Glaciers and Climate

Chapter 17

Formation
Glacier = large ice mass formed on land by the compaction and recrystallization of snow that survives from year to year and shows evidence of present or past flow Moves very slowly Snowline = altitude above which the snow is permanent; the snow doesnt have a chance to melt because the temperature is so cold and builds up over time The snow is converted above the snowline to glacial ice through compaction: Firn = pelletlike form assumed by snow in its transition to glacial ice Firn is buried by more snow, which adds a high lithostatic pressure

The pressure is greatest where the grains are in contact with one another (low porosity) Ice melts along the contact points of grains and travels to the pore space (less pressure), where it recrystallizes as ice This finally forms a fused mass of interlocking ice crystals with a height of more than 50 meters The formation of a glacier can take between several decades and a few centuries Continental glaciers or ice sheet = glacier more than 50,000 square kilometers in area that has spread in all directions, unconfined by underlying topography Occurs at or near sea-level and starts in polar regions Ice cap = glacier less than 50,000 square kilometers in area; either dome-shaped, blanketing the summit of a mountain mass, or plate-shaped, covering a flat landmass, such as an Arctic island

Antartica ice sheet

Greenland ice sheet

http://www.homepage.montana.edu/~geol445/hyperglac/morphology1/

 Alpine glacier or valley glacier = glacier in mountainous terrain that flows downslope in a valley preciously eroded by a stream Occur at higher elevations as you move away from the polar regions towards the equator Cirque glacier = smallest alpine glacier, confined to an amphitheater-like bowl; can be up to a few square kilometers in size Piedmont glacier = glacier formed by the joining of two or more mountain glaciers as they flow out onto the lowlands at the base of a mountain range

http://www.homepage.montana.edu/~geol445/hyperglac/morphology1/

Movement of Glacial Ice

As the mass of the ice accumulates over time, the ice begins to deform and shift position moving downhill by flowing, slipping, and sliding The velocity of the ice is greater at the center of the channel, then it is on the edges on the channel (because there is less friction); the velocity is measured by marking a straight line across the glacier and then observing the change in the line over time ice Position at a later time

Original position

 There is also a difference between flow at the top and the bottom of the ice sheet: higher velocity will occur at the top of the sheet Deformation is also linked to the velocity: the areas with higher velocity have less deformation then the sections of the ice sheet with lower velocities The stress exerted on the ice flow will depend on both gravitational and frictional forces

http://www.homepage.montana.edu/~geol445/hyperglac/systems1/

 Zone of fracture = rigid out layer (brittle) of a glacier where the ice fractures as a result of stress caused by glacial movement Crevasse = fracture in the rigid outer layer of a glacier caused by glacier movement Can extend ~35 km into the ice from the surface Zone of plastic flow = inner mass of a glacier where the ice moves without fracturing Ice flows slowly instead of breaking The greatest amount of stress occurs at the end of the glacier, which will cause the plastic zone to act brittlely (thrust faults)

crevasse

http://www.eos.duke.edu/geo41/gla.htm

http://www.homepage.montana.edu/~geol445/hyperglac/systems2/

 Ice crystals high in the snowfield tend to be randomly oriented, small, and semispherical Ice crystals further down the glacier are more likely to be platy, with their planes aligned parallel to the valley floor; this allows the tiny ice sheets to shear past one another At the end of the glacier, the stacked layers curve upwards as the velocity slows down Glacial movement involves both the sliding discussed so far and melting; the melting occurs where the pressure is greatest (lower pressure will cause the water to recrystallize) Melting of the ice causes the water to mix with sand and gravel attached to the base of the glacier, which creates a slipperly slush

shearing

curved layers

http://www.homepage.montana.edu/~geol445/hyperglac/systems2/

 Basal slip = movement in which a glacier decouples from the valley floor and slides downslope; due to the slipperly slush Surge = brief period of rapid glacial flow Can be up to 20 meters a day Decoupling is very sudden The movement we have been discussing all relates to valley glaciers, not continental ice sheets Ice sheet movement is not well understood Continental glaciers move a few centimeters a year in their center There is less movement, since the slope is much gentler and the temperature stays low year-long Surges have been, however, recorded for the Antartic ice sheet of up to 3 meters a day http://www.homepage.montana.edu/~geol445/hyperglac/systems1/

