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| Titel |
High Resolution Alpine Glacier Modelling: Do Ice Dynamics Matter? |
| VerfasserIn |
A. H. Jarosch, F. S. Anslow, G. K. C. Clarke |
| Konferenz |
EGU General Assembly 2009
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| Medientyp |
Artikel
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| Sprache |
Englisch
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| Digitales Dokument |
PDF |
| Erschienen |
In: GRA - Volume 11 (2009) |
| Datensatznummer |
250029409
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| Zusammenfassung |
| We investigate the role of ice dynamics in simulations of alpine glacier evolution driven by
high resolution climate data. To quantify the importance of ice dynamics within such
models, we compare the results from four different model realizations: (I) fully
coupled mass balance with ice dynamics; (II) non coupled mass balance and ice
dynamics; (III) instantaneous, mass balance driven steady-state; (IV) mass balance only.
These models require good initial and final ice geometry data in combination with
downscaled, high resolution climate forcing to create a benchmark experiment
which allows such a comparison. We present model results for all three cases from
glaciers in southern British Columbia (Canada) and northern Washington State
(USA). Glacial extents from 1985 serve as the initial state for all models and 2005
extents as the final target geometry. To drive our models we use high resolution mass
balance estimates based on downscaled data from the North American Regional
Reanalysis. Ice dynamics are implemented using a two-dimensional (x,y) finite
volume discretization of the shallow ice approximation, modified for use in an
alpine setting. The models run on a 200 m spatial resolution and the forcing is
based on daily temporal resolution climate data. These high resolutions capture
as much complexity in the system as possible from the available input data. To
further investigate the importance of ice dynamics in large scale models, we perform
our benchmark experiment for both well studied individual target glaciers, and
within the regional glacier model of our research domain, spanning 916000 km2. |
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