickness change of Bhutanese glaciers during 2004–2011 using repeat GPS surveys and satellite-based observations. The thinning rate of Lugge Glacier (LG) is > 3 times that of Thorthormi Glacier (TG). Numerical simulations of ice dynamics and surface mass balance (SMB) demonstrate that the rapid thinning of LG is driven by both negative SMB and dynamic thinning, while the thinning of TG is minimised by a longitudinally compressive flow regime.
Beatriz Recinos, Fabien Maussion, Timo Rothenpieler, and Ben Marzeion
The Cryosphere, 13, 2657–2672, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2657-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2657-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
We have implemented a frontal ablation parameterization into the Open Global Glacier Model and have shown that inversion methods based on mass conservation systematically underestimate the mass turnover (and therefore the thickness) of tidewater glaciers when neglecting frontal ablation. This underestimation can rise up to 19 % on a regional scale. Not accounting for frontal ablation will have an impact on the estimate of the glaciers’ potential contribution to sea level rise.
Johanna Beckmann, Mahé Perrette, Sebastian Beyer, Reinhard Calov, Matteo Willeit, and Andrey Ganopolski
The Cryosphere, 13, 2281–2301, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2281-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2281-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Submarine melting (SM) has been discussed as potentially triggering the recently observed retreat at outlet glaciers in Greenland. How much it may contribute in terms of future sea level rise (SLR) has not been quantified yet. When accounting for SM in our experiments, SLR contribution of 12 outlet glaciers increases by over 3-fold until the year 2100 under RCP8.5. Scaling up from 12 to all of Greenland's outlet glaciers increases future SLR contribution of Greenland by 50 %.
Matt Trevers, Antony J. Payne, Stephen L. Cornford, and Twila Moon
The Cryosphere, 13, 1877–1887, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-1877-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-1877-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Iceberg calving is a major factor in the retreat of outlet glaciers of the Greenland Ice Sheet. Massive block overturning calving events occur at major outlet glaciers. A major calving event in 2009 was triggered by the release of a smaller block of ice from above the waterline. Using a numerical model, we investigate the feasibility of this mechanism to drive large calving events. We find that relatively small perturbations induce forces large enough to open cracks in ice at the glacier bed.
Sarah Shannon, Robin Smith, Andy Wiltshire, Tony Payne, Matthias Huss, Richard Betts, John Caesar, Aris Koutroulis, Darren Jones, and Stephan Harrison
The Cryosphere, 13, 325–350, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-325-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-325-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
We present global glacier volume projections for the end of this century, under a range of high-end climate change scenarios, defined as exceeding 2 °C global average warming. The ice loss contribution to sea level rise for all glaciers excluding those on the peripheral of the Antarctic ice sheet is 215.2 ± 21.3 mm. Such large ice losses will have consequences for sea level rise and for water supply in glacier-fed river systems.
Cited articles
Bahr, D. B., Meier, M. F., and Peckham, S. D.: The physical basis of glacier volume-area scaling, J. Geophys. Res.-Sol. Ea., 102, 20355–20362, https://doi.org/10.1029/97JB01696, 1997. a
Blatter, H.: Velocity and stress fields in grounded glaciers: a simple algorithm for including deviatoric stress gradients, J. Glaciol., 41, 333–344, https://doi.org/10.3189/S002214300001621X, 1995. a
Bogorodsky, V. V., Bentley, C. R., and Gudmandsen, P. E.: Radioglaciology, Springer Science & Business 50 Media, ISBN 978-90-277-1893-8, 1985. a