Glacial Budget
Accumulation = mass of ice gained by a glacier because of snowfall Ablation = loss, or wastage, of ice from a glacier through melting, evaporation, and calving If accumulation exceeds ablation the glacier will grow; if the opposite is true, the glacier will shrink in size The snowline (also called the annual firn line) is drawn to mark the point on the glacier above with accumulation will occur and below which ablation will occur

http://www.homepage.montana.edu/~geol445/hyperglac/systems1/

 Glacial ice will flow from the interior of a continent to the oceanic margin, where it will extend as far as possible out to sea Ice shelf = sheet of thick ice terminating in steep cliffs; one end remains attached to the land; the other end extends out into the sea, where it floats The ice shelf continues out until 80-90% of the ice volume is under water, at which point huge pieces break off Ice berg = block of glacial ice floating on a body of water, with 80% or more of its volume below the surface Calving = process through which blocks of ice break off from ice shelves and float out to sea as ice bergs Chief process of ablation in Antartica

Ross ice shelf (Antartica)

Fracturing just before calving

http://visibleearth.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/viewrecord?5326 http://uwamrc.ssec.wisc.edu/amrc/iceberg.html

Calving event from space

http://www.nsf.gov/od/lpa/news/media/2000/ma0019.htm

Erosional Features
Plucking = erosion process in which meltwater trickles into rock fractures, refreezes, and expands, breaking off rock fragments Fragments can range in size from sand to boulders the size of large cars Rock fragments are incorporated within the glacier as it slowly moves downhill Abrasion = mechanical wearing or grinding of rock surfaces by friction and impact of rock particles transported by wind, ice, waves, running water, or gravity Cirque = deep, curving, steep-sided depression scooped out of the bedrock at the head of a valley glacier Snow and ice are torn loose from the valley wall and take the rock fragments with them

Tuckermans Ravine, NH This was a cirque, but the glacier has melted away and is only filled with snow through ~July (some years August); the truly insane hike in several miles up to go skiing (the rush is Memorial Day weekend) People climbing up the sides of the bowl to ski down
http://www.skypic.com/nh/6-2362.jpg http://www.csh.rit.edu/~vance/pics/tuck2.jpg

The Matterhorn (Switzerland), which is still a glacier today

cirque

http://www.cs.berkeley.edu/~qtluong/gallery/slides-alps/alp011.jpeg

 The plucked fragments are dragged along the bedrock beneath the glacier and gouge, polish, and crush the rock Glacial striations = parallel grooves and scratches that were gouged in the bedrock by rock fragments attached to the bottom of the ice as the glacier slid over it Silt and sand particles will tend to polish the bedrock; the rock will be smooth if you run your hand over it in the direction the ice once moved, but will be rough in the other direction Rock flour = fine particles of rock, which were generated due to abrasion and washed away by meltwater Roche moutonne (French for sheep rock)= glacially sculpted knob of rock, gentle and smooth on its upstream side; steep and rough on its downstream side

striations

Polished bedrock

http://gemini.oscs.montana.edu/~geol445/hyperglac/eroproc1/

Camels Hump in Vermont: a roche moutonne Glacier movement direction

http://geology.uvm.edu/geowww/geodept/ugradwww/glacier/Topo_Features/index.html

 Artes = divide between adjacent valleys, narrowed to a knife-edged ridge by the backward erosion of the valley walls

Carn Mor Dearg Arete; near Ben Nevis in Scotland (dont fall now!)
http://world.std.com/~tomwatt/scotland/bennevis.htm http://gemini.oscs.montana.edu/~geol445/hyperglac/eroland1/aretedef.htm

 Horn = steeply carved rock peak, formed by the walls of three or more cirques (e.g. Matterhorn, Switzerland a few pictures back...)

