Collaborative Research: GLACIOME: Developing a comprehensive model of the coupled glacier-ocean-melange system

对冰川-海洋相互作用如何导致冰山在冰-海洋边界崩解和融化的有限理解导致了海平面上升预测的不确定性。密集的冰山和海冰，被称为冰混合物，出现在许多格陵兰峡湾，并可能在未来出现在许多南极冰川附近。观测表明，冰混合可能通过挤压冰川前沿直接影响冰山崩解，并通过控制冰山融化的地点和时间间接影响冰川融化，从而影响海洋环流和海洋热量向冰川的输送。然而，由于在格陵兰峡湾进行实地工作的困难，冰混合、海洋环流和冰山崩解之间的相互作用尚未得到系统的研究。GLACIOME项目将利用实验室实验和模型研究冰川、冰混合物和海洋之间复杂的相互作用，以提供这些系统共同演变的第一个综合模型，GLACIOME项目将利用详细的过程模型和实验室实验研究冰混合物和峡湾沃茨之间的热力学和机械耦合。一个独立的，数值模型的冰混合颗粒流将开发使用国家的最先进的连续方法从颗粒物理。该独立模型将用于测试冰混合流和应力对外部强迫的敏感性。实验和模拟的结果将用于开发一个完全耦合的冰川-海洋-混杂岩模型，其中包括新的独立混杂岩模型、冰盖和海平面系统模型和MITgcm海洋模型。耦合的GLACIOME模型将用于测试十年时间尺度上的冰混合对冰川稳定性的影响。除了科学进步之外，GLACIOME项目还将提供职业发展和外联机会。该项目将支持两名早期职业PI、两名研究生和一名博士后研究员。学生和博士后将接受跨学科培训，这对于解决具有重大社会影响的科学问题至关重要，例如气候变化和海平面上升。 该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

A limited understanding of how glacier-ocean interactions lead to iceberg calving and melting at the ice-ocean boundary contributes to uncertainty in predictions of sea level rise. Dense packs of icebergs and sea ice, known as ice mélange, occur in many Greenland fjords, and may occur near many Antarctic glaciers in the future. Observations suggest that ice mélange may directly affect iceberg calving by pressing against the glacier front and indirectly affect glacier melting by controlling where and when icebergs melt which can impact ocean circulation and ocean heat transport towards glaciers. However, the interactions between ice mélange, ocean circulation, and iceberg calving have not been systematically investigated due to the difficulty of conducting field work in Greenland fjords. The GLACIOME project will investigate the complex interactions between glaciers, ice mélange and the ocean using laboratory experiments and models to provide the first comprehensive model of the co-evolution of these systems.The GLACIOME project will use detailed process models and laboratory experiments to investigate thermodynamic and mechanical couplings between ice mélange and fjord waters. A stand-alone, numerical model of ice mélange granular flow will be developed using state-of-the-art continuum approaches from granular physics. This standalone model will be used to test the sensitivity of ice mélange flow and stress to external forcings. Results from experiments and simulations will be used in the development of a fully coupled glacier-ocean-mélange model (GLACIOME), which includes the new standalone mélange model, the Ice-Sheet and Sea-Level System Model (ISSM) and the MITgcm ocean model. The coupled GLACIOME model will be used to test the impact of ice mélange on glacier stability over decadal time scales. In addition to the scientific advances, the GLACIOME project will provide opportunities for career development and outreach. The project will support two early career PIs, two graduate students, and one postdoctoral fellow. The students and postdoc will receive interdisciplinary training that is essential for addressing scientific issues with major societal impacts, such as climate change and sea level rise. The PIs will communicate results to the public through lectures and organizing events for the Atlanta Science Festival.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.