Brinkerhoff, D. J., Aschwanden, A., and Truffer, M.: Bayesian Inference of Subglacial Topography Using Mass Conservation, Front. Earth Sci., 4, 8, https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2016.00008, 2016. a
Bueler, E. and Brown, J.: Shallow shelf approximation as a “sliding law” in a thermomechanically coupled ice sheet model, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 114, F03008, https://doi.org/10.1029/2008JF001179, 2009. a, b, c, d
Chen, J. and Ohmura, A.: Estimation of Alpine glacier water resources and their change since the 1870s, IAHS Publ., 193, 127–135, 1990. a
Christianson, K., Kohler, J., Alley, R. B., Nuth, C., and Van Pelt, W. J.: Dynamic perennial firn aquifer on an Arctic glacier, Geophys. Res. Lett., 42, 1418–1426, 2015. a
Clarke, G. K. C., Anslow, F. S., Jarosch, A. H., Radić, V., Menounos, B., Bolch, T., and Berthier, E.: Ice Volume and Subglacial Topography for Western Canadian Glaciers from Mass Balance Fields, Thinning Rates, and a Bed Stress Model, J. Climate, 26, 4282–4303, https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-12-00513.1, 2013. a, b
Deschamps-Berger, C., Nuth, C., Pelt, W. V., Berthier, E., Kohler, J., and Altena, B.: Closing the mass budget of a tidewater glacier: the example of Kronebreen, Svalbard, J. Glaciol., 65, 136–148, https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2018.98, 2019. a, b
Farinotti, D., Brinkerhoff, D. J., Clarke, G. K. C., Fürst, J. J., Frey, H., Gantayat, P., Gillet-Chaulet, F., Girard, C., Huss, M., Leclercq, P. W., Linsbauer, A., Machguth, H., Martin, C., Maussion, F., Morlighem, M., Mosbeux, C., Pandit, A., Portmann, A., Rabatel, A., Ramsankaran, R., Reerink, T. J., Sanchez, O., Stentoft, P. A., Singh Kumari, S., van Pelt, W. J. J., Anderson, B., Benham, T., Binder, D., Dowdeswell, J. A., Fischer, A., Helfricht, K., Kutuzov, S., Lavrentiev, I., McNabb, R., Gudmundsson, G. H., Li, H., and Andreassen, L. M.: How accurate are estimates of glacier ice thickness? Results from ITMIX, the Ice Thickness Models Intercomparison eXperiment, The Cryosphere, 11, 949–970, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-949-2017, 2017. a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j
Farinotti, D., Huss, M., Fürst, J. J., Landmann, J., Machguth, H., Maussion, F., and Pandit, A.: A consensus estimate for the ice thickness distribution of all glaciers on Earth, Nat. Geosci., 12, 168–173, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-019-0300-3, 2019. a, b, c
Farinotti, D., Brinkerhoff, D. J., Fürst, J. J., Gantayat, P., Gillet-Chaulet, F., Huss, M., Leclercq, P. W., Maurer, H., Morlighem, M., Pandit, A., Rabatel, A., Ramsankaran, R., Reerink, T. J., Robo, E., Rouges, E., Tamre, E., van Pelt, W. J. J., Werder, M. A., Azam, M. F., Li, H., and Andreassen, L. M.: Results from the Ice Thickness Models Intercomparison eXperiment Phase 2 (ITMIX2), Front. Earth Sci., 8, 571923, https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2020.571923, 2021. a, b
Flowers, G. E. and Clarke, G. K. C.: Surface and bed topography of Trapridge Glacier, Yukon Territory, Canada: digital elevation models and derived hydraulic geometry, J. Glaciol., 45, 165–174, https://doi.org/10.3189/S0022143000003142, 1999. a
Fretwell, P., Pritchard, H. D., Vaughan, D. G., Bamber, J. L., Barrand, N. E., Bell, R., Bianchi, C., Bingham, R. G., Blankenship, D. D., Casassa, G., Catania, G., Callens, D., Conway, H., Cook, A. J., Corr, H. F. J., Damaske, D., Damm, V., Ferraccioli, F., Forsberg, R., Fujita, S., Gim, Y., Gogineni, P., Griggs, J. A., Hindmarsh, R. C. A., Holmlund, P., Holt, J. W., Jacobel, R. W., Jenkins, A., Jokat, W., Jordan, T., King, E. C., Kohler, J., Krabill, W., Riger-Kusk, M., Langley, K. A., Leitchenkov, G., Leuschen, C., Luyendyk, B. P., Matsuoka, K., Mouginot, J., Nitsche, F. O., Nogi, Y., Nost, O. A., Popov, S. V., Rignot, E., Rippin, D. M., Rivera, A., Roberts, J., Ross, N., Siegert, M. J., Smith, A. M., Steinhage, D., Studinger, M., Sun, B., Tinto, B. K., Welch, B. C., Wilson, D., Young, D. A., Xiangbin, C., and Zirizzotti, A.: Bedmap2: improved ice bed, surface and thickness datasets for Antarctica, The Cryosphere, 7, 375–393, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-7-375-2013, 2013. a