Grinnel Point in Glacier National Park, Montana

http://gemini.oscs.montana.edu/~geol445/hyperglac/eroland1/horndef.htm

 Glacial troughs = U-shaped valley carved by a mountain glacier in what was previously a V-shaped stream valley Steep-sided, broad, and deep Hanging valley = glacial valley, formed in what was previously a tributary stream valley that was cut off and left stranded at a higher elevation from the main glacial valley

Hanging valley in Yellowstone NP

http://members.aol.com/scipioiv/hangingval.jpg http://www.oswego.edu/Acad_Dept/a_and_s/earth.sci/geo_geochem/g1lab/glaclab/glac.htm

 Tarn = lake in a cirque; usually cold and crystal-clear (Scottish word) Paternoster lake = small lake in a depression carved in a glacial valley floor; usually connected by a series of cascading waterfalls and rapids

tarn Paternoster lakes

http://schools.limestone.on.ca/sydhs/Glaciation2.htm http://www.glasgowwestend.co.uk/text/out/outdoors/hilldiary.html

http://www.bits.bris.ac.uk/francis/DEAstudy/chapter4.html

 Fjord = deep, narrow arm of the sea, formed when a glacial trough that extended to the sea became submerged after melting of the ice; are U-shaped inland, but become more box-shaped near the mouth Common in high-latitude seacoasts that are bordered by glaciated mountains (e.g. Norway, Chile, Alaska, New Zealand) Commonly used as natural harbors

http://www.homepage.montana.edu/~geol445/hyperglac/eroland1/fjordsdef.htm

http://www.bjercke.no/geirang.html

Depositional Features
Drift = glacial deposit of rock fragments Meltwater and ice are the two methods of moving drift Stratified drift = deposits left by streams or pools of glacial meltwater that are sorted and layered according to size Till = unsorted, unlayered drift deposited directly by glacial ice; range in size from clay-sized to boulders the size of trucks; sediment is picked up by the ice and then dropped where the ice melts Moraine = landform composed of till left behind by a retreating glacier If the glacier reaches a stage where the accumulation equals the ablation, then the glacier will not move forward; however, the ice continues to move towards the end of the glacier bringing sediment with it

 Terminal moraine = thick pile of till deposited at the line of maximum glacial advance Ground moraine = rough blanket of till that accumulated under the glacier, exposed as the terminus recedes toward the head of the glacier Recessional moraine = lateral or end moraine accumulated during a pause in a glaciers retreat; there can be a series of these across the ground moraine Lateral moraine = long, narrow mound of till that lies perpendicular to the glacier front, formed by plucking and rockfalls along the valley walls; only occurs in mountain glaciers Medial moraine = joining of lateral moraines where two valley glaciers merge; normally not well preserved, as they are destroyed by meltwater during the glaciers retreat

http://www.wsu.edu/~geology/geol101/SKuehn/glaciers/glaciers-5.html

Lateral moraine Medial moraine

http://www.eos.duke.edu/geo41/gla.htm

 Glacial erratic = large rock fragment or boulder, carried by glacial ice away from its place of origin and usually deposited on bedrock of a different type The composition of the erratic may be useful in correlating that rock to where it originally came fromgiving scientists an idea how far it traveled

http://www.geosurv.gov.nf.ca/images/minjpg/61_2.jpg http://gemini.oscs.montana.edu/~geol445/hyperglac/depland1/Erratics1.htm

