Rates of Glacial Erosion in Southern Alaska

哈莱特9628675这项研究涉及一个引起广泛科学兴趣的突出问题：构造活跃地区的冰川侵蚀速度，以及它对由构造、气候和侵蚀相互作用所决定的山脉发展的影响。拟议研究的白令冰川部分还有望提供关于冰川快速覆盖沉积物及其对冰川动态和冰川崩解稳定性的影响的有价值的新信息。目标是：确定白令冰川排出的广袤区域(5000平方公里)和构造活动区的当前侵蚀速度，包括白令冰川。通过监测前冰期维图斯湖复合体中的沉积物积累，圣埃利亚斯地区的海平面得到了无与伦比的缓解。为了检验共生研究人员最近在阿拉斯加东南部峡湾和内陆航道上获得的大量新数据。这些数据有望提供关于第四纪和全新世沉积物产量的有价值的信息，这些信息覆盖了广泛的严重冰川化地区，可以与已知的较长期的区域挖掘速率相比较。汇编阿拉斯加东南部其他冰川的现成数据，以改进对控制区域冰川侵蚀速度和向峡湾转移泥沙的因素的定义和了解。通过地壳汇聚的连续力学模型以及对冰川侵蚀和泥沙迁移的简单抽象，为探索快速冰川侵蚀和泥沙迁移对地形和地球动力学的影响制定一个量化框架。这项多方面的研究被认为是可行的，在该项目拟议的五年期限内：这是一个由四名知名研究人员参与的小组工作，建立在现有的大量数据基础上。它涉及美国陆军寒冷地区研究和工程实验室的卢·亨特，以及独立资助的USGS研究人员布鲁斯·莫尼亚和保罗·卡斯隆，以及主要投资人老虎伯纳德·哈莱特和研究助理扬恩·梅朗(两人都在华盛顿大学)。所有成员都将参与实地工作。我们小组的集体专门知识非常适合拟议的工作；它源于在峡湾和沿海水域以及阿拉斯加冰川方面的大量实地经验，以及对冰川侵蚀和崩解边缘过程、过程地貌学和地球动力学的定量研究。我们强调，与美国地质勘探局和CRREL的合作将有力地利用在此申请的国家科学基金的资源。莫尔尼亚和卡尔森的工资，以及一名支持地震工作的电子技术员的工资，都由美国地质勘探局支付。USGS的其他贡献包括查阅过去的摄影、地震和其他记录；一个装备齐全的大本营；以及由Merit Corp.赞助的包括本科生在内的志愿者的帮助。亨特的有限工资使我们不仅能够利用他的专业知识并将他纳入我们的研究团队，而且使我们能够利用CRREL的其他专业知识，包括Daniel Lawson，使用CRREL的编辑、图形/摄影设施，以及借用一些现场设备。

Hallet 9628675 The research bears on an outstanding issue of broad scientific interest: the rate of glacial erosion in a tectonically active area, and its implications for the development of mountain ranges as dictated by the interplay of tectonics, climate, and erosion. The Bering Glacier section of the proposed study also promises to yield valuable new information on rapid glacial over-riding of sediments and its implication regarding the dynamics of glaciers and the stability of calving glaciers. Objectives are: to determine current erosion rates in the extensive (5000 km2) and tectonically active region drained by Bering Glacier, including the Mt. St. Elias area with unsurpassed relief from sea level, by monitoring sediment accumulation in the proglacial Vitus Lake complex. to examine considerable new data recently obtained by ACCRETE researchers in the fjords and inland passages of SE Alaska. These data promise to yield valuable information about Quaternary and Holocene sediment yields over a broad, heavily glacierized area that can be compared to longer term regional exhumation rates known to be high. to compile readily available data from other SE Alaska glaciers to improve the definition and understanding of factors controlling regional rates of glacial erosion and sediment transfer to fjords. to develop a quantitative framework for exploring the topographic and geodynamic implications of rapid glacial erosion and sediment transfer through a continuum mechanical model of crustal convergence coupled with a simple abstraction of erosion and sediment transfer by glaciers. The multifaceted research is deemed feasible, within the five-year proposed duration of the project: it is a group effort involving four established researchers and is founded on considerable data already available. It involves Lew Hunter of the U.S. Army Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory, and independently funded USGS researchers, Bruce Molnia and Paul Carslon, as well as principal inves tigator Bernard Hallet and research assistant Yann Merrand (both at the University of Washington). All members will participate in field work. The collective expertise of our team is ideally suited for the proposed work; it emanates from considerable field experience in fjords and coastal waters and on glaciers in Alaska, and from quantitative studies of glacial erosion and calving-margin processes, process geomorphology and geodynamics. We stress that the NSF resources requested herein will strongly leveraged by the collaboration with the USGS and CRREL. Salaries for Molnia and Carlson, and for an electronics technician to support the seismic work, are covered by the USGS. Other USGS contributions include access to past photographic, seismic, and other records; a well equipped base camp; and assistance from volunteers, including undergraduate students, sponsored by the Merit Corp. Limited salary for Hunter permits us not only to draw on his expertise and to include him as an active member of our research team, but also enables us to tap additional expertise at CRREL including Daniel Lawson, to use CRREL editorial, graphics/photography facilities, and to borrow some field equipment.