Frey, H., Machguth, H., Huss, M., Huggel, C., Bajracharya, S., Bolch, T., Kulkarni, A., Linsbauer, A., Salzmann, N., and Stoffel, M.: Estimating the volume of glaciers in the Himalayan–Karakoram region using different methods, The Cryosphere, 8, 2313–2333, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-8-2313-2014, 2014. a, b
Fürst, J. J., Gillet-Chaulet, F., Benham, T. J., Dowdeswell, J. A., Grabiec, M., Navarro, F., Pettersson, R., Moholdt, G., Nuth, C., Sass, B., Aas, K., Fettweis, X., Lang, C., Seehaus, T., and Braun, M.: Application of a two-step approach for mapping ice thickness to various glacier types on Svalbard, The Cryosphere, 11, 2003–2032, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-2003-2017, 2017. a
Fürst, J. J., Navarro, F., Gillet-Chaulet, F., Huss, M., Moholdt, G., Fettweis, X., Lang, C., Seehaus, T., Ai, S., Benham, T. J., Benn, D. I., Björnsson, H., Dowdeswell, J. A., Grabiec, M., Kohler, J., Lavrentiev, I., Lindbäck, K., Melvold, K., Pettersson, R., Rippin, D., Saintenoy, A., Sánchez-Gámez, P., Schuler, T. V., Sevestre, H., Vasilenko, E., and Braun, M. H.: The Ice-Free Topography of Svalbard, Geophys. Res. Lett., 45, 11760–11769, https://doi.org/10.1029/2018GL079734, 2018. a, b, c
Gantayat, P., Kulkarni, A. V., and Srinivasan, J.: Estimation of ice thickness using surface velocities and slope: case study at Gangotri Glacier, India, J. Glaciol., 60, 277–282, https://doi.org/10.3189/2014JoG13J078, 2014. a
Glen, J. W.: The creep of polycrystalline ice, P. Roy. Soc. Lond. A Mat., 228, 519–538, 1955. a
Goelzer, H., Robinson, A., Seroussi, H., and van de Wal, R. S.: Recent Progress in Greenland Ice Sheet Modelling, Current Climate Change Reports, 3, 291–302, https://doi.org/10.1007/s40641-017-0073-y, 2017. a
Goldberg, D. N. and Heimbach, P.: Parameter and state estimation with a time-dependent adjoint marine ice sheet model, The Cryosphere, 7, 1659–1678, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-7-1659-2013, 2013. a
Gudmundsson, G. H.: Transmission of basal variability to a glacier surface, J. Geophys. Res.-Sol. Ea., 108, 2253, https://doi.org/10.1029/2002JB002107, 2003. a, b
Habermann, M., Maxwell, D., and Truffer, M.: Reconstruction of basal properties in ice sheets using iterative inverse methods, J. Glaciol., 58, 795–808, https://doi.org/10.3189/2012JoG11J168, 2012. a, b, c, d
Haeberli, W. and Hoelzle, M.: Application of inventory data for estimating characteristics of and regional climate-change effects on mountain glaciers: a pilot study with the European Alps, Ann. Glaciol., 21, 206–212, https://doi.org/10.3189/S0260305500015834, 1995. a, b
Heining, C.: Velocity field reconstruction in gravity-driven flow over unknown topography, Phys. Fluids, 23, 032101, https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3559144, 2011. a, b
How, P., Benn, D. I., Hulton, N. R. J., Hubbard, B., Luckman, A., Sevestre, H., van Pelt, W. J. J., Lindbäck, K., Kohler, J., and Boot, W.: Rapidly changing subglacial hydrological pathways at a tidewater glacier revealed through simultaneous observations of water pressure, supraglacial lakes, meltwater plumes and surface velocities, The Cryosphere, 11, 2691–2710, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-2691-2017, 2017. a
Hugonnet, R., McNabb, R., Berthier, E., Menounos, B., Nuth, C., Girod, L., Farinotti, D., Huss, M., Dussaillant, I., Brun, F., and Kääb, A.: Accelerated global glacier mass loss in the early twenty-first century, Nature, 592, 726–731, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-03436-z, 2021. a, b
Huss, M. and Farinotti, D.: Distributed ice thickness and volume of all glaciers around the globe, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 117, F04010, https://doi.org/10.1029/2012JF002523, 2012. a, b, c, d