 Drumlin = rounded, low, and elongated hill of compacted till, with its blunter end pointing upstream and its tapering end pointing in the direction of ice flow Most are ~30 meters high and 1500 meters long May have been molded by the glacier going over an old moraine Many are grouped together

http://www.uwsp.edu/geo/faculty/heywood/GEOG101/glaciers/

http://www.geology.wisc.edu/~qlab/g420/photos.html

 Meltwater that comes out of the end of a glacier is full of coarse sediment; the easiest way to move the sediment is as bed load, so braided streams form Outwash plain = broad, gently sloping sheet of stratified sand and gravel sediment deposited by meltwater streaming out of the front of a glacier Valley train = long, narrow body of outwash; coarse near the glacier, finer sediment further away Thin further away from glacier More extensive from continental then valley glaciers Esker = snakelike ridge, up to 500 kilometers or longer, of roughly stratified gravel and sand, left behind when glacial ice melted; can be up to 300 meters in height Formed by streams flowing under the glacier Coarsely stratified gravel and sand

Eskers in eastern Washington

http://www.wsu.edu/~geology/geol101/SKuehn/glaciers/glaciers-5.html

 Kames = mound or short ridge of stratified sand and gravel deposited by water streaming under or trapped within glacial ice; from the Scottish word meaning steep-sided monument Kettle = depression in a moraine or outwash plain formed when a large block of ice was isolated from the retreating glacier and buried in the drift, melting afterwards Commonly become rounded and isolated lakes (e.g. Walden Pond, Massachusetts where Thoreau built his shack) Kame-and-kettle topography = common along the ice margin

http://dnr.metrokc.gov/wlr/waterres/smlakes/winter00.htm

http://www.soils.umn.edu/academics/classes/soil2125/img/2pdlf.jpg

 About 18,000 years ago, North America was covered in a continental ice sheet The ice sheet drastically changed the topography of the ground it moved over, but it also changed the shape of the ground that was in front of the glacier Water was often trapped in front of the glacier and formed large glacial lakes, such as Glacial Lake Agassiz (Canada, Minnesota, North Dakota) and Lake Vermont (New York, Quebec, and Vermont); when the glacier receded, the lakes emptied as the water escaped; some lakes formed during this period, however are still full of water today due to stream systems (e.g. the Great Lakes) Pluvial lake = body of water in a nonglaciated region formed by abundant rainfall due to the cooler climate caused by the growth of ice sheets (e.g. Lake Bonneville, Utah, which has turned into huge salt flats due to evaporation)

Glacial Lakes

http://www.wsu.edu/~geology/geol101/SKuehn/glaciers/glaciers-1.html

http://www.wsu.edu/~geology/geol101/SKuehn/glaciers/glaciers-1.html

Beach deposits, lake sediments, and shoreline gravels all mark where the huge glacial takes used to reside Varve = two layers of sediment deposited in one years time in a glacial lake: one layer of light sand and silt deposited in the summer and one layer of dark clay deposited in winter We can use the various deposits made by the glacial lakes to determine: How big the lakes were How long the lakes existeddirectly related to length of time the glacier existed Movement of water within the lakes How the lake emptied The history of Lake Vermont has been determined from sediment: Lake formed by damming to the north by the glacier

Glacier retreated and water was connected to the St. Lawerence Seaway (saltwater) to form the Champlain Sea (evidenced by saltwater fossils including the Charlotte Whale) Lowering of water levels disconnected the lake from the seaway and Lake Champlain was formed, which drains to the south

Ice sheet

Lake Vermont

Champlain Sea

River flowing south

Water flowed into the St. Lawrence seaway just after the glacier retreated

Map from the early 1900sl ake drains to the south

http://ina.tamu.edu/LChorseferry.htm

Glacial vs Interglacial Ages

The Pleistocene has be characterized by widespread glacial advances and retreats beginning ~2 million years ago Glacial age = interval of geologic time in which glacial ice sheets advance Interglacial age = interval of geologic time in which glacial ice sheets retreat Glaciers occurred during the entire history of the Earth, but the evidence is easily obscured, so only the past few have been studied in depth Glacial and interglacial periods have been defined by: Till versus soil deposits in the sediment column Foraminifera are marine-organisms that are sensitive to climate changes; which forams are in the sediment indicates whether the climate was warm (interglacial) or cold (glacial)

soil

Glacial till

Core of sediment, with the youngest material ontop and the oldest on the bottom; relative dating

