36 CFR 13.1150 - Is a permit required for a vessel in Glacier Bay?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... vessel in Glacier Bay? 13.1150 Section 13.1150 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel Permits § 13.1150 Is a permit required for a vessel in Glacier Bay? A permit from...

36 CFR 13.1150 - Is a permit required for a vessel in Glacier Bay?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... vessel in Glacier Bay? 13.1150 Section 13.1150 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel Permits § 13.1150 Is a permit required for a vessel in Glacier Bay? A permit from...

36 CFR 13.1150 - Is a permit required for a vessel in Glacier Bay?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... vessel in Glacier Bay? 13.1150 Section 13.1150 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel Permits § 13.1150 Is a permit required for a vessel in Glacier Bay? A permit from...

A Century of Retreat at Portage Glacier, South-Central Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kennedy, Ben W.; Trabant, Dennis C.; Mayo, Lawrence R.

2006-01-01

Introduction: The Portage Glacier, in south-central Alaska, is viewed by thousands of visitors annually who come to the U.S. Forest Service Begich, Boggs Visitor Center located on the road system between Anchorage and Whittier, Alaska. During the past century, the terminus of the glacier has retreated nearly 5 kilometers to its present location (fig. 1). Like other glaciers that terminate in water, such as Columbia Glacier near Valdez or Mendenhall Glacier near Juneau, Portage Glacier has experienced accelerated retreats in recent decades that likely were initially triggered by climate change begun at the end of the Little Ice Age in the mid-1800s and subsequently controlled in recent history primarily by calving of the glacier terminus. Photographic records of the terminus covering 1914 until present day track the patterns of retreat. These data, coupled with USGS climate information collected from the southern end of the ice field, provide insight to the patterns of retreat that might be observed in the future.

Glacier and Climate Studies West Gulkana Glacier and Environs, Alaska

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-09-01

Sauberer and Dirmhirn 1952; Hoinkes 1970; Holiagren 1971; Ambach 1974) have shown that under cloudy conditions, the longwave incoming radiation component...Rapids Glacier, Alaska. Transactions of the American Geophysical Union 34:345. 60 Sauberer , F., and I. Dirmhirn. 1952. Der strahlungshaushalt horizontaler

36 CFR 13.1134 - Who is eligible for a Glacier Bay commercial fishing lifetime access permit?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Commercial Fishing § 13.1134 Who is eligible for a Glacier... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Who is eligible for a Glacier...

Low-frequency radar sounder over Glaciers in Alaska, Greenland and Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mouginot, J.; Rignot, E. J.; Gim, Y.; Kirchner, D. L.; Merritt, S.; Robison, W. T.

2009-12-01

Ice-thickness and basal layer topography measurements are needed to calculate fluxes through fast-flowing outlet glaciers in Greenland, Alaska, Patagonia and Antarctica. However, relatively high attenuation of radio waves by dielectric absorption and volume scattering from englacial water restrains detection of the bed through warm deep ice. Using a low-frequency (1-5 MHz) airborne radar, we have sounded outlet fast glaciers over Greenland (Store, Upernavik, Hellheim, …), East Antarctica (David, Mertz, Dibble, Byrd, …) and Alaska (Bering, Maslapina, Bagley, …). We will show that we detected the bed through temperate ice up to 1000m thick over Bering and Maslapina Glaciers and also point out difficulty in detecting bed of other Alaska glaciers due to off-nadir returns. We will also make direct comparison of this radar and previous airborne measurements in Greenland and Antarctica in order to discuss a potential improvement of bedrock detectability in temperate ice.

Airborne Laser Altimetry Measurements of Glacier Wastage in Alaska and NW Canada

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Larsen, C. F.; Hock, R. M.; Arendt, A. A.; Zirnheld, S. L.

2009-12-01

Laser altimetry elevation profiles of glaciers in NW North America (Alaska, Yukon, and NW British Columbia) have been collected by the University of Alaska Geophysical Institute (UAF-GI) beginning in 1993. Since then, more than 200 glaciers throughout NW North America have been measured, many of them multiple times with typical repeat intervals of 3 to 5 years. All of the largest glaciers here have been profiled, including at least some representative glaciers from every major icefield in NW North America. Over 40 glaciers were surveyed again in the summer of 2009, a significant and unusually large annual addition to our database of surface elevation changes. Beginning in August 2009 we flew the surveys using the new UAF-GI swath mapping LiDAR system which records a 0.5 km wide 3-d map of survey points on an approximately 1 m x 1 m grid along the glacier centerlines. Over 40 glaciers and icefields have now been surveyed 3 or more times over the past 15 years, and these regions have been analyzed for changes in their rates of wastage. These regions include the Stikine Icefield of southeast Alaska, the Columbia Glacier, the Bering-Bagley and Seward-Malaspina systems, the Yakutat Icefield, Glacier Bay, the Harding Icefield, and the Alaska Range. Increased melt rates are generally observed over the most recent 3 to 5 year interval when compared to the previous 5 to 10 years, with many glaciers experiencing a factor of two or greater in their recent area-averaged thinning rates. Hypsometry appears to be a significant factor, with those areas that have relatively low average elevation and low accumulation areas showing stronger effects of the accelerated thinning. In particular, those icefields near the Gulf of Alaska coast, such as the Yakutat, Harding and Brady Icefields, are now rapidly wasting. A few areas that have relatively high elevation accumulation areas appear to have steady rates of thinning, such as within the St. Elias Mountains.

36 CFR 13.1116 - Do I need a camping permit in Glacier Bay?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Do I need a camping permit in Glacier Bay? 13.1116 Section 13.1116 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1116 - Do I need a camping permit in Glacier Bay?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Do I need a camping permit in Glacier Bay? 13.1116 Section 13.1116 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1116 - Do I need a camping permit in Glacier Bay?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Do I need a camping permit in Glacier Bay? 13.1116 Section 13.1116 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

Satellite Observations of Glacier Surface Velocities in Southeast Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Elliott, J.; Melkonian, A. K.; Pritchard, M. E.

2012-12-01

Glaciers in southeast Alaska are undergoing rapid changes and are significant contributors to sea level rise. A key to understanding the ice dynamics is knowledge of the surface velocities, which can be used with ice thickness measurements to derive mass flux rates. For many glaciers in Alaska, surface velocity estimates either do not exist or are based on data that are at least a decade old. Here we present updated maps of glacier surface velocities in southeast Alaska produced through a pixel tracking technique using synthetic aperture radar data and high-resolution optical imagery. For glaciers with previous velocity estimates, we will compare the results and discuss possible implications for ice dynamics. We focus on Glacier Bay and the Stikine Icefield, which contain a number of fast-flowing tidewater glaciers including LeConte, Johns Hopkins, and La Perouse. For the Johns Hopkins, we will also examine the influence a massive landslide in June 2012 had on flow dynamics. Our velocity maps show that within Glacier Bay, the highest surface velocities occur on the tidewater glaciers. La Perouse, the only Glacier Bay glacier to calve directly into the Pacific Ocean, has maximum velocities of 3.5 - 4 m/day. Johns Hopkins Glacier shows 4 m/day velocities at both its terminus and in its upper reaches, with lower velocities of ~1-3 m/day in between those two regions. Further north, the Margerie Glacier has a maximum velocity of ~ 4.5 m/day in its upper reaches and a velocity of ~ 2 m/day at its terminus. Along the Grand Pacific terminus, the western terminus fed by the Ferris Glacier displays velocities of about 1 m/day while the eastern terminus has lower velocities of < 0.5 m/day. The lake terminating glaciers along the Pacific coast have overall lower surface velocities, but they display complex flow patterns. The Alsek Glacier displays maximum velocities of 2.5 m/day above where it divides into two branches. Velocities at the terminus of the northern branch reach 1

Malaspina Glacier, Alaska as seen from STS-66 Atlantis

NASA Image and Video Library

1994-11-14

STS066-117-014 (3-14 Nov. 1994) --- Malaspina Glacier can be seen in this north-northeastern photograph taken in November, 1994. The glacier, located in the south shore of Alaska is a classic example of a piedmont glacier lying along the foot of a mountain range. The principal source of ice for the glacier is provided by the Seward Ice Field to the north (top portion of the view) which flows through three narrow outlets onto the coastal plain. The glacier moves in surges that rush earlier-formed moraines outward into the expanding concentric patterns along the flanks of the ice mass.

36 CFR 13.1150 - Is a permit required for a vessel in Glacier Bay?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Is a permit required for a vessel in Glacier Bay? 13.1150 Section 13.1150 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1130 - Is commercial fishing authorized in the marine waters of Glacier Bay National Park?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... authorized in the marine waters of Glacier Bay National Park? 13.1130 Section 13.1130 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Commercial Fishing § 13.1130 Is commercial...

36 CFR 13.1130 - Is commercial fishing authorized in the marine waters of Glacier Bay National Park?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... authorized in the marine waters of Glacier Bay National Park? 13.1130 Section 13.1130 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Commercial Fishing § 13.1130 Is commercial...

36 CFR 13.1130 - Is commercial fishing authorized in the marine waters of Glacier Bay National Park?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... authorized in the marine waters of Glacier Bay National Park? 13.1130 Section 13.1130 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Commercial Fishing § 13.1130 Is commercial...

36 CFR 13.1130 - Is commercial fishing authorized in the marine waters of Glacier Bay National Park?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... authorized in the marine waters of Glacier Bay National Park? 13.1130 Section 13.1130 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Commercial Fishing § 13.1130 Is commercial...

36 CFR 13.1130 - Is commercial fishing authorized in the marine waters of Glacier Bay National Park?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... authorized in the marine waters of Glacier Bay National Park? 13.1130 Section 13.1130 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Commercial Fishing § 13.1130 Is commercial...

Analysis of a GRACE Global Mascon Solution for Gulf of Alaska Glaciers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Arendt, Anthony; Luthcke, Scott B.; Gardner, Alex; O'Neel, Shad; Hill, David; Moholdt, Geir; Abdalati, Waleed

2013-01-01

We present a high-resolution Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) mascon solution for Gulf of Alaska (GOA) glaciers and compare this with in situ glaciological, climate and other remote-sensing observations. Our GRACE solution yields a GOA glacier mass balance of -6511 Gt a(exp.-1) for the period December 2003 to December 2010, with summer balances driving the interannual variability. Between October/November 2003 and October 2009 we obtain a mass balance of -6111 Gt a(exp. -1) from GRACE, which compares well with -6512 Gt a(exp. -1) from ICESat based on hypsometric extrapolation of glacier elevation changes. We find that mean summer (June-August) air temperatures derived from both ground and lower-troposphere temperature records were good predictors of GRACE-derived summer mass balances, capturing 59% and 72% of the summer balance variability respectively. Large mass losses during 2009 were likely due to low early melt season surface albedos, measured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and likely associated with the 31 March 2009 eruption of Mount Redoubt, southwestern Alaska. GRACE data compared well with in situ measurements atWolverine Glacier (maritime Alaska), but poorly with those at Gulkana Glacier (interior Alaska). We conclude that, although GOA mass estimates from GRACE are robust over the entire domain, further constraints on subregional and seasonal estimates are necessary to improve fidelity to ground observations.

Evolution of glacier-dammed lakes through space and time; Brady Glacier, Alaska, USA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Capps, Denny M.; Clague, John J.

2014-04-01

Glacier-dammed lakes and their associated jökulhlaups cause severe flooding in downstream areas and substantially influence glacier dynamics. Brady Glacier in southeast Alaska is well suited for a study of these phenomena because it presently dams 10 large (> 1 km2) lakes. Our objectives are to demonstrate how Brady Glacier and its lakes have co-evolved in the past and to apply this knowledge to predict how the glacier and its lakes will likely evolve in the future. To accomplish these objectives, we georeferenced a variety of maps, airphotos, and optical satellite imagery to characterize the evolution of the glacier and lakes. We also collected bathymetry data and created bathymetric maps of select lakes. Despite small advances and retreats, the main terminus of Brady Glacier has changed little since 1880. However, it downwasted at rates of 2-3 m/y between 1948 and 2000, more than the regional average. The most dramatic retreat (2 km) and downwasting (120 m) have occurred adjacent to glacier-dammed lakes and are primarily the result of calving. Brady Glacier is a former tidewater glacier. With continued downwasting, Brady Glacier may return to a tidewater regime and enter into a phase of catastrophic retreat. The situation at Brady Glacier is not unique, and the lessons learned here can be applied elsewhere to identify future glacier-dammed lakes, jökulhlaups, and glacier instability.

Glaciers along proposed routes extending the Copper River Highway, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Glass, R.L.

1996-01-01

Three inland highway routes are being considered by the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities to connect the community of Cordova in southcentral Alaska to a statewide road system. The routes use part of a Copper River and Northwest Railway alignment along the Copper River through mountainous terrain having numerous glaciers. An advance of any of several glaciers could block and destroy the roadway, whereas retreating glaciers expose large quantities of unconsolidated, unvegetated, and commonly ice-rich sediments. The purpose of this study was to map historical locations of glacier termini near these routes and to describe hazards associated with glaciers and seasonal snow. Historical and recent locations of glacier termini along the proposed Copper River Highway routes were determined by reviewing reports and maps and by interpreting aerial photographs. The termini of Childs, Grinnell, Tasnuna, and Woodworth Glaciers were 1 mile or less from a proposed route in the most recently available aerial photography (1978-91); the termini of Allen, Heney, and Schwan Glaciers were 1.5 miles or less from a proposed route. In general, since 1911, most glaciers have slowly retreated, but many glaciers have had occasional advances. Deserted Glacier and one of its tributary glaciers have surge-type medial moraines, indicating potential rapid advances. The terminus of Deserted Glacier was about 2.1 miles from a proposed route in 1978, but showed no evidence of surging. Snow and rock avalanches and snowdrifts are common along the proposed routes and will periodically obstruct the roadway. Floods from ice-dammed lakes also pose a threat. For example, Van Cleve Lake, adjacent to Miles Glacier, is as large as 4.4 square miles and empties about every 6 years. Floods from drainages of Van Cleve Lake have caused the Copper River to rise on the order of 20 feet at Million Dollar Bridge.

Analysis of a GRACE global mascon solution for Gulf of Alaska glaciers

USGS Publications Warehouse

Arendt, Anthony; Luthcke, Scott; Gardner, Alex; O'Neel, Shad; Hill, David; Moholdt, Geir; Abdalati, Waleed

2013-01-01

We present a high-resolution Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) mascon solution for Gulf of Alaska (GOA) glaciers and compare this with in situ glaciological, climate and other remote-sensing observations. Our GRACE solution yields a GOA glacier mass balance of –65 ± 11 Gt a–1 for the period December 2003 to December 2010, with summer balances driving the interannual variability. Between October/November 2003 and October 2009 we obtain a mass balance of –61 ± 11 Gt a–1 from GRACE, which compares well with –65 ± 12 Gt a–1 from ICESat based on hypsometric extrapolation of glacier elevation changes. We find that mean summer (June–August) air temperatures derived from both ground and lower-troposphere temperature records were good predictors of GRACE-derived summer mass balances, capturing 59% and 72% of the summer balance variability respectively. Large mass losses during 2009 were likely due to low early melt season surface albedos, measured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and likely associated with the 31 March 2009 eruption of Mount Redoubt, southwestern Alaska. GRACE data compared well with in situ measurements at Wolverine Glacier (maritime Alaska), but poorly with those at Gulkana Glacier (interior Alaska). We conclude that, although GOA mass estimates from GRACE are robust over the entire domain, further constraints on subregional and seasonal estimates are necessary to improve fidelity to ground observations.

Fifty-Year Record of Glacier Change Reveals Shifting Climate in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

,

2009-01-01

Fifty years of U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) research on glacier change shows recent dramatic shrinkage of glaciers in three climatic regions of the United States. These long periods of record provide clues to the climate shifts that may be driving glacier change. The USGS Benchmark Glacier Program began in 1957 as a result of research efforts during the International Geophysical Year (Meier and others, 1971). Annual data collection occurs at three glaciers that represent three climatic regions in the United States: South Cascade Glacier in the Cascade Mountains of Washington State; Wolverine Glacier on the Kenai Peninsula near Anchorage, Alaska; and Gulkana Glacier in the interior of Alaska (fig. 1).

36 CFR 13.1312 - Climbing and walking on Exit Glacier.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Climbing and walking on Exit Glacier. 13.1312 Section 13.1312 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Kenai Fjords National Park...

Southern Alaska Glaciers: Spatial and Temporal Variations in Ice Volume

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sauber, J.; Molnia, B. F.; Luthcke, S.; Rowlands, D.; Harding, D.; Carabajal, C.; Hurtado, J. M.; Spada, G.

2004-12-01

Although temperate mountain glaciers comprise less than 1% of the glacier-covered area on Earth, they are important because they appear to be melting rapidly under present climatic conditions and, therefore, make significant contributions to rising sea level. In this study, we use ICESat observations made in the last 1.5 years of southern Alaska glaciers to estimate ice elevation profiles, ice surface slopes and roughness, and bi-annual and/or annual ice elevation changes. We report initial results from the near coastal region between Yakutat Bay and Cape Suckling that includes the Malaspina and Bering Glaciers. We show and interpret ice elevations changes across the lower reaches of the Bagley Ice Valley for the period between October 2003 and May 2004. In addition, we use off-nadir pointing observations to reference tracks over the Bering and Malaspina Glaciers in order to estimate annual ice elevation change. Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) and Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) derived DEMs are used to estimate across track regional slopes between ICESat data acquisitions. Although the distribution and quantity of ICESat elevation profiles with multiple, exact repeat data is currently limited in Alaska, individual ICESat data tracks, provide an accurate reference surface for comparison to other elevation data (e.g. ASTER and SRTM X- and C-band derived DEMs). Specifically we report the elevation change over the Malaspina Glacier's piedmont lobe between a DEM derived from SRTM C-band data acquired in Feb. 2000 and ICESat Laser #2b data from Feb.-March 2004. We also report use of ICESat elevation data to enhance ASTER derived absolute DEMs. Mountain glaciers generally have rougher surfaces and steeper regional slopes than the ice sheets for which the ICESat design was optimized. Therefore, rather than averaging ICESat observations over large regions or relying on crossovers, we are working with well-located ICESat

GLACIER BAY NATIONAL MONUMENT WILDERNESS STUDY AREA, ALASKA.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Brew, David A.; Kimball, Arthur L.

1984-01-01

Glacier Bay National Monument is a highly scenic and highly mineralized area about 100 mi west of Juneau, Alaska. Four deposits with demonstrated resources of nickel, copper, zinc, and molybdenum have been identified within the monument and eleven areas of probable or substantiated mineral-resource potential have been identified. The monument is highly mineralized in comparison with most areas of similar size elsewhere in southeastern Alaska, and present estimates of mineral resources are considered conservative.

Assessing the Response of Alaska's Glaciers to Post-Little Ice Age Climate Change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Molnia, B. F.

2001-12-01

A comprehensive survey of the eleven mountain ranges and three island areas in Alaska that presently support glaciers was conducted to determine how glaciers in each area have responded to post-Little Ice Age (LIA) climate change. Today, glaciers cover 5 percent of Alaska, about 75,000 sq. km., range in elevation from 6,000 m to below sea level, and span latitudes from south of 55 degrees N to north of 69 degrees N. During the LIA, Alaskan glaciers expanded significantly, covering 10 percent more area than today. Many different types of data were used to construct baselines and determine glacier change. These include: published descriptions of glaciers (1794 - 2000), historic and modern maps (1794 - 2000), aerial photography (1926 - 2001), ground photography (1884 - 2001), airborne radar (1981 - 1991), satellite radar (1978 - 1998), space photography (1984 - 1994), multi-spectral satellite imagery (1972 - 2001), aerial reconnaissance and field observations by the author (1968 - 2001), and various types of proxy data. Data available varied for each region and glacier. Every mountain range and island group investigated is characterized by significant glacier retreat, thinning, and/or stagnation, especially at lower elevations. At some locations, glaciers have completely disappeared during the twentieth century. In other areas, retreat that started as early as the early eighteenth century, has continued into the twenty-first century. Ironically, in several areas, retreat is resulting in the number of glaciers is actually increasing, but the volume and area of ice is decreasing. The key survey findings are: ALEXANDER ARCHIPELAGO, KODIAK ISLAND, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: every glacier examined showed evidence of thinning and retreat. Some have disappeared since last being mapped in the mid-twentieth century; COAST MOUNTAINS, ST. ELIAS MOUNTAINS, CHUGACH MOUNTAINS, KENAI MOUNTAINS, WRANGELL MOUNTAINS, ALASKA RANGE, AND THE ALEUTIAN RANGE: more than 95 percent of glaciers ending

Glacierized headwater streams as aquifer recharge corridors, subarctic Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lilledahl, Anna K.; Gadeke, Anne; O'Neel, Shad; Gatesman, T. A.; Douglas, T. A.

2017-01-01

Arctic river discharge has increased in recent decades although sources and mechanisms remain debated. Abundant literature documents permafrost thaw and mountain glacier shrinkage over the past decades. Here we link glacier runoff to aquifer recharge via a losing headwater stream in subarctic Interior Alaska. Field measurements in Jarvis Creek (634 km2), a subbasin of the Tanana and Yukon Rivers, show glacier meltwater runoff as a large component (15–28%) of total annual streamflow despite low glacier cover (3%). About half of annual headwater streamflow is lost to the aquifer (38 to 56%). The estimated long-term change in glacier-derived aquifer recharge exceeds the observed increase in Tanana River base flow. Our findings suggest a linkage between glacier wastage, aquifer recharge along the headwater stream corridor, and lowland winter discharge. Accordingly, glacierized headwater streambeds may serve as major aquifer recharge zones in semiarid climates and therefore contributing to year-round base flow of lowland rivers.

A new satellite-derived glacier inventory for Western Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Le Bris, Raymond; Frey, Holger; Paul, Frank; Bolch, Tobias

2010-05-01

Glaciers and ice caps are essential components of studies related to climate change impact assessment. Glacier inventories provide the required baseline data to perform the related analysis in a consistent and spatially representative manner. In particular, the calculation of the current and future contribution to global sea-level rise from heavily glacierized regions is a major demand. One of the regions, where strong mass losses and geometric changes of glaciers have been observed recently is Alaska. Unfortunately, the digitally available data base of glacier extent is quite rough and based on rather old maps from the 1960s. Accordingly, the related calculations and extrapolations are imprecise and an updated glacier inventory is urgently required. Here we present first results of a new glacier inventory for Western Alaska that is prepared in the framework of the ESA project GlobGlacier and is based on freely available orthorectified Landsat TM and ETM+ scenes from USGS. The analysed region covers the Tordrillo, Chigmit and Chugach Mts. as well as the Kenai Peninsula. In total, 8 scenes acquired between 2002 and 2009 were used covering c. 20.420 km2 of glaciers. All glacier types are present in this region, incl. outlet glaciers from icefields, glacier clad volcanoes, and calving glaciers. While well established automated glacier mapping techniques (band rationing) are applied to map clean and slightly dirty glacier ice, many glaciers are covered by debris or volcanic ash and outlines need manual corrections during post-processing. Prior to the calculation of drainage divides from DEM-based watershed analysis, we performed a cross-comparative analysis of DEMs from USGS, ASTER (GDEM) and SRTM 1 for Kenai Peninsula. This resulted in the decision to use the USGS DEM for calculating the drainage divides and most of the topographic inventory parameters, and the more recent GDEM to derive minimum elevation for each glacier. A first statistical analysis of the results

Exploring tidewater glacier retreat using past and current observations at Columbia Glacier, Alaska. (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

O'Neel, S.; Pfeffer, W. T.; Howat, I. M.; Conway, H.; Columbia Glacier Consortium

2010-12-01

Since fulfilling Austin Post’s prediction of impending retreat in the late 1970s, Columbia Glacier has repeatedly surprised both casual and careful observers with its ability for rapid change. Over the last three decades, Columbia Glacier has lost approximately 18 km of its original 66 km length, while thinning by approximately 50% at the present terminus. The total ice volume lost to the Gulf of Alaska Estimates upwards of 120 km3 constrain the total ice volume lost to the Gulf of Alaska. Recently, the terminus supported a ~1.5 km long floating tongue for over than a year, contradicting the common assumption that the mechanical properties of temperate ice prohibit flotation over sustained time intervals. The rich history of study offers an opportunity to better understand tidewater glacier retreat, and a valuable analog to the dynamic instability underway at several ice sheet outlet glaciers. Current research aims to improve processing resolution of existing aerial photographic data, while complimenting the 30-year photogrammetric record with a suite of field observations. Recent instrumentation includes: oblique time lapse and still imagery, semi-permanent GPS, airborne radar, mass balance, passive seismology and LiDAR. This presentation will focus on innovative methods developed in recent field seasons, sharing insight each has provided into the retreat process . 1The Columbia Glacier Consortium consists of: Fabian Walter (SIO), Kenichi Matsuoka (NPI), Ben Smith (UW), Ethan Welty (CU-Boulder), Chris Larsen (UAF), Dave Finnegan (CRREL), Dan McNamara (USGS), Yushin Ahn (OSU), Julie Markus (OSU), Adam LeWinter (EIS).

Studies of Bagley Icefield during surge and Black Rapids Glacier, Alaska, using spaceborne SAR interferometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fatland, Dennis Robert

1998-12-01

This thesis presents studies of two temperate valley glaciers---Bering Glacier in the Chugach-St.Elias Mountains, South Central Alaska, and Black Rapids Glacier in the Alaska Range, Interior Alaska---using differential spaceborne radar interferometry. The first study was centered on the 1993--95 surge of Bering Glacier and the resultant ice dynamics on its accumulation area, the Bagley Icefield. The second study site was chosen for purposes of comparison of the interferometry results with conventional field measurements, particularly camera survey data and airborne laser altimetry. A comprehensive suite of software was written to interferometrically process synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data in order to derive estimates of surface elevation and surface velocity on these subject glaciers. In addition to these results, the data revealed unexpected but fairly common concentric rings called 'phase bull's-eyes', image features typically 0.5 to 4 km in diameter located over the central part of various glaciers. These bull's-eyes led to a hypothetical model in which they were interpreted to indicate transitory instances of high subglacial water pressure that locally lift the glacier from its bed by several centimeters. This model is associated with previous findings about the nature of glacier bed hydrology and glacier surging. In addition to the dynamical analysis presented herein, this work is submitted as a contribution to the ongoing development of spaceborne radar interferometry as a glaciological tool.

The slow advance of a calving glacier: Hubbard Glacier, Alaska, U.S.A

USGS Publications Warehouse

Trabant, D.C.; Krimmel, R.M.; Echelmeyer, K.A.; Zirnheld, S.L.; Elsberg, D.H.

2003-01-01

Hubbard Glacier is the largest tidewater glacier in North America. In contrast to most glaciers in Alaska and northwestern Canada, Hubbard Glacier thickened and advanced during the 20th century. This atypical behavior is an important example of how insensitive to climate a glacier can become during parts of the calving glacier cycle. As this glacier continues to advance, it will close the seaward entrance to 50 km long Russell Fjord and create a glacier-dammed, brackish-water lake. This paper describes measured changes in ice thickness, ice speed, terminus advance and fjord bathymetry of Hubbard Glacier, as determined from airborne laser altimetry, aerial photogrammetry, satellite imagery and bathymetric measurements. The data show that the lower regions of the glacier have thickened by as much as 83 m in the last 41 years, while the entire glacier increased in volume by 14.1 km3. Ice speeds are generally decreasing near the calving face from a high of 16.5 m d-1 in 1948 to 11.5 m d-1 in 2001. The calving terminus advanced at an average rate of about 16 m a-1 between 1895 and 1948 and accelerated to 32 m a-1 since 1948. However, since 1986, the advance of the part of the terminus in Disenchantment Bay has slowed to 28 m a-1. Bathymetric data from the lee slope of the submarine terminal moraine show that between 1978 and 1999 the moraine advanced at an average rate of 32 m a-1, which is the same as that of the calving face.

Earthshots: Satellite images of environmental change – Hubbard Glacier, Alaska, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Adamson, Thomas

2015-01-01

These Landsat images illustrate an unusual event that was observed twice at the terminus of Hubbard Glacier. Hubbard temporarily blocked Russell Fjord (a long, narrow inlet of the sea) from the rest of Disenchantment Bay and the Gulf of Alaska. It’s even possible that the glacier could one day permanently block the fjord.

Glacier Change and Biologic Succession: a new Alaska Summer Research Academy (ASRA) Science Camp Module for Grades 8-12 in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Connor, C. L.; Drake, J.; Good, C.; Fatland, R.; Hakala, M.; Woodford, R.; Donohoe, R.; Brenner, R.; Moriarty, T.

2008-12-01

During the summer of 2008, university faculty and instructors from southeast Alaska joined the University Alaska Fairbanks(UAF)Alaska Summer Research Academy(ASRA)to initiate a 12-day module on glacier change and biologic succession in Glacier Bay National Park. Nine students from Alaska, Colorado, Massachusetts, and Texas, made field observations and collected data while learning about tidewater glacier dynamics, plant succession, post-glacial uplift, and habitat use of terrestrial and marine vertebrates and invertebrates in this dynamic landscape that was covered by 6,000 km2 of ice just 250 years ago. ASRA students located their study sites using GPS and created maps in GIS and GOOGLE Earth. They deployed salinometers and temperature sensors to collect vertical profiles of seawater characteristics up-bay near active tidewater glacier termini and down-bay in completely deglaciated coves. ASRA student data was then compared with data collected during the same time period by Juneau undergraduates working on the SEAMONSTER project in Mendenhall Lake. ASRA students traversed actively forming, up-bay recessional moraines devoid of vegetation, and the fully reforested Little Ice Age terminal moraine near Park Headquarters in the lower bay region. Students surveyed marine organisms living between supratidal and subtidal zones near glaciers and far from glaciers, and compared up-bay and down-bay communities. Students made observations and logged sightings of bird populations and terrestrial mammals in a linear traverse from the bay's northwestern most fjord near Mt. Fairweather for 120 km to the bay's entrance, south of Park Headquarters at Bartlett Cove. One student constructed an ROV and was able to deploy a video camera and capture changing silt concentrations in the water column as well as marine life on the fjord bottom. Students also observed exhumed Neoglacial spruce forests and visited outcrops of Silurian reef faunas, now fossilized in Alexander terrane

ICESat Observations of Southern Alaska Glaciers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sauber, Jeanne; Molnia, Bruce F.; Mitchell, Darius

2003-01-01

In late February and March, 2003, the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) measured ice and land elevations along profiles across southern Alaska. During this initial data acquisition stage ICESat observations were made on 8-day repeat tracks to enable calibration and validation of the ICESat data products. Each profile consists of a series of single point values derived from centroid elevations of an $\\approx$70 m diameter laser footprint. The points are s4pakated by $\\approx$172 m along track. Data siets of 8-day observations (an ascending and descending ground track) crossed the Bering and Malaspina Glacier. Following its 1993--1995 surge; the Bering Glacier has undergone major terminus retreat as well as ike thinning in the abtation zone. During the later part of the 20th century, parts of the Malaspina thinned by about 1 m/yr. The multiple observation profiles across the Bering and Malaspina piedmont lobes obtained in February/March are being geolocated on Landsat images and the elevation profiles will be used for a number o scientific objectives. Based on our simulations of ICESat performance over the varied ice surface of the Jakobshavn Glacier of GReenland, 2003, we expect to measure annual, and possibly seasonal, ice elevation changes on the large Alaskan glaciers. Using elevation data obtained from a second laser, we plan to estimate ice elevation changes on the Bering Glacier between March and October 2003.

Glacier Ice Mass Fluctuations and Fault Instability in Tectonically Active Southern Alaska

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

SauberRosenberg, Jeanne M.; Molnia, Bruce F.

