1. A Simple Law for Ice-Shelf Calving
- Author
-
Richard B. Alley, T. K. Dupont, Huw J. Horgan, B. R. Parizek, Jeremy N. Bassis, Kurt M. Cuffey, Ian Joughin, and Sridhar Anandakrishnan
- Subjects
geography ,Multidisciplinary ,geography.geographical_feature_category ,Law ,Flow (psychology) ,Ice calving ,Ice shelf ,Geology - Abstract
A major problem for ice-sheet models is that no physically based law for the calving process has been established. Comparison across a diverse set of ice shelves demonstrates that iceberg calving increases with the along-flow spreading rate of a shelf. This relation suggests that frictional buttressing loss, which increases spreading, also leads to shelf retreat, a process known to accelerate ice-sheet flow and contribute to sea-level rise.
- Published
- 2008