The tiny forams (you have to use a microscope to see them) have a wide variation depending on where they live
http://www.cnn.com/2000/NATURE/12/04/ocean.current.enn/ http://nmita.geology.uiowa.edu/database/bforam/newforams/bolspg.htm

 Oxygen isotope variations During glacial periods, the 16O is locked within the ice and fossils are enriched in 18O In interglacial periods, higher amounts of 16O will be found in fossils in comparison to 18O

http://www.tulane.edu/~sanelson/geol111/glaciers.htm

Causes of Ice Ages

There are a number of factors that may cause glacial or interglacial periods, but were going to discuss three: Plate movement and the linked volcanic activity and crustal uplift Since the Cretaceous (when temperatures where ~15 C higher), the continents have been moving towards the poles and have been upliftedcolder continents are more likely to support glaciers However, the continents move too slowly to be responsible for the periodic variation from glacial to interglacial Long-term cycles of solar energy variations that reach the Earths surface Milutin Milankovitch (1879-1958) suggested that variations in the orbit of the Earth might be responsible for cold and warm spells

Early Cretaceous

Late Cretaceous

Cenozoic

Today

http://www.handprint.com/PS/GEO/geoevo.html

The variations are caused by the pull of gravity on Earth by the other planets (including our Moon) Three effects are the result: The Earths orbit is not always circular, but periodically becomes more elliptical, which brings the Earth closer and further away from the Sunmaximum departure every ~100,000 years The tilt of the Earths rotational axis changes from 21.5-24.5 (currently at 23.5), which would cause more sunlight to reach the polar regions during the summer and less during the winter or vice versachange over ~40,000 years from one extreme to the other The Earths axis wobbles (precesses) slightly and varies the amount of sunlight reaching the polar regions by changing the date when the Earth is closest to the Suna wobble takes ~26,000 years

http://www.homepage.montana.edu/~geol445/hyperglac/time1/milankov.htm http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Library/Giants/Milankovitch/milankovitch_2.html

http://www.homepage.montana.edu/~geol445/hyperglac/time1/milankov.htm http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Library/Giants/Milankovitch/milankovitch_2.html

http://www.homepage.montana.edu/~geol445/hyperglac/time1/milankov.htm http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Library/Giants/Milankovitch/milankovitch_2.html

 Adding the three changes together, you could warm the planet to cause an interglacial or cool the planet to cause a glacial period Milankovitch, in true scientific tradition, was ignored during his life-time, but the oxygen isotope variations later provided evidence to support his theories The Milankovitch cycles alone, however, do not cause enough of a temperature difference to go from a glacial to an interglacial period Content of the Earths atmosphereconcentrating on carbon dioxide and dust content Carbon dioxide traps heat that rises from the Earths surface, so the more carbon dioxide, the warmer the planetGreenhouse effect By drilling ice cores in Antartica and Greenland, we can measure the amounts of carbon dioxide from air bubbles trapped in the ice back >160,000 years

http://www.meto.umd.edu/~owen/CHPI/IMAGES/greeneff.html

http://147.205.15.81/geology/work/VFT-so-far/glaciers/vostok.gif

Ice Cores

http://www.iaea.or.at/worldatom/Press/News/04272001_news02.shtml http://rpsc.raytheon.com/AntSun/2000_1119/itase.html

 Relating the carbon dioxide levels to the oxygen isotopes from the same cores, we can see a correlation between the two During glacial periods, ~30% less carbon dioxide than now has been measured; interglacial periods were times of extremely high carbon dioxide amounts Carbon dioxide is mainly sequestered (trapped) in the ocean, so a change in sea-level, temperature, biology, circulation, and chemistry would drastically change the amount of carbon dioxide Atmospheric dust, in contrast to carbon dioxide, prevents solar radiation from entering the atmospherelower temperaturesmainly comes from volcanic eruptions Ice cores reveal low dust levels during interglacials and high dust during glacial periods