2003-01-01

Across southern Alaska the northwest directed subduction of the Pacific plate is accompanied by accretion of the Yakutat terrane to continental Alaska. This has led to high tectonic strain rates and dramatic topographic relief of more than 5000 meters within 15 km of the Gulf of Alaska coast. The glaciers of this area are extensive and include large glaciers undergoing wastage (glacier retreat and thinning) and surges. The large glacier ice mass changes perturb the tectonic rate of deformation at a variety of temporal and spatial scales. We estimated surface displacements and stresses associated with ice mass fluctuations and tectonic loading by examining GPS geodetic observations and numerical model predictions. Although the glacial fluctuations perturb the tectonic stress field, especially at shallow depths, the largest contribution to ongoing crustal deformation is horizontal tectonic strain due to plate convergence. Tectonic forces are thus the primary force responsible for major earthquakes. However, for geodetic sites located < 10-20 km from major ice mass fluctuations, the changes of the solid Earth due to ice loading and unloading are an important aspect of interpreting geodetic results. The ice changes associated with Bering Glacier s most recent surge cycle are large enough to cause discernible surface displacements. Additionally, ice mass fluctuations associated with the surge cycle can modify the short-term seismicity rates in a local region. For the thrust faulting environment of the study region a large decrease in ice load may cause an increase in seismic rate in a region close to failure whereas ice loading may inhibit thrust faulting.

Columbia Glacier, Alaska, photogrammetry data set, 1981-82 and 1984-85

USGS Publications Warehouse

Krimmel, R.M.

1987-01-01

Photogrammetric processing of 12 sets of vertical aerial photography of the Columbia Glacier, Alaska, has measured the altitude and velocity fields of the lowest 14,000 m of the glacier during the periods of September 1981 to October 1982 and October 1984 to September 1985. The data set consists of the location of 3,604 points on the glacier, 1,161 points along the glacier terminus, and 1,116 points along the top of the terminus ice cliff. During the 1981 to 1985 period the terminus of the glacier receded 1,350 m, the ice near the terminus thinned at a rate of 18 m/year, and ice velocity near the terminus tripled, reaching as much as 6,000 m/year. (Author 's abstract)

36 CFR 13.1132 - What types of commercial fishing are authorized in Glacier Bay?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Commercial Fishing § 13.1132 What types of commercial fishing are... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false What types of commercial...

36 CFR 13.1132 - What types of commercial fishing are authorized in Glacier Bay?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Commercial Fishing § 13.1132 What types of commercial fishing are... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false What types of commercial...

Holocene glacier fluctuations inferred from lacustrine sediment, Emerald Lake, Kenai Peninsula, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

LaBrecque, Taylor S.; Kaufman, Darrell S.

2016-01-01

Physical and biological characteristics of lacustrine sediment from Emerald Lake were used to reconstruct the Holocene glacier history of Grewingk Glacier, southern Alaska. Emerald Lake is an ice-marginal threshold lake, receiving glaciofluvial sediment when Grewingk Glacier overtops the topographic divide that separates it from the lake. Sub-bottom acoustical profiles were used to locate core sites to maximize both the length and resolution of the sedimentary sequence recovered in the 4-m-long cores. The age model for the composite sequence is based on 13 14C ages and a 210Pb profile. A sharp transition from the basal inorganic mud to organic-rich mud at 11.4 ± 0.2 ka marks the initial retreat of Grewingk Glacier below the divide of Emerald Lake. The overlaying organic-rich mud is interrupted by stony mud that records a re-advance between 10.7 ± 0.2 and 9.8 ± 0.2 ka. The glacier did not spill meltwater into the lake again until the Little Ice Age, consistent with previously documented Little Ice Ages advances on the Kenai Peninsula. The retreat of Grewingk Glacier at 11.4 ka took place as temperature increased following the Younger Dryas, and the subsequent re-advance corresponds with a climate reversal beginning around 11 ka across southern Alaska.

Southern Alaska Glaciers: Spatial and Temporal Variations in Ice Volume

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sauber, J.; Molnia, B. F.; Lutchke, S.; Rowlands, D.; Harding, D.; Carabajal, C.; Hurtado, J. M.; Spade, G.

2004-01-01

Although temperate mountain glaciers comprise less than 1% of the glacier-covered area on Earth, they are important because they appear to be melting rapidly under present climatic conditions and, therefore, make significant contributions to rising sea level. In this study, we use ICESat observations made in the last 1.5 years of southern Alaska glaciers to estimate ice elevation profiles, ice surface slopes and roughness, and bi-annual and/or annual ice elevation changes. We report initial results from the near coastal region between Yakutat Bay and Cape Suckling that includes the Malaspina and Bering Glaciers. We show and interpret ice elevations changes across the lower reaches of the Bagley Ice Valley for the period between October 2003 and May 2004. In addition, we use off-nadir pointing observations to reference tracks over the Bering and Malaspina Glaciers in order to estimate annual ice elevation change. Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) and Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) derived DEMs are used to estimate across track regional slopes between ICESat data acquisitions. Although the distribution and quantity of ICESat elevation profiles with multiple, exact repeat data is currently limited in Alaska, individual ICESat data tracks, provide an accurate reference surface for comparison to other elevation data (e.g. ASTER and SRTM X- and C-band derived DEMs). Specifically we report the elevation change over the Malaspina Glacier's piedmont lobe between a DEM derived from SRTM C-band data acquired in Feb. 2000 and ICESat Laser #2b data from Feb.-March 2004. We also report use of ICESat elevation data to enhance ASTER derived absolute DEMs. Mountain glaciers generally have rougher surfaces and steeper regional slopes than the ice sheets for which the ICESat design was optimized. Therefore, rather than averaging ICESat observations over large regions or relying on crossovers, we are working with well-located ICESat

Malaspina Glacier, Alaska, Anaglyph with Landsat Overlay

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2003-01-01

This anaglyph view of Malaspina Glacier in southeastern Alaska was created from a Landsat satellite image and an elevation model generated by the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM). Malaspina Glacier is considered the classic example of a piedmont glacier. Piedmont glaciers occur where valley glaciers exit a mountain range onto broad lowlands, are no longer laterally confined, and spread to become wide lobes. Malaspina Glacier is actually a compound glacier, formed by the merger of several valley glaciers, the most prominent of which seen here are Agassiz Glacier (left) and Seward Glacier (right). In total, Malaspina Glacier is up to 65 kilometers (40 miles) wide and extends up to 45 kilometers (28 miles) from the mountain front nearly to the sea.

Glaciers erode rocks, carry them down slope, and deposit them at the edge of the melting ice, typically in elongated piles called moraines. The moraine patterns at Malaspina Glacier are quite spectacular in that they have huge contortions that result from the glacier crinkling as it gets pushed from behind by the faster-moving valley glaciers.

Numerous other features of the glaciers and the adjacent terrain are clearly seen when viewing this image at full resolution. The series of tonal arcs on Agassiz Glacier's extension onto the piedmont are called 'ogives.' These arcs are believed to be seasonal features created by deformation of the glacier as it passes over bedrock irregularities at differing speeds through the year. Assuming one light-and-dark ogive pair per year, the rate of motion of the glacial ice can be estimated (in this case, about 200 meters per year where the ogives are most prominent). Just to the west, moraine deposits abut the eroded bedrock terrain, forming a natural dam that has created a lake. Near the northwest corner of the scene, a recent landslide has deposited rock debris atop a small glacier. Sinkholes are common in many areas of the moraine deposits. The sinkholes form when

Simultaneous observations of ice motion, calving and seismicity on the Yahtse Glacier, Alaska. (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Larsen, C. F.; Bartholomaus, T. C.; O'Neel, S.; West, M. E.

2010-12-01

We observe ice motion, calving and seismicity simultaneously and with high-resolution on an advancing tidewater glacier in Icy Bay, Alaska. Icy Bay’s tidewater glaciers dominate regional glacier-generated seismicity in Alaska. Yahtse emanates from the St. Elias Range near the Bering-Bagley-Seward-Malaspina Icefield system, the most extensive glacier cover outside the polar regions. Rapid rates of change and fast flow (>16 m/d near the terminus) at Yahtse Glacier provide a direct analog to the disintegrating outlet systems in Greenland. Our field experiment co-locates GPS and seismometers on the surface of the glacier, with a greater network of bedrock seismometers surrounding the glacier. Time-lapse photogrammetry, fjord wave height sensors, and optical survey methods monitor iceberg calving and ice velocity near the terminus. This suite of geophysical instrumentation enables us to characterize glacier motion and geometry changes while concurrently listening for seismic energy release. We are performing a close examination of calving as a seismic source, and the associated mechanisms of energy transfer to seismic waves. Detailed observations of ice motion (GPS and optical surveying), glacier geometry and iceberg calving (direct observations and timelapse photogrammetry) have been made in concert with a passive seismic network. Combined, the observations form the basis of a rigorous analysis exploring the relationship between glacier-generated seismic events and motion, glacier-fiord interactions, calving and hydraulics. Our work is designed to demonstrate the applicability and utility of seismology to study the impact of climate forcing on calving glaciers.

Surge of a Complex Glacier System - The Current Surge of the Bering-Bagley Glacier System, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Herzfeld, U. C.; McDonald, B.; Trantow, T.; Hale, G.; Stachura, M.; Weltman, A.; Sears, T.

2013-12-01

Understanding fast glacier flow and glacial accelerations is important for understanding changes in the cryosphere and ultimately in sea level. Surge-type glaciers are one of four types of fast-flowing glaciers --- the other three being continuously fast-flowing glaciers, fjord glaciers and ice streams --- and the one that has seen the least amount of research. The Bering-Bagley Glacier System, Alaska, the largest glacier system in North America, surged in 2011 and 2012. Velocities decreased towards the end of 2011, while the surge kinematics continued to expand. A new surge phase started in summer and fall 2012. In this paper, we report results from airborne observations collected in September 2011, June/July and September/October 2012 and in 2013. Airborne observations include simultaneously collected laser altimeter data, videographic data, GPS data and photographic data and are complemented by satellite data analysis. Methods range from classic interpretation of imagery to analysis and classification of laser altimeter data and connectionist (neural-net) geostatistical classification of concurrent airborne imagery. Results focus on the characteristics of surge progression in a large and complex glacier system (as opposed to a small glacier with relatively simple geometry). We evaluate changes in surface elevations including mass transfer and sudden drawdowns, crevasse types, accelerations and changes in the supra-glacial and englacial hydrologic system. Supraglacial water in Bering Glacier during Surge, July 2012 Airborne laser altimeter profile across major rift in central Bering Glacier, Sept 2011

Hydro-sliding and the Springtime Dynamical Evolution of Kennicott Glacier, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Armstrong, W. H., Jr.; Anderson, R. S.

2017-12-01

Glacier basal motion is a poorly understood aspect of glacier mechanics that is responsible for the majority of ice flux on fast-flowing glaciers, enables rapid changes in glacier motion, and provides the means by which glaciers shape alpine landscapes. We collect hydrometerologic data and GPS-derived ice surface motion to probe the link between subglacial water pressure and the evolution of glacier velocity on Kennicott Glacier, Alaska. We find a chaotic timeseries of >50 m fill-and-drain sequences on the well-connected ice-marginal Donoho Falls Lake. Glacier velocity in the down-glacier reach responds sensitively to lake stage, with high amplitude diurnal velocity fluctuations during high or rising stage. The timing of velocity peaks precedes peak stage by 2-3 hours, and synchronously shifts earlier in the day throughout our observation period. We find the up-glacier station appears to first speed up in response to longitudinal coupling with accelerating down-glacier ice before responding to local variations in basal traction. We find the transition to responding to local basal conditions results in the glacier behaving more uniformly, with similar magnitude diurnal velocity fluctuations, synchronous timing of velocity extrema across the 10 km study reach, and steadier longitudinal strain rates.

Glacier mass-balance fluctuations in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Josberger, E.G.; Bidlake, W.R.; March, R.S.; Kennedy, B.W.

2007-01-01

The more than 40 year record of net and seasonal mass-balance records from measurements made by the United States Geological Survey on South Cascade Glacier, Washington, and Wolverine and Gulkana Glaciers, Alaska, shows annual and interannual fluctuations that reflect changes in the controlling climatic conditions at regional and global scales. As the mass-balance record grows in length, it is revealing significant changes in previously described glacier mass-balance behavior, and both inter-glacier and glacier-climate relationships. South Cascade and Wolverine Glaciers are strongly affected by the warm and wet maritime climate of the northeast Pacific Ocean. Their net balances have generally been controlled by winter accumulation, with fluctuations that are strongly related to the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO). Recently, warm dry summers have begun to dominate the net balance of the two maritime glaciers, with a weakening of the correlation between the winter balance fluctuations and the PDO. Non-synchronous periods of positive and negative net balance for each glacier prior to 1989 were followed by a 1989-2004 period of synchronous and almost exclusively negative net balances that averaged -0.8 m for the three glaciers.

Glacier-specific elevation changes in western Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paul, Frank; Le Bris, Raymond

2013-04-01

Deriving glacier-specific elevation changes from DEM differencing and digital glacier outlines is rather straight-forward if the required datasets are available. Calculating such changes over large regions and including glaciers selected for mass balance measurements in the field, provides a possibility to determine the representativeness of the changes observed at these glaciers for the entire region. The related comparison of DEM-derived values for these glaciers with the overall mean avoids the rather error-prone conversion of volume to mass changes (e.g. due to unknown densities) and gives unit-less correction factors for upscaling the field measurements to a larger region. However, several issues have to be carefully considered, such as proper co-registration of the two DEMs, date and accuracy of the datasets compared, as well as source data used for DEM creation and potential artefacts (e.g. voids). In this contribution we present an assessment of the representativeness of the two mass balance glaciers Gulkana and Wolverine for the overall changes of nearly 3200 glaciers in western Alaska over a ca. 50-year time period. We use an elevation change dataset from a study by Berthier et al. (2010) that was derived from the USGS DEM of the 1960s (NED) and a more recent DEM derived from SPOT5 data for the SPIRIT project. Additionally, the ASTER GDEM was used as a more recent DEM. Historic glacier outlines were taken from the USGS digital line graph (DLG) dataset, corrected with the digital raster graph (DRG) maps from USGS. Mean glacier specific elevation changes were derived based on drainage divides from a recently created inventory. Land-terminating, lake-calving and tidewater glaciers were marked in the attribute table to determine their changes separately. We also investigated the impact of handling potential DEM artifacts in three different ways and compared elevation changes with altitude. The mean elevation changes of Gulkana and Wolverine glaciers (about -0

Ice elevations and surface change on the Malaspina Glacier, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sauber, J.; Molnia, B.; Carabajal, C.; Luthcke, S.; Muskett, R.

2005-01-01

Here we use Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat)-derived elevations and surface characteristics to investigate the Malaspina Glacier of southern Alaska. Although there is significant elevation variability between ICESat tracks on this glacier, we were able to discern general patterns in surface elevation change by using a regional digital elevation model (DEM) as a reference surface. Specifically, we report elevation differences between ICESat Laser 1-3 observations (February 2003 - November 2004) and a Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM)-derived DEM from February 2000. Elevation decreases of up to 20-25 m over a 3-4 year time period were observed across the folded loop moraine on the southern portion of the Malaspina Glacier. Copyright 2005 by the American Geophysical Union.

End-of-winter snow depth variability on glaciers in Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McGrath, Daniel; Sass, Louis; O'Neel, Shad; Arendt, Anthony; Wolken, Gabriel; Gusmeroli, Alessio; Kienholz, Christian; McNeil, Christopher

2015-08-01

A quantitative understanding of snow thickness and snow water equivalent (SWE) on glaciers is essential to a wide range of scientific and resource management topics. However, robust SWE estimates are observationally challenging, in part because SWE can vary abruptly over short distances in complex terrain due to interactions between topography and meteorological processes. In spring 2013, we measured snow accumulation on several glaciers around the Gulf of Alaska using both ground- and helicopter-based ground-penetrating radar surveys, complemented by extensive ground truth observations. We found that SWE can be highly variable (40% difference) over short spatial scales (tens to hundreds of meters), especially in the ablation zone where the underlying ice surfaces are typically rough. Elevation provides the dominant basin-scale influence on SWE, with gradients ranging from 115 to 400 mm/100 m. Regionally, total accumulation and the accumulation gradient are strongly controlled by a glacier's distance from the coastal moisture source. Multiple linear regressions, used to calculate distributed SWE fields, show that robust results require adequate sampling of the true distribution of multiple terrain parameters. Final SWE estimates (comparable to winter balances) show reasonable agreement with both the Parameter-elevation Relationships on Independent Slopes Model climate data set (9-36% difference) and the U.S. Geological Survey Alaska Benchmark Glaciers (6-36% difference). All the glaciers in our study exhibit substantial sensitivity to changing snow-rain fractions, regardless of their location in a coastal or continental climate. While process-based SWE projections remain elusive, the collection of ground-penetrating radar (GPR)-derived data sets provides a greatly enhanced perspective on the spatial distribution of SWE and will pave the way for future work that may eventually allow such projections.

Comparison of Glaciological and Gravimetric Glacier Mass Balance Measurements of Taku and Lemon Creek Glaciers, Southeast Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vogler, K.; McNeil, C.; Bond, M.; Getraer, B.; Huxley-Reicher, B.; McNamara, G.; Reinhardt-Ertman, T.; Silverwood, J.; Kienholz, C.; Beedle, M. J.

2017-12-01

Glacier-wide annual mass balances (Ba) have been calculated for Taku (726 km2) and Lemon Creek glaciers (10.2 km2) since 1946 and 1953 respectively. These are the longest mass balance records in North America, and the only Ba time-series available for Southeast Alaska, making them particularly valuable for the global glacier mass balance monitoring network. We compared Ba time-series from Taku and Lemon Creek glaciers to Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) mascon solutions (1352 and 1353) during the 2004-2015 period to assess how well these gravimetric solutions reflect individual glaciological records. Lemon Creek Glacier is a challenging candidate for this comparison because it is small compared to the 12,100 km2 GRACE mascon solutions. Taku Glacier is equally challenging because its mass balance is stable compared to the negative balances dominating its neighboring glaciers. Challenges notwithstanding, a high correlation between the glaciological and gravimetrically-derived Ba for Taku and Lemon Creek glaciers encourage future use of GRACE to measure glacier mass balance. Additionally, we employed high frequency ground penetrating radar (GPR) to measure the variability of accumulation around glaciological sites to assess uncertainty in our glaciological measurements, and the resulting impact to Ba. Finally, we synthesize this comparison of glaciological and gravimetric mass balance solutions with a discussion of potential sources of error in both methods and their combined utility for measuring regional glacier change during the 21st century.

Analysis of Seasonal Variability in Gulf of Alaska Glacier Mass Balance using GRACE

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arendt, A. A.; Luthcke, S. B.; Oneel, S.; Gardner, A. S.; Hill, D. F.

2011-12-01

Mass variations of glaciers in Alaska/northwestern Canada must be quantified in order to assess impacts on ecosystems, human infrastructure, and global sea level. Here we combine Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) observations with a wide range of satellite and field data to investigate drivers of these recent changes, with a focus on seasonal variations. Our central focus will be the exceptionally high mass losses of 2009, which do not correlate with weather station temperature and precipitation data, but may be linked to ash fall from the March 31, 2009 eruption of Mt. Redoubt. The eruption resulted in a significant decrease in MODIS-derived surface albedo over many Alaska glacier regions, and likely contributed to some of the 2009 anomalous mass loss observed by GRACE. We also focus on the Juneau and Stikine Icefield regions that are far from the volcanic eruption but experienced the largest mass losses of any region in 2009. Although rapid drawdown of tidewater glaciers was occurring in southeast Alaska during 2009, we show these changes were probably not sufficiently widespread to explain all of the GRACE signal in those regions. We examine additional field and satellite datasets to quantify potential errors in the climate and GRACE fields that could result in the observed discrepancy.

Methane seeps along boundaries of receding glaciers in Alaska and Greenland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Walter Anthony, K. M.; Anthony, P. M.; Grosse, G.; Chanton, J.

2012-12-01

Glaciers, ice sheets, and permafrost form a 'cryosphere cap' that traps methane formed in the subsurface, restricting its flow to the Earth's surface and atmosphere. Despite model predictions that glacier melt and degradation of permafrost open conduits for methane's escape, there has been a paucity of field evidence for 'subcap' methane seepage to the atmosphere as a direct result of cryosphere disintegration in the terrestrial Arctic. Here, we document for the first time the release of sub-cryosphere methane to lakes, rivers, shallow marine fjords and the atmosphere from abundant gas seeps concentrated along boundaries of receding glaciers and permafrost thaw in Alaska and Greenland. Through aerial and ground surveys of 6,700 lakes and fjords in Alaska we mapped >150,000 gas seeps identified as bubbling-induced open holes in seasonal ice. Using gas flow rates, stable isotopes, and radiocarbon dating, we distinguished recent ecological methane from subcap, geologic methane. Subcap seeps had anomalously high bubbling rates, 14C-depletion, and stable isotope values matching microbial sources associated with sedimentary deposits and coal beds as well as thermogenic methane accumulations in Alaska. Since differential ice loading can overpressurize fluid reservoirs and cause sediment fracturing beneath ice sheets, and since the loss of glacial ice reduces normal stress on ground, opens joints, and activates faults and fissures, thereby increasing permeability of the crust to fluid flow, we hypothesized that in the previously glaciated region of Southcentral Alaska, where glacial wastage continues presently, subcap seeps should be disproportionately associated with neotectonic faults. Geospatial analysis confirmed that subcap seep sites were associated with faults within a 7 km belt from the modern glacial extent. The majority of seeps were located in areas affected by seismicity from isostatic rebound associated with deglaciation following the Little Ice Age (LIA; ca

Malaspina Glacier, Alaska, Perspective with Landsat Overlay

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2003-01-01

Malaspina Glacier in southeastern Alaska is considered the classic example of a piedmont glacier. Piedmont glaciers occur where valley glaciers exit a mountain range onto broad lowlands, are no longer laterally confined, and spread to become wide lobes. Malaspina Glacier is actually a compound glacier, formed by the merger of several valley glaciers, the most prominent of which seen here are Agassiz Glacier (left) and Seward Glacier (right). In total, Malaspina Glacier is up to 65 kilometers (40 miles) wide and extends up to 45 kilometers (28 miles) from the mountain front nearly to the sea.

This perspective view was created from a Landsat satellite image and an elevation model generated by the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM). Landsat views both visible and infrared light, which have been combined here into a color composite that generally shows glacial ice in light blue, snow in white, vegetation in green, bare rock in grays and tans, and the ocean (foreground) in dark blue. The back (northern) edge of the data set forms a false horizon that meets a false sky.

Glaciers erode rocks, carry them down slope, and deposit them at the edge of the melting ice, typically in elongated piles called moraines. The moraine patterns at Malaspina Glacier are quite spectacular in that they have huge contortions that result from the glacier crinkling as it gets pushed from behind by the faster-moving valley glaciers.

Glaciers are sensitive indicators of climatic change. They can grow and thicken with increasing snowfall and/or decreased melting. Conversely, they can retreat and thin if snowfall decreases and/or atmospheric temperatures rise and cause increased melting. Landsat imaging has been an excellent tool for mapping the changing geographic extent of glaciers since 1972. The elevation measurements taken by SRTM in February 2000 now provide a near-global baseline against which future non-polar region glacial thinning or thickening can be assessed.

Neoglacial fluctuations of terrestrial, tidewater, and calving lacustrine glaciers, Blackstone-Spencer Ice Complex, Kenai Mountains, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crossen, Kristine June

1997-12-01

The glaciers surrounding the Blackstone-Spencer Ice Complex display a variety of termini types: Tebenkov, Spencer, Bartlett, Skookum, Trail, Burns, Shakespeare, Marquette, Lawrence, and Ripon glaciers end in terrestrial margins; Blackstone and Beloit glaciers have tidewater termini; and Portage Glacier has a calving lacustrine margin. In addition, steep temperature and precipitation gradients exist across the ice complex from the maritime environment of Prince William Sound to the colder, drier interior. The Neoglacial history of Tebenkov Glacier, as based on overrun trees near the terminus, shows advances ca. 250- 430 AD (calibrated date), ca. 1215-1275 AD (calibrated date), and ca. 1320-1430 AD (tree ring evidence), all intervals of glacier advance around the Gulf of Alaska. However, two tidewater glaciers in Blackstone Bay retreated from their outermost moraines by 1350 AD, apparently asynchronously with respect to the regional climate signal. The most extensive Kenai Mountain glacier expansions during Neoglaciation occurred in the late Little Ice Age. The outermost moraines are adjacent to mature forest stands and bog peats that yield dates as old as 5,600 BP. Prince William Sound glaciers advanced during two Little Ice Age cold periods, 1380-1680 and 1830-1900 AD. The terrestrial glaciers around the Blackstone-Spencer Ice Complex all built moraines during the 19th century and began retreating between 1875 and 1900 AD. Portage and Burns glaciers began retreating between 1790 and 1810 AD, but their margins remained close to the outermost moraines during the 19th century. Regional glacier fluctuations are broadly synchronous in the Gulf of Alaska region. With the exception of the two tidewater glaciers in Blackstone Bay, all glaciers in the Kenai Mountains, no matter their sizes, altitudes, orientations, or types of margins, retreated at the end of the Little Ice Age. The climate signal, especially temperature, appears to be the strongest control on glacier

Studies of contemporary glacier basal ice cryostructures to identify buried basal ice in the permafrost: an example from the Matanuska Glacier, Alaska.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stephani, E.; Fortier, D.; Kanevskiy, M.; Dillon, M.; Shur, Y.

2007-12-01

In the permafrost, massive ice bodies occur as buried glacier ice, aufeis ice, recrystalized snow, massive segregated ice, injection ice, ice wedges or ice formed in underground cavities ("pool ice", "thermokarst-cave ice"). The origin of massive ice bodies in the permafrost bears considerable implications for the reconstructions of paleoenvironments and paleoclimates. Our work aims to help the permafrost scientists working on massive icy sediments to distinguish buried basal glacier ice from other types of buried ice. To do so, the properties and structure of contemporary basal ice must be well known. Field investigations at the Matanuska Glacier (Chugach range, South-central Alaska), consisted in descriptions and sampling of natural basal ice exposures. We have used the basal ice facies classification of Lawson (1979) which is simple, easy to use in the field and provides a good framework for the description of basal ice exposures. Cores were extracted and brought back to the laboratory for water and grain-size analyses. The sediments forming the cryostructure were mostly polymodal, poorly sorted gravelly silt to gravelly fine sand, with mud contents generally over 50%. These data will be used to calibrate three-dimensional (3D) models produced from micro-tomographic scans of basal ice which will produce quantitative estimates of volumetric ice and sediments contents of basal ice cryostructures. Ultimately, visual qualitative and quantitative characterization of the basal ice components of 3D models together with field observations and laboratory analysis will allow for a new micro-facies and cryostructures classification of the basal ice. Our work will also have applications in glaciology, glacial geology, geomorphology, Quaternary and paleo-climatological studies based on inferences made from the structure of basal glacier ice. This paper presents the internal composition of the basal ice facies in terms of cryostructures assemblages (Fortier et al.: 2007) and

Elevation change (2000-2004) on the Malaspina Glacier, Alaska

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sauber, J.; Molnia, B.; Carabajal, C.; Luthcke, S.; Muskett, R.

2005-01-01

The glaciers of the southeastern Alaska coastal region are the largest temperate glacier meltwater source on Earth and may contribute one third of the total glacier meltwater entering the global ocean. Since melt onset and refreeeze timing in this region show a tendency toward earlier onset and longer ablation seasons, accelerated glacier wastage may be occurring. In this study we focus on one of the largest temperate glacier systems on Earth, the Malaspina Glacier. This glacier, with a length of approximately 110 km and an area of approximately square 5,000 km, has the largest piedmont lobe of any temperate glacier. The entire lobe, which lies at elevations below 600 m, is within the ablation zone. We report and interpret ice elevation change between a digital elevation model (DEM) derived from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM C band) observations in Feb. 2000 and ICESat Laser 1-3 observations between Feb. 2003 and Nov. 2004. We use these elevation change results, along with earlier studies, to address the spatial and temporal variability in wastage of the piedmont lobe. Between 2000 and 2004 ice elevation changes of 10-30 meters occurred across the central Malaspina piedmont lobe. From 1972/73 (USGS DEM) to 1999 (SRTM corrected for estimated winter snow accumulation) Malaspina's (Agassiz, Seward Lobe, and Marvine) mean ice thinning was estimated at -47 m with maximum thinning on parts of the lobes to -160 m. The Malaspina's accumulation area is only slightly larger than its ablation area (2,575 km2 vs. 2,433 km2); unfortunately few glaciological observations are available from this source region. Snow accumulation rates have been largely inferred from low-altitude precipitation and temperature data. Comparing sequential ICESat observations in the Malaspina source region, we estimated short-term elevation increases of up to 5 meters during the winter of 2003/04.

Contribution of glacier runoff to freshwater discharge into the Gulf of Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Neal, E.G.; Hood, E.; Smikrud, K.

2010-01-01

Watersheds along the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) are undergoing climate warming, glacier volume loss, and shifts in the timing and volume of freshwater delivered to the eastern North Pacific Ocean. We estimate recent mean annual freshwater discharge to the GOA at 870 km3 yr-1. Small distributed coastal drainages contribute 78% of the freshwater discharge with the remainder delivered by larger rivers penetrating coastal ranges. Discharge from glaciers and icefields accounts for 47% of total freshwater discharge, with 10% coming from glacier volume loss associated with rapid thinning and retreat of glaciers along the GOA. Our results indicate the region of the GOA from Prince William Sound to the east, where glacier runoff contributes 371 km3 yr -1, is vulnerable to future changes in freshwater discharge as a result of glacier thinning and recession. Changes in timing and magnitude of freshwater delivery to the GOA could impact coastal circulation as well as biogeochemical fluxes to near-shore marine ecosystems and the eastern North Pacific Ocean. Copyright ?? 2010 by the American Geophysical Union.

Distribution and spawning dynamics of capelin (Mallotus villosus) in Glacier Bay, Alaska: A cold water refugium

USGS Publications Warehouse

Arimitsu, Mayumi L.; Piatt, John F.; Litzow, Michael A.; Abookire, Alisa A.; Romano, Marc D.; Robards, Martin D.

2008-01-01

Pacific capelin (Mallotus villosus) populations declined dramatically in the Northeastern Pacific following ocean warming after the regime shift of 1977, but little is known about the cause of the decline or the functional relationships between capelin and their environment. We assessed the distribution and abundance of spawning, non-spawning adult and larval capelin in Glacier Bay, an estuarine fjord system in southeastern Alaska. We used principal components analysis to analyze midwater trawl and beach seine data collected between 1999 and 2004 with respect to oceanographic data and other measures of physical habitat including proximity to tidewater glaciers and potential spawning habitat. Both spawning and non-spawning adult Pacific capelin were more likely to occur in areas closest to tidewater glaciers, and those areas were distinguished by lower temperature, higher turbidity, higher dissolved oxygen and lower chlorophyll a levels when compared with other areas of the bay. The distribution of larval Pacific capelin was not sensitive to glacial influence. Pre-spawning females collected farther from tidewater glaciers were at a lower maturity state than those sampled closer to tidewater glaciers, and the geographic variation in the onset of spawning is likely the result of differences in the marine habitat among sub-areas of Glacier Bay. Proximity to cold water in Glacier Bay may have provided a refuge for capelin during the recent warm years in the Gulf of Alaska.

Glacier-volcano interactions in the north crater of Mt. Wrangell, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Abston, Carl; Motyka, Roman J.; McNutt, Stephen; Luthi, Martin; Truffer, Martin

2007-01-01

Glaciological and related observations from 1961 to 2005 at the summit of Mt Wrangell (62.008 N, 144.028W; 4317 m a.s.l.), a massive glacier-covered shield volcano in south-central Alaska, show marked changes that appear to have been initiated by the Great Alaska Earthquake (MW = 9.2) of 27 March 1964. The 4 x 6 km diameter, ice-filled Summit Caldera with several post-caldera craters on its rim, comprises the summit region where annual snow accumulation is 1–2 m of water equivalent and the mean annual temperature, measured 10 m below the snow surface, is –20°C. Precision surveying, aerial photogrammetry and measurements of temperature and snow accumulation were used to measure the loss of glacier ice equivalent to about 0.03 km3 of water from the North Crater in a decade. Glacier calorimetry was used to calculate the associated heat flux, which varied within the range 20–140W m–2; total heat flow was in the range 20–100 MW. Seismicity data from the crater’s rim show two distinct responses to large earthquakes at time scales from minutes to months. Chemistry of water and gas from fumaroles indicates a shallow magma heat source and seismicity data are consistent with this interpretation.