Jouvet, G.: Inversion of a Stokes glacier flow model emulated by deep learning, J. Glaciol., 69, 1–14, https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2022.41, 2022. a
Kamb, B. and Echelmeyer, K. A.: Stress-Gradient Coupling in Glacier Flow: I. Longitudinal Averaging of the Influence of Ice Thickness and Surface Slope, J. Glaciol., 32, 267–284, https://doi.org/10.3189/S0022143000015604, 1986. a
Köhler, A., Pȩtlicki, M., Lefeuvre, P.-M., Buscaino, G., Nuth, C., and Weidle, C.: Contribution of calving to frontal ablation quantified from seismic and hydroacoustic observations calibrated with lidar volume measurements, The Cryosphere, 13, 3117–3137, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-3117-2019, 2019. a
Langhammer, L., Grab, M., Bauder, A., and Maurer, H.: Glacier thickness estimations of alpine glaciers using data and modeling constraints, The Cryosphere, 13, 2189–2202, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2189-2019, 2019. a
Le clec'h, S., Quiquet, A., Charbit, S., Dumas, C., Kageyama, M., and Ritz, C.: A rapidly converging initialisation method to simulate the present-day Greenland ice sheet using the GRISLI ice sheet model (version 1.3), Geosci. Model Dev., 12, 2481–2499, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-12-2481-2019, 2019. a, b
Li, H., Ng, F., Li, Z., Qin, D., and Cheng, G.: An extended “perfect-plasticity” method for estimating ice thickness along the flow line of mountain glaciers, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 117, 1020–1030, https://doi.org/10.1029/2011JF002104, 2012. a, b
Lindbäck, K., Kohler, J., Pettersson, R., Nuth, C., Langley, K., Messerli, A., Vallot, D., Matsuoka, K., and Brandt, O.: Subglacial topography, ice thickness, and bathymetry of Kongsfjorden, northwestern Svalbard, Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 10, 1769–1781, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-10-1769-2018, 2018a. a, b, c
Lindbäck, K., Kohler, J., Pettersson, R., Nuth, C., Langley, K., Messerli, A., Vallot, D., Matsuoka, K., and Brandt, O.: Subglacial topography, ice thickness, and bathymetry of Kongsfjorden, northwestern Svalbard, Norwegian Polar Institute [data set], https://doi.org/10.21334/npolar.2017.702ca4a7, 2018b. a
Linsbauer, A., Paul, F., Hoelzle, M., Frey, H., and Haeberli, W.: The Swiss Alps without glaciers – a GIS-based modelling approach for reconstruction of glacier beds, Proceedings of Geomorphometry, 243–247, https://doi.org/10.5167/uzh-27834, 2009. a
Linsbauer, A., Paul, F., and Haeberli, W.: Modeling glacier thickness distribution and bed topography over entire mountain ranges with GlabTop: Application of a fast and robust approach, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 117, F03007, https://doi.org/10.1029/2011JF002313, 2012. a, b
Luckman, A., Benn, D. I., Cottier, F., Bevan, S., Nilsen, F., and Inall, M.: Calving rates at tidewater glaciers vary strongly with ocean temperature, Nat. Commun., 6, 8566, https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms9566, 2015. a
Maussion, F., Butenko, A., Champollion, N., Dusch, M., Eis, J., Fourteau, K., Gregor, P., Jarosch, A. H., Landmann, J., Oesterle, F., Recinos, B., Rothenpieler, T., Vlug, A., Wild, C. T., and Marzeion, B.: The Open Global Glacier Model (OGGM) v1.1, Geosci. Model Dev., 12, 909–931, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-12-909-2019, 2019. a, b, c, d, e
Michel, L., Picasso, M., Farinotti, D., Bauder, A., Funk, M., and Blatter, H.: Estimating the ice thickness of mountain glaciers with an inverse approach using surface topography and mass-balance, Inverse Probl., 29, 035002, https://doi.org/10.1088/0266-5611/29/3/035002, 2013. a
Millan, R., Mouginot, J., Rabatel, A., and Morlighem, M.: Ice velocity and thickness of the world’s glaciers, Sedoo [data set], https://doi.org/10.6096/1007, 2022b. a
