Modelling alpine glacier geometry and subglacial erosion patterns in response to contrasting climatic forcing. Issue 4 (23rd December 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Magrani, Fabio; Valla, Pierre G.; Egholm, David
• Is Part Of: Earth surface processes and landforms. Volume 47:Issue 4(2022)
• Page Start: 1054
• Page End: 1072
• Publication Date: 2021-12-23
• Subjects: (paleo‐)ELA -- climatic forcing -- glacier geometry -- ice dynamics -- numerical modelling -- subglacial erosion patterns; Geomorphology -- Periodicals; 551.4
• DOI: 10.1002/esp.5302
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0197-9337

Abstract

Abstract: Climate exerts a primary control on glacier mass balance, driving changes in ice flux, which affects basal sliding and subglacial erosion. Although past glacier reconstructions have been widely used as paleo‐climate proxies, extracting quantitative temperature/precipitation data from paleo‐glaciers is still challenging. The iSOSIA ice model was used over a synthetic landscape to quantitatively investigate the non‐linear dependence of glacier geometry and ice dynamics on climate forcing, as well as to analyse how spatial patterns of subglacial erosion and erosion rates vary between the accumulation and ablation zones for different climatic settings. We performed 10 calibrated climatic scenarios with different combinations of temperature and precipitation rate in two separate sets of simulations [maintaining either same equilibrium line altitude (ELA) or same ice extent; SA and ST, respectively]. Our results reinforce the role of climate and the importance of ice flux in conditioning glacier geometry. In SA simulations, contrasting climatic scenarios showed a major influence on glacier length and thickness. In ST simulations, calibrated ELAs presented a variability of over 300 m in order to maintain similar ice extent, but showed reduced changes in glacier thickness. These results highlight the importance of ice flux to predict glacier geometry, when compared to the overall mass balance from an ELA estimate. Subglacial abrasion and quarrying showed notable differences between the accumulation and ablation zones for varying climatic forcing, with multimodal erosion distributions for increased precipitation/temperature, shifting erosion towards higher‐elevation tributaries and connecting erosion patches in the ablation zone. Such trends highlight the role of subglacial hydrology and ice‐bed contact (cavitation) in dictating patterns of subglacial erosion, while the depth of erosion relates closely to ice flux and climate inputs. Our results have potential implications for paleo‐climate reconstructions based on glacier geometry and provide insights on how subglacial erosion can help estimate paleo‐climatic conditions from paleo‐glacial records. Abstract : Numerical simulations using a multi‐tributary synthetic alpine landscape with the iSOSIA glacial model provided a quantitative assessment of glacier geometry change and spatial patterns of subglacial erosion under contrasting temperature and precipitation scenarios. Geometric and erosion differences between ablation and accumulation zones are particularly relevant for paleo‐climatic studies and improve our understanding of past to modern glacial systems in mountainous settings.