Susitna Glacier, Alaska

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

NASA image acquired August 27, 2009 Like rivers of liquid water, glaciers flow downhill, with tributaries joining to form larger rivers. But where water rushes, ice crawls. As a result, glaciers gather dust and dirt, and bear long-lasting evidence of past movements. Alaska’s Susitna Glacier revealed some of its long, grinding journey when the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) on NASA’s Terra satellite passed overhead on August 27, 2009. This satellite image combines infrared, red, and green wavelengths to form a false-color image. Vegetation is red and the glacier’s surface is marbled with dirt-free blue ice and dirt-coated brown ice. Infusions of relatively clean ice push in from tributaries in the north. The glacier surface appears especially complex near the center of the image, where a tributary has pushed the ice in the main glacier slightly southward. A photograph taken by researchers from the U.S. Geological Survey (archived by the National Snow and Ice Data Center) shows an equally complicated Susitna Glacier in 1970, with dirt-free and dirt-encrusted surfaces forming stripes, curves, and U-turns. Susitna flows over a seismically active area. In fact, a 7.9-magnitude quake struck the region in November 2002, along a previously unknown fault. Geologists surmised that earthquakes had created the steep cliffs and slopes in the glacier surface, but in fact most of the jumble is the result of surges in tributary glaciers. Glacier surges—typically short-lived events where a glacier moves many times its normal rate—can occur when melt water accumulates at the base and lubricates the flow. This water may be supplied by meltwater lakes that accumulate on top of the glacier; some are visible in the lower left corner of this image. The underlying bedrock can also contribute to glacier surges, with soft, easily deformed rock leading to more frequent surges. NASA Earth Observatory image created by Jesse Allen and Robert

Rapid thinning and collapse of lake calving Yakutat Glacier, Southeast Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Trussel, Barbara Lea

Glaciers around the globe are experiencing a notable retreat and thinning, triggered by atmospheric warming. Tidewater glaciers in particular have received much attention, because they have been recognized to contribute substantially to global sea level rise. However, lake calving glaciers in Alaska show increasingly high thinning and retreat rates and are therefore contributors to sea level rise. The number of such lake calving systems is increasing worldwide as land-terminating glaciers retreat into overdeepened basins and form proglacial lakes. Yakutat Glacier in Southeast Alaska is a low elevation lake calving glacier with an accumulation to total area ratio of 0.03. It experienced rapid thinning of 4.43 +/- 0.06 m w.e. yr-1 between 2000-2010 and terminus retreat of over 15 km since the beginning of the 20th century. Simultaneously, adjacent Yakutat Icefield land-terminating glaciers thinned at lower but still substantial rates (3.54 +/- 0.06 m w.e. yr -1 for the same time period), indicating lake calving dynamics help drive increased mass loss. Yakutat Glacier sustained a ˜3 km long floating tongue for over a decade, which started to disintegrate into large tabular icebergs in 2010. Such floating tongues are rarely seen on temperate tidewater glaciers. The floating ice was weakened by surface ablation, which then allowed rifts to form and intersect. Ice velocity from GPS measurements showed that the ice on the floating tongue was moving substantially faster than grounded ice, which was attributed to rift opening between the floating and grounded ice. Temporal variations of rift opening were determined from time-lapse imagery, and correlated well with variations in ice speeds. Larger rift opening rates occurred during and after precipitation or increased melt episodes. Both of these events increased subglacial discharge and could potentially increase the subaqueous currents towards the open lake and thus increase drag on the ice underside. Simultaneously

Surface Mass Balance of the Columbia Glacier, Alaska, 1978 and 2010 Balance Years

USGS Publications Warehouse

O'Neel, Shad

2012-01-01

Although Columbia Glacier is one of the largest sources of glacier mass loss in Alaska, surface mass balance measurements are sparse, with only a single data set available from 1978. The dearth of surface mass-balance data prohibits partitioning of the total mass losses between dynamics and surface forcing; however, the accurate inclusion of calving glaciers into predictive models requires both dynamic and climatic forcing of total mass balance. During 2010, the U.S. Geological Survey collected surface balance data at several locations distributed over the surface of Columbia Glacier to estimate the glacier-wide annual balance for balance year 2010 using the 2007 area-altitude distribution. This report also summarizes data collected in 1978, calculates the 1978 annual surface balance, and uses these observations to constrain the 2010 values, particularly the shape of the balance profile. Both years exhibit balances indicative of near-equilibrium surface mass-balance conditions, and demonstrate the importance of dynamic processes during the rapid retreat.

Glacial Lake Growth and Associated Glacier Dynamics: Case Study from the Himalayas, Andes, Alaska and New Zealand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Binger, D. J.; Haritashya, U. K.; Kargel, J. S.; Shugar, D. H.

2016-12-01

Glacial lake growth and associated glacier dynamics: Case study from the Himalayas, Andes, Alaska and New Zealand David J. Binger1, Umesh K. Haritashya1 and Jeffrey S. Kargel21University of Dayton, Dayton, OH 2University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ As a result of climate change most of the world's alpine glaciers are undergoing measurable retreat and dynamic changes. The result of accelerated melting has led to the formation and growth of potentially dangerous glacial lakes. In this study, alpine glaciers and associated lakes from the Himalayas, Andes, Alaska and New Zealand, showing similar geomorphological settings were analyzed to compare differences in regional proglacial lake growth and its relationship with glacier dynamics. Specifically, we analyzed the surface area growth of the lakes, retreat of glacier terminus, changes in glacier velocity, surface temperature and potential glacial lake outburst flood triggers. Using Landsat and ASTER satellite images, Cosi - Corr software, and in house thermal mapping, 10 glaciers were analyzed and compared. Results show a substantial increase in proglacial lake surface area, accelerated velocity and significant calving of the glaciers. Glacier surface temperatures varied by location, with some remaining constant and others 2°C - 4°C increases; although increased surface temperature did not always show a direct correlation with increasing retreat rate. Lakes with high rates of surface area growth paired with glaciers with increased velocity and calving could prove to be unsustainable and lead to an increased risk for glacial lake outburst floods. Overall, result show the changing dynamics of the alpine glaciers in different mountain regions and the growth of their proglacial lakes.

Hypsometric control on glacier mass balance sensitivity in Alaska and northwest Canada

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McGrath, D.; Sass, L.; O'Neel, S.; Arendt, A.; Kienholz, C.

2017-03-01

Glacier hypsometry provides a first-order approach for assessing a glacier's response to climate forcings. We couple the Randolph Glacier Inventory to a suite of in situ observations and climate model output to examine potential change for the ˜27,000 glaciers in Alaska and northwest Canada through the end of the 21st century. By 2100, based on Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs) 4.5-8.5 forcings, summer temperatures are predicted to increase between +2.1 and +4.6°C, while solid precipitation (snow) is predicted to decrease by -6 to -11%, despite a +9 to +21% increase in total precipitation. Snow is predicted to undergo a pronounced decrease in the fall, shifting the start of the accumulation season back by ˜1 month. In response to these forcings, the regional equilibrium line altitude (ELA) may increase by +105 to +225 m by 2100. The mass balance sensitivity to this increase is highly variable, with the most substantive impact for glaciers with either limited elevation ranges (often small (<1 km2) glaciers, which account for 80% of glaciers in the region) or those with top-heavy geometries, like icefields. For more than 20% of glaciers, future ELAs, given RCP 6.0 forcings, will exceed the maximum elevation of the glacier, resulting in their eventual demise, while for others, accumulation area ratios will decrease by >60%. Our results highlight the first-order control of hypsometry on individual glacier response to climate change, and the variability that hypsometry introduces to a regional response to a coherent climate perturbation.

Logs and Geologic Data from a Paleoseismic Investigation of the Susitna Glacier fault, Central Alaska Range, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Personius, Stephen F.; Crone, Anthony J.; Burns, Patricia A.C.; Beget, James E.; Seitz, Gordon G.; Bemis, Sean P.

2010-01-01

This report contains field and laboratory data from a paleoseismic study of the Susitna Glacier fault, Alaska. The initial M 7.2 subevent of the November 3, 2002, M 7.9 Denali fault earthquake sequence produced a 48-km-long set of complex fault scarps, folds, and aligned landslides on the previously unknown, north-dipping Susitna Glacier thrust fault along the southern margin of the Alaska Range in central Alaska. Most of the 2002 folds and fault scarps are 1-3 m high, implying dip-slip thrust offsets (assuming a near-surface fault dip of approximately 20 degrees)of 3-5 m. Locally, some of the 2002 ruptures were superimposed on preexisting scarps that have as much as 5-10 m of vertical separation and are evidence of previous surface-rupturing earthquakes on the Susitna Glacier fault. In 2003-2005, we focused follow-up studies on several of the large scarps at the 'Wet fan' site in the central part of the 2002 rupture to determine the pre-2002 history of large surface-rupturing earthquakes on the fault. We chose this site for several reasons: (1) the presence of pre-2002 thrust- and normal-fault scarps on a gently sloping, post-glacial alluvial fan; (2) nearby natural exposures of underlying fan sediments revealed fine-grained fluvial silts with peat layers and volcanic ash beds useful for chronological control; and (3) a lack of permafrost to a depth of more than 1 m. Our studies included detailed mapping, fault-scarp profiling, and logging of three hand-excavated trenches. We were forced to restrict our excavations to 1- to 2-m-high splay faults and folds because the primary 2002 ruptures mostly were superimposed on such large scarps that it was impossible to hand dig through the hanging wall to expose the fault plane. Additional complications are the pervasive effects of cryogenic processes (mainly solifluction) that can mask or mimic tectonic deformation. The purpose of this report is to present photomosaics, trench logs, scarp profiles, and fault slip

Passive microwave (SSM/I) satellite predictions of valley glacier hydrology, Matanuska Glacier, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kopczynski, S.E.; Ramage, J.; Lawson, D.; Goetz, S.; Evenson, E.; Denner, J.; Larson, G.

2008-01-01

We advance an approach to use satellite passive microwave observations to track valley glacier snowmelt and predict timing of spring snowmelt-induced floods at the terminus. Using 37 V GHz brightness temperatures (Tb) from the Special Sensor Microwave hnager (SSM/I), we monitor snowmelt onset when both Tb and the difference between the ascending and descending overpasses exceed fixed thresholds established for Matanuska Glacier. Melt is confirmed by ground-measured air temperature and snow-wetness, while glacier hydrologic responses are monitored by a stream gauge, suspended-sediment sensors and terminus ice velocity measurements. Accumulation area snowmelt timing is correlated (R2 = 0.61) to timing of the annual snowmelt flood peak and can be predicted within ??5 days. Copyright 2008 by the American Geophysical Union.

Seismic detection and analysis of icequakes at Columbia Glacier, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

O'Neel, Shad; Marshall, Hans P.; McNamara, Daniel E.; Pfeffer, William Tad

2007-01-01

Contributions to sea level rise from rapidly retreating marine-terminating glaciers are large and increasing. Strong increases in iceberg calving occur during retreat, which allows mass transfer to the ocean at a much higher rate than possible through surface melt alone. To study this process, we deployed an 11-sensor passive seismic network at Columbia Glacier, Alaska, during 2004–2005. We show that calving events generate narrow-band seismic signals, allowing frequency domain detections. Detection parameters were determined using direct observations of calving and validated using three statistical methods and hypocenter locations. The 1–3 Hz detections provide a good measure of the temporal distribution and size of calving events. Possible source mechanisms for the unique waveforms are discussed, and we analyze potential forcings for the observed seismicity.

Sculpted by water, elevated by earthquakes—The coastal landscape of Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Witter, Robert C.; LeWinter, Adam; Bender, Adrian M.; Glennie, Craig; Finnegan, David

2017-05-22

Within Glacier Bay National Park in southeastern Alaska, the Fairweather Fault represents the onshore boundary between two of Earth’s constantly moving tectonic plates: the North American Plate and the Yakutat microplate. Satellite measurements indicate that during the past few decades the Yakutat microplate has moved northwest at a rate of nearly 5 centimeters per year relative to the North American Plate. Motion between the tectonic plates results in earthquakes on the Fairweather Fault during time intervals spanning one or more centuries. For example, in 1958, a 260-kilometer section of the Fairweather Fault ruptured during a magnitude 7.8 earthquake, causing permanent horizontal (as much as 6.5 meters) and vertical (as much as 1 meter) displacement of the ground surface across the fault. Thousands to millions of years of tectonic plate motion, including earthquakes like the one in 1958, raised and shifted the ground surface across the Fairweather Fault, while rivers, glaciers, and ocean waves eroded and sculpted the surrounding landscape along the Gulf of Alaska coast in Glacier Bay National Park.

Photogrammetric Data Set, 1957-2000, and Bathymetric Measurements for Columbia Glacier, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Krimmel, Robert M.

2001-01-01

Major changes in the length, speed, surface altitude, and calving rate of Columbia Glacier, Alaska have been recorded with stereo vertical photography acquired on 119 dates from 1957 to 2000. Photogrammetric analysis of this photographic record has resulted in precise measurement of these changes. From 1982 to 2000 Columbia Glacier retreated 12 kilometers, reduced its thickness by as much as 400 meters, increased its speed from about 5 to 30 meters per day, and increased its calving rate from 3 to 18 million cubic meters per day. All photogrammetric data for Columbia Glacier from 1957 to 2000 are included in this report, as well as supplemental data of ice-dammed lake surface levels, stagnant ice ablation rate, forebay bathymetry, ground control, and camera calibrations. These data are contained in 481 files, all preserved on a CD-ROM included with this report.

Evaluating glacier movement fluctuations using remote sensing: A case study of the Baird, Patterson, LeConte, and Shakes glaciers in central Southeastern Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Davidson, Robert Howard

Global Land Survey (GLS) data encompassing Landsat Multispectral Scanner (MSS), Landsat 5's Thematic Mapper (TM), and Landsat 7's Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) were used to determine the terminus locations of Baird, Patterson, LeConte, and Shakes Glaciers in Alaska in the time period 1975-2010. The sequences of the terminuses locations were investigated to determine the movement rates of these glaciers with respect to specific physical and environmental conditions. GLS data from 1975, 1990, 2000, 2005, and 2010 in false-color composite images enhancing ice-snow differentiation and Iterative Self-Organizing (ISO) Data Cluster Unsupervised Classifications were used to 1) quantify the movement rates of Baird, Patterson, LeConte, and Shakes Glaciers; 2) analyze the movement rates for glaciers with similar terminal terrain conditions and; 3) analyze the movement rates for glaciers with dissimilar terminal terrain conditions. From the established sequence of terminus locations, movement distances were quantified between the glacier locations. Movement distances were then compared to see if any correlation existed between glaciers with similar or dissimilar terminal terrain conditions. The Global Land Ice Measurement from Space (GLIMS) data was used as a starting point from which glacier movement was measured for Baird, Patterson, and LeConte Glaciers only as the Shakes Glacier is currently not included in the GLIMS database. The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) temperature data collected at the Petersburg, Alaska, meteorological station (from January 1, 1973 to December 31, 2009) were used to help in the understanding of the climatic condition in this area and potential impact on glaciers terminus. Results show that glaciers with similar terminal terrain conditions (Patterson and Shakes Glaciers) and glaciers with dissimilar terminal terrain conditions (Baird, Patterson, and LeConte Glaciers) did not exhibit similar movement rates

Stratigraphic reconnaissance of the Middle Jurassic Red Glacier Formation, Tuxedni Group, at Red Glacier, Cook Inlet, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

LePain, David L.; Stanley, Richard G.

2015-01-01

The Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys (DGGS) and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) are implementing ongoing programs to characterize the petroleum potential of Cook Inlet basin. Since 2009 this program has included work on the Mesozoic stratigraphy of lower Cook Inlet, including the Middle Jurassic Tuxedni Group between Tuxedni and Iniskin bays (LePain and others, 2013; Stanley and others, 2013; fig. 5-1). The basal unit in the group, the Red Glacier Formation (fig. 5-2), is thought to be the principal source rock for oil produced in upper Cook Inlet, and available geochemical data support this contention (Magoon and Anders, 1992; Magoon, 1994). Despite its economic significance very little has been published on the formation since Detterman and Hartsock’s (1966) seminal contribution on the geology of the Iniskin–Tuxedni area nearly 50 years ago. Consequently its stratigraphy, contact relations with bounding formations, and source rock characteristics are poorly known. During the 2014 field season, a nearly continuous stratigraphic section through the Red Glacier Formation in its type area at Red Glacier was located and measured to characterize sedimentary facies and to collect a suite of samples for analyses of biostratigraphy, Rock-Eval pyrolysis, vitrinite reflectance, and sandstone composition (fig. 5-3).The poorly known nature of the Red Glacier Formation is likely due to its remote location, steep terrain, and the fact that the type section is split into two segments that are more than 3 km apart. The lower 375 m segment of the formation is on the ridge between Red Glacier and Lateral Glacier and the upper 1,009 m segment is on the ridge between Red Glacier and Boulder Creek (fig. 5-3). Structural complications in the area add to the difficulty in understanding how these two segments fit together.

Preliminary bathymetry of McCarty Fiord and Neoglacial changes of McCarty Glacier, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Post, Austin

1980-01-01

Preliminary bathymetry (at 1:20,000 scale) and other scientific studies of McCarty Fiord, Alaska, Conducted by the Research Vessel Growler in 1978, showed this 15 mile-long waterway to be a narrow, deeply scoured basin enclosed by a terminal-moraine shoal. This valley was formerly filled by McCarty Glacier, which began a drastic retreat shortly after 1909; the glacier reached shallow water at the head of the fiord around 1960. The relative rate of retreat in deep water and on land is disclosed by the slower melting of stagnent ice left in a side valley. Soundings and profiles show the main channel to extend to a depth as great as 957 feet and to have the typical ' U ' shape of a glacier-eroded valley; since the glacier 's retreat, sediments have formed a nearly level deposit in the deepest part of the fiord. Old forest debris dated by carbon-14 indicates that a neoglacial advance of the glacier began before 3,395 years B.P. (before present); by 1,500 B.P. the glacier filled most of the fiord, and before the glacier culminated its advance around 1860 , two glacier-dammed lakes were formed in side valleys. (USGS)

Effects of the March 1964 Alaska earthquake on glaciers: Chapter D in The Alaska earthquake, March 27, 1964: effects on hydrologic regimen

USGS Publications Warehouse

Post, Austin

1967-01-01

The 1964 Alaska earthquake occurred in a region where there are many hundreds of glaciers, large and small. Aerial photographic investigations indicate that no snow and ice avalanches of large size occurred on glaciers despite the violent shaking. Rockslide avalanches extended onto the glaciers in many localities, seven very large ones occurring in the Copper River region 160 kilometers east of the epicenter. Some of these avalanches traveled several kilometers at low gradients; compressed air may have provided a lubricating layer. If long-term changes in glaciers due to tectonic changes in altitude and slope occur, they will probably be very small. No evidence of large-scale dynamic response of any glacier to earthquake shaking or avalanche loading was found in either the Chugach or Kenai Mountains 16 months after the 1964 earthquake, nor was there any evidence of surges (rapid advances) as postulated by the Earthquake-Advance Theory of Tarr and Martin.

Glacier changes in southeast Alaska and northwest British Columbia and contribution to sea level rise

USGS Publications Warehouse

Larsen, C.F.; Motyka, R.J.; Arendt, A.A.; Echelmeyer, K.A.; Geissler, P.E.

2007-01-01

The digital elevation model (DEM) from the 2000 Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) was differenced from a composite DEM based on air photos dating from 1948 to 1987 to detennine glacier volume changes in southeast Alaska and adjoining Canada. SRTM accuracy was assessed at ??5 in through comparison with airborne laser altimetry and control locations measured with GPS. Glacier surface elevations lowered over 95% of the 14,580 km2 glacier-covered area analyzed, with some glaciers thinning as much as 640 in. A combination of factors have contributed to this wastage, including calving retreats of tidewater and lacustrine glaciers and climate change. Many glaciers in this region are particularly sensitive to climate change, as they have large areas at low elevations. However, several tidewater glaciers that had historically undergone calving retreats are now expanding and appear to be in the advancing stage of the tidewater glacier cycle. The net average rate of ice loss is estimated at 16.7 ?? 4.4 km3/yr, equivalent to a global sea level rise contribution of 0.04 ?? 0.01 mm/yr. Copyright 2007 by the American Geophysical Union.

Preliminary bathymetry of Blackstone Bay and Neoglacial changes of Blackstone Glaciers, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Post, Austin

1980-01-01

Preliminary bathymetry (at 1:20,000 scale) and scientific studies of Blackstone Bay Alaska, by the Research Vessel Growler in 1978 disclose that the head of the bay consists of two basins separated by Willard Island and a submarine ridge. Both basins are closed on the north by terminal-moraine bars where Blackstone Glacier and its tributaries terminated as recently as about A.D. 1350; a carbon-14 date of 580 years before present on Badger Point, and old trees farther up the bay, disclose that the glaciers retreated to two narrow inlets at the head of the bay before 1400. The inlets were still glacier-covered until at least 1909. Glaciers in both inlets have continued to retreat; at present they terminate at the head of tidewater, where they discharge small icebergs. Only relatively thin sediments have accumulated in the eastern basin south of the terminal-moraine bar, and most of the bottom is hard and irregular as disclosed by soundings and profiles. The northern part of Blackstone Bay is very deep; at more than 1,100 feet below sea level a large, level accumulation of sediment is present which is presumably as much as 1,000 feet deep and has been accumulating since late Pleistocene glaciers retreated. (USGS)

Short-term velocity measurements at Columbia Glacier, Alaska; August-September 1984

USGS Publications Warehouse

Vaughn, B.H.; Raymond, C.F.; Rasmussen, Lowell A.; Miller, D.S.; Michaelson, C.A.; Meier, M.F.; Krimmel, R.M.; Fountain, A.G.; Dunlap, W.W.; Brown, C.S.

1985-01-01

Ice velocity data are presented for the lower reach of Columbia Glacier, Alaska. The data span a 29 day period and contain 1,072 angle sightings from two survey stations to 22 markers placed on the ice surface, and 1,621 laser measurements of the distance to one of those markers (number 11) from another station. These short-interval observations were made to investigate the dynamics of the glacier and to provide input to models for estimation of future retreat and iceberg discharge. The mean ice velocity (at marker number 11) was approximately 9 m/day and ranged from 8 to < 15 m/day. The data set includes a well defined 2-day, 50% velocity increase and a clear pattern of velocity fluctuations of about 5% with approximately diurnal and semiurnal periods. (Author 's abstract)

Runoff generation from neighboring headwater basins with differing glacier coverage using the distributed hydrological model WaSiM, Eklutna, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ostman, J. S.; Loso, M.; Liljedahl, A. K.; Gaedeke, A.; Geck, J. E.

2017-12-01

Many Alaska glaciers are thinning and retreating, and glacier wastage is projected to affect runoff processes from glacierized basins. Accordingly, effective resource management in glacierized watersheds requires quantification of a glacier's role on streamflow generation. The Eklutna catchment (311 km2) supplies water and electricity for Anchorage, Alaska (pop. 300,000) via Eklutna Lake. The Eklutna headwaters include the West Fork (64 km2, 46% glacier), and the East Fork (101 km2, 12% glacier). Total average annual discharge (2009-2015) is similar from the West (42,100 m3) and East (42,200 m3) forks, while specific annual runoff from the West Fork (2940 mm) exceeds that of the East Fork (1500 mm). To better understand what controls runoff, we are simulating the Eklutna annual water budget using a distributed watershed-level hydrological model. We force the Water Flow and Balance Simulation Model (WaSiM) using continuous air temperature, precipitation, wind speed, shortwave incoming radiation, and relative humidity primarily measured in the West Fork basin. We use Eklutna Glacier snow accumulation and ablation to calibrate the snowmelt and glacier sub-modules. Melt season discharge from the West and East forks is used for runoff comparison. Preliminary results show 2013-2015 simulated glacier point balances (accumulation and melt) are within 15% of glacier stake observations. Runoff was effectively modeled in the West Fork (NSE=0.80), while being over-predicted in the East Fork , which we attribute to a lack of forcing data in the less-glacierized basin. The simulations suggest that 78% of West Fork total runoff is from glacier melt, compared with <40% in the East Fork where glacier runoff contribution is higher during low-snow years.

The Propagation of a Surge Front on Bering Glacier, Alaska, 2001-2011

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Turrin, James; Forster, Richard R.; Larsen, Chris; Sauber, Jeanne

2013-01-01

Bering Glacier, Alaska, USA, has a 20 year surge cycle, with its most recent surge reaching the terminus in 2011. To study this most recent activity a time series of ice velocity maps was produced by applying optical feature-tracking methods to Landsat-7 ETM+ imagery spanning 2001-11. The velocity maps show a yearly increase in ice surface velocity associated with the down-glacier movement of a surge front. In 2008/09 the maximum ice surface velocity was 1.5 plus or minus 0.017 kilometers per a in the mid-ablation zone, which decreased to 1.2 plus or minus 0.015 kilometers per a in 2009/10 in the lower ablation zone, and then increased to nearly 4.4 plus or minus 0.03 kilometers per a in summer 2011 when the surge front reached the glacier terminus. The surge front propagated down-glacier as a kinematic wave at an average rate of 4.4 plus or minus 2.0 kilometers per a between September 2002 and April 2009, then accelerated to 13.9 plus or minus 2.0 kilometers per a as it entered the piedmont lobe between April 2009 and September 2010. Thewave seems to have initiated near the confluence of Bering Glacier and Bagley Ice Valley as early as 2001, and the surge was triggered in 2008 further down-glacier in the mid-ablation zone after the wave passed an ice reservoir area.

Glaciological and marine geological controls on terminus dynamics of Hubbard Glacier, southeast Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stearns, Leigh A.; Hamilton, Gordon S.; van der Veen, C. J.; Finnegan, D. C.; O'Neel, Shad; Scheick, J. B.; Lawson, D. E.

2015-01-01

Hubbard Glacier, located in southeast Alaska, is the world's largest non-polar tidewater glacier. It has been steadily advancing since it was first mapped in 1895; occasionally, the advance creates an ice or sediment dam that blocks a tributary fjord (Russell Fiord). The sustained advance raises the probability of long-term closure in the near-future, which will strongly impact the ecosystem of Russell Fiord and the nearby community of Yakutat. Here, we examine a 43-year record of flow speeds and terminus position to understand the large-scale dynamics of Hubbard Glacier. Our long-term record shows that the rate of terminus advance has increased slightly since 1895, with the exception of a slowed advance between approximately 1972 and 1984. The short-lived closure events in 1986 and 2002 were not initiated by perturbations in ice velocity or environmental forcings, but were likely due to fluctuations in sedimentation patterns at the terminus. This study points to the significance of a coupled system where short-term velocity fluctuations and morainal shoal development control tidewater glacier terminus position.

Dendrochronology and late Holocene history of Bering piedmont glacier, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wiles, G.C.; Post, A.; Muller, E.H.; Molnia, B.F.

1999-01-01

Fluctuations of the piedmont lobe of Bering Glacier and its sublobe Steller Glacier over the past two millennia are reconstructed using 34 radiocarbon dates and tree-ring data from 16 sites across the glaciers' forelands. The general sequence of glacial activity is consistent with well-dated fluctuations of tidewater and land-terminating glaciers elsewhere along the Gulf of Alaska. Extensive forested areas along 25 km of the Bering ice margin were inundated by glacio-lacustrine and glacio-fluvial sediments during a probable ice advance shortly before 500 cal yr A.D. Regrowth of forests followed the retreating ice as early as the 7th century A.D., with frequent interruptions of tree growth due to outwash aggradation. Forests overrun by ice and buried in outwash indicate readvance about 1080 cal yr A.D. Retreat followed, with ice-free conditions maintained along the distal portions of the forefield until the early 17th century after which the ice advanced to within a few kilometers of its outer Neoglacial moraine. Ice reached this position after the mid-17th century and prior to 200 yr ago. Since the early 20th century, glacial retreat has been punctuated by periodic surges. The record from forests overrun by the nonsurging Steller Lobe shows that this western ice margin was advancing by 1250 A.D., reaching near its outer moraine after 1420 cal yr A.D. Since the late 19th century, the lobe has dominantly retreated.

Glacier ice mass fluctuations and fault instability in tectonically active Southern Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sauber, Jeanne M.; Molnia, Bruce F.

2004-07-01

Across the plate boundary zone in south central Alaska, tectonic strain rates are high in a region that includes large glaciers undergoing wastage (glacier retreat and thinning) and surges. For the coastal region between the Bering and Malaspina Glaciers, the average ice mass thickness changes between 1995 and 2000 range from 1 to 5 m/year. These ice changes caused solid Earth displacements in our study region with predicted values of -10 to 50 mm in the vertical and predicted horizontal displacements of 0-10 mm at variable orientations. Relative to stable North America, observed horizontal rates of tectonic deformation range from 10 to 40 mm/year to the north-northwest and the predicted tectonic uplift rates range from approximately 0 mm/year near the Gulf of Alaska coast to 12 mm/year further inland. The ice mass changes between 1995 and 2000 resulted in discernible changes in the Global Positioning System (GPS) measured station positions of one site (ISLE) located adjacent to the Bagley Ice Valley and at one site, DON, located south of the Bering Glacier terminus. In addition to modifying the surface displacements rates, we evaluated the influence ice changes during the Bering glacier surge cycle had on the background seismic rate. We found an increase in the number of earthquakes ( ML≥2.5) and seismic rate associated with ice thinning and a decrease in the number of earthquakes and seismic rate associated with ice thickening. These results support the hypothesis that ice mass changes can modulate the background seismic rate. During the last century, wastage of the coastal glaciers in the Icy Bay and Malaspina region indicates thinning of hundreds of meters and in areas of major retreat, maximum losses of ice thickness approaching 1 km. Between the 1899 Yakataga and Yakutat earthquakes ( Mw=8.1, 8.1) and prior to the 1979 St. Elias earthquake ( Ms=7.2), the plate interface below Icy Bay was locked and tectonic strain accumulated. We used estimated ice mass

Glacier ice mass fluctuations and fault instability in tectonically active Southern Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sauber, J.M.; Molnia, B.F.

2004-01-01

Across the plate boundary zone in south central Alaska, tectonic strain rates are high in a region that includes large glaciers undergoing wastage (glacier retreat and thinning) and surges. For the coastal region between the Bering and Malaspina Glaciers, the average ice mass thickness changes between 1995 and 2000 range from 1 to 5 m/year. These ice changes caused solid Earth displacements in our study region with predicted values of -10 to 50 mm in the vertical and predicted horizontal displacements of 0-10 mm at variable orientations. Relative to stable North America, observed horizontal rates of tectonic deformation range from 10 to 40 mm/year to the north-northwest and the predicted tectonic uplift rates range from approximately 0 mm/year near the Gulf of Alaska coast to 12 mm/year further inland. The ice mass changes between 1995 and 2000 resulted in discernible changes in the Global Positioning System (GPS) measured station positions of one site (ISLE) located adjacent to the Bagley Ice Valley and at one site, DON, located south of the Bering Glacier terminus. In addition to modifying the surface displacements rates, we evaluated the influence ice changes during the Bering glacier surge cycle had on the background seismic rate. We found an increase in the number of earthquakes (ML???2.5) and seismic rate associated with ice thinning and a decrease in the number of earthquakes and seismic rate associated with ice thickening. These results support the hypothesis that ice mass changes can modulate the background seismic rate. During the last century, wastage of the coastal glaciers in the Icy Bay and Malaspina region indicates thinning of hundreds of meters and in areas of major retreat, maximum losses of ice thickness approaching 1 km. Between the 1899 Yakataga and Yakutat earthquakes (Mw=8.1, 8.1) and prior to the 1979 St. Elias earthquake (M s=7.2), the plate interface below Icy Bay was locked and tectonic strain accumulated. We used estimated ice mass

The length of the glaciers in the world - a straightforward method for the automated calculation of glacier center lines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Machguth, H.; Huss, M.

