U.S.-Sweden Cooperative Research: The Effect of Water- saturated Deformable Basal Till on Glacier Dynamics

该奖项将支持明尼苏达大学圣保罗分校Roger L. Hooke教授和斯德哥尔摩大学Wibjorn Karlen教授之间的合作研究。这项研究将有助于对发生在冰川界面及其下垫层的过程进行持续调查。冰川与这一层之间耦合的时空变化，特别是水压对滑动速度的影响，将在瑞典北部的斯托冰川上进行研究。胡克教授和他的瑞典合作者在过去六年中一直参与对冰川的研究。这项工作将通过增加对地表倾斜和应变、钻孔水压变化、内部排水以及冰川末端沉积物和水排放的测量，扩展以前对地表速度、冬季积雪、消融和钻孔变形的测量。所有这些研究的相关性将导致对冰川流动动力学的更好理解。斯德哥尔摩大学的Tarfala研究站是这些研究的基地，位于冰川附近，为记录和分析要获得的数据提供了优良的设施。拟议的合作为美国研究者提供了一个使用高度专业化设施的机会，这些设施紧挨着他的实验对象。在中纬度地区，随着土地利用向山谷冰川延伸，冰川动力学研究变得越来越重要。这些研究对于了解未来预期的海平面上升对冰川的影响也是必要的。

This award will support collaborative research between Professor Roger L. Hooke, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, and Professor Wibjorn Karlen, University of Stockholm. This research will contribute to an on-going investigation of processes that occur at the interface of glaciers and their underlying layer. The variations in time and space of the coupling between the glacier and this layer, particularly as reflected in water pressure effects on sliding velocity, will be studied on the Storglacier in northern Sweden. Prof. Hooke and his Swedish collaborators have been involved with studies of the Storglacier for the past six years. This work will extend previous measurements of surface velocities, winter snow accumulation, ablation, and borehole deformation, by adding measurements of surface tilt and strain, water pressure variations in boreholes, internal drainage, and sediment and water discharge at the glacier terminus. Correlation of all of these studies will lead to an enhanced understanding of the dynamics of glacial flow. The University of Stockholm's Tarfala Research Station, the base for these studies, is located near the glacier, and provides excellent facilities for the recording and analysis of the data to be obtained. The proposed cooperation presents the U.S. investigator with an opportunity to use highly specialized facilities, immediately adjacent to the subject of his experiments. Studies of glacier dynamics are of increasing importance, as land utilization extends closer to valley glaciers in mid-latitude regions. These studies are also necessary to understand the effect of future expected sea-level rises on glaciers.