NASA JPL: NASADEM Merged DEM Global 1 arc second V001, NASA EOSDIS Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center [data set], https://doi.org/10.5067/MEASURES/NASADEM/NASADEM_HGT.001, 2020. a
Neven, A., Dall'Alba, V., Juda, P., Straubhaar, J., and Renard, P.: Ice volume and basal topography estimation using geostatistical methods and ground-penetrating radar measurements: application to the Tsanfleuron and Scex Rouge glaciers, Swiss Alps, The Cryosphere, 15, 5169–5186, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-5169-2021, 2021. a
Nye, J. F.: A Method of Calculating the Thicknesses of the Ice-Sheets, Nature, 169, 529–530, https://doi.org/10.1038/169529a0, 1952. a, b, c
Oppenheimer, M., Glavovic, B., Hinkel, J., van de Wal, R., Magnan, A., Abd-Elgawad, A., Cai, R., Cifuentes-Jara, M., DeConto, R., Ghosh, T., Hay, J., Isla, F., Marzeion, B., and Sebesvari, Z.: Sea Level Rise and Implications
for Low-Lying Islands, Coasts and Communities, in: IPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing
Climate, editeds by: Pörtner, H.-O., Roberts, D. C., Masson-Delmotte, V., Zhai, P., Tignor, M., Poloczanska, E., Mintenbeck, K., Alegría, A.,
Nicolai, M., Okem, A., Petzold, J., Rama, B., and Weyer, N. M., Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK and New
York, NY, USA, 321–445, https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009157964.006, 2019. a
Pattyn, F.: A new three-dimensional higher-order thermomechanical ice sheet model: Basic sensitivity, ice stream development, and ice flow across subglacial lakes, J. Geophys. Res.-Sol. Ea., 108, 2382, https://doi.org/10.1029/2002JB002329, 2003. a
Pattyn, F., Schoof, C., Perichon, L., Hindmarsh, R. C. A., Bueler, E., de Fleurian, B., Durand, G., Gagliardini, O., Gladstone, R., Goldberg, D., Gudmundsson, G. H., Huybrechts, P., Lee, V., Nick, F. M., Payne, A. J., Pollard, D., Rybak, O., Saito, F., and Vieli, A.: Results of the Marine Ice Sheet Model Intercomparison Project, MISMIP, The Cryosphere, 6, 573–588, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-6-573-2012, 2012. a
Paul, F. and Linsbauer, A.: Modeling of glacier bed topography from glacier outlines, central branch lines, and a DEM, Int. J. Geogr. Inf. Sci., 26, 1173–1190, https://doi.org/10.1080/13658816.2011.627859, 2012. a, b
Pollard, D. and DeConto, R. M.: A simple inverse method for the distribution of basal sliding coefficients under ice sheets, applied to Antarctica, The Cryosphere, 6, 953–971, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-6-953-2012, 2012. a, b, c, d
Rabatel, A., Sanchez, O., Vincent, C., and Six, D.: Estimation of Glacier Thickness From Surface Mass Balance and Ice Flow Velocities: A Case Study on Argentière Glacier, France, Front. Earth Sci., 6, 112, https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2018.00112, 2018. a, b
Raymond, M. J. and Gudmundsson, G. H.: On the relationship between surface and basal properties on glaciers, ice sheets, and ice streams, J. Geophys. Res.-Sol. Ea., 110, B08411, https://doi.org/10.1029/2005JB003681, 2005. a, b, c
RGI Consortium: Randolph Glacier Inventory – A Dataset of Global Glacier Outlines: Version 6.0, NSIDC: National Snow and Ice Data Center, Boulder, Colorado USA, https://doi.org/10.7265/N5-RGI-60, 2017. a
Rounce, D. R., Hock, R., Maussion, F., Hugonnet, R., Kochtitzky, W., Huss, M., Berthier, E., Brinkerhoff, D., Compagno, L., Copland, L., Farinotti, D., Menounos, B., and McNabb, R. W.: Global glacier change in the 21st century: Every increase in temperature matters, Science, 379, 78–83, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.abo1324, 2023. a, b
Schellenberger, T., Dunse, T., Kääb, A., Kohler, J., and Reijmer, C. H.: Surface speed and frontal ablation of Kronebreen and Kongsbreen, NW Svalbard, from SAR offset tracking, The Cryosphere, 9, 2339–2355, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-2339-2015, 2015. a, b
Schlegel, N.-J., Larour, E., Seroussi, H., Morlighem, M., and Box, J. E.: Ice discharge uncertainties in Northeast Greenland from boundary conditions and climate forcing of an ice flow model, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 120, 29–54, https://doi.org/10.1002/2014JF003359, 2015. a
The PISM authors: PISM, a Parallel Ice Sheet Model, https://www.pism.io (last access: 12 September 2023), 2021. a
Vallot, D., Pettersson, R., Luckman, A., Benn, D. I., Zwinger, T., Pelt, W. J. J. V., Kohler, J., Schäfer, M., Claremar, B., and Hulton, N. R. J.: Basal dynamics of Kronebreen, a fast-flowing tidewater glacier in Svalbard: non-local spatio-temporal response to water input, J. Glaciol., 63, 1012–1024, https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2017.69, 2017. a, b
Vallot, D., Åström, J., Zwinger, T., Pettersson, R., Everett, A., Benn, D. I., Luckman, A., van Pelt, W. J. J., Nick, F., and Kohler, J.: Effects of undercutting and sliding on calving: a global approach applied to Kronebreen, Svalbard, The Cryosphere, 12, 609–625, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-609-2018, 2018. a
van der Wel, L. G., Streurman, H. J., Isaksson, E., Helsen, M. M., Wal, R. S. W. V. D., Martma, T., Pohjola, V. A., Moore, J. C., and Meijer, H. A. J.: Using high-resolution tritium profiles to quantify the effects of melt on two Spitsbergen ice cores, J. Glaciol., 57, 1087–1097, https://doi.org/10.3189/002214311798843368, 2011. a
van Pelt, W., Pohjola, V., Pettersson, R., Marchenko, S., Kohler, J., Luks, B., Hagen, J. O., Schuler, T. V., Dunse, T., Noël, B., and Reijmer, C.: A long-term dataset of climatic mass balance, snow conditions, and runoff in Svalbard (1957–2018), The Cryosphere, 13, 2259–2280, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2259-2019, 2019. a
van Pelt, W. J., Pettersson, R., Pohjola, V. A., Marchenko, S., Claremar, B., and Oerlemans, J.: Inverse estimation of snow accumulation along a radar transect on Nordenskiöldbreen, Svalbard, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 119, 816–835, https://doi.org/10.1002/2013JF003040, 2014. a
van Pelt, W. J. J. and Kohler, J.: Modelling the long-term mass balance and firn evolution of glaciers around Kongsfjorden, Svalbard, J. Glaciol., 61, 731–744, https://doi.org/10.3189/2015JoG14J223, 2015.
a, b
Welty, E., Zemp, M., Navarro, F., Huss, M., Fürst, J. J., Gärtner-Roer, I., Landmann, J., Machguth, H., Naegeli, K., Andreassen, L. M., Farinotti, D., Li, H., and GlaThiDa Contributors: Worldwide version-controlled database of glacier thickness observations, Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 12, 3039–3055, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-3039-2020, 2020. a
Werder, M. A., Huss, M., Paul, F., Dehecq, A., and Farinotti, D.: A Bayesian ice thickness estimation model for large-scale applications, J. Glaciol., 66, 137–152, https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2019.93, 2020. a, b
Winkelmann, R., Martin, M. A., Haseloff, M., Albrecht, T., Bueler, E., Khroulev, C., and Levermann, A.: The Potsdam Parallel Ice Sheet Model (PISM-PIK) – Part 1: Model description, The Cryosphere, 5, 715–726, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-5-715-2011, 2011. a
Zorzut, V., Ruiz, L., Rivera, A., Pitte, P., Villalba, R., and Medrzycka, D.: Slope estimation influences on ice thickness inversion models: a case study for Monte Tronador glaciers, North Patagonian Andes, J. Glaciol., 66, 996–1005, https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2020.64, 2020. a
Short summary
Since the ice thickness of most glaciers worldwide is unknown, and since it is not feasible to visit every glacier and observe their thickness directly, inverse modelling techniques are needed that can calculate ice thickness from abundant surface observations. Here, we present a new method for doing that. Our methodology relies on modelling the rate of surface elevation change for a given glacier, compare this with observations of the same quantity and change the bed until the two are in line.
Since the ice thickness of most glaciers worldwide is unknown, and since it is not feasible to...