2014-05-01

Glacier length is an important measure of glacier geometry but global glacier inventories are mostly lacking length data. Only recently semi-automated approaches to measure glacier length have been developed and applied regionally. Here we present a first global assessment of glacier length using a fully automated method based on glacier surface slope, distance to the glacier margins and a set of trade-off functions. The method is developed for East Greenland, evaluated for the same area as well as for Alaska, and eventually applied to all ∼200 000 glaciers around the globe. The evaluation highlights accurately calculated glacier length where DEM quality is good (East Greenland) and limited precision on low quality DEMs (parts of Alaska). Measured length of very small glaciers is subject to a certain level of ambiguity. The global calculation shows that only about 1.5% of all glaciers are longer than 10 km with Bering Glacier (Alaska/Canada) being the longest glacier in the world at a length of 196 km. Based on model output we derive global and regional area-length scaling laws. Differences among regional scaling parameters appear to be related to characteristics of topography and glacier mass balance. The present study adds glacier length as a central parameter to global glacier inventories. Global and regional scaling laws might proof beneficial in conceptual glacier models.

Latest Pleistocene advance and collapse of the Matanuska - Knik glacier system, Anchorage Lowland, southern Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kopczynski, Sarah E.; Kelley, Samuel E.; Lowell, Thomas V.; Evenson, Edward B.; Applegate, Patrick J.

2017-01-01

At the end of the last ice age, glacier systems worldwide underwent dramatic retreat. Here, we document the advance and retreat of a glacier system with adjacent marine- and land-based components during the latter part of the Termination. We utilize three lines of evidence: lithologic provenance, geomorphic mapping, and radiocarbon ages derived from lake cores to reconstruct glacier extent and timing of advance and retreat within our study area centered at N 61.50°, W 149.50°, just north of Anchorage, Alaska. Two glaciers, sourced in the Talkeetna and Chugach Mountains, flowed down the Matanuska and Knik Valleys forming a coalesced lobe that advanced onto the Anchorage Lowlands and terminated at Elmendorf Moraine. We use the presence of lithologies unique to the Matanuska catchment in glacial drift to delineate the paleoflow lines and to estimate the suture line of the two glacier systems. The eastern side of the lobe, attributed to ice flow from the Knik Valley, was in contact with elevated marine waters within the Knik Arm fjord, and thus retreat was likely dominated by calving. Geomorphic evidence suggests the western side of the lobe, attributed to ice flow from Matanuska Valley, retreated due to stagnation. We constrain retreat of the combined Matanuska and Knik lobe with thirteen new radiocarbon ages, in addition to previously published radiocarbon ages, and with geomorphic evidence suggesting the retreat occurred in two phases. Retreat from the Elmendorf Moraine began between 16.8 and 16.4 ka BP. A second, faster retreat phase occurred later and was completed by 13.7 ka BP. With the 140 km of total retreat occurring over ∼3000 years or less. This pattern of glacial advance and retreats agrees well with the deglacial histories from the southern sectors of the Cordilleran Ice Sheet, as well as many other alpine glacier systems in the western U.S. and northern Alaska. This consistent behavior of glacier systems may indicate that climate oscillated over

Monitoring population status of sea otters (Enhydra lutris) in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Alaska: options and considerations

USGS Publications Warehouse

Esslinger, George G.; Esler, Daniel N.; Howlin, S.; Starcevich, L.A.

2015-06-25

After many decades of absence from southeast Alaska, sea otters (Enhydra lutris) are recolonizing parts of their former range, including Glacier Bay, Alaska. Sea otters are well known for structuring nearshore ecosystems and causing community-level changes such as increases in kelp abundance and changes in the size and number of other consumers. Monitoring population status of sea otters in Glacier Bay will help park researchers and managers understand and interpret sea otter-induced ecosystem changes relative to other sources of variation, including potential human-induced impacts such as ocean acidification, vessel disturbance, and oil spills. This report was prepared for the National Park Service (NPS), Southeast Alaska Inventory and Monitoring Network following a request for evaluation of options for monitoring sea otter population status in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. To meet this request, we provide a detailed consideration of the primary method of assessment of abundance and distribution, aerial surveys, including analyses of power to detect interannual trends and designs to reduce variation around annual abundance estimates. We also describe two alternate techniques for evaluating sea otter population status—(1) quantifying sea otter diets and energy intake rates, and (2) detecting change in ages at death. In addition, we provide a brief section on directed research to identify studies that would further our understanding of sea otter population dynamics and effects on the Glacier Bay ecosystem, and provide context for interpreting results of monitoring activities.

Tracing biogeochemical subsidies from glacier runoff into Alaska's coastal marine food webs.

PubMed

Arimitsu, Mayumi L; Hobson, Keith A; Webber, D'Arcy N; Piatt, John F; Hood, Eran W; Fellman, Jason B

2018-01-01

Nearly half of the freshwater discharge into the Gulf of Alaska originates from landscapes draining glacier runoff, but the influence of the influx of riverine organic matter on the trophodynamics of coastal marine food webs is not well understood. We quantified the ecological impact of riverine organic matter subsidies to glacier-marine habitats by developing a multi-trophic level Bayesian three-isotope mixing model. We utilized large gradients in stable (δ 13 C, δ 15 N, δ 2 H) and radiogenic (Δ 14 C) isotopes that trace riverine and marine organic matter sources as they are passed from lower to higher trophic levels in glacial-marine habitats. We also compared isotope ratios between glacial-marine and more oceanic habitats. Based on isotopic measurements of potential baseline sources, ambient water and tissues of marine consumers, estimates of the riverine organic matter source contribution to upper trophic-level species including fish and seabirds ranged from 12% to 44%. Variability in resource use among similar taxa corresponded to variation in species distribution and life histories. For example, riverine organic matter assimilation by the glacier-nesting seabirds Kittlitz's murrelet (Brachyramphus brevirostris) was greater than that of the forest-nesting marbled murrelet (B. marmoratus). The particulate and dissolved organic carbon in glacial runoff and near surface coastal waters was aged (12100-1500 years BP 14 C-age) but dissolved inorganic carbon and biota in coastal waters were young (530 years BP 14 C-age to modern). Thus terrestrial-derived subsidies in marine food webs were primarily composed of young organic matter sources released from glacier ecosystems and their surrounding watersheds. Stable isotope compositions also revealed a divergence in food web structure between glacial-marine and oceanic sites. This work demonstrates linkages between terrestrial and marine ecosystems, and facilitates a greater understanding of how climate

Tracing biogeochemical subsidies from glacier runoff into Alaska's coastal marine food webs

USGS Publications Warehouse

Arimitsu, Mayumi L.; Hobson, Keith A.; Webber, D'Arcy N.; Piatt, John F.; Hood, Eran W.; Fellman, Jason B.

2018-01-01

Nearly half of the freshwater discharge into the Gulf of Alaska originates from landscapes draining glacier runoff, but the influence of the influx of riverine organic matter on the trophodynamics of coastal marine food webs is not well understood. We quantified the ecological impact of riverine organic matter subsidies to glacier-marine habitats by developing a multi-trophic level Bayesian three-isotope mixing model. We utilized large gradients in stable (δ13C, δ15N, δ2H) and radiogenic (Δ14C) isotopes that trace riverine and marine organic matter sources as they are passed from lower to higher trophic levels in glacial-marine habitats. We also compared isotope ratios between glacial-marine and more oceanic habitats. Based on isotopic measurements of potential baseline sources, ambient water and tissues of marine consumers, estimates of the riverine organic matter source contribution to upper trophic-level species including fish and seabirds ranged from 12% to 44%. Variability in resource use among similar taxa corresponded to variation in species distribution and life histories. For example, riverine organic matter assimilation by the glacier-nesting seabirds Kittlitz's murrelet (Brachyramphus brevirostris) was greater than that of the forest-nesting marbled murrelet (B. marmoratus). The particulate and dissolved organic carbon in glacial runoff and near surface coastal waters was aged (12100–1500 years BP 14C-age) but dissolved inorganic carbon and biota in coastal waters were young (530 years BP 14C-age to modern). Thus terrestrial-derived subsidies in marine food webs were primarily composed of young organic matter sources released from glacier ecosystems and their surrounding watersheds. Stable isotope compositions also revealed a divergence in food web structure between glacial-marine and oceanic sites. This work demonstrates linkages between terrestrial and marine ecosystems, and facilitates a greater understanding of how climate-driven changes

Monitoring change in the Bering Glacier region, Alaska: Using Landsat TM and ERS-1 imagery

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Payne, J.F.; Coffeen, M.; Macleod, R.D.

1997-06-01

The Bering Glacier is the largest (5,180 km{sup 2}) and longest (191 km) glacier in continental North America. This glacier is one of about 200 temperate glaciers in the Alaska/Canada region that are known to surge. Surges at the Bering Glacier typically occur on a 20-30 year cycle. The objective of this project was to extract information regarding the position of the terminus of the glacier from historic aerial photography, early 20{sup th} century ground photography, Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) satellite data, and European Space Agency, Synthetic Aperture RADAR (ERS-1 SAR) data and integrate it into a single digital databasemore » that would lend itself to change detection analysis. ERS-1 SAR data was acquired from six dates between 1992-95 and was terrain corrected and co-registered A single Landsat TM image from June 1991 was used as the base image for classifying land cover types. Historic locations of the glacier terminus were generated using traditional photo interpretation techniques from aerial and ground photography. The result of this platform combination, along with the historical data, is providing land managers with the unique opportunity to generate complete assessments of glacial movement this century and determine land cover changes which may impact wildlife and recreational opportunities.« less

Oceanography of Glacier Bay, Alaska: Implications for biological patterns in a glacial fjord estuary

USGS Publications Warehouse

Etherington, L.L.; Hooge, P.N.; Hooge, Elizabeth Ross; Hill, D.F.

2007-01-01

Alaska, U.S.A, is one of the few remaining locations in the world that has fjords that contain temperate idewater glaciers. Studying such estuarine systems provides vital information on how deglaciation affects oceanographic onditions of fjords and surrounding coastal waters. The oceanographic system of Glacier Bay, Alaska, is of particular interest ue to the rapid deglaciation of the Bay and the resulting changes in the estuarine environment, the relatively high oncentrations of marine mammals, seabirds, fishes, and invertebrates, and the Bay’s status as a national park, where ommercial fisheries are being phased out. We describe the first comprehensive broad-scale analysis of physical and iological oceanographic conditions within Glacier Bay based on CTD measurements at 24 stations from 1993 to 2002. easonal patterns of near-surface salinity, temperature, stratification, turbidity, and euphotic depth suggest that freshwater nput was highest in summer, emphasizing the critical role of glacier and snowmelt to this system. Strong and persistent tratification of surface waters driven by freshwater input occurred from spring through fall. After accounting for seasonal nd spatial variation, several of the external physical factors (i.e., air temperature, precipitation, day length) explained a large mount of variation in the physical properties of the surface waters. Spatial patterns of phytoplankton biomass varied hroughout the year and were related to stratification levels, euphotic depth, and day length. We observed hydrographic atterns indicative of strong competing forces influencing water column stability within Glacier Bay: high levels of freshwater ischarge promoted stratification in the upper fjord, while strong tidal currents over the Bay’s shallow entrance sill enhanced ertical mixing. Where these two processes met in the central deep basins there were optimal conditions of intermediate tratification, higher light levels, and potential nutrient renewal

36 CFR 13.1326 - Snowmachines.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Kenai Fjords National Park Exit Glacier Developed...) On Exit Glacier Road; (b) In parking areas; (c) On a designated route through the Exit Glacier...

36 CFR 13.1326 - Snowmachines.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Kenai Fjords National Park Exit Glacier Developed...) On Exit Glacier Road; (b) In parking areas; (c) On a designated route through the Exit Glacier...

36 CFR 13.1326 - Snowmachines.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Kenai Fjords National Park Exit Glacier Developed...) On Exit Glacier Road; (b) In parking areas; (c) On a designated route through the Exit Glacier...

36 CFR 13.1326 - Snowmachines.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Kenai Fjords National Park Exit Glacier Developed...) On Exit Glacier Road; (b) In parking areas; (c) On a designated route through the Exit Glacier...

A Simple Water Balance Model Adapted for Arctic Hydrology Reveals Glacier and Streamflow Responses to Climate Change in the Copper River, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Valentin, M. M.; Hay, L.; Van Beusekom, A. E.; Viger, R. J.; Hogue, T. S.

2016-12-01

Forecasting the hydrologic response to climate change in Alaska's glaciated watersheds remains daunting for hydrologists due to sparse field data and few modeling tools, which frustrates efforts to manage and protect critical aquatic habitat. Approximately 20% of the 64,000 square kilometer Copper River watershed is glaciated, and its glacier-fed tributaries support renowned salmon fisheries that are economically, culturally, and nutritionally invaluable to the local communities. This study adapts a simple, yet powerful, conceptual hydrologic model to simulate changes in the timing and volume of streamflow in the Copper River, Alaska as glaciers change under plausible future climate scenarios. The USGS monthly water balance model (MWBM), a hydrologic tool used for two decades to evaluate a broad range of hydrologic questions in the contiguous U.S., was enhanced to include glacier melt simulations and remotely sensed data. In this presentation we summarize the technical details behind our MWBM adaptation and demonstrate its use in the Copper River Basin to evaluate glacier and streamflow responses to climate change.

Alaska: Glaciers of Kenai Fjords National Park and Katmai National Park and Preserve (Chapter 12)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Giffen, Bruce A.; Hall, Dorothy K.; Chien, Janet Y.L.

2007-01-01

Much recent research points to the shrinkage of the Earth's small glaciers, however, few studies have been performed to quantify the amount of change over time. We measured glacier-extent changes in two national parks in southeastern Alaska. There are hundreds of glaciers in Kenai Fjords National Park (KEFJ) and Katmai National Park and Preserve (KATM) covering over 2373 sq km of parkland. There are two primary areas of glaciation in KEFJ - the Harding Icefield and the Grewingk-Yalik Glacier Complex, and three primary areas of glaciation in KATM - the Mt. Douglas area, the Kukak Volcano to Mt. Katmai area and the Mt. Martin area. We performed glacier mapping using satellite imagery, from the 1970s, 1980s, and from 2000. Results of the analysis show that there has been a reduction in the amount of glacier ice cover in the two parks over the study period, of approximately 22 sq km of ice, approximately - 1.6% from 1986 to 2000 (for KEFJ), and of approximately 76 sq km of glacier ice, or about -7.7% from 1986187 to 2000 (for KATM). In the future, measurements of surface elevation changes of these ice masses should be acquired; together with our extent-change measurements, the volume change of the ice masses can then be determined to estimate their contribution to sea-level rise. The work is a continuation of work done in KEFJ, but in KATM, our measurements represent the first comprehensive study of the glaciers in this remote, little-studied area.

Status and trend of the Kittlitz's Murrelet Brachyramphus brevirostris in Glacier Bay, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Piatt, John F.; Arimitsu, Mayumi L.; Drew, Gary S.; Madison, Erica N.; Bodkin, James L.; Romano, Marc D.

2011-01-01

We conducted standardized surveys for marine birds in Glacier Bay in seven years between 1991 and 2008. From our most recent survey, a combination of line- and strip-transect methods completed in 2008, we estimated that 4981 (95% CI 1293–8670) Kittlitz’s Murrelets Brachyramphus brevirostris resided in Glacier Bay during the month of June, together with 12 195 (5607–18 783) Marbled Murrelets B. marmoratus. When counts were prorated to assign unidentified Brachyramphus murrelets to species, population estimates increased to 5641 Kittlitz’s Murrelets and 13 810 Marbled Murrelets. Our surveys of bird numbers in Glacier Bay between 1991 and 2008 revealed that Kittlitz’s Murrelet declined by ≥85% during this period. Trend analysis suggested a rate of decline between -10.7% and -14.4% per year. No direct human impacts (e.g., bycatch, oil pollution, vessel disturbance) in our study area could fully account for a decline of this magnitude. Widespread declines of Brachyramphus murrelets and Harbor Seals Phoca vitulina in the Gulf of Alaska during the 1980s-1990s suggest large-scale influences on these marine predators, perhaps related to climate-mediated cycles in food supply. Other natural factors that may impact Glacier Bay populations include predation by avian and terrestrial predators, widespread glacial retreat and its effect on nesting and foraging habitats, and competition for food with marine predators whose abundance in Glacier Bay has increased markedly in recent years (Humpback Whales Megaptera novaeangliae and Steller Sea Lions Eumetopias jubatus).

Comparison of geodetic and glaciological mass-balance techniques, Gulkana Glacier, Alaska, U.S.A

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cox, L.H.; March, R.S.

2004-01-01

The net mass balance on Gulkana Glacier, Alaska, U.S.A., has been measured since 1966 by the glaciological method, in which seasonal balances are measured at three index sites and extrapolated over large areas of the glacier. Systematic errors can accumulate linearly with time in this method. Therefore, the geodetic balance, in which errors are less time-dependent, was calculated for comparison with the glaciological method. Digital elevation models of the glacier in 1974, 1993 and 1999 were prepared using aerial photographs, and geodetic balances were computed, giving - 6.0??0.7 m w.e. from 1974 to 1993 and - 11.8??0.7 m w.e. from 1974 to 1999. These balances are compared with the glaciological balances over the same intervals, which were - 5.8??0.9 and -11.2??1.0 m w.e. respectively; both balances show that the thinning rate tripled in the 1990s. These cumulative balances differ by <6%. For this close agreement, the glaciologically measured mass balance of Gulkana Glacier must be largely free of systematic errors and be based on a time-variable area-altitude distribution, and the photography used in the geodetic method must have enough contrast to enable accurate photogrammetry.

Preliminary bathymetry of Aialik Bay and Neoglacial changes of Aialik and Pederson glaciers, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Post, Austin

1980-01-01

Preliminary bathymetry (at 1:20,000 scale) and scientific studies of Aialik Bay, Alaska, by the Research Vessel Growler in 1978 disclose that the head of the bay consists of a deep basin enclosed by a terminal-moraine shoal. A much smaller basin, into which Aialik Glacier discharges icebergs, is located west of two islands and a submarine ridge. Comparison of 1978 soundings with U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey (now National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) data obtained in 1912 shows shoaling of about 64 feet in the deepest part of the small basin nearest the glacier and of about 40 feet in the large basin. The time of retreat of Aialik Glacier from the moraine bar is unknown; a faint ' trimline ' is still visible in the forest on the east side of the fiord, and a carbon-14 date suggests the retreat could have taken place as recently as 1800. The time of Aialik Glcier 's neoglacial advance to the moraine is unknown. Pederson Glacier, which terminates in part in a tidal lagoon or lake, has retreated about 0.90 mile from a moraine judged by Grant and Higgins to have been in contact with the ice about 1896. (USGS)

Reconnaissance stratigraphy of the Red Glacier Formation (Middle Jurassic) near Hungryman Creek, Cook Inlet basin, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

LePain, D.L.; Stanley, Richard G.; Helmold, K.P.

2016-01-01

Geochemical data suggest the source of oil in upper Cook Inlet fields is Middle Jurassic organic-rich shales in the Tuxedni Group (Magoon and Anders, 1992; Lillis and Stanley, 2011; LePain and others, 2012, 2013). Of the six formations in the group (Detterman, 1963), the basal Red Glacier Formation is the only unit that includes fine-grained rocks in outcrop that appear to be organic-rich (fig. 3-1). In an effort to better understand the stratigraphy and source-rock potential of the Red Glacier Formation, the Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys, in collaboration with the Alaska Division of Oil and Gas and the U.S. Geological Survey, has been investigating the unit in outcrop between Tuxedni Bay and the type section at Lateral and Red glaciers (Stanley and others, 2013; LePain and Stanley, 2015; Helmold and others, 2016 [this volume]). Fieldwork in 2015 focused on a southeast-trending ridge south of Hungryman Creek, where the lower 60–70 percent of the formation (400–500 m) is exposed and accessible, except for the near-vertical faces of three segments near the southeast end of the ridge (figs. 3-2 and 3-3). Three stratigraphic sections were measured along the ridge to document facies and depositional environments (figs. 3-3 and 3-4). Steep terrain precluded study of the upper part of the formation exposed east of the ridge. This report includes a preliminary summary of findings from the 2015 field season.

Iceberg calving during transition from grounded to floating ice: Columbia Glacier, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Walter, Fabian; O'Neel, Shad; McNamara, Daniel; Pfeffer, W.T.; Bassis, Jeremy N.; Fricker, Helen Amanda

2010-01-01

The terminus of Columbia Glacier, Alaska, unexpectedly became ungrounded in 2007 during its prolonged retreat. Visual observations showed that calving changed from a steady release of low-volume bergs, to episodic flow-perpendicular rifting, propagation, and release of very large icebergs - a style reminiscent of calving from ice shelves. Here, we compare passive seismic and photographic observations through this transition to examine changes in calving. Mechanical changes accompany the visible changes in calving style post flotation: generation of seismic energy during calving is substantially reduced. We propose this is partly due to changes in source processes.

Assessing More than a Decade of Alaska/yukon, High Elevation, Glacier Ice/rock Landslides

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Molnia, B. F.; Angeli, K.

2017-12-01

On September 14, 2005, an estimated 5.0x106 m3 of rock, glacier ice, and snow fell from below the summit of 3,236-m-high Mt. Steller, Alaska, onto a tributary of Bering Glacier. Next day photography of the slide and source area suggested that meltwater played a significant role in its origin. Aerial photography and space-based electro-optical imagery collected for months following the event recorded continuing evidence of meltwater flowing from the head-scarp region and continued ice and snow melt. We investigated five similar glacier ice-rock landslides. These originated from the north face of Mt. Steller in late 2005-early 2006, the south side of Waxell Ridge in late 2005-early 2006, Mt. Steele on July 24, 2007, Mt. Lituya on June 11, 2012, and Mt. La Perouse on February 16, 2014. None was triggered by a seismic event. Four were detected based on seismic events they generated. All source areas exhibited failed hanging glaciers and/or failed perennial snowfields. Five had detectable glacier hydrologic features (moulins, conduits, and collapsed englacial stream channels) in near-summit failed ice and snow margins. Four displayed fresh concave bedrock failure surfaces. All originated at locations where mean annual temperatures were below freezing. Our observations support water triggering each event. We propose that abnormally warm summer temperatures or extreme winter precipitation produced unusual volumes of water which saturated summit snow and ice and/or filled summit glacier channels and conduits with liquid water. Water reached the frozen water/bedrock interface, destabilizing the contact. Fresh concave bedrock failure surfaces suggest that glacier beds were adhering to steep bedrock surfaces composed of a mélange of freeze/thaw shattered rock held together by interstitial ice. When the mass of saturated glacier ice failed, the bedrock mélange also failed, exposing fresh bedrock scarp depressions and generating the observed gravel-dominated slide debris.

36 CFR 13.1146 - What other closures and restrictions apply to commercial fishermen and commercial fishing vessels?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Commercial Fishing § 13.1146... Inlets. (b) Commercial fishing in the waters of the west arm of Glacier Bay north of 58° 50.0′ N latitude... fishing regulations. (c) Commercial fishing in the east arm of Glacier Bay, north of an imaginary line...

36 CFR 13.1146 - What other closures and restrictions apply to commercial fishermen and commercial fishing vessels?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Commercial Fishing § 13.1146... Inlets. (b) Commercial fishing in the waters of the west arm of Glacier Bay north of 58° 50.0′ N latitude... fishing regulations. (c) Commercial fishing in the east arm of Glacier Bay, north of an imaginary line...

36 CFR 13.1156 - Exceptions from vessel permit requirement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and... required in Glacier Bay when: (a) A motor vessel is engaged in official, non-commercial business of the...

36 CFR 13.1158 - Prohibitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel Permits § 13.1158 Prohibitions. (a) Operating a motor vessel in Glacier Bay without a required permit is...

36 CFR 13.1158 - Prohibitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel Permits § 13.1158 Prohibitions. (a) Operating a motor vessel in Glacier Bay without a required permit is...

36 CFR 13.1158 - Prohibitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel Permits § 13.1158 Prohibitions. (a) Operating a motor vessel in Glacier Bay without a required permit is...

36 CFR 13.1156 - Exceptions from vessel permit requirement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and... required in Glacier Bay when: (a) A motor vessel is engaged in official, non-commercial business of the...

36 CFR 13.1156 - Exceptions from vessel permit requirement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and... required in Glacier Bay when: (a) A motor vessel is engaged in official, non-commercial business of the...

36 CFR 13.1156 - Exceptions from vessel permit requirement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and... required in Glacier Bay when: (a) A motor vessel is engaged in official, non-commercial business of the...

36 CFR 13.1158 - Prohibitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel Permits § 13.1158 Prohibitions. (a) Operating a motor vessel in Glacier Bay without a required permit is...

Bedload component of glacially discharged sediment: Insights from the Matanuska Glacier, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Pearce, J.T.; Pazzaglia, F.J.; Evenson, E.B.; Lawson, D.E.; Alley, R.B.; Germanoski, D.; Denner, J.D.

2003-01-01

The flux of glacially derived bedload and the proportions of the suspended and bedload components carried by proglacial streams are highly debated. Published data indicate a large range-from 75%-in the bedload percentage of the total load. Two "vents," where supercooled subglacial meltwater and sediment are discharged, were sampled over the course of an entire melt season in order to quantify the flux of glacially delivered bedload at the Matanuska Glacier, Alaska. The bedload component contributed by these vents, for the one melt season monitored, is negligible. Furthermore, the bedload fluxes appear to be strongly supply limited, as shown by the poorly correlated discharge, bedload-flux magnitude, and grain-size caliber. Thus, in this case, any attempt to employ a predictive quantitative expression for coarse-sediment production based on discharge alone would be inaccurate. A nonglaciated basin proximal to the Matanuska Glacier terminus yielded higher bedload sediment fluxes and larger clast sizes than delivered by the two monitored vents. Such nonglaciated basins should not be overlooked as potentially major sources of coarse bedload that is reworked and incorporated into valley outwash.

36 CFR 13.1318 - Location of the EGDA.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Kenai Fjords National Park Exit Glacier Developed... boundary to Exit Glacier Campground Entrance Road, all park areas within 350 meters (383 yards) of the centerline of the Exit Glacier Road; (2) From Exit Glacier Campground Entrance Road to the end of the main...

36 CFR 13.1318 - Location of the EGDA.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Kenai Fjords National Park Exit Glacier Developed... boundary to Exit Glacier Campground Entrance Road, all park areas within 350 meters (383 yards) of the centerline of the Exit Glacier Road; (2) From Exit Glacier Campground Entrance Road to the end of the main...

36 CFR 13.1318 - Location of the EGDA.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Kenai Fjords National Park Exit Glacier Developed... boundary to Exit Glacier Campground Entrance Road, all park areas within 350 meters (383 yards) of the centerline of the Exit Glacier Road; (2) From Exit Glacier Campground Entrance Road to the end of the main...

High-resolution modeling of coastal freshwater discharge and glacier mass balance in the Gulf of Alaska watershed

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beamer, J. P.; Hill, D. F.; Arendt, A.; Liston, G. E.

2016-05-01

A comprehensive study of the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) drainage basin was carried out to improve understanding of the coastal freshwater discharge (FWD) and glacier volume loss (GVL). Hydrologic processes during the period 1980-2014 were modeled using a suite of physically based, spatially distributed weather, energy-balance snow/ice melt, soil water balance, and runoff routing models at a high-resolution (1 km horizontal grid; daily time step). Meteorological forcing was provided by the North American Regional Reanalysis (NARR), Modern Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA), and Climate Forecast System Reanalysis (CFSR) data sets. Streamflow and glacier mass balance modeled using MERRA and CFSR compared well with observations in four watersheds used for calibration in the study domain. However, only CFSR produced regional seasonal and long-term trends in water balance that compared favorably with independent Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) and airborne altimetry data. Mean annual runoff using CFSR was 760 km3 yr-1, 8% of which was derived from the long-term removal of stored water from glaciers (glacier volume loss). The annual runoff from CFSR was partitioned into 63% snowmelt, 17% glacier ice melt, and 20% rainfall. Glacier runoff, taken as the sum of rainfall, snow, and ice melt occurring each season on glacier surfaces, was 38% of the total seasonal runoff, with the remaining runoff sourced from nonglacier surfaces. Our simulations suggests that existing GRACE solutions, previously reported to represent glacier mass balance alone, are actually measuring the full water budget of land and ice surfaces.

Evaluate ERTS imagery for mapping and detection of changes of snowcover on land and on glaciers. [Washington, Alaska, British Columbia, and U.S.S.R.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Meier, M. F. (Principal Investigator)

1973-01-01

The author has identified the following significant results. The standard error of measurement of snow covered areas in major drainage basins in the Cascade Range, Washington, using single measurements of ERTS-1 images, was found to range from 11% to 7% during a typical melt season, but was as high as 32% in midwinter. Many dangerous glacier situations in Alaska, Yukon, and British Columbia were observed on ERTS-1 imagery. Glacier dammed lakes in Alaska are being monitored by ERTS-1. Embayments in tidal glaciers show changes detectable by ERTS-1. Surges of Russell and Tweedsmuir Glaciers, now in progress, are clearly visible. The Tweedsmuir surge is likely to dam the large Alsek River by mid-November, producing major floods down-river next summer. An ERTS-1 image of the Pamir Mountains, Tadjik S.S.R., shows the surging Medvezhii (Bear) Glacier just after its surge of early summer which dammed the Abdukagor Valley creating a huge lake and later a flood in the populous Vanch River Valley. A map was compiled from an ERTS-1 image of the Lowell Glacier after its recent surge, compared with an earlier map compiled from pain-stakingly compiled from a mosaic of many aerial photographs, in a total elapsed time of 1.5 hours. This demonstrates the value of ERTS-1 for rapid mapping of large features.

Progression of the 2011-2012 Surge of Bering Glacier and Bagley Ice Field, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Herzfeld, U. C.; McDonald, B.; Stachura, M.; Hale, R.; Trantow, T.; Weltman, A.; Chen, P.

2012-12-01

Bering Glacier, Alaska, started a surge in late spring 2011. The surge reached the ice front in May 2011 and extended into Bagley Ice Field by summer 2011. New surge-related crevassing was observed in July 2012. We collected aerial observations, including systematic videographic and photographic imagery, GPS data and laser altimeter data in September 2011 and in July 2012. In this talk, an analysis of surge progression and comparison to the early, mature and late stages of the 1993-1995 surge of Bering Glacier and Bagley Ice Field will be presented. A suite of approaches will be used to this end: Analysis of elevation changes based on CryoSat data, 2009 and 2010 IceBridge data and 2011 and 2012 laser altimeter data collected by our group, geostatistical classification of crevasse types based on imagery, classification of laser altimeter data and analysis of high-resolution satellite imagery (Worldview and GEOS).

Sediments Exposed by Drainage of a Collapsing Glacier-Dammed Lake Show That Contemporary Summer Temperatures and Glacier Retreat Exceed the Medieval Warm Period in Southern Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Loso, M. G.; Anderson, R. S.; Anderson, S. P.; Reimer, P. J.

2007-12-01

In the mountains of southcentral Alaska, recent and widespread glacier retreat is well-documented, but few instrumental or proxy records of temperature are available to place recent changes in a long-term context. The Medieval Warm Period in particular, is poorly documented because subsequent Little Ice Age glacier advances destroyed much of the existing sedimentary record. In a rare exception, sudden and unexpected catastrophic drainage of a previously stable glacier-dammed lake recently revealed lacustrine stratigraphy that spans over 1500 years. Located near the Bagley Icefield in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, Iceberg Lake first drained in A.D. 1999 and has not regained a stable shoreline since that time. Rapid incision of the exposed lakebed provided subaerial exposure of annual laminations (varves, confirmed by radiogenic evidence) that record continuous sediment deposition from A.D. 442 to A.D. 1998. We present a recalculated master chronology of varve thickness that combines measurements from several sites within the former lake. Varve thickness in this chronology is positively correlated with northern hemisphere temperature trends and also with a local, ~600 year long tree ring width chronology. Varve thickness increases in warm summers because of higher melt, runoff, and sediment transport, and also because shrinkage of the glacier dam allows shoreline regression that concentrates sediment in the smaller lake. Relative to the entire record, varve thicknesses and implied summer temperatures were lowest around A.D. 600, high between A.D. 1000 and A.D. 1300, low between A.D. 1500 and A.D 1850, and highest in the late 20th century. Combined with stratigraphic evidence that contemporary jokulhlaups are unprecedented since at least A.D. 442, this record suggests that late 20th century warming was more intense, and accompanied by more extensive glacier retreat, than the Medieval Warm Period or any other time in the last 1500 years. We emphasize

Increasing Wastage of the Bering and Malaspina Glacier Systems, Alaska-Yukon, 1972 to 2006

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Muskett, R. R.; Lingle, C. S.; Sauber, J. M.; Tangborn, W. V.; Rabus, B. T.; Echelmeyer, K. A.

2007-12-01

Ice dynamics are integral to the net mass balances of the huge Bagley-Bering and Seward-Malaspina Glacier systems of south-central Alaska. Quasi-periodic surging of the main trunks and some large tributaries of these exceptionally active glacier systems are important contributors to their increasing volume losses in the present rapidly-warming climate, because surges rapidly transport ice from higher elevations, where it is "safe," to lower elevations where it subject to increased ablation. New estimates of mass losses from the Bering and Malaspina Glacier systems during 1972-2006 were derived from analysis of (i) digital elevation models (DEMs) synthesized from airborne and spaceborne interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR); (ii) small-aircraft laser altimetry; and (iii) spaceborne laser altimetry acquired by ICESat. Adjustments for estimated seasonal snow accumulation were applied to datasets acquired at times subsequent to late summer. Adjustments for systematic DEM biases were also applied. The area-average lowering rate on the main-trunk of the Bering Glacier system from 1972 to 1995 was 0.9 ± 0.1 m/yr. The major 1993 to '95 surge moved ice rapidly from the surge reservoir into the piedmont lobe where rapid surface melting was facilitated by the heavily crevassed surface. The lowering rate accelerated to 3.0 ± 0.1 m/yr during 1995 to 2000, then moderated to 1.4 ± 0.1 m/yr during 2000 to 2003. On the Malaspina Glacier system, the area-average rate of surface lowering was 1.4 ± 0.1 m/yr during 1972 to 1999. It then increased by 30% to 1.8 ± 0.1 m/yr during 1999 to 2002. Near-concurrent surges of Agassiz Glacier (a west piedmont lobe tributary), lower Seward Glacier (main source for the central Seward lobe), and Marvine Glacier (a detached former tributary of the eastern piedmont lobe) were observed during this 3-year time span of increased surface lowering. Recent ICESat-derived elevation changes from 2003 to 2006 indicate increasing wastage on the

Isolation of oligotrophic yeasts from supraglacial environments of different altitude on the Gulkana Glacier (Alaska).

PubMed

Uetake, Jun; Yoshimura, Yoshitaka; Nagatsuka, Naoko; Kanda, Hiroshi

2012-11-01

Psychrophilic yeasts have been isolated from supra- and subglacial ice at many sites worldwide. To understand the ecology of psychrophilic yeasts on glaciers, we focused on their adaptation to wide range of nutrient concentrations and their distribution with altitude on the Gulkana Glacier in Alaska. We found various culturable psychrophilic yeasts on the ice surfaces of the glacier, and 11 species were isolated with incubation at 4 °C in four different dilutions of agar medium. Some of our isolated species (Rhodotorula psychrophenolica, Rhodotorula aff. psychrophenolica, Rhodotorula glacialis, and Basidiomycota sp. 1) can grow on the low dissolved organic matter (DOC) concentrations medium (7.6 mg L(-1)) which is close to the typical level of supraglacial melt water, suggesting that these species can inhabit in any supraglacial meltwater. Otherwise, most of other species were isolated only from higher DOC concentration medium (183 mg L(-1) -18.3 g L(-1)), suggesting that these are inhabitant around the cryoconite, because DOC concentrations in melted surface-ice contained cryoconite is much higher than in melted water. Similarity of altitudinal distribution between culturable yeast and algal biomass suggests that the ecological role played by the cold-adapted yeasts is as organic matter decomposers and nutrient cyclers in glacier ecosystem. © 2012 Federation of European Microbiological Societies. Published by Blackwell Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hubbard Glacier, Alaska: growing and advancing in spite of global climate change and the 1986 and 2002 Russell Lake outburst floods

USGS Publications Warehouse

Trabant, Dennis C.; March, Rod S.; Thomas, Donald S.

2003-01-01

Hubbard Glacier, the largest calving glacier on the North American Continent (25 percent larger than Rhode Island), advanced across the entrance to 35-mile-long Russell Fiord during June 2002, temporarily turning it into a lake. Hubbard Glacier has been advancing for more than 100 years and has twice closed the entrance to Russell Fiord during the last 16 years by squeezing and pushing submarine glacial sediments across the mouth of the fiord. Water flowing into the cutoff fiord from mountain streams and glacier melt causes the level of Russell Lake to rise. However, both the 1986 and 2002 dams failed before the lake altitude rose enough for water to spill over a low pass at the far end of the fiord and enter the Situk River drainage, a world-class sport and commercial fishery near Yakutat, Alaska.

Hazard assessment of the Tidal Inlet landslide and potential subsequent tsunami, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wieczorek, G.F.; Geist, E.L.; Motyka, R.J.; Jakob, M.

2007-01-01

An unstable rock slump, estimated at 5 to 10????????10 6 m3, lies perched above the northern shore of Tidal Inlet in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska. This landslide mass has the potential to rapidly move into Tidal Inlet and generate large, long-period-impulse tsunami waves. Field and photographic examination revealed that the landslide moved between 1892 and 1919 after the retreat of the Little Ice Age glaciers from Tidal Inlet in 1890. Global positioning system measurements over a 2-year period show that the perched mass is presently moving at 3-4 cm annually indicating the landslide remains unstable. Numerical simulations of landslide-generated waves suggest that in the western arm of Glacier Bay, wave amplitudes would be greatest near the mouth of Tidal Inlet and slightly decrease with water depth according to Green's law. As a function of time, wave amplitude would be greatest within approximately 40 min of the landslide entering water, with significant wave activity continuing for potentially several hours. ?? 2007 Springer-Verlag.

Object-Based Image Classification of Floating Ice Used as Habitat for Harbor Seals in a Tidewater Glacier Fjord in Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McNabb, R. W.; Womble, J. N.; Prakash, A.; Gens, R.; Ver Hoef, J.

2014-12-01

Tidewater glaciers play an important role in many landscape and ecosystem processes in fjords, terminating in the sea and calving icebergs and discharging meltwater directly into the ocean. Tidewater glaciers provide floating ice for use as habitat for harbor seals (Phoca vitulina richardii) for resting, pupping, nursing, molting, and avoiding predators. Tidewater glaciers are found in high concentrations in Southeast and Southcentral Alaska; currently, many of these glaciers are retreating or have stabilized in a retracted state, raising questions about the future availability of ice in these fjords as habitat for seals. Our primary objective is to investigate the relationship between harbor seal distribution and ice availability at an advancing tidewater glacier in Johns Hopkins Inlet, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska. To this end, we use a combination of visible and infrared aerial photographs, object-based image analysis (OBIA), and statistical modeling techniques. We have developed a workflow to automate the processing of the imagery and the classification of the fjordscape (e.g., individual icebergs, brash ice, and open water), providing quantitative information on ice coverage as well as properties not typically found in traditional pixel-based classification techniques, such as block angularity and seal density across the fjord. Reflectance variation in the red channel of the optical images has proven to be the most important first-level criterion to separate open water from floating ice. This first-level criterion works well in areas without dense brash ice, but tends to misclassify dense brash ice as single icebergs. Isolating these large misclassified regions and applying a higher reflectance threshold as a second-level criterion helps to isolate individual ice blocks surrounded by dense brash ice. We present classification results from surveys taken during June and August, 2007-2013, as well as preliminary results from statistical modeling of the

Ice Surface Morphology and Flow on Malaspina Glacier, Alaska: Implications for Regional Tectonics in the Saint Elias Orogen

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cotton, Michelle M.; Bruhn, Ronald L.; Sauber, Jeanne; Burgess, Evan; Forster, Richard R.

2014-01-01

The Saint Elias Mountains in southern Alaska are located at a structural syntaxis where the coastal thrust and fold belt of the Fairweather plate boundary intersects thrust faults and folds generated by collision of the Yakutat Terrane. The axial trace of this syntaxis extends southeastward out of the Saint Elias Mountains and beneath Malaspina Glacier where it is hidden from view and cannot be mapped using conventional methods. Here we examine the surface morphology and flow patterns of Malaspina Glacier to infer characteristics of the bedrock topography and organization of the syntaxis. Faults and folds beneath the eastern part of the glacier trend northwest and reflect dextral transpression near the terminus of the Fairweather fault system. Those beneath the western part of the glacier trend northeast and accommodate folding and thrust faulting during collision and accretion of the Yakutat Terrane. Mapping the location and geometry of the structural syntaxis provides important constraints on spatial variations in seismicity, fault kinematics, and crustal shortening beneath Malaspina Glacier, as well as the position of the collisional deformation front within the Yakutat Terrane. We also speculate that the geometrical complexity of intersecting faults within the syntaxis formed a barrier to rupture propagation during two regional Mw 8.1earthquakes in September 1899.

36 CFR 13.1160 - Restrictions on vessel entry.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve... vessels in this subpart as required to protect the values and purposes of Glacier Bay National Park and... used only to directly exit Glacier Bay from Bartlett Cove and return directly to Bartlett Cove. The...

36 CFR 13.1160 - Restrictions on vessel entry.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve... vessels in this subpart as required to protect the values and purposes of Glacier Bay National Park and... used only to directly exit Glacier Bay from Bartlett Cove and return directly to Bartlett Cove. The...

36 CFR 13.1160 - Restrictions on vessel entry.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve... vessels in this subpart as required to protect the values and purposes of Glacier Bay National Park and... used only to directly exit Glacier Bay from Bartlett Cove and return directly to Bartlett Cove. The...

Malaspina Glacier

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

NASA image captured August 31, 2000 The tongue of the Malaspina Glacier, the largest glacier in Alaska, fills most of this image. The Malaspina lies west of Yakutat Bay and covers 1,500 sq. MI (3,880 sq. km). Credit: NASA/Landsat NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Join us on Facebook

45 CFR 2532.20 - Special Demonstration Project for the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta of Alaska.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 4 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Special Demonstration Project for the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta of Alaska. 2532.20 Section 2532.20 Public Welfare Regulations Relating to Public Welfare..., developed in cooperation with the Yupi'k speaking population that resides in such communities, for...

45 CFR 2532.20 - Special Demonstration Project for the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta of Alaska.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 4 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Special Demonstration Project for the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta of Alaska. 2532.20 Section 2532.20 Public Welfare Regulations Relating to Public Welfare..., developed in cooperation with the Yupi'k speaking population that resides in such communities, for...

45 CFR 2532.20 - Special Demonstration Project for the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta of Alaska.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 4 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Special Demonstration Project for the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta of Alaska. 2532.20 Section 2532.20 Public Welfare Regulations Relating to Public Welfare..., developed in cooperation with the Yupi'k speaking population that resides in such communities, for...

45 CFR 2532.20 - Special Demonstration Project for the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta of Alaska.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Special Demonstration Project for the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta of Alaska. 2532.20 Section 2532.20 Public Welfare Regulations Relating to Public Welfare..., developed in cooperation with the Yupi'k speaking population that resides in such communities, for...

45 CFR 2532.20 - Special Demonstration Project for the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta of Alaska.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 4 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Special Demonstration Project for the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta of Alaska. 2532.20 Section 2532.20 Public Welfare Regulations Relating to Public Welfare..., developed in cooperation with the Yupi'k speaking population that resides in such communities, for...

Assessing streamflow sensitivity to variations in glacier mass balance

USGS Publications Warehouse

O'Neel, Shad; Hood, Eran; Arendt, Anthony; Sass, Louis

2014-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate relationships among seasonal and annual glacier mass balances, glacier runoff and streamflow in two glacierized basins in different climate settings. We use long-term glacier mass balance and streamflow datasets from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Alaska Benchmark Glacier Program to compare and contrast glacier-streamflow interactions in a maritime climate (Wolverine Glacier) with those in a continental climate (Gulkana Glacier). Our overall goal is to improve our understanding of how glacier mass balance processes impact streamflow, ultimately improving our conceptual understanding of the future evolution of glacier runoff in continental and maritime climates.

Medial moraines of glaciers of the Copper River Basin, Alaska: Discrete landslides dominate over other sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kargel, J. S.; Fischer, L.; Furfaro, R.; Huggel, C.; Korup, O.; Leonard, G. J.; Uhlmann, M.; Wessels, R. L.; Wolfe, D. F.

2009-12-01

Medial moraines are visually dominant structures of most large valley glaciers in the Copper River Basin (CRB), Alaska. Areally extensive but thin (usually <20 cm) accumulations of debris pose challenges for glacier mapping based on multispectral imagery, as done, for instance, in the GLIMS project. The sources of this material include large discrete landslides from wallrocks and from lateral moraines; diffuse contributions from rock falls and talus creep; rocks delivered via snow and ice avalanches; ingestion of lateral moraines along tributary convergences; and basal erosional debris. Evidence indicates that in CRB glaciers, discrete large avalanches predominate as the major contributors of moraine mass. Subglacial erosional debris is predominantly pulverized to small grain sizes and flushed. Many large, young avalanches exist on CRB glaciers. Evidence from colorimetry indicates that many medial moraines actually are landslides that have been sheared and swept downglacier, thus mimicking the form of other types of medial moraines formed where tributaries coalesce and flow down valley. Landcover classification of ASTER imagery, qualitative observations from air photos, and semiquantitative field-based estimations of rock color types indicate that on Allen Glacier, and other CRB glaciers, landslides are the sources of most medial moraines. On Allen and Root Glacier, for example, we see very few boulders with obvious signs of basal abrasion, whereas nearly all boulders exhibit signs of irregular fracture, for example in landslides. Such landslides have large effects on the thermal and mass balance of CRB glaciers, sometimes opposing or in other cases accentuating the effects of global/regional climate change. Considering the link between landslides and seismicity, and that Magnitude 8-9 earthquakes may occur nearby only about once a century, which is also the characteristic response time of large glaciers to climate shifts, seismicity must be considered along with

Hydrologic impacts of changes in climate and glacier extent in the Gulf of Alaska watershed

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beamer, J. P.; Hill, D. F.; McGrath, D.; Arendt, A.; Kienholz, C.

2017-09-01

High-resolution regional-scale hydrologic models were used to quantify the response of late 21st century runoff from the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) watershed to changes in regional climate and glacier extent. NCEP Climate Forecast System Reanalysis data were combined with five Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 general circulation models (GCMs) for two representative concentration pathway (RCP) scenarios (4.5 and 8.5) to develop meteorological forcing for the period 2070-2099. A hypsographic model was used to estimate future glacier extent given assumed equilibrium line altitude (ELA) increases of 200 and 400 m. GCM predictions show an increase in annual precipitation of 12% for RCP 4.5 and 21% for RCP 8.5, and an increase in annual temperature of 2.5°C for RCP 4.5 and 4.3°C for RCP 8.5, averaged across the GOA. Scenarios with perturbed climate and glaciers predict annual GOA-wide runoff to increase by 9% for RCP4.5/ELA200 case and 14% for the RCP8.5/ELA400 case. The glacier runoff decreased by 14% for RCP4.5/ELA200 and by 34% for the RCP8.5/ELA400 case. Intermodel variability in annual runoff was found to be approximately twice the variability in precipitation input. Additionally, there are significant changes in runoff partitioning and increases in snowpack runoff are dominated by increases in rain-on-snow events. We present results aggregated across the entire GOA and also for individual watersheds to illustrate the range in hydrologic regime changes and explore the sensitivities of these results by independently perturbing only climate forcings and only glacier cover.

The dynamic response of Kennicott Glacier, Alaska, USA, to the Hidden Creek Lake outburst flood

USGS Publications Warehouse

Anderson, R. Scott; Walder, J.S.; Anderson, S.P.; Trabant, D.C.; Fountain, A.G.

2005-01-01

Glacier sliding is commonly linked with elevated water pressure at the glacier bed. Ice surface motion during a 3 week period encompassing an outburst of ice-dammed Hidden Creek Lake (HCL) at Kennicott Glacier, Alaska, USA, showed enhanced sliding during the flood. Two stakes, 1.2 km from HCL, revealed increased speed in two episodes, both associated with uplift of the ice surface relative to the trajectory of bed-parallel motion. Uplift of the surface began 12 days before the flood, initially stabilizing at a value of 0.25 m. Two days after lake drainage began, further uplift (reaching 0.4 m) occurred while surface speed peaked at 1.2 m d-1. Maximum surface uplift coincided with peak discharge from HCL, high water level in a down-glacier ice-marginal basin, and low solute concentrations in the Kennicott River. Each of these records is consistent with high subglacial water pressure. We interpret the ice surface motion as arising from sliding up backs of bumps on the bed, which enlarges cavities and produces bed separation. The outburst increased water pressure over a broad region, promoting sliding, inhibiting cavity closure, and blocking drainage of solute-rich water from the distributed system. Pressure drop upon termination of the outburst drained water from and depressurized the distributed system, reducing sliding speeds. Expanded cavities then collapsed with a 1 day time-scale set by the local ice thickness.

36 CFR 13.1152 - Private vessel permits and conditions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel Permits § 13.1152 Private vessel permits and conditions. In Glacier Bay from June 1 through... period of time. (a) From June 1 through August 31, when the operator of a private vessel enters Glacier...

36 CFR 13.1152 - Private vessel permits and conditions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel Permits § 13.1152 Private vessel permits and conditions. In Glacier Bay from June 1 through... period of time. (a) From June 1 through August 31, when the operator of a private vessel enters Glacier...

36 CFR 13.1152 - Private vessel permits and conditions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel Permits § 13.1152 Private vessel permits and conditions. In Glacier Bay from June 1 through... period of time. (a) From June 1 through August 31, when the operator of a private vessel enters Glacier...

Utility of late summer transient snowline migration rate on Taku Glacier, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pelto, M.

2011-12-01

On Taku Glacier, Alaska a combination of field observations of snow water equivalent (SWE) from snowpits and probing in the vicinity of the transient snowline (TSL) are used to quantify the mass balance gradient. The balance gradient derived from the TSL and SWE measured in snowpits at 1000 m from 1998-2010 ranges from 2.6-3.8 mm m-1. Probing transects from 950 m-1100 m directly measure SWE and yield a slightly higher balance gradient of 3.3-3.8 mm m-1. The TSL on Taku Glacier is identified in MODIS and Landsat 4 and 7 Thematic Mapper images for 31 dates during the 2004-2010 period to assess the consistency of its rate of rise and reliability in assessing ablation for mass balance assessment. For example, in 2010, the TSL was 750 m on 28 July, 800 m on 5 August, 875 m on 14 August, 925 m on 30 August, and 975 m on 20 September. The mean observed probing balance gradient was 3.3 mm m-1, combined with the TSL rise of 3.7 m day-1 yields an ablation rate of 12.2 mm day-1 from mid-July to mid-Sept, 2010. The TSL rise in the region from 750-1100 m on Taku Glacier during eleven periods each covering more than 14 days during the ablation season indicates a mean TSL rise of 3.7 m day-1, the rate of rise is relatively consistent ranging from 3.1 to 4.4 m day-1. This rate is useful for ascertaining the final ELA if images or observations are not available near the end of the ablation season. The mean ablation from 750-1100 m during the July-September period determined from the TSL rise and the observed balance gradient is 11-13 mm day-1 on Taku Glacier during the 2004-2010 period. The potential for providing an estimate of bn from TSL observations late in the melt season from satellite images combined with the frequent availability of such images provides a means for efficient mass balance assessment in many years and on many glaciers.

Model-data comparisons of crevasses in accelerating glaciers exemplified for the 2011-2013 surge of Bering Glacier, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Trantow, T.; Herzfeld, U. C.

2017-12-01

Glacier acceleration, ubiquitous along the periphery of the major icesheets, presents one of the main uncertainties in modeling future global sea-level rise according to the IPCC 5th Assessment Report (2013). The surge phenomenon is one type of glacial acceleration and is the least understood. During a surge, large-scale elevation change and significant crevassing occurs throughout the entire ice system. Crevasses are the most obvious manifestations of the surge dynamics and provide a source of geophysical information that allows reconstruction of deformation processes. The recent surge of the Bering-Bagley Glacier System (BBGS), Alaska, in 2011-2013 provides an excellent test case to study surging through airborne and satellite observations together with numerical modeling. A 3D full-Stokes finite element model of the BBGS has been created using the Elmer/Ice software for structural and dynamical investigations of the surge. A von Mises condition is applied to modeled surface stresses to predict where crevassing would occur during the surge. The model uses CryoSat-2 derived surface topography (Baseline-C), bedrock topography, Glen's flow law with an isothermal assumption and a uniform linear friction law at the ice/bedrock boundary to represent the surge state in early 2011 when peak velocities were observed. Additionally, geostatistical characterization applied to optical satellite imagery provides an observational data set for model-data comparisons. Observed and modeled crevasse characteristics are compared with respect to their location, magnitude and orientation. Similarity mapping applied to the modeled von Mises stress and observed surface roughness values indicates that the two quantities are correlated. Results indicate that large-scale surface crevasses resulting from a surge are connected to the bedrock topography of the glacier system. The model-data comparisons used in this analysis serve to validate the numerical model and provide insight into the

Guide to Geologic Hazards in Alaska | Alaska Division of Geological &

Science.gov Websites

content Guide to Geologic Hazards in Alaska Glossary Coastal and river hazards image Coastal and river Storm surge Tsunami Earthquake related hazards image Earthquake related hazards Earthquake Earthquake Subsidence Surface fault rupture Tsunami Uplift Glacier hazards image Glacier hazards Avalanche Debris flow

The recent glacier changes in Mongolian Altai Mountains

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yabuki, H.; Ohata, T.

2009-12-01

In the 4th IPCC report (AR-4) is reported that global warming in recent years is a clear thing. Shrinkage of the mountain glacier and two poles is reporting as an observation fact as the actual condition of the cryosphere by warming. There are mass balance reports of the glacier of 80 of world by WGMS (World Glacier Monitoring Service) as a report of the actual condition of glacier mass balance change, and the actual condition of the glacier mass change in world is clarified. In the report of WGMS, after 1980’s the glacier mass balance, in the Europe Alps and the Alaska region are decreases, and in Scandinavia region are increases. On the other hand, the glacier mass balance in the Russia Altai Mountains located in Central Asia has the little change after 1980’s. These are research using the long-term observational data of Russian region of western part of Altai Mountains. The Altai Mountains including Russia, China, and Mongolia Kazakhstan, and there are description to a World Glacier Inventory (WGI) about the glaciers of Russia, China and Kazakhstan area, but the glaciers of a Mongolian area, there are no description to the WGI. There is almost no information on the glacier of a Mongolian Altai region, and there are many unknown points about glacier change of the whole Altai Mountain region. In this research, while research clarified the present condition of glacier distribution of the Mongolia Altai region, the actual condition of a glacier change in recent years was clarified by comparison with the past topographical map. In this research, the glacier area was distinguished based on the satellite image of the Mongolian glacier regions. The used satellite image were 17 Landsat 7 ETM+ in 1999 to 2002. The glacier distinguishes using NDSI (Normalized Difference Snow Index) indexusing Band5 and Band2. The topographical map of the Mongolian area was got based on the distribution information on this satellite glacier area. The topographical map is 1/100,000 which

The length of the world's glaciers - a new approach for the global calculation of center lines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Machguth, H.; Huss, M.

2014-09-01

Glacier length is an important measure of glacier geometry. Nevertheless, global glacier inventories are mostly lacking length data. Only recently semi-automated approaches to measure glacier length have been developed and applied regionally. Here we present a first global assessment of glacier length using an automated method that relies on glacier surface slope, distance to the glacier margins and a set of trade-off functions. The method is developed for East Greenland, evaluated for East Greenland as well as for Alaska and eventually applied to all ~ 200 000 glaciers around the globe. The evaluation highlights accurately calculated glacier length where digital elevation model (DEM) quality is high (East Greenland) and limited accuracy on low-quality DEMs (parts of Alaska). Measured length of very small glaciers is subject to a certain level of ambiguity. The global calculation shows that only about 1.5% of all glaciers are longer than 10 km, with Bering Glacier (Alaska/Canada) being the longest glacier in the world at a length of 196 km. Based on the output of our algorithm we derive global and regional area-length scaling laws. Differences among regional scaling parameters appear to be related to characteristics of topography and glacier mass balance. The present study adds glacier length as a key parameter to global glacier inventories. Global and regional scaling laws might prove beneficial in conceptual glacier models.

Preliminary assessment of landslide-induced wave hazards, Tidal Inlet, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wieczorek, Gerald F.; Jakob, Matthias; Motyka, Roman J.; Zirnheld, Sandra L.; Craw, Patricia

2003-01-01

A large potential rock avalanche above the northern shore of Tidal Inlet, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska, was investigated to determine hazards and risks of landslide-induced waves to cruise ships and other park visitors. Field and photographic examination revealed that the 5 to 10 million cubic meter landslide moved between AD 1892 and 1919 after the retreat of Little Ice Age glaciers from Tidal Inlet by AD 1890. The timing of landslide movement and the glacial history suggest that glacial debuttressing caused weakening of the slope and that the landslide could have been triggered by large earthquakes of 1899-1900 in Yakutat Bay. Evidence of recent movement includes fresh scarps, back-rotated blocks, and smaller secondary landslide movements. However, until there is evidence of current movement, the mass is classified as a dormant rock slump. An earthquake on the nearby active Fairweather fault system could reactivate the landslide and trigger a massive rock slump and debris avalanche into Tidal Inlet. Preliminary analyses show that waves induced by such a landslide could travel at speeds of 45 to 50 m/s and reach heights up to 76 m with wave runups of 200 m on the opposite shore of Tidal Inlet. Such waves would not only threaten vessels in Tidal Inlet, but would also travel into the western arm of Glacier Bay endangering large cruise ships and their passengers.

36 CFR 13.1154 - Commercial vessel permits and conditions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and... motor vessel must have a permit to operate in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in accordance with § 5.3 of this chapter. (a) A cruise ship must have a concession contract to operate in Glacier Bay. (b...

36 CFR 13.1154 - Commercial vessel permits and conditions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and... motor vessel must have a permit to operate in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in accordance with § 5.3 of this chapter. (a) A cruise ship must have a concession contract to operate in Glacier Bay. (b...

36 CFR 13.1154 - Commercial vessel permits and conditions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and... motor vessel must have a permit to operate in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in accordance with § 5.3 of this chapter. (a) A cruise ship must have a concession contract to operate in Glacier Bay. (b...

36 CFR 13.1154 - Commercial vessel permits and conditions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and... motor vessel must have a permit to operate in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in accordance with § 5.3 of this chapter. (a) A cruise ship must have a concession contract to operate in Glacier Bay. (b...

Contributions to Jarvis Creek Watershed, Alaska, from Winter Accumulation and Glacier Melt Inferred Through Airborne and Ground-Penetrating Radar

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Campbell, S. W.; Liljedahl, A. K.; Douglas, T. A.; Bernsen, S.; Gatesman, T.; Gerbi, C. C.

2017-12-01

Glacier meltwater contributions to river discharge has been increasing in much of the Arctic, likely because of higher air temperatures. For small glaciers that provide a large portion of meltwater to downstream discharge, a sustained negative mass balance is concerning to surrounding ecosystems because the water budget will ultimately decline when glacier ice disappears. Separating components of the hydrological budget is important for predicting future discharge, particularly when major inputs such as glacier ice melt are at risk of total loss. Jarvis Glacier in Eastern Alaska offers an example of this potential scenario. It is a 6-km long glacier that has been in retreat since the 1950's, yet it accounts for 15% of the annual downstream discharge into Jarvis Creek (Liljedahl et al., 2017). In March 2012 through April 2017 we completed yearly airborne and ground-penetrating radar surveys over Jarvis Glacier and its surrounding non-glaciated watershed. These surveys were conducted to assess winter snow accumulation and its potential contribution to the hydrological budget of Jarvis Creek. We also surveyed glacier ice thicknesses to estimate ice volume and potential long term future meltwater contributions to Jarvis Creek based on its sustained negative mass balance. High-frequency radar collected across Jarvis Glacier reveal winter accumulation rates between 1.1-1.9 m SWE. Thickness of winter snow in the surrounding glacier-free valleys is highly variable but it tended to accumulate as drifts near ridge tops or low in the valleys. Low-frequency GPR reveals ice thickness reaching 250 m, mid-glacier, tapering to less than 100 m near the debris-rich terminus. Several over-deepened basins exist and an obvious polythermal structure with 20-30 m of cold ice overlaying temperate ice is also evident. Our presentation will summarize further details of these results in relation to current and potential future contributions of glacier ice and winter snowpack melt to Jarvis

Seafloor habitat mapping and classification in Glacier Bay, Alaska: Phase 1 & 2 1996-2004

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hooge, Philip N.; Carlson, Paul R.; Mondragon, Jennifer; Etherington, Lisa L.; Cochran, G.R.

2004-01-01

Glacier Bay is a diverse fjord ecosystem with multiple sills, numerous tidewater glaciers and a highly complex oceanographic system. The Bay was completely glaciated prior to the 1700’s and subsequently experienced the fastest glacial retreat recorded in historical times. Currently, some of the highest sedimentation rates ever observed occur in the Bay, along with rapid uplift (up to 2.5 cm/year) due to a combination of plate tectonics and isostatic rebound. Glacier Bay is the second deepest fjord in Alaska, with depths over 500 meters. This variety of physical processes and bathymetry creates many diverse habitats within a relatively small area (1,255 km2 ). Habitat can be defined as the locality, including resources and environmental conditions, occupied by a species or population of organisms (Morrison et al 1992). Mapping and characterization of benthic habitat is crucial to an understanding of marine species and can serve a variety of purposes including: understanding species distributions and improving stock assessments, designing special management areas and marine protected areas, monitoring and protecting important habitats, and assessing habitat change due to natural or human impacts. In 1996, Congress recognized the importance of understanding benthic habitat for fisheries management by reauthorizing the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act and amending it with the Sustainable Fisheries Act (SFA). This amendment emphasizes the importance of habitat protection to healthy fisheries and requires identification of essential fish habitat in management decisions. Recently, the National Park Service’s Ocean Stewardship Strategy identified the creation of benthic habitat maps and sediment maps as crucial components to complete basic ocean park resource inventories (Davis 2003). Glacier Bay National Park managers currently have very limited knowledge about the bathymetry, sediment types, and various marine habitats of ecological

Early retreat of the Alaska Peninsula Glacier Complex and the implications for coastal migrations of First Americans

USGS Publications Warehouse

Misarti, Nicole; Finney, Bruce P.; Jordan, James W.; Maschner, Herbert D. G.; Addison, Jason A.; Shapley, Mark D.; Krumhardt, Andrea P.; Beget, James E.

2012-01-01

The debate over a coastal migration route for the First Americans revolves around two major points: seafaring technology, and a viable landscape and resource base. Three lake cores from Sanak Island in the western Gulf of Alaska yield the first radiocarbon ages from the continental shelf of the Northeast Pacific and record deglaciation nearly 17 ka BP (thousands of calendar years ago), much earlier than previous estimates based on extrapolated data from other sites outside the coastal corridor in the Gulf of Alaska. Pollen data suggest an arid, terrestrial ecosystem by 16.3 ka BP. Therefore glaciers would not have hindered the movement of humans along the southern edge of the Bering Land Bridge for two millennia before the first well-recognized “New World” archaeological sites were inhabited.

36 CFR 13.1188 - Where to get charts depicting closed waters.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park.... Closed waters and islands within Glacier Bay as described in §§ 13.1174-13.1180 of this subpart are described as depicted on NOAA Chart #17318 GLACIER BAY (4th Ed., Mar. 6/93) available to the public at park...

36 CFR 13.1188 - Where to get charts depicting closed waters.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park.... Closed waters and islands within Glacier Bay as described in §§ 13.1174-13.1180 of this subpart are described as depicted on NOAA Chart #17318 GLACIER BAY (4th Ed., Mar. 6/93) available to the public at park...

36 CFR 13.1188 - Where to get charts depicting closed waters.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park.... Closed waters and islands within Glacier Bay as described in §§ 13.1174-13.1180 of this subpart are described as depicted on NOAA Chart #17318 GLACIER BAY (4th Ed., Mar. 6/93) available to the public at park...

Southern Alaska as an Example of the Long-Term Consequences of Mountain Building Under the Influence of Glaciers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Meigs, Andrew; Sauber, Jeanne

2000-01-01

Southern Alaska is a continent-scale region of ongoing crustal deformation within the Pacific-North American plate boundary zone. Glaciers and glacial erosion have dictated patterns of denudation in the orogen over the last approx. 5 My. The orogen comprises three discrete topographic domains from south to north, respectively: (1) the Chugach/St. Elias Range; (2) the Wrangell Mountains; and (3) the eastern Alaska Range. Although present deformation is distributed across the orogen, much of the shortening and uplift are concentrated in the Chugach/St. Elias Range. A systematic increase in topographic wavelength of the range from east to west reflects east-to-west increases in the width of a shallowly-dipping segment of the plate interface, separation of major upper plate structures, and a decrease in the obliquity of plate motion relative to the plate boundary. Mean elevation decays exponentially from approx. 2500 m to approx. 1100 m from east to west, respectively. Topographic control on the present and past distribution of glaciers is indicated by close correspondence along the range between mean elevation and the modern equilibrium line altitude of glaciers (ELA) and differences in the modern ELA, mean annual precipitation and temperature across the range between the windward, southern and leeward, northern flanks. Net, range- scale erosion is the sum of: (1) primary bedrock erosion by glaciers and (2) erosion in areas of the landscape that are ice-marginal and are deglaciated at glacial minima. Oscillations between glacial and interglacial climates controls ice height and distribution, which, in turn, modulates the locus and mode of erosion in the landscape. Mean topography and the mean position of the ELA are coupled because of the competition between rock uplift, which tends to raise the ELA, and enhanced orographic precipitation accompanying mountain building, which tends to lower the ELA. Mean topography is controlled both by the 60 deg latitude and maritime

UNIT, ALASKA.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Louisiana Arts and Science Center, Baton Rouge.

THE UNIT DESCRIBED IN THIS BOOKLET DEALS WITH THE GEOGRAPHY OF ALASKA. THE UNIT IS PRESENTED IN OUTLINE FORM. THE FIRST SECTION DEALS PRINCIPALLY WITH THE PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OF ALASKA. DISCUSSED ARE (1) THE SIZE, (2) THE MAJOR LAND REGIONS, (3) THE MOUNTAINS, VOLCANOES, GLACIERS, AND RIVERS, (4) THE NATURAL RESOURCES, AND (5) THE CLIMATE. THE…

Mapping Bedrock Topography of Taku Glacier with Low Frequency Ground Penetrating RADAR

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Westhaver, T.; Towell, A. R.; Lois, A.; Kaluzienski, L. M.; Fredrickson, K.; Riverman, K. L.; Kellerman, B.; Otto, D.; Stewart, A.

2017-12-01

Taku Glacier is the thickest and deepest temperate glacier so far measured in the world. However, the maximum depth has never been determined and the bed is estimated to be at least 600 meters below sea level. Understanding the shape of the bed topography is essential for predicting how the glacier will respond to climate change and how this will affect the future shoreline of Southeast Alaska. We collected both transverse and longitudinal transects of Taku Glacier using ground penetrating radar (GPR) operating at a frequency of 5 MHz, as well as similar profiles from several tributary glaciers including Demorest Glacier, Matthes Glacier and the Northwest Branch of Taku Glacier. We combined previously collected seismic data, digital elevation models (DEMs), and gravimetric data with in situ GPR profiles to produce a bedrock topography model using ArcGIS and Python. Here we present a bedrock topography model of the retreating Taku Glacier that approximates the future shoreline of Southeast Alaska. This modeled shoreline would have profound implications for local community development, ecology and regional hydrology given current climate warming trends.

Evaluation of conditions along the grounding line of temperate marine glaciers: An example from Muir Inlet, Glacier Bay, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Seramur, K.C.; Powell, R.D.; Carlson, P.R.

1997-01-01

In the marine environment, stability of the glacier terminus and the location of subglacial streams are the dominant controls on the distribution of grounding-line deposits within morainal banks. A morainal bank complex in Muir Inlet, Glacier Bay, SE Alaska, is used to develop a model of terminus stability and location of subglacial streams along the grounding line of temperate marine glaciers. This model can be used to interpret former grounding-line conditions in other glacimarine settings from the facies architecture within morainal bank deposits. The Muir Inlet morainal bank complex was deposited between 1860 A.D. and 1899 A.D., and historical observations provide a record of terminus positions, glacial retreat rates and sedimentary sources. These data are used to reconstruct the depositional environment and to develop a correlation between sedimentary facies and conditions along the grounding line. Four seismic facies identified on the high-resolution seismic-reflection profiles are used to interpret sedimentary facies within the morainal bank complex. Terminus stability is interpreted from the distribution of sedimentary facies within three distinct submarine geomorphic features, a grounding-line fan; stratified ridges, and a field of push ridges. The grounding-line fan was deposited along a stable terminus and is represented on seismic-reflection profiles by two distinct seismic facies, a proximal and a distal fan facies. The proximal fan facies was deposited at the efflux of subglacial streams and indicates the location of former glacifluvial discharges into the sea. Stratified ridges formed as a result of the influence of a quasi-stable terminus on the distribution of sedimentary facies along the grounding line. A field of push ridges formed along the grounding line of an unstable terminus that completely reworked the grounding-line deposits through glacitectonic deformation. Between 1860 A.D. and 1899 A.D. (39 years), 8.96 x 108 m3 of sediment were

Glacial conditioning of stream position and flooding in the braid plain of the Exit Glacier foreland, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Curran, Janet H.; Loso, Michael G.; Williams, Haley B.

2017-09-01

Flow spilling out of an active braid plain often signals the onset of channel migration or avulsion to previously occupied areas. In a recently deglaciated environment, distinguishing between shifts in active braid plain location, considered reversible by fluvial processes at short timescales, and more permanent glacier-conditioned changes in stream position can be critical to understanding flood hazards. Between 2009 and 2014, increased spilling from the Exit Creek braid plain in Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska, repeatedly overtopped the only access road to the popular Exit Glacier visitor facilities and trails. To understand the likely cause of road flooding, we consider recent processes and the interplay between glacier and fluvial system dynamics since the maximum advance of the Little Ice Age, around 1815. Patterns of temperature and precipitation, the variables that drive high streamflow via snowmelt, glacier meltwater runoff, and rainfall, could not fully explain the timing of road floods. Comparison of high-resolution topographic data between 2008 and 2012 showed a strong pattern of braid plain aggradation along 3 km of glacier foreland, not unexpected at the base of mountainous glaciers and likely an impetus for channel migration. Historically, a dynamic zone follows the retreating glacier in which channel positions shift rapidly in response to changes in the glacier margin and fresh morainal deposits. This period of paraglacial adjustment lasts one to several decades at Exit Glacier. Subsequently, as moraine breaches consolidate and lock the channel into position, and as the stream regains the lower-elevation valley center, upper-elevation surfaces are abandoned as terraces inaccessible by fluvial processes for timescales of decades to centuries. Where not constrained by these terraces and moraines, the channel is free to migrate, which in this aggradational setting generates an alluvial fan at the breach of the final prominent moraine. The position of

36 CFR 13.1154 - Commercial vessel permits and conditions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... conditions. 13.1154 Section 13.1154 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and... motor vessel must have a permit to operate in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in accordance with...

36 CFR 13.1160 - Restrictions on vessel entry.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

.... 13.1160 Section 13.1160 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve... vessels in this subpart as required to protect the values and purposes of Glacier Bay National Park and...

36 CFR 13.1138 - Where should the documentation for a lifetime access permit be sent?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Commercial Fishing § 13.1138 Where should the documentation for a...) should be sent to: Superintendent, Attn: Access Permit Program, Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, P...

Five 'Supercool' Icelandic Glaciers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knudsen, O.; Roberts, M. J.; Roberts, M. J.; Tweed, F. S.; Russell, A. J.; Lawson, D. E.; Larson, G. J.; Evenson, E. B.; Bjornsson, H.

2001-12-01

Sediment entrainment by glaciohydraulic supercooling has recently been demonstrated as an effective process at Matanuska glacier, Alaska. Although subfreezing meltwater temperatures have been recorded at several Alaskan glaciers, the link between supercooling and sediment accretion remains confined to Matanuska. This study presents evidence of glaciohydraulic supercooling and associated basal ice formation from five Icelandic glaciers: Skeidarárjökull, Skaftafellsjökull, Kvíárjökull, Flaájökull, and Hoffellsjökull. These observations provide the best example to-date of glaciohydraulic supercooling and related sediment accretion outside Alaska. Fieldwork undertaken in March, July and August 2001 confirmed that giant terraces of frazil ice, diagnostic of the presence of supercooled water, are forming around subglacial artesian vents. Frazil flocs retrieved from these vents contained localised sandy nodules at ice crystal boundaries. During periods of high discharge, sediment-laden frazil flocs adhere to the inner walls of vents, and continue to trap suspended sediment. Bands of debris-rich frazil ice, representing former vents, are texturally similar to basal ice exposures at the glacier margins, implying a process-form relationship between glaciohydraulic freeze-on and basal ice formation. It is hypothesised that glaciohydraulic supercooling is generating thick sequences of basal ice. Observations also confirm that in situ melting of basal ice creates thick sedimentary sequences, as sediment structures present in the basal ice can be clearly traced into ice-marginal ridges. Glaciohydraulic supercooling is an effective sediment entrainment mechanism at Icelandic glaciers. Supercooling has the capacity to generate thick sequences of basal ice and the sediments present in basal ice can be preserved. These findings are incompatible with established theories of intraglacial sediment entrainment and basal ice formation; instead, they concur with, and extend, the

Glacier microseismicity

USGS Publications Warehouse

West, Michael E.; Larsen, Christopher F.; Truffer, Martin; O'Neel, Shad; LeBlanc, Laura

2010-01-01

We present a framework for interpreting small glacier seismic events based on data collected near the center of Bering Glacier, Alaska, in spring 2007. We find extremely high microseismicity rates (as many as tens of events per minute) occurring largely within a few kilometers of the receivers. A high-frequency class of seismicity is distinguished by dominant frequencies of 20–35 Hz and impulsive arrivals. A low-frequency class has dominant frequencies of 6–15 Hz, emergent onsets, and longer, more monotonic codas. A bimodal distribution of 160,000 seismic events over two months demonstrates that the classes represent two distinct populations. This is further supported by the presence of hybrid waveforms that contain elements of both event types. The high-low-hybrid paradigm is well established in volcano seismology and is demonstrated by a comparison to earthquakes from Augustine Volcano. We build on these parallels to suggest that fluid-induced resonance is likely responsible for the low-frequency glacier events and that the hybrid glacier events may be caused by the rush of water into newly opening pathways.

Dynamic Change in Glacial Dammed Lake Behavior of Suicide Basin, Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jacobs, A. B.; Moran, T.; Hood, E. W.

2016-12-01

Suicide Basin Jökulhlaups, since 2011, have resulted in moderate flooding on the Mendenhall Lake and River in Juneau, AK. At this time, the USGS recorded peak streamflow of 20,000 cfs in 2014, the highest flows officially reported by the USGS which was attributed to a Suicide Basin glacial-dammed lake release. However, the USGS estimated a peak flow of 27,000 cfs in 1961 and we suspect this event is partially the result of a glacial dammed lake release. From 2011 to 2015, data indicates that yearly outburst from Suicide Basin were the norm; however, in 2015 and 2016, multiple outbursts during the summer were observed suggesting a dynamic change in glacial behavior. For public safety and awareness, the University of Alaska Southeast and U.S. Geologic Survey began monitoring real-time Suicide Basin lake levels. A real-time model was developed by the National Weather Service Alaska-Pacific River Forecast Center capable of forecasting potential timing and magnitude of the flood-wave crest from this Suicide Basin release. However, the model now is being modified because data not previously available has become available and adapted to the change in state of glacial behavior. The importance of forecasting time and level of crest on the Mendenhall River system owing to these outbursts floods is an essential aid to emergency managers and the general public to provide impact decision support services (IDSS). The National Weather Service has been able to provide 36 to 24 hour forecasts for these large events, but with the change in glacial state on the Mendenhall Glacier, the success of forecasting these events is getting more challenging. We will show the success of the hydrologic model but at the same time show the challenges we have seen with the changing glacier dynamics.

A World of Changing Glaciers: Hazards, Opportunities, and Measures of Global Climate Change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kargel, J. S.; Wessels, R.; Kieffer, H. H.

2002-05-01

Glaciers around the world are, with rare exceptions, stagnating or in hasty retreat. Whether growing or shrinking, significant changes in the extent of glaciers have major impacts on nature and humanity in their immediate vicinity, because land uses are utterly different depending on whether the land is covered by ice. Upon glacier retreat, new land uses may become possible: (1) Transportation corridors may become feasible where previously there were barriers. (2) Exposure of the lithosphere may yield mineral riches that previously were inaccessible. (3) New wildlife habitat and migration routes may develop, thus promoting genetic diffusion/interbreeding of previously isolated populations. Glacier impacts go well beyond the locality where they occur. Many glaciers regulate water flow, and contribute to annual water availability and hydropower production. In some regions, such in the Hindu Kush-Himlaya (HKH), especially the western provinces of China, the carrying capacity of the land and further economic development and well-being of the populace is partly dependent on melting glaciers. In India, \\8 billion worth of hydroelectric power (at U.S. electric rates) is generated each year; 50% of that is attributable to runoff from Himalayan glaciers and high-altitude snow fields. Nearly \\1 billion worth of hydroelectric power is due to the current negative mass balance of glaciers. In Nepal, glaciogenic hydropower is even more crucial. Although it may be many decades in coming, the ongoing sharp reduction in glacier area in the HKH will eventually be reflected in heightened water shortages in a region where water already is in short supply. Other glaciers store large amounts of meltwater and release it suddenly, causing havoc and taking lives downstream. This is a major problem in the HKH region and is significant locally in other heavily glaciated regions, such as Alaska. Sea level is a global issue impacted significantly by melting glaciers wherever they occur

Interpretation of ICESat-Derived Elevation Change on the Malaspina-Seward Glacier

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sauber, J.; Ramage, J.; Kopczynski, S.; Muskett, R.

2005-12-01

In this study, we report and interpret ICESat-derived short-term variability in surface elevation in the snow accumulation region of the Seward-Malaspina Glacier, one of the largest glacier systems in southern Alaska. The Seward-Malaspina complex consists of an extensive icefield, the upper Seward Glacier, and a narrower lower outlet glacier (lower Seward) through which ice drains to the enormous piedmont of the Malaspina Glacier. Although the upper Seward is just 80 km north of the Gulf of Alaska it has an environment more continental than maritime because of shielding afforded by high mountains to the south [Sharp, 1951]. The Malaspina Glacier by contrast lies completely within the moist maritime environment of the southern Alaska coast. In an earlier study of the Malaspina Glacier, we reported elevation differences between ICESat Laser 1-3 observations (February 2003 - November 2004) and a Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM)-derived DEM from February 2000 [Sauber et al., 2005]. Elevation decreases of up to 20-25 m over a 3-4 year time period were observed across the folded loop moraine on the southern portion of the piedmont lobe of the Malaspina Glacier. For the western portion of the Upper Seward we will estimate elevation change over a comparable time period by using an X-band InSAR-derived DEM from Intermap Tech. (Sept. 2000) and ICESat-derived elevations. Early field measurements (1945-1949) from the Upper Seward Glacier indicated an average annual net surplus of 75 cm water equivalent in the Upper Seward basin [Sharp, 1951]. However, even over this short time period, Sharp [1951] found large interannual variability in net accumulation of 41-168 cm. To further constrain and understand surface changes, we examined ICESat-derived elevations from a variable set of repeated ICESat upper Seward profiles made between Feb. 2003 and May 2005. Additionally we compared the elevation change profiles to snowmelt timing and ablation season length derived from the

Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center vehicular and pedestrian traffic congestion study

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2007-05-01

The Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center of Tongass National Forest in Juneau, Alaska is experiencing vehicular and pedestrian congestion. This study was initiated by the United States Forest Service, Alaska Region, in cooperation with Western Federal L...

Glaciers and Sea Level Rise

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

Melt water ponded at surface in the accumulation zone of Columbia Glacier, Alaska, in July 2008. To learn about the contributions of glaciers to sea level rise, visit: www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/glacier-sea-rise.html Credit: W. Tad Pfeffer, University of Colorado at Boulder NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Populations and productivity of seabirds at South Marble Island, Glacier Bay, Alaska, during May-July, 1999

USGS Publications Warehouse

Zador, Stephani; Piatt, John F.

1999-01-01

In the course of directed research on glaucous-winged gulls, we investigated the numbers and activities of all breeding and non-breeding seabirds associated with South Marble Island in Glacier Bay, Alaska, during mid-May to late July, 1999. Most observations were made from the island; additional observations were made during transportation to and from the island. Data were collected on the presence and numbers of all seabirds observed. Detailed information on breeding chronology and productivity were also collected for glaucous-winged gulls (Larus glaucescens), pigeon guillemots (Cepphus columba), black-legged kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla), and black oystercatchers (Haemantopus bachmani).

Construction and Deployment of Tilt Sensors along the Lateral Margins of Jarvis Glacier, Alaska to improve understanding of the Deformation Regime of Wet-Based Polythermal Glaciers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, I. R.; Hawley, R. L.; Clemens-Sewall, D.; Campbell, S. W.; Waszkiewicz, M.; Bernsen, S.; Gerbi, C. C.; Kreutz, K. J.; Koons, P. O.

2017-12-01

Most studies of natural ice have been on bodies of ice with frozen beds which experience minimal lateral shear strain, to the exclusion of polythermal ice sheets & glaciers which due to their mixed basal thermal regime have wet-based beds. The deficiency in knowledge and understanding of the operative deformation mechanisms of wet-based bodies of ice results in uncertainty in the constitutive flow law of ice. Given that the flow law was derived experimentally under assumptions more conducive to bodies of ice with frozen-based beds, it is necessary to calibrate the flow law when applied to different bodies of ice such as wet-based polythermal glaciers. To this end, Dartmouth and the University of Maine have collaborated to carry out research on Jarvis Glacier in Alaska, a geometrically simple, wet-based glacier. Here, we constructed and deployed an array of 25 tilt sensors into 3 boreholes drilled along the glacier's shear margin. Our goal is to obtain 3D strain measurements to calculate the full velocity field & create deformation regime maps in the vicinity of the boreholes, as well as to support numerical modeling. The tilt sensors were developed in-lab: Each tilt sensor comes equipped with an LSM303C chip (embedded with a 3-axis accelerometer and magnetometer) and Arduino Pro-Mini mounted on a custom-made printed circuit board encased within a watertight aluminum tube. The design concept was to produce a sensor string, consisting of tilt sensors spaced apart at pre-calculated intervals, to be lowered into a borehole and frozen-in over months to collect strain data through a Campbell Scientific CR1000 datalogger. Three surface-to-bed boreholes were successfully installed with tilt sensor strings. Given the lack of prior in-situ borehole geophysics studies on polythermal glaciers, deliberate consideration on factors such as strain relief and waterproofing electrical components was necessary in the development of the sensor system. On-site challenges also arose due

Monitoring of oceanographic properties of Glacier Bay, Alaska 2004

USGS Publications Warehouse

Madison, Erica N.; Etherington, Lisa L.

2005-01-01

Glacier Bay is a recently (300 years ago) deglaciated fjord estuarine system that has multiple sills, very deep basins, tidewater glaciers, and many streams. Glacier Bay experiences a large amount of runoff, high sedimentation, and large tidal variations. High freshwater discharge due to snow and ice melt and the presence of the tidewater glaciers makes the bay extremely cold. There are many small- and large-scale mixing and upwelling zones at sills, glacial faces, and streams. The complex topography and strong currents lead to highly variable salinity, temperature, sediment, primary productivity, light penetration, stratification levels, and current patterns within a small area. The oceanographic patterns within Glacier Bay drive a large portion of the spatial and temporal variability of the ecosystem. It has been widely recognized by scientists and resource managers in Glacier Bay that a program to monitor oceanographic patterns is essential for understanding the marine ecosystem and to differentiate between anthropogenic disturbance and natural variation. This year’s sampling marks the 12th continuous year of monitoring the oceanographic conditions at 23 stations along the primary axes within Glacier Bay, AK, making this a very unique and valuable data set in terms of its spatial and temporal coverage.

Effects of Bedrock Lithology and Subglacial Till on the Motion of Ruth Glacier, Alaska, Deduced from Five Pulses from 1973-2012

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Turrin, J.; Forster, R.; Sauber, Jeanne; Hall, Dorothy K.; Bruhn, R.

2013-01-01

A pulse is a type of unstable glacier flow intermediate between normal flow and surging. Using Landsat MSS, TM, and ETM+ imagery and feature tracking software, a time-series of mostly annual velocity maps from 1973 to 2012 was produced that reveals five pulses of Ruth Glacier, Alaska. Peaks in ice velocity were found in the 1981, 1989, 1997, 2003, and 2010; approximately every 7 years. During these peak years the ice velocity increased 300%, from approximately 40 m/yr to 160 m/yr, and occurred in an area of the glacier underlain by sedimentary bedrock. Based on the spatio-temporal behavior of Ruth Glacier during the pulse cycles, we suggest the pulses are due to enhanced basal motion via deformation of a subglacial till. The cyclical nature of the pulses is theorized to be due to a thin till, with low permeability, that causes incomplete drainage of the till between the pulses, followed by eventual recharge and dilation of the till. These findings suggest care is needed when attempting to correlate changes in regional climate with decadal-scale changes in velocity, because in some instances basal conditions may have a greater influence on ice dynamics than climate.

Using GRACE and climate model simulations to predict mass loss of Alaskan glaciers through 2100

DOE PAGES

Wahr, John; Burgess, Evan; Swenson, Sean

2016-05-30

Glaciers in Alaska are currently losing mass at a rate of ~–50 Gt a –1, one of the largest ice loss rates of any regional collection of mountain glaciers on Earth. Existing projections of Alaska's future sea-level contributions tend to be divergent and are not tied directly to regional observations. Here we develop a simple, regional observation-based projection of Alaska's future sea-level contribution. We compute a time series of recent Alaska glacier mass variability using monthly GRACE gravity fields from August 2002 through December 2014. We also construct a three-parameter model of Alaska glacier mass variability based on monthly ERA-Interimmore » snowfall and temperature fields. When these three model parameters are fitted to the GRACE time series, the model explains 94% of the variance of the GRACE data. Using these parameter values, we then apply the model to simulated fields of monthly temperature and snowfall from the Community Earth System Model, to obtain predictions of mass variations through 2100. Here, we conclude that mass loss rates may increase between –80 and –110 Gt a –1by 2100, with a total sea-level rise contribution of 19 ± 4 mm during the 21st century.« less

Influence of glacier runoff on ecosystem structure in Gulf of Alaska fjords

USGS Publications Warehouse

Arimitsu, Mayumi L.; Piatt, John F.; Mueter, Franz J.

2016-01-01

To better understand the influence of glacier runoff on fjord ecosystems, we sampled oceanographic conditions, nutrients, zooplankton, forage fish and seabirds within 4 fjords in coastal areas of the Gulf Alaska. We used generalized additive models and geostatistics to identify the range of glacier runoff influence into coastal waters within fjords of varying estuarine influence and topographic complexity. We also modeled the response of depth-integrated chlorophyll a concentration, copepod biomass, fish and seabird abundance to physical, nutrient and biotic predictor variables. The effects of glacial runoff were traced at least 10 km into coastal fjords by cold, turbid, stratified and generally nutrient-rich near-surface conditions. Glacially modified physical gradients, nutrient availability and among-fjord differences explained 67% of the variation in phytoplankton abundance, which is a driver of ecosystem structure at higher trophic levels. Copepod, euphausiid, fish and seabird distribution and abundance were related to environmental gradients that could be traced to glacial freshwater input, particularly turbidity and temperature. Seabird density was predicted by prey availability and silicate concentrations, which may be a proxy for upwelling areas where this nutrient is in excess. Similarities in ecosystem structure among fjords were attributable to an influx of cold, fresh and sediment-laden water, whereas differences were likely related to fjord topography and local differences in estuarine vs. ocean influence. We anticipate that continued changes in the timing and volume of glacial runoff will ultimately alter coastal ecosystems in the future.

Spatio-temporal Variation in Glacier Ice as Habitat for Harbor Seals in an Alaskan Tidewater Glacier Fjord

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Womble, J. N.; McNabb, R. W.; Gens, R.; Prakash, A.

2015-12-01

Some of the largest aggregations of harbor seals (Phoca vitulina richardii) in Alaska occur in tidewater glacier fjords where seals rest upon icebergs that are calved from tidewater glaciers into the marine environment. The distribution, amount, and size of floating ice in fjords are likely important factors influencing the spatial distribution and abundance of harbor seals; however, fine-scale characteristics of ice habitat that are used by seals have not been quantified using automated methods. We quantified the seasonal changes in ice habitat for harbor seals in Johns Hopkins Inlet, a tidewater glacier fjord in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska, using aerial photography, object-based image analysis, and spatial models. Aerial photographic surveys (n = 53) were conducted of seals and ice during the whelping (June) and molting (August) seasons from 2007-2014. Surveys were flown along a grid of 12 transects and high-resolution digital photos were taken directly under the plane using a vertically aimed camera. Seal abundance and spatial distribution was consistently higher during June (range: 1,672-4,340) than August (range: 1,075-2,582) and corresponded to the spatial distribution and amount of ice. Preliminary analyses from 2007 suggest that the average percent of icebergs (ice ≥ than 1.6m2) and brash ice (ice < 1.6m2) per scene were greater in June (icebergs: 1.8% ± 1.6%; brash ice: 43.8% ± 38.9%) than August (icebergs: 0.2% ± 0.7%; brash ice; 15.8% ± 26.4%). Iceberg angularity (an index of iceberg shape) was also greater in June (1.7 ± 0.9) than August (0.9 ± 0.9). Potential factors that may influence the spatio-temporal variation in ice habitat for harbor seals in tidewater glacier fjords include frontal ablation rates of glaciers, fjord circulation, and local winds. Harbor seals exhibit high seasonal fidelity to tidewater glacier fjords, thus understanding the relationships between glacier dynamics and harbor seal distribution will be critical for

Spatial Pattern Analysis of Cruise Ship-Humpback Whale Interactions in and Near Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harris, Karin; Gende, Scott M.; Logsdon, Miles G.; Klinger, Terrie

2012-01-01

Understanding interactions between large ships and large whales is important to estimate risks posed to whales by ships. The coastal waters of Alaska are a summer feeding area for humpback whales ( Megaptera novaeangliae) as well as a prominent destination for large cruise ships. Lethal collisions between cruise ships and humpback whales have occurred throughout Alaska, including in Glacier Bay National Park (GBNP). Although the National Park Service (NPS) establishes quotas and operating requirements for cruise ships within GBNP in part to minimize ship-whale collisions, no study has quantified ship-whale interactions in the park or in state waters where ship traffic is unregulated. In 2008 and 2009, an observer was placed on ships during 49 different cruises that included entry into GBNP to record distance and bearing of whales that surfaced within 1 km of the ship's bow. A relative coordinate system was developed in ArcGIS to model the frequency of whale surface events using kernel density. A total of 514 whale surface events were recorded. Although ship-whale interactions were common within GBNP, whales frequently surfaced in front of the bow in waters immediately adjacent to the park (west Icy Strait) where cruise ship traffic is not regulated by the NPS. When ships transited at speeds >13 knots, whales frequently surfaced closer to the ship's midline and ship's bow in contrast to speeds slower than 13 knots. Our findings confirm that ship speed is an effective mitigation measure for protecting whales and should be applied to other areas where ship-whale interactions are common.

Spatial pattern analysis of cruise ship-humpback whale interactions in and near Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.

PubMed

Harris, Karin; Gende, Scott M; Logsdon, Miles G; Klinger, Terrie

2012-01-01

Understanding interactions between large ships and large whales is important to estimate risks posed to whales by ships. The coastal waters of Alaska are a summer feeding area for humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) as well as a prominent destination for large cruise ships. Lethal collisions between cruise ships and humpback whales have occurred throughout Alaska, including in Glacier Bay National Park (GBNP). Although the National Park Service (NPS) establishes quotas and operating requirements for cruise ships within GBNP in part to minimize ship-whale collisions, no study has quantified ship-whale interactions in the park or in state waters where ship traffic is unregulated. In 2008 and 2009, an observer was placed on ships during 49 different cruises that included entry into GBNP to record distance and bearing of whales that surfaced within 1 km of the ship's bow. A relative coordinate system was developed in ArcGIS to model the frequency of whale surface events using kernel density. A total of 514 whale surface events were recorded. Although ship-whale interactions were common within GBNP, whales frequently surfaced in front of the bow in waters immediately adjacent to the park (west Icy Strait) where cruise ship traffic is not regulated by the NPS. When ships transited at speeds >13 knots, whales frequently surfaced closer to the ship's midline and ship's bow in contrast to speeds slower than 13 knots. Our findings confirm that ship speed is an effective mitigation measure for protecting whales and should be applied to other areas where ship-whale interactions are common.

Marine benthic habitat mapping of the West Arm, Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hodson, Timothy O.; Cochrane, Guy R.; Powell, Ross D.

2013-01-01

Seafloor geology and potential benthic habitats were mapped in West Arm, Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Alaska, using multibeam sonar, groundtruthed observations, and geological interpretations. The West Arm of Glacier Bay is a recently deglaciated fjord system under the influence of glacial and paraglacial marine processes. High glacially derived sediment and meltwater fluxes, slope instabilities, and variable bathymetry result in a highly dynamic estuarine environment and benthic ecosystem. We characterize the fjord seafloor and potential benthic habitats using the recently developed Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standard (CMECS) by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and NatureServe. Due to the high flux of glacially sourced fines, mud is the dominant substrate within the West Arm. Water-column characteristics are addressed using a combination of CTD and circulation model results. We also present sediment accumulation data derived from differential bathymetry. These data show the West Arm is divided into two contrasting environments: a dynamic upper fjord and a relatively static lower fjord. The results of these analyses serve as a test of the CMECS classification scheme and as a baseline for ongoing and future mapping efforts and correlations between seafloor substrate, benthic habitats, and glacimarine processes.

Mendenhall Glacier (Juneau, Alaska) icequake seismicity and its relationship to the 2012 outburst flood and other environmental forcing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morgan, P. M.; Walter, J. I.; Peng, Z.; Amundson, J. M.; Meng, X.

2013-12-01

Glacial outburst floods occur when ice-dammed lakes or other reservoirs on the glacier release large volumes of water usually due to the failure of an ice dam. In 2011 and 2012 these types of floods have occurred at Mendenhall Glacier in Southeast Alaska, 15 km northwest of Juneau. The floods emanated from a lake within a remnant branch of Mendenhall Glacier, called Suicide Basin, and rapidly changed the levels of Mendenhall Lake. Homes on the shore of Mendenhall Lake were threatened by rapidly rising lake levels during such floods. We analyze data from a set of 4 short and broadband period seismometers placed in ice-boreholes in an array on Mendenhall Glacier for a period of 4 months in 2012. We also examine the outburst flood that occurred between July 4th and 8th 2012. We first manually pick icequakes as high-frequency bursts recorded by at least two stations. Next, we use a matched-filter technique to help complete the icequake record by detecting missed events with similar waveforms to those hand-picked events. While high-frequency noise was present during the flooding, the impulsive icequake activity did not appear to be modulated significantly during periods of flooding, suggesting that the flooding does not significantly deform the overlying ice. Impulsive icequake activity appears to show strongly diurnal periodicity, indicating that the icequakes were mainly caused by expansion/contraction of ice during daytime. We also analyze the activity in concert with GPS velocity and meteorological data from the area. By analyzing the temporal and spatial patterns of the events we hope to reveal more about the fundamental processes occurring beneath Mendenhall Glacier.

Hydrography and circulation of ice-marginal lakes at Bering Glacier, Alaska, U.S.A.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Josberger, E.G.; Shuchman, R.A.; Meadows, G.A.; Savage, S.; Payne, J.

2006-01-01

An extensive suite of physical oceanographic, remotely sensed, and water quality measurements, collected from 2001 through 2004 in two ice-marginal lakes at Bering Glacier, Alaska-Berg Lake and Vitus Lake-show that each has a unique circulation controlled by their specific physical forcing within the glacial system. Conductivity profiles from Berg Lake, perched 135 m a.s.l., show no salt in the lake, but the temperature profiles indicate an apparently unstable situation, the 4??C density maximum is located at 10 m depth, not at the bottom of the lake (90 m depth). Subglacial discharge from the Steller Glacier into the bottom of the lake must inject a suspended sediment load sufficient to marginally stabilize the water column throughout the lake. In Vitus Lake, terminus positions derived from satellite imagery show that the glacier terminus rapidly retreated from 1995 to the present resulting in a substantial expansion of the volume of Vitus Lake. Conductivity and temperature profiles from the tidally influenced Vitus Lake show a complex four-layer system with diluted (???50%) seawater in the bottom of the lake. This lake has a complex vertical structure that is the result of convection generated by ice melting in salt water, stratification within the lake, and freshwater entering the lake from beneath the glacier and surface runoff. Four consecutive years, from 2001 to 2004, of these observations in Vitus Lake show little change in the deep temperature and salinity conditions, indicating limited deep water renewal. The combination of the lake level measurements with discharge measurements, through a tidal cycle, by an acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) deployed in the Seal River, which drains the entire Bering system, showed a strong tidal influence but no seawater entry into Vitus Lake. The ADCP measurements combined with lake level measurements established a relationship between lake level and discharge, which when integrated over a tidal cycle, gives a

Glacier fluctuations in the Kenai Fjords, Alaska, U.S.A.: An evaluation of controls on Iceberg-calving glaciers

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wiles, G.C.; Calkin, P.E.; Post, A.

The histories of four iceberg-calving outlet-glacier systems in the Kenai Fjords National Park underscore the importance of fiord depth, sediment supply, and fiord geometry on glacier stability. These parameters, in turn, limit the reliability of calving glacier chronologies as records of climatic change. Tree-ring analysis together with radiocarbon dating show that the Northwestern and McCarty glaciers, with large drainage basins, were advancing in concert with nearby land-terminating glaciers about A.D. 600. After an interval of retreat and possible nonclimatically induced extension during the Medieval Warm Period, these ice margins advanced again through the Little Ice Age and then retreated synchronouslymore » with the surrounding land-terminating glaciers about A.D. 1900. In contrast, Holgate and Aialik glaciers, with deeper fiords and smaller basins, retreated about 300 yr earlier. Reconstructions of Little Ice Age glaciers suggest that equilibrium-line altitudes of Northwestern and McCarty glaciers were, respectively, 270 and 500 m lower than now. Furthermore, the reconstructions show that these two glaciers were climatically sensitive when at their terminal moranies. However, with ice margins at their present recessional positions and accumulation area ratios between 0.8 and 0.9, only McCarty Glacier shows evidence of advance. Aialik and Holgate glaciers were climatically insensitive during the Little Ice Age maxima and remain insensitive to climate. 40 refs., 7 figs., 2 tabs.« less

GeoFORCE Alaska, A Successful Summer Exploring Alaska's Geology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wartes, D.

2012-12-01

and minority students into the geosciences. View them as they explore the permafrost tunnel in Fairbanks, sand dunes in Anchorage, Portage Glacier, Matanuska-Susitna Glacier, and the Trans-Alaska pipeline damage from the earthquake of 2002.

Columbia Glacier in 1984: disintegration underway

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Meier, M.F.; Rasmussen, L.A.; Miller, D.S.

1985-01-01

Columbia Glacier is a large, iceberg-calving glacier near Valdez, Alaska. The terminus of this glacier was relatively stable from the time of the first scientific studies in 1899 until 1978. During this period the glacier terminated partly on Heather Island and partly on a submerged moraine shoal. In December, 1978, the glacier terminus retreated from Heather Island, and retreat has accelerated each year since then, except during a period of anomalously low calving in 1980. Although the glacier has not terminated on Heather Island since 1978, a portion of the terminus remained on the crest of the moraine shoal untilmore » the fall of 1983. By December 8, 1983, that feature had receded more than 300 m from the crest of the shoal, and by December 14, 1984, had disappeared completely, leaving most of the terminus more than 2000 meters behind the crest of the shoal. Recession of the glacier from the shoal has placed the terminus in deeper water, although the glacier does not float. The active calving face of the glacier now terminates in seawater that is about 300 meters deep at the glacier centerline. Rapid calving appears to be associated with buoyancy effects due to deep water at the terminus and subglacial runoff. 12 refs., 10 figs.« less

Unusually loud ambient noise in tidewater glacier fjords: a signal of ice melt

USGS Publications Warehouse

Pettit, Erin C.; Lee, Kevin M.; Brann, Joel P.; Nystuen, Jeffrey A.; Wilson, Preston S.; O'Neel, Shad

2015-01-01

In glacierized fjords, the ice-ocean boundary is a physically and biologically dynamic environment that is sensitive to both glacier flow and ocean circulation. Ocean ambient noise offers insight into processes and change at the ice-ocean boundary. Here we characterize fjord ambient noise and show that the average noise levels are louder than nearly all measured natural oceanic environments (significantly louder than sea ice and non-glacierized fjords). Icy Bay, Alaska has an annual average sound pressure level of 120 dB (re 1 μPa) with a broad peak between 1000 and 3000 Hz. Bubble formation in the water column as glacier ice melts is the noise source, with variability driven by fjord circulation patterns. Measurements from two additional fjords, in Alaska and Antarctica, support that this unusually loud ambient noise in Icy Bay is representative of glacierized fjords. These high noise levels likely alter the behavior of marine mammals.

McCall Glacier record of Arctic climate change: Interpreting a northern Alaska ice core with regional water isotopes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klein, E. S.; Nolan, M.; McConnell, J.; Sigl, M.; Cherry, J.; Young, J.; Welker, J. M.

2016-01-01

We explored modern precipitation and ice core isotope ratios to better understand both modern and paleo climate in the Arctic. Paleoclimate reconstructions require an understanding of how modern synoptic climate influences proxies used in those reconstructions, such as water isotopes. Therefore we measured periodic precipitation samples at Toolik Lake Field Station (Toolik) in the northern foothills of the Brooks Range in the Alaskan Arctic to determine δ18O and δ2H. We applied this multi-decadal local precipitation δ18O/temperature regression to ∼65 years of McCall Glacier (also in the Brooks Range) ice core isotope measurements and found an increase in reconstructed temperatures over the late-20th and early-21st centuries. We also show that the McCall Glacier δ18O isotope record is negatively correlated with the winter bidecadal North Pacific Index (NPI) climate oscillation. McCall Glacier deuterium excess (d-excess, δ2H - 8*δ18O) values display a bidecadal periodicity coherent with the NPI and suggest shifts from more southwestern Bering Sea moisture sources with less sea ice (lower d-excess values) to more northern Arctic Ocean moisture sources with more sea ice (higher d-excess values). Northern ice covered Arctic Ocean McCall Glacier moisture sources are associated with weak Aleutian Low (AL) circulation patterns and the southern moisture sources with strong AL patterns. Ice core d-excess values significantly decrease over the record, coincident with warmer temperatures and a significant reduction in Alaska sea ice concentration, which suggests that ice free northern ocean waters are increasingly serving as terrestrial precipitation moisture sources; a concept recently proposed by modeling studies and also present in Greenland ice core d-excess values during previous transitions to warm periods. This study also shows the efficacy and importance of using ice cores from Arctic valley glaciers in paleoclimate reconstructions.

Crevasses as indicators of surge dynamics in the Bering Bagley Glacier System, Alaska: Numerical experiments and comparison to image data analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Trantow, T.; Herzfeld, U. C.

2016-12-01

During a surge, sections of a glacier will accelerate 10-100 times their normal flow velocity resulting in sudden changes in the local stress regime. A glacier surface can fracture when a critical stress threshold is exceeded resulting in surface deformation, i.e. crevassing. During a recent field campaign to Bering Glacier, Alaska, in 2011 (and later in 2012, 2013), large scale deformation of the glacier surface was observed, indicating a major surge phase had recently occurred (Herzfeld et al. 2013). In the current study, geostatistical analysis is applied to satellite imagery to characterize the surge-induced crevasses that were present during the surge phase that began in early 2011. Results are compared to a three-dimensional, isothermal, full-Stokes model of Bering Glacier implemented in the open-source finite element software Elmer/Ice, which predicts locations and orientations of crevassing based on a failure criterion involving the magnitude(s) of the principal stress(es). Since most of the movement during a surge is due to basal sliding from decreased friction at the ice-bedrock interface, a relatively accurate representation of the the basal conditions is required to accurately model the ice dynamics and hence its stress regime. To achieve this, we invert velocity data derived from image correlation to attain estimations of the basal friction coefficient that governs basal sliding in the model. The methods employed here provide a procedure to identify discrepancies between observations and models of ice-flow during acceleration events.

Alaska Special Education Recruitment and Retention Resource Manual.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schnorr, Janice M.; Brady, Nancy J.

This resource manual is designed to assist Alaska school districts in recruiting and retaining special education teachers. It offers 50 practical suggestions for developing an effective recruitment program, focusing on the processes of gathering information; developing recruiters, materials, and strategies; and screening and interviewing…

30 CFR 716.6 - Coal mines in Alaska.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 30 Mineral Resources 3 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Coal mines in Alaska. 716.6 Section 716.6... PROGRAM REGULATIONS SPECIAL PERFORMANCE STANDARDS § 716.6 Coal mines in Alaska. (a) Permittees of surface coal mining operations in Alaska from which coal has been mined on or after August 3, 1977, shall...

30 CFR 716.6 - Coal mines in Alaska.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 30 Mineral Resources 3 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Coal mines in Alaska. 716.6 Section 716.6... PROGRAM REGULATIONS SPECIAL PERFORMANCE STANDARDS § 716.6 Coal mines in Alaska. (a) Permittees of surface coal mining operations in Alaska from which coal has been mined on or after August 3, 1977, shall...

30 CFR 716.6 - Coal mines in Alaska.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 30 Mineral Resources 3 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Coal mines in Alaska. 716.6 Section 716.6... PROGRAM REGULATIONS SPECIAL PERFORMANCE STANDARDS § 716.6 Coal mines in Alaska. (a) Permittees of surface coal mining operations in Alaska from which coal has been mined on or after August 3, 1977, shall...

30 CFR 716.6 - Coal mines in Alaska.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 30 Mineral Resources 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Coal mines in Alaska. 716.6 Section 716.6... PROGRAM REGULATIONS SPECIAL PERFORMANCE STANDARDS § 716.6 Coal mines in Alaska. (a) Permittees of surface coal mining operations in Alaska from which coal has been mined on or after August 3, 1977, shall...

30 CFR 716.6 - Coal mines in Alaska.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 30 Mineral Resources 3 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Coal mines in Alaska. 716.6 Section 716.6... PROGRAM REGULATIONS SPECIAL PERFORMANCE STANDARDS § 716.6 Coal mines in Alaska. (a) Permittees of surface coal mining operations in Alaska from which coal has been mined on or after August 3, 1977, shall...

Ocean forcing drives glacier retreat sometimes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bassis, J. N.; Ultee, E.; Ma, Y.

2015-12-01

Observations show that marine-terminating glaciers respond to climate forcing nonlinearly, with periods of slow or negligible glacier advance punctuated by abrupt, rapid retreat. Once glacier retreat has initiated, glaciers can quickly stabilize with a new terminus position. Alternatively, retreat can be sustained for decades (or longer), as is the case for Columbia Glacier, Alaska where retreat initiated ~1984 and continues to this day. Surprisingly, patterns of glacier retreat show ambiguous or even contradictory correlations with atmospheric temperature and glacier surface mass balance. Despite these puzzles, observations increasingly show that intrusion of warm subsurface ocean water into fjords can lead to glacier erosion rates that can account for a substantial portion of the total mass lost from glaciers. Here we use a simplified flowline model to show that even relatively modest submarine melt rates (~100 m/a) near the terminus of grounded glaciers can trigger large increases in iceberg calving leading to rapid glacier retreat. However, the strength of the coupling between submarine melt and calving is a strong function of the geometry of the glacier (bed topography, ice thickness and glacier width). This can lead to irreversible retreat when the terminus is thick and grounded deeply beneath sea level or result in little change when the glacier is relatively thin, grounded in shallow water or pinned in a narrow fjord. Because of the strong dependence on glacier geometry, small perturbations in submarine melting can trigger glaciers in their most advanced—and geometrically precarious—state to undergo sudden retreat followed by much slower re-advance. Although many details remain speculative, our model hints that some glaciers are more sensitive than others to ocean forcing and that some of the nonlinearities of glacier response to climate change may be attributable to variations in difficult-to-detect subsurface water temperatures that need to be better

Gulkana Glacier, Alaska-Mass balance, meteorology, and water measurements, 1997-2001

USGS Publications Warehouse

March, Rod S.; O'Neel, Shad

2011-01-01

The measured winter snow, maximum winter snow, net, and annual balances for 1997-2001 in the Gulkana Glacier basin are determined at specific points and over the entire glacier area using the meteorological, hydrological, and glaciological data. We provide descriptions of glacier geometry to aid in estimation of conventional and reference surface mass balances and descriptions of ice motion to aid in the understanding of the glacier's response to its changing geometry. These data provide annual estimates for area altitude distribution, equilibrium line altitude, and accumulation area ratio during the study interval. New determinations of historical area altitude distributions are given for 1900 and annually from 1966 to 2001. As original weather instrumentation is nearing the end of its deployment lifespan, we provide new estimates of overlap comparisons and precipitation catch efficiency. During 1997-2001, Gulkana Glacier showed a continued and accelerated negative mass balance trend, especially below the equilibrium line altitude where thinning was pronounced. Ice motion also slowed, which combined with the negative mass balance, resulted in glacier retreat under a warming climate. Average annual runoff augmentation by glacier shrinkage for 1997-2001 was 25 percent compared to the previous average of 13 percent, in accordance with the measured glacier volume reductions.

Recent Elevation Changes on Bagley Ice Valley, Guyot and Yahtse Glaciers, Alaska, from ICESat Altimetry, Star-3i Airborne, and SRTM Spaceborne DEMs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Muskett, R. R.; Sauber, J. M.; Lingle, C. S.; Rabus, B. T.; Tangborn, W. V.; Echelmeyer, K. A.

2005-12-01

Three- to 5-year surface elevation changes on Bagley Ice Valley, Guyot and Yahtse Glaciers, in the eastern Chugach and St. Elias Mtns of south-central Alaska, are estimated using ICESat-derived data and digital elevation models (DEMs) derived from interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) data. The surface elevations of these glaciers are influenced by climatic warming superimposed on surge dynamics (in the case of Bagley Ice Valley) and tidewater glacier dynamics (in the cases of Guyot and Yahtse Glaciers) in this coastal high-precipitation regime. Bagley Ice Valley / Bering Glacier last surged in 1993-95. Guyot and Yahtse Glaciers, as well as the nearby Tyndell Glacier, have experienced massive tidewater retreat during the past century, as well as during recent decades. The ICESat-derived elevation data we employ were acquired in early autumn in both 2003 and 2004. The NASA/NIMA Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) DEM that we employ was derived from X-band InSAR data acquired during this 11-22 Feb. 2000 mission and processed by the German Aerospace Center. This DEM was corrected for estimated systematic error, and a mass balance model was employed to account for seasonal snow accumulation. The Star-3i airborne, X-band, InSAR-derived DEM that we employ was acquired 4-13 Sept. 2000 by Intermap Technologies, Inc., and was also processed by them. The ICESat-derived profiles crossing Bagley Ice Valley, differenced with Star-3i DEM elevations, indicate preliminary mean along-profile elevation increases of 5.6 ± 3.4 m at 1315 m altitude, 7.4 ± 2.7 m at 1448 m altitude, 4.7 ± 1.9 m at 1557 m altitude, 1.3 ± 1.4 m at 1774 m altitude, and 2.5 ± 1.5 m at 1781 m altitude. This is qualitatively consistent with the rising surface on Bagley Ice Valley observed by Muskett et al. [2003]. The ICESat-derived profiles crossing Yahtse Glacier, differenced with the SRTM DEM elevations, indicate preliminary mean elevation changes (negative implies decrease) of -0.9 ± 3

A 30-year record of surface mass balance (1966-95) and motion and surface altitude (1975-95) at Wolverine Glacier, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mayo, Lawrence R.; Trabant, Dennis C.; March, Rod S.

2004-01-01

Scientific measurements at Wolverine Glacier, on the Kenai Peninsula in south-central Alaska, began in April 1966. At three long-term sites in the research basin, the measurements included snow depth, snow density, heights of the glacier surface and stratigraphic summer surfaces on stakes, and identification of the surface materials. Calculations of the mass balance of the surface strata-snow, new firn, superimposed ice, and old firn and ice mass at each site were based on these measurements. Calculations of fixed-date annual mass balances for each hydrologic year (October 1 to September 30), as well as net balances and the dates of minimum net balance measured between time-transgressive summer surfaces on the glacier, were made on the basis of the strata balances augmented by air temperature and precipitation recorded in the basin. From 1966 through 1995, the average annual balance at site A (590 meters altitude) was -4.06 meters water equivalent; at site B (1,070 meters altitude), was -0.90 meters water equivalent; and at site C (1,290 meters altitude), was +1.45 meters water equivalent. Geodetic determination of displacements of the mass balance stake, and glacier surface altitudes was added to the data set in 1975 to detect the glacier motion responses to variable climate and mass balance conditions. The average surface speed from 1975 to 1996 was 50.0 meters per year at site A, 83.7 meters per year at site B, and 37.2 meters per year at site C. The average surface altitudes were 594 meters at site A, 1,069 meters at site B, and 1,293 meters at site C; the glacier surface altitudes rose and fell over a range of 19.4 meters at site A, 14.1 meters at site B, and 13.2 meters at site C.

Columbia Glacier stake location, mass balance, glacier surface altitude, and ice radar data, 1978 measurement year

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mayo, L.R.; Trabant, D.C.; March, Rod; Haeberli, Wilfried

1979-01-01

A 1 year data-collection program on Columbia Glacier, Alaska has produced a data set consisting of near-surface ice kinematics, mass balance, and altitude change at 57 points and 34 ice radar soundings. These data presented in two tables, are part of the basic data required for glacier dynamic analysis, computer models, and predictions of the number and size of icebergs which Columbia Glacier will calve into shipping lanes of eastern Prince William Sound. A metric, sea-level coordinate system was developed for use in surveying throughout the basin. Its use is explained and monument coordinates listed. A series of seven integrated programs for calculators were used in both the field and office to reduce the surveying data. These programs are thoroughly documented and explained in the report. (Kosco-USGS)

Inferring glacial flow pathways with DNA-labelled microparticle tracers at the Wolverine Glacier in Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McNew, Coy; Dahlke, Helen; O'Neel, Shad; McLaughlin, Seanna

2017-04-01

Though recent advances have been made in the understanding of glacial hydrologic pathways, accurate predictions and descriptions of glacial hydrologic processes remain a challenge. The most common method to investigate subglacial pathways tends to be dye tracing. Due to the limited number of unique dye tracers, the photodegradability of some, and the typically long breakthrough times associated with such pathways, dye tracing experiments tend to be restricted to only a few injections, and therefore the contribution of only a few pathways can be investigated at a time. Five uniquely DNA-labelled microparticle tracers were injected in five different locations throughout the Wolverine Glacier ablation zone, one of two "benchmark glaciers" in Alaska and the subject of long term study by the United States Geological Survey. Stream water was sampled several hundred meters downstream at regular intervals and later analyzed for the presence of each tracer. Since each tracer was tagged with a unique sequence of DNA, the contribution of each to the total outflow can be quantified independently. Preliminary results indicate relatively short transit times, suggesting that the ablation zone is characterized by a high-volume (low pressure) subglacial hydrologic network (i.e. conduits). Here we present the results of the study, the challenges faced, and a discussion on the potential of the DNA-labelled microtracer technology.

Calving of Talyor Glacier, Dry Valleys, Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carmichael, J. D.; Pettit, E. C.; Creager, K. C.; Hallet, B.

2007-12-01

Calving of tide-water glaciers has received considerable attention, with seismic arrays in Alaska, Greenland, and Antarctica devoted to their observation. In these environments, ice cliffs are directly coupled to oceanic temperatures. The land-based polar glaciers of the McMurdo Dry Valleys in Antarctica represent a simpler environment unaffected directly by water contact where other factors can be isolated. In particular, summer calving events of Taylor Glacier are observed to consist of precursory activity including crack growth, cliff overhang, and active seismicity at least 1 hour before collapse. We propose that collapse occurs only after a stress threshold has been crossed, evident from 'pre-calving' of ice from the cliff base 1-3 days prior to the major event. We provide photographic, seismic, and temperature data to illustrate the thermal and stress landscape for land-based calving of polar glaciers.

Differences in dissolved organic matter lability between alpine glaciers and alpine rock glaciers of the American West

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hall, E.; Fegel, T. S., II; Baron, J.; Boot, C. M.

2015-12-01

While alpine glaciers in montane regions represent the largest flux of dissolved organic matter (DOM) from global ice melt no research has examined the bioavailability of DOM melted out of glacial ice in the western continental United States. Furthermore, rock glaciers are an order of magnitude more abundant than ice glaciers in U.S., yet are not included in budgets for perennial ice carbon stores. Our research aims to understand differences in the bioavailability of carbon from ice glaciers and rock glaciers along the Central Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Identical microbial communities were fed standardized amounts of DOM from four different ice glacier-rock glaciers pairs. Using laboratory incubations, paired with mass spectrometry based metabolomics and 16S gene sequencing; we were able to examine functional definitions of DOM lability in glacial ice. We hypothesized that even though DOM quantities are similar in the outputs of both glacial types in our study area, ice glacial DOM would be more bioavailable than DOM from rock glaciers due to higher proportions of byproducts from microbial metabolism than rock glacier DOM, which has higher amounts of "recalcitrant" plant material. Our results show that DOM from ice glaciers is more labile than DOM from geologically and geographically similar paired rock glaciers. Ice glacier DOM represents an important pool of labile carbon to headwater ecosystems of the Rocky Mountains. Metabolomic analysis shows numerous compounds from varying metabolite pathways, including byproducts of nitrification before and after incubation, meaning that, similar to large maritime glaciers in Alaska and Europe, subglacial environments in the mountain ranges of the United States are hotspots for biological activity and processing of organic carbon.

An empirical approach for estimating stress-coupling lengths for marine-terminating glaciers

USGS Publications Warehouse

Enderlin, Ellyn; Hamilton, Gordon S.; O'Neel, Shad; Bartholomaus, Timothy C.; Morlighem, Mathieu; Holt, John W.

2016-01-01

Here we present a new empirical method to estimate the SCL for marine-terminating glaciers using high-resolution observations. We use the empirically-determined periodicity in resistive stress oscillations as a proxy for the SCL. Application of our empirical method to two well-studied tidewater glaciers (Helheim Glacier, SE Greenland, and Columbia Glacier, Alaska, USA) demonstrates that SCL estimates obtained using this approach are consistent with theory (i.e., can be parameterized as a function of the ice thickness) and with prior, independent SCL estimates. In order to accurately resolve stress variations, we suggest that similar empirical stress-coupling parameterizations be employed in future analyses of glacier dynamics.

Alaska Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) Facility science data processing architecture

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hilland, Jeffrey E.; Bicknell, Thomas; Miller, Carol L.

1991-01-01

The paper describes the architecture of the Alaska SAR Facility (ASF) at Fairbanks, being developed to generate science data products for supporting research in sea ice motion, ice classification, sea-ice-ocean interaction, glacier behavior, ocean waves, and hydrological and geological study areas. Special attention is given to the individual substructures of the ASF: the Receiving Ground Station (RGS), the SAR Processor System, and the Interactive Image Analysis System. The SAR data will be linked to the RGS by the ESA ERS-1 and ERS-2, the Japanese ERS-1, and the Canadian Radarsat.

36 CFR 13.1106 - Pets.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Administrative... beach between the Bartlett Cove Public Use Dock and the National Park Service Administrative Dock; (c...

36 CFR 13.1106 - Pets.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Administrative... beach between the Bartlett Cove Public Use Dock and the National Park Service Administrative Dock; (c...

36 CFR 13.1106 - Pets.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Administrative... beach between the Bartlett Cove Public Use Dock and the National Park Service Administrative Dock; (c...

Dynamic behavior of the Bering Glacier-Bagley icefield system during a surge, and other measurements of Alaskan glaciers with ERS SAR imagery

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lingle, Craig S.; Fatland, Dennis R.; Voronina, Vera A.; Ahlnaes, Kristina; Troshina, Elena N.

1997-01-01

ERS-1 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery was employed for the measurement of the dynamics of the Bagley icefield during a major surge in 1993-1994, the measurement of ice velocities on the Malaspina piedmont glacier during a quiescent phase between surges, and for mapping the snow lines and the position of the terminus of Nabesna glacier on Mount Wrangell (a 4317 m andesitic shield volcano) in the heavily glacierized Saint Elias and Wrangell Mountains of Alaska. An overview and summary of results is given. The methods used include interferometry, cross-correlation of sequential images, and digitization of boundaries using terrain-corrected SAR imagery.

Observations and analysis of self-similar branching topology in glacier networks

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bahr, D.B.; Peckham, S.D.

1996-01-01

Glaciers, like rivers, have a branching structure which can be characterized by topological trees or networks. Probability distributions of various topological quantities in the networks are shown to satisfy the criterion for self-similarity, a symmetry structure which might be used to simplify future models of glacier dynamics. Two analytical methods of describing river networks, Shreve's random topology model and deterministic self-similar trees, are applied to the six glaciers of south central Alaska studied in this analysis. Self-similar trees capture the topological behavior observed for all of the glaciers, and most of the networks are also reasonably approximated by Shreve's theory. Copyright 1996 by the American Geophysical Union.

An integrated geospatial approach to monitoring the Bering Glacier system, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Josberger, E.G.; Payne, J.; Savage, S.; Shuchman, R.; Meadows, G.

2004-01-01

The Bering Glacier is the largest and longest glacier in continental North America, with an area of approximately 5,175 km2, and a length of 190 km. It is also the largest surging glacier in America, having surged at least five times during the twentieth century. The last surge of the Bering Glacier occurred in 1993-1995, since then, the glacier has undergone constant and significant retreat thereby expanding the boundaries of Vitus Lake and creating a highly dynamic system, both ecologically and hydrologically. This study utilized GIS to integrate remote sensing observations, with detailed bathymetric, hydrographic and in situ water quality measurements of the rapidly expanding Vitus Lake. Vitus Lake has nearly doubled in surface area from 58.4 km2 to 108.8 km2, with a corresponding increase in water volume from 6.1 km3 to 10.5 km3 over the same period. The remote sensing observations were used to direct a systematic bathymetric, hydrographic and water quality measurement survey in Vitus Lake which revealed a complex three dimensional structure that is the result of sea water inflow, convection generated by ice melting and the injection of fresh water from beneath the glacier.

Estimating Velocities of Glaciers Using Sentinel-1 SAR Imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gens, R.; Arnoult, K., Jr.; Friedl, P.; Vijay, S.; Braun, M.; Meyer, F. J.; Gracheva, V.; Hogenson, K.

2017-12-01

In an international collaborative effort, software has been developed to estimate the velocities of glaciers by using Sentinel-1 Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery. The technique, initially designed by the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU), has been previously used to quantify spatial and temporal variabilities in the velocities of surging glaciers in the Pakistan Karakoram. The software estimates surface velocities by first co-registering image pairs to sub-pixel precision and then by estimating local offsets based on cross-correlation. The Alaska Satellite Facility (ASF) at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) has modified the software to make it more robust and also capable of migration into the Amazon Cloud. Additionally, ASF has implemented a prototype that offers the glacier tracking processing flow as a subscription service as part of its Hybrid Pluggable Processing Pipeline (HyP3). Since the software is co-located with ASF's cloud-based Sentinel-1 archive, processing of large data volumes is now more efficient and cost effective. Velocity maps are estimated for Single Look Complex (SLC) SAR image pairs and a digital elevation model (DEM) of the local topography. A time series of these velocity maps then allows the long-term monitoring of these glaciers. Due to the all-weather capabilities and the dense coverage of Sentinel-1 data, the results are complementary to optically generated ones. Together with the products from the Global Land Ice Velocity Extraction project (GoLIVE) derived from Landsat 8 data, glacier speeds can be monitored more comprehensively. Examples from Sentinel-1 SAR-derived results are presented along with optical results for the same glaciers.

Alaska: Glaciers of Kenai Fjords National Park and Katmai National Park and Preserve

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Giffens, Bruce A.; Hall, Dorothy K.; Chien, Janet Y. L.

2014-01-01

There are hundreds of glaciers in Kenai Fjords National Park (KEFJ) and Katmai National Park and Preserve (KATM) covering over 2,276 sq km of park land (ca. 2000). There are two primary glacierized areas in KEFJ (the Harding Icefield and the Grewingk-Yalik Glacier Complex) and three primary glacierized areas in KATM (the Mt. Douglas area, the Kukak Volcano to Mt. Katmai area, and the Mt. Martin area). Most glaciers in these parks terminate on land, though a few terminate in lakes. Only KEFJ has tidewater glaciers, which terminate in the ocean. Glacier mapping and analysis of the change in glacier extent has been accomplished on a decadal scale using satellite imagery, primarily Landsat data from the 1970s, 1980s, and from2000. Landsat Multispectral Scanner (MSS),Thematic Mapper (TM), and Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM) imagery was used to map glacier extent on a park-wide basis. Classification of glacier ice using image-processing software, along with extensive manual editing, was employed to create Geographic Information System (GIS)outlines of the glacier extent for each park. Many glaciers that originate in KEFJ but terminate outside the park boundaries were also mapped. Results of the analysis show that there has been a reduction in the amount of glacier ice cover in the two parks over the study period. Our measurements show a reduction of approximately 21 sq km, or 1.5(from 1986 to 2000), and 76 sq km, or 7.7 (from19861987 to 2000), in KEFJ and KATM, respectively. This work represents the first comprehensive study of glaciers of KATM. Issues that complicate the mapping of glacier extent include debris cover(moraine and volcanic ash), shadows, clouds, fresh snow, lingering snow from the previous season, and differences in spatial resolution between the MSS,TM, or ETM sensors. Similar glacier mapping efforts in western Canada estimate mapping errors of 34. Measurements were also collected from a suite of glaciers in KEFJ and KATM detailing terminus positions

Distribution of ground-nesting marine birds along shorelines in Glacier Bay, southeastern Alaska: An assessment related to potential disturbance by back-country users

USGS Publications Warehouse

Arimitsu, Mayumi L.; Piatt, John F.; Romano, Marc D.

2007-01-01

With the exception of a few large colonies, the distribution of ground-nesting marine birds in Glacier Bay National Park in southeastern Alaska is largely unknown. As visitor use increases in back-country areas of the park, there is growing concern over the potential impact of human activities on breeding birds. During the 2003–05 breeding seasons, the shoreline of Glacier Bay was surveyed to locate ground-nesting marine birds and their nesting areas, including wildlife closures and historical sites for egg collection by Alaska Native peoples. The nesting distribution of four common ground-nesting marine bird species was determined: Arctic Tern (Sterna paradisaea), Black Oystercatcher (Haematopus bachmani), Mew Gull (Larus canus), and Glaucous-winged Gull (Larus glaucescens). Observations of less abundant species also were recorded, including Herring Gull (Larus argentatus), Red-throated Loon (Gavia stellata), Canada Goose (Branta canadensis), Willow Ptarmigan (Lagopus lagopus), Semipalmated Plover (Charadrius semipalmatus), Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularia), Least Sandpiper (Calidris minutilla), Parasitic Jaeger (Stercorarius parasiticus), and Aleutian Tern (Sterna aleutica). Nesting distribution for Arctic Terns was largely restricted to the upper arms of the bay and a few treeless islets in the lower bay, whereas Black Oystercatchers were more widely distributed along shorelines in the park. Mew Gulls nested throughout the upper bay in Geikie Inlet and in Fingers and Berg Bays, and most Glaucous-winged Gull nests were found at wildlife closures in the central and lower bays. Several areas were identified where human disturbance could affect breeding birds. This study comprises the first bay-wide survey for the breeding distribution of ground-nesting marine birds in Glacier Bay National Park, providing a minimum estimate of their numbers and distribution within the park. This information can be used to assess future human disturbance and track natural

Publications - PIR 2015-5-5 | Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical

Science.gov Websites

., 2015, Stratigraphic reconnaissance of the Middle Jurassic Red Glacier Formation, Tuxedni Group, at Red Surveys Skip to content State of Alaska myAlaska My Government Resident Business in Alaska content DGGS PIR 2015-5-5 Publication Details Title: Stratigraphic reconnaissance of the Middle Jurassic

75 FR 3888 - Migratory Bird Subsistence Harvest in Alaska; Harvest Regulations for Migratory Birds in Alaska...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-01-25

...-0082; 91200-1231-9BPP-L2] RIN 1018-AW67 Migratory Bird Subsistence Harvest in Alaska; Harvest Regulations for Migratory Birds in Alaska During the 2010 Season AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior... Service, are reopening the public comment period on our proposed rule to establish migratory bird...

Surface expression of subglacial meltwater movement, Bering Glacier, Alaska

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Cadwell, D.H.; Fleisher, P.J.; Bailey, P.K.

1993-03-01

Longitudinal topographic profiles (1988--1992) across the thermokarst terminus of the Grindle Hills Ice-tongue and interlobate moraine of the Bering Piedmont Glacier document annual changes in crevasse patterns and fluctuations in surface elevation related to subglacial water movement. A semi-continuous record of aerial photos (1978--1990), plus field observations (1988--1992), reveal the progressive enlargement of two lateral collapse basin on both sides of the thermokarst, connected by a transverse collapse trough. Seasonally generated meltwater at depth rises within the glacier, fills the basins and other depressions and lifts the thermokarst terminus of the ice-tongue a few meters by buoyancy and hydrostatic pressure.more » The resulting surface tension creates a chaotic crevasse pattern unrelated to normal glacier movement. The crevasses open (2 m wide, 8--10 m deep) in response to increased water accumulation at depth and close during subsidence as the ice-tongue settles following evacuation of subglacier water. A network of open conduits (>10 m diameter), exposed by surface ablation, provides evidence for the scale of englacial passageways beneath the thermokarst and represents a form of subglacial ablation that leads to removal of support and collapse in stagnant glacier masses.« less

Enhancement of a parsimonious water balance model to simulate surface hydrology in a glacierized watershed

USGS Publications Warehouse

Valentin, Melissa M.; Viger, Roland J.; Van Beusekom, Ashley E.; Hay, Lauren E.; Hogue, Terri S.; Foks, Nathan Leon

2018-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey monthly water balance model (MWBM) was enhanced with the capability to simulate glaciers in order to make it more suitable for simulating cold region hydrology. The new model, MWBMglacier, is demonstrated in the heavily glacierized and ecologically important Copper River watershed in Southcentral Alaska. Simulated water budget components compared well to satellite‐based observations and ground measurements of streamflow, evapotranspiration, snow extent, and total water storage, with differences ranging from 0.2% to 7% of the precipitation flux. Nash Sutcliffe efficiency for simulated and observed streamflow was greater than 0.8 for six of eight stream gages. Snow extent matched satellite‐based observations with Nash Sutcliffe efficiency values of greater than 0.89 in the four Copper River ecoregions represented. During the simulation period 1949 to 2009, glacier ice melt contributed 25% of total runoff, ranging from 12% to 45% in different tributaries, and glacierized area was reduced by 6%. Statistically significant (p < 0.05) decreasing and increasing trends in annual glacier mass balance occurred during the multidecade cool and warm phases of the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, respectively, reinforcing the link between climate perturbations and glacier mass balance change. The simulations of glaciers and total runoff for a large, remote region of Alaska provide useful data to evaluate hydrologic, cryospheric, ecologic, and climatic trends. MWBM glacier is a valuable tool to understand when, and to what extent, streamflow may increase or decrease as glaciers respond to a changing climate.

The Bay in Place of a Glacier.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howell, Wayne

1997-01-01

The cultural resource specialist at Glacier Bay National Park (Alaska) explains the collaborative efforts of park staff and the Hoonah Tlingit to overcome language and cultural barriers in documenting park place names and clan oral history and traditions. The new park-community relationship, which follows decades of conflict, includes training…

Passive seismic monitoring of the Bering Glacier during its last surge event

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhan, Z.

2017-12-01

The physical causes behind glacier surges are still unclear. Numerous evidences suggest that they probably involve changes in glacier basal conditions, such as switch of basal water system from concentrated large tunnels to a distributed "layer" as "connected cavities". However, most remote sensing approaches can not penetrate to the base to monitor such changes continuously. Here we apply seismic interferometry using ambient noise to monitor glacier seismic structures, especially to detect possible signatures of the hypothesized high-pressure water "layer". As an example, we derive an 11-year long history of seismic structure of the Bering Glacier, Alaska, covering its latest surge event. We observe substantial drops of Rayleigh and Love wavespeeds across the glacier during the surge event, potentially caused by changes in crevasse density, glacier thickness, and basal conditions.

Seasonal variabilty of surface velocities and ice discharge of Columbia Glacier, Alaska using high-resolution TanDEM-X satellite time series and NASA IceBridge data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vijay, Saurabh; Braun, Matthias

2014-05-01

Columbia Glacier is a grounded tidewater glacier located on the south coast of Alaska. It has lost half of its volume during 1957-2007, more rapidly after 1980. It is now split into two branches, known as Main/East and West branch due to the dramatic retreat of ~ 23 km and calving of iceberg from its terminus in past few decades. In Alaska, a majority of the mass loss from glaciers is due to rapid ice flow and calving icebergs into tidewater and lacustrine environments. In addition, submarine melting and change in the frontal position can accelerate the ice flow and calving rate. We use time series of high-resolution TanDEM-X stripmap satellite imagery during 2011-2013. The active image of the bistatic TanDEM-X acquisitions, acquired over 11 or 22 day repeat intervals, are utilized to derive surface velocity fields using SAR intensity offset tracking. Due to the short temporal baselines, the precise orbit control and the high-resolution of the data, the accuracies of the velocity products are high. We observe a pronounce seasonal signal in flow velocities close to the glacier front of East/Main branch of Columbia Glacier. Maximum values at the glacier front reach up to 14 m/day were recorded in May 2012 and 12 m/day in June 2013. Minimum velocities at the glacier front are generally observed in September and October with lowest values below 2 m/day in October 2012. Months in between those dates show corresponding increase or deceleration resulting a kind of sinusoidal annual course of the surface velocity at the glacier front. The seasonal signal is consistently decreasing with the distance from the glacier front. At a distance of 17.5 km from the ice front, velocities are reduced to 2 m/day and almost no seasonal variability can be observed. We attribute these temporal and spatial variability to changes in the basal hydrology and lubrification of the glacier bed. Closure of the basal drainage system in early winter leads to maximum speeds while during a fully

36 CFR 13.1104 - Coordinates.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Coordinates. 13.1104 Section 13.1104 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1104 - Coordinates.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Coordinates. 13.1104 Section 13.1104 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1104 - Coordinates.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Coordinates. 13.1104 Section 13.1104 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1108 - Alsek Corridor.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Alsek Corridor. 13.1108 Section 13.1108 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1102 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Definitions. 13.1102 Section 13.1102 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1104 - Coordinates.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Coordinates. 13.1104 Section 13.1104 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1120 - Bartlett Cove Developed Area closures and restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... closures and restrictions. 13.1120 Section 13.1120 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Bartlett Cove § 13.1120 Bartlett Cove Developed Area closures and restrictions...

36 CFR 13.1120 - Bartlett Cove Developed Area closures and restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... closures and restrictions. 13.1120 Section 13.1120 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Bartlett Cove § 13.1120 Bartlett Cove Developed Area closures and restrictions...

36 CFR 13.1102 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Definitions. 13.1102 Section 13.1102 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1326 - Snowmachines.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Snowmachines. 13.1326 Section 13.1326 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Kenai Fjords National Park Exit Glacier Developed...

36 CFR 13.1108 - Alsek Corridor.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Alsek Corridor. 13.1108 Section 13.1108 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1158 - Prohibitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Prohibitions. 13.1158 Section 13.1158 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel...

36 CFR 13.1104 - Coordinates.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Coordinates. 13.1104 Section 13.1104 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1102 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Definitions. 13.1102 Section 13.1102 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1120 - Bartlett Cove Developed Area closures and restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... closures and restrictions. 13.1120 Section 13.1120 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Bartlett Cove § 13.1120 Bartlett Cove Developed Area closures and restrictions...

Geodetic measurements used to estimate ice transfer during Bering Glacier surge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sauber, Jeanne; Plafker, George; Gipson, John

The application of geodetic measurements to glacial research has found a new testing ground: near a surging Alaskan glacier. A set of geodetic measurements collected adjacent to the Bagley Icefield (Figure 1) and along the Gulf of Alaska (Figure 2) are being used to estimate the effects of the Bering Glacier surge that began in the spring of 1993. When ice is removed from a glacier's reservoir during a surge, its surface lowers by tens or hundreds of meters and ice is added to the receiving area, where it thickens and advances.The dramatic changes in a surging glacier's extent and thickness should result in elastic deformation of the solid Earth. At Bering Glacier, calculations show that ice transfer may have caused up to 17 cm of the solid Earth to subside. Although recent surges at the Bering and Variegated Glaciers have been well documented, little is known about most surges, particularly about what happens in the upper reaches of the glaciers.

Comparative Analysis of Glaciers in the Chugach-St.-Elias Mountains

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Herzfeld, U. C.; Mayer, H.

2003-12-01

The phenomenon of glacier surges has to date been studied for only relatively few examples. 136 of the 204 surge-type glaciers in North America listed by Post (1969) are located in the St. Elias Mountains. In August 2003 we increased our data inventory of observations on surge glaciers by collecting material for 19 glaciers in the Glacier Bay area and neighboring regions in the eastern St. Elias Mountains, including 6 surge-type glaciers (Carroll, Rendu, Ferris, Grand Pacific, Margerie, and Johns Hopkins Glaciers). Analyses utilize digital video and photographic data, satellite data and GPS data. Geostatistical classification parameters and algebraic parameters characteristic of surge motions are derived for selected glaciers. During the 1993-1995 surge of Bering Glacier the entire surface of Alaska's longest glacier was crevassed and could be segmented into several dynamic provinces, where patterns changed as the surge progressed and the affected areas expanded downglacier and upglacier, finally affecting the Bagley Ice Field. The middle moraine of Grand Pacific and Ferris Glaciers is pushed over to the Grand Pacific side, caused by a recent surge of the heavily crevassed Ferris Glacier. The front of Johns Hopkins Glacier advances, as its lower reaches are affected by a surge. The surge history of Bering Glacier goes back to the Holocene, whereas Carroll and Rendu Glaciers have surged only 3-4 times. These observations pose questions on the possible relationship between surge dynamics and climatic changes.

Alexander Archipelago, Southeastern Alaska

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2002-01-01

West of British Columbia, Canada, and south of the Yukon Territory, the southeastern coastline of Alaska trails off into the islands of the Alexander Archipelago. The area is rugged and contains many long, U-shaped, glaciated valleys, many of which terminate at tidewater. The Alexander Archipelago is home to Glacier Bay National Park. The large bay that has two forks on its northern end is Glacier Bay itself. The eastern fork is Muir inlet, into which runs the Muir glacier, named for the famous Scottish-born naturalist John Muir. Glacier Bay opens up into the Icy Strait. The large, solid white area to the west is Brady Icefield, which terminates at the southern end in Brady's Glacier. To locate more interesting features from Glacier Bay National Park, take a look at the park service map. As recently as two hundred years ago, a massive ice field extended into Icy Strait and filled the Glacier Bay. Since that time, the area has experienced rapid deglaciation, with many large glaciers retreating 40, 60, even 80 km. While temperatures have increased in the region, it is still unclear whether the rapid recession is part of the natural cycle of tidewater glaciers or is an indicator of longer-term climate change. For more on Glacier Bay and climate change, read an online paper by Dr. Dorothy Hall, a MODIS Associate Science Team Member. Credit: Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC

36 CFR 13.1126 - Bicycles.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Bicycles. 13.1126 Section 13.1126 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Bartlett Cove...

36 CFR 13.1140 - Who determines eligibility?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Who determines eligibility? 13.1140 Section 13.1140 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1120 - Bartlett Cove Developed Area closures and restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Bartlett Cove Developed Area closures and restrictions. 13.1120 Section 13.1120 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay...

36 CFR 13.1118 - Solid waste disposal.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Solid waste disposal. 13.1118 Section 13.1118 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve General...

36 CFR 13.1120 - Bartlett Cove Developed Area closures and restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Bartlett Cove Developed Area closures and restrictions. 13.1120 Section 13.1120 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay...

36 CFR 13.1182 - Noise restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Noise restrictions. 13.1182 Section 13.1182 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel...

36 CFR 13.1182 - Noise restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Noise restrictions. 13.1182 Section 13.1182 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel...

36 CFR 13.1124 - Bartlett Cove Campground.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Bartlett Cove Campground. 13.1124 Section 13.1124 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1124 - Bartlett Cove Campground.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Bartlett Cove Campground. 13.1124 Section 13.1124 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1176 - Speed restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Speed restrictions. 13.1176 Section 13.1176 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel...

36 CFR 13.1184 - Other restrictions on vessels.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Other restrictions on vessels. 13.1184 Section 13.1184 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1140 - Who determines eligibility?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Who determines eligibility? 13.1140 Section 13.1140 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1140 - Who determines eligibility?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Who determines eligibility? 13.1140 Section 13.1140 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1184 - Other restrictions on vessels.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Other restrictions on vessels. 13.1184 Section 13.1184 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1126 - Bicycles.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Bicycles. 13.1126 Section 13.1126 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Bartlett Cove...

36 CFR 13.1176 - Speed restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Speed restrictions. 13.1176 Section 13.1176 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel...

36 CFR 13.1124 - Bartlett Cove Campground.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Bartlett Cove Campground. 13.1124 Section 13.1124 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1126 - Bicycles.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Bicycles. 13.1126 Section 13.1126 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Bartlett Cove...

36 CFR 13.1184 - Other restrictions on vessels.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Other restrictions on vessels. 13.1184 Section 13.1184 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1140 - Who determines eligibility?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Who determines eligibility? 13.1140 Section 13.1140 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1324 - Bicycles.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Bicycles. 13.1324 Section 13.1324 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Kenai Fjords National Park Exit Glacier Developed Area...

36 CFR 13.1124 - Bartlett Cove Campground.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Bartlett Cove Campground. 13.1124 Section 13.1124 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1184 - Other restrictions on vessels.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Other restrictions on vessels. 13.1184 Section 13.1184 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1178 - Closed waters, islands and other areas.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Closed waters, islands and other areas. 13.1178 Section 13.1178 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1118 - Solid waste disposal.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... Section 13.1118 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve General Provisions § 13.1118 Solid waste disposal. (a) A solid waste disposal site may accept non-National Park...

36 CFR 13.1124 - Bartlett Cove Campground.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Bartlett Cove Campground. 13.1124 Section 13.1124 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1126 - Bicycles.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Bicycles. 13.1126 Section 13.1126 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Bartlett Cove...

36 CFR 13.1140 - Who determines eligibility?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Who determines eligibility? 13.1140 Section 13.1140 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1126 - Bicycles.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Bicycles. 13.1126 Section 13.1126 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Bartlett Cove...

36 CFR 13.1146 - What other closures and restrictions apply to commercial fishermen and commercial fishing vessels?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

..., Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Commercial Fishing § 13.1146... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false What other closures and...

36 CFR 13.1118 - Solid waste disposal.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... Section 13.1118 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve General Provisions § 13.1118 Solid waste disposal. (a) A solid waste disposal site may accept non-National Park...

36 CFR 13.1182 - Noise restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Noise restrictions. 13.1182 Section 13.1182 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel...

36 CFR 13.1144 - How often will commercial fishing lifetime access permit be renewed?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Commercial Fishing § 13.1144 How often will commercial fishing... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false How often will commercial...

36 CFR 13.1184 - Other restrictions on vessels.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Other restrictions on vessels. 13.1184 Section 13.1184 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1180 - Closed waters, motor vessels and seaplanes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Closed waters, motor vessels and seaplanes. 13.1180 Section 13.1180 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1176 - Speed restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Speed restrictions. 13.1176 Section 13.1176 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel...

36 CFR 13.1156 - Exceptions from vessel permit requirement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Exceptions from vessel permit requirement. 13.1156 Section 13.1156 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and...

36 CFR 13.1152 - Private vessel permits and conditions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Private vessel permits and conditions. 13.1152 Section 13.1152 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and...

36 CFR 13.1320 - Camping.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Camping. 13.1320 Section 13.1320 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Kenai Fjords National Park Exit Glacier Developed Area...

Quantifying periglacial erosion: Insights on a glacial sediment budget, Matanuska Glacier, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

O'Farrell, C. R.; Heimsath, A.M.; Lawson, D.E.; Jorgensen, L.M.; Evenson, E.B.; Larson, G.; Denner, J.

2009-01-01

Glacial erosion rates are estimated to be among the highest in the world. Few studies have attempted, however, to quantify the flux of sediment from the periglacial landscape to a glacier. Here, erosion rates from the nonglacial landscape above the Matanuska Glacier, Alaska are presented and compare with an 8-yr record of proglacial suspended sediment yield. Non-glacial lowering rates range from 1??8 ?? 0??5 mm yr-1 to 8??5 ?? 3??4 mm yr-1 from estimates of rock fall and debris-flow fan volumes. An average erosion rate of 0??08 ?? 0??04 mm yr-1 from eight convex-up ridge crests was determined using in situ produced cosmogenic 10Be. Extrapolating these rates, based on landscape morphometry, to the Matanuska basin (58% ice-cover), it was found that nonglacial processes account for an annual sediment flux of 2??3 ?? 1??0 ?? 106 t. Suspended sediment data for 8 years and an assumed bedload to estimate the annual sediment yield at the Matanuska terminus to be 2??9 ?? 1??0 ?? 106 t, corresponding to an erosion rate of 1??8 ?? 0??6 mm yr-1: nonglacial sources therefore account for 80 ?? 45% of the proglacial yield. A similar set of analyses were used for a small tributary sub-basin (32% ice-cover) to determine an erosion rate of 12??1 ?? 6??9 mm yr-1, based on proglacial sediment yield, with the nonglacial sediment flux equal to 10 ?? 7% of the proglacial yield. It is suggested that erosion rates by nonglacial processes are similar to inferred subglacial rates, such that the ice-free regions of a glaciated landscape contribute significantly to the glacial sediment budget. The similar magnitude of nonglacial and glacial rates implies that partially glaciated landscapes will respond rapidly to changes in climate and base level through a rapid nonglacial response to glacially driven incision. ?? 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Decrease in glacier coverage contributes to increased winter baseflow of Arctic rivers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liljedahl, A. K.; Gaedeke, A.; Baraer, M.; Chesnokova, A.; Lebedeva, L.; Makarieva, O.; O'Neel, S.

2016-12-01

Rising minimum daily flows in northern Eurasian and North American rivers suggest a growing influence of groundwater in the Arctic hydrological cycle, while the impact of a warmer high-latitude climate system is evident in decreased glacier coverage and increasing permafrost temperatures. Multiple mechanisms have been proposed to explain the increased discharge, which is well documented but relatively poorly understood. Here we assess the long-term (up to 88 yrs) linkages between climate, glaciers and hydrology in Alaska, Canadian and Russian glacierized (from 0.3 to 60% glacier cover) and non-glacierized watersheds (31 to 186 000 km2). We are specifically interested in analyzing trends in late winter discharge from larger watersheds to refine our understanding of the regional aquifer status and annual discharge from smaller headwater basins. Field measurements of differential runoff in Interior Alaska show that glaciated headwater streams can lose significant amounts of water in summer to the underlying aquifer. The aquifer is in turn feeding the larger lowland river system throughout the year. Groundwater storage status in Arctic regions is especially prominent through winter river discharge as it is typically the only source of water to the river system for at least 6 months of the year. Our analyses aim to explore the hypothesis that the documented increase in later winter river discharge of larger watersheds can be explained at least partly, by increased glacier melt in summer as observed by long-term decreases in glacier coverage. If true, a decrease in winter freshwater exports to the Arctic Ocean could potentially follow as glaciers retreat to higher (cooler) elevations. Increased Arctic river baseflow can favor sea ice growth and fish habitats, while negatively impacting local communities in their river ice travel.

Late nineteenth to early twenty-first century behavior of Alaskan glaciers as indicators of changing regional climate

USGS Publications Warehouse

Molnia, B.F.

2007-01-01

Alaska's climate is changing and one of the most significant indications of this change has been the late 19th to early 21st century behavior of Alaskan glaciers. Weather station temperature data document that air temperatures throughout Alaska have been increasing for many decades. Since the mid-20th century, the average change is an increase of ?????2.0????C. In order to determine the magnitude and pattern of response of glaciers to this regional climate change, a comprehensive analysis was made of the recent behavior of hundreds of glaciers located in the eleven Alaskan mountain ranges and three island areas that currently support glaciers. Data analyzed included maps, historical observations, thousands of ground-and-aerial photographs and satellite images, and vegetation proxy data. Results were synthesized to determine changes in length and area of individual glaciers. Alaskan ground photography dates from 1883, aerial photography dates from 1926, and satellite photography and imagery dates from the early 1960s. Unfortunately, very few Alaskan glaciers have any mass balance observations. In most areas analyzed, every glacier that descends below an elevation of ?????1500??m is currently thinning and/or retreating. Many glaciers have an uninterrupted history of continuous post-Little-Ice-Age retreat that spans more than 250??years. Others are characterized by multiple late 19th to early 21st century fluctuations. Today, retreating and/or thinning glaciers represent more than 98% of the glaciers examined. However, in the Coast Mountains, St. Elias Mountains, Chugach Mountains, and the Aleutian Range more than a dozen glaciers are currently advancing and thickening. Many currently advancing glaciers are or were formerly tidewater glaciers. Some of these glaciers have been expanding for more than two centuries. This presentation documents the post-Little-Ice-Age behavior and variability of the response of many Alaskan glaciers to changing regional climate. ?? 2006.

Bacterial Microbiota Associated with the Glacier Ice Worm Is Dominated by Both Worm-Specific and Glacier-Derived Facultative Lineages

PubMed Central

Murakami, Takumi; Segawa, Takahiro; Dial, Roman; Takeuchi, Nozomu; Kohshima, Shiro; Hongoh, Yuichi

2017-01-01

The community structure of bacteria associated with the glacier ice worm Mesenchytraeus solifugus was analyzed by amplicon sequencing of 16S rRNA genes and their transcripts. Ice worms were collected from two distinct glaciers in Alaska, Harding Icefield and Byron Glacier, and glacier surfaces were also sampled for comparison. Marked differences were observed in bacterial community structures between the ice worm and glacier surface samples. Several bacterial phylotypes were detected almost exclusively in the ice worms, and these bacteria were phylogenetically affiliated with either animal-associated lineages or, interestingly, clades mostly consisting of glacier-indigenous species. The former included bacteria that belong to Mollicutes, Chlamydiae, Rickettsiales, and Lachnospiraceae, while the latter included Arcicella and Herminiimonas phylotypes. Among these bacteria enriched in ice worm samples, Mollicutes, Arcicella, and Herminiimonas phylotypes were abundantly and consistently detected in the ice worm samples; these phylotypes constituted the core microbiota associated with the ice worm. A fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis showed that Arcicella cells specifically colonized the epidermis of the ice worms. Other bacterial phylotypes detected in the ice worm samples were also abundantly recovered from the respective habitat glaciers; these bacteria may be food for ice worms to digest or temporary residents. Nevertheless, some were overrepresented in the ice worm RNA samples; they may also function as facultative gut bacteria. Our results indicate that the community structure of bacteria associated with ice worms is distinct from that in the associated glacier and includes worm-specific and facultative, glacier-indigenous lineages. PMID:28302989

Bacterial Microbiota Associated with the Glacier Ice Worm Is Dominated by Both Worm-Specific and Glacier-Derived Facultative Lineages.

PubMed

Murakami, Takumi; Segawa, Takahiro; Dial, Roman; Takeuchi, Nozomu; Kohshima, Shiro; Hongoh, Yuichi

2017-03-31

The community structure of bacteria associated with the glacier ice worm Mesenchytraeus solifugus was analyzed by amplicon sequencing of 16S rRNA genes and their transcripts. Ice worms were collected from two distinct glaciers in Alaska, Harding Icefield and Byron Glacier, and glacier surfaces were also sampled for comparison. Marked differences were observed in bacterial community structures between the ice worm and glacier surface samples. Several bacterial phylotypes were detected almost exclusively in the ice worms, and these bacteria were phylogenetically affiliated with either animal-associated lineages or, interestingly, clades mostly consisting of glacier-indigenous species. The former included bacteria that belong to Mollicutes, Chlamydiae, Rickettsiales, and Lachnospiraceae, while the latter included Arcicella and Herminiimonas phylotypes. Among these bacteria enriched in ice worm samples, Mollicutes, Arcicella, and Herminiimonas phylotypes were abundantly and consistently detected in the ice worm samples; these phylotypes constituted the core microbiota associated with the ice worm. A fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis showed that Arcicella cells specifically colonized the epidermis of the ice worms. Other bacterial phylotypes detected in the ice worm samples were also abundantly recovered from the respective habitat glaciers; these bacteria may be food for ice worms to digest or temporary residents. Nevertheless, some were overrepresented in the ice worm RNA samples; they may also function as facultative gut bacteria. Our results indicate that the community structure of bacteria associated with ice worms is distinct from that in the associated glacier and includes worm-specific and facultative, glacier-indigenous lineages.

Accessing the inaccessible: making (successful) field observations at tidewater glacier termini

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kienholz, C.; Amundson, J. M.; Jackson, R. H.; Motyka, R. J.; Nash, J. D.; Sutherland, D.

2017-12-01

Glaciers terminating in ocean water (tidewater glaciers) show complex dynamic behavior driven predominantly by processes at the ice-ocean interface (sedimentation, erosion, iceberg calving, submarine melting). A quantitative understanding of these processes is required, for example, to better assess tidewater glaciers' fate in our rapidly warming environment. Lacking observations close to glacier termini, due to unpredictable risks from calving, hamper this understanding. In an effort to remedy this lack of knowledge, we initiated a large field-based effort at LeConte Glacier, southeast Alaska, in 2016. LeConte Glacier is a regional analog for many tidewater glaciers, but better accessible and observable and thus an ideal target for our multi-disciplinary effort. Our ongoing campaigns comprise measurements from novel autonomous vessels (temperature, salinity and current) in the immediate proximity of the glacier terminus and additional surveys (including multibeam bathymetry) from boats and moorings in the proglacial fjord. These measurements are complemented by iceberg and glacier velocity measurements from time lapse cameras and a portable radar interferometer situated above LeConte Bay. GPS-based velocity observations and melt measurements are conducted on the glacier. These measurements provide necessary input for process-based understanding and numerical modeling of the glacier and fjord systems. In the presentation, we discuss promising initial results and lessons learned from the campaign.

The Border Ranges fault system in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska: Evidence for major early Cenozoic dextral strike-slip motion

USGS Publications Warehouse

Smart, K.J.; Pavlis, T.L.; Sisson, V.B.; Roeske, S.M.; Snee, L.W.

1996-01-01

The Border Ranges fault system of southern Alaska, the fundamental break between the arc basement and the forearc accretionary complex, is the boundary between the Peninsular-Alexander-Wrangellia terrane and the Chugach terrane. The fault system separates crystalline rocks of the Alexander terrane from metamorphic rocks of the Chugach terrane in Glacier Bay National Park. Mylonitic rocks in the zone record abundant evidence for dextral strike-slip motion along north-northwest-striking subvertical surfaces. Geochronologic data together with regional correlations of Chugach terrane rocks involved in the deformation constrain this movement between latest Cretaceous and Early Eocene (???50 Ma). These findings are in agreement with studies to the northwest and southeast along the Border Ranges fault system which show dextral strike-slip motion occurring between 58 and 50 Ma. Correlations between Glacier Bay plutons and rocks of similar ages elsewhere along the Border Ranges fault system suggest that as much as 700 km of dextral motion may have been accommodated by this structure. These observations are consistent with oblique convergence of the Kula plate during early Cenozoic and forearc slivering above an ancient subduction zone following late Mesozoic accretion of the Peninsular-Alexander-Wrangellia terrane to North America.

36 CFR 13.1172 - When general operating restrictions do not apply.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false When general operating restrictions do not apply. 13.1172 Section 13.1172 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1186 - What are the emission standards for vessels?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false What are the emission standards for vessels? 13.1186 Section 13.1186 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1172 - When general operating restrictions do not apply.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false When general operating restrictions do not apply. 13.1172 Section 13.1172 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1172 - When general operating restrictions do not apply.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false When general operating restrictions do not apply. 13.1172 Section 13.1172 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1122 - Bartlett Cove Public Use Dock.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Bartlett Cove Public Use Dock. 13.1122 Section 13.1122 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1172 - When general operating restrictions do not apply.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false When general operating restrictions do not apply. 13.1172 Section 13.1172 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1186 - What are the emission standards for vessels?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false What are the emission standards for vessels? 13.1186 Section 13.1186 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1122 - Bartlett Cove Public Use Dock.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Bartlett Cove Public Use Dock. 13.1122 Section 13.1122 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1186 - What are the emission standards for vessels?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false What are the emission standards for vessels? 13.1186 Section 13.1186 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1112 - May I collect rocks and minerals?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false May I collect rocks and minerals? 13.1112 Section 13.1112 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and...

36 CFR 13.1122 - Bartlett Cove Public Use Dock.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Bartlett Cove Public Use Dock. 13.1122 Section 13.1122 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1170 - What are the rules for operating vessels?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false What are the rules for operating vessels? 13.1170 Section 13.1170 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1172 - When general operating restrictions do not apply.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false When general operating restrictions do not apply. 13.1172 Section 13.1172 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1186 - What are the emission standards for vessels?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false What are the emission standards for vessels? 13.1186 Section 13.1186 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1318 - Location of the EGDA.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Location of the EGDA. 13.1318 Section 13.1318 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Kenai Fjords National Park Exit Glacier Developed...

36 CFR 13.1188 - Where to get charts depicting closed waters.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Where to get charts depicting closed waters. 13.1188 Section 13.1188 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1136 - How can an individual apply for a commercial fishing lifetime access permit?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Commercial Fishing § 13.1136 How can an individual apply... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false How can an individual apply...

36 CFR 13.1112 - May I collect rocks and minerals?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false May I collect rocks and minerals? 13.1112 Section 13.1112 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and...

36 CFR 13.1122 - Bartlett Cove Public Use Dock.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Bartlett Cove Public Use Dock. 13.1122 Section 13.1122 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1122 - Bartlett Cove Public Use Dock.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Bartlett Cove Public Use Dock. 13.1122 Section 13.1122 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve...

36 CFR 13.1188 - Where to get charts depicting closed waters.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Where to get charts depicting closed waters. 13.1188 Section 13.1188 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1110 - May I collect or burn interstadial wood?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false May I collect or burn interstadial wood? 13.1110 Section 13.1110 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

36 CFR 13.1186 - What are the emission standards for vessels?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false What are the emission standards for vessels? 13.1186 Section 13.1186 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park...

Monitoring glacier change: advances in cross-disciplinary research and data sharing methods

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arendt, A. A.; O'Neel, S.; Cogley, G.; Hill, D. F.; Hood, E. W.

2016-12-01

Recent studies have emphasized the importance of understanding interactions between glacier change and downstream ecosystems, ocean dynamics and human infrastructure. Despite the need for integrated assessments, few in-situ and remote sensing glacier monitoring studies also collect concurrent data on surrounding systems affected by glacier change. In addition, the sharing of glacier datasets across disciplines has often been hampered by limitations in data sharing technologies and a lack of data standardization. Here we provide an overview of recent efforts to facilitate distribution of glacier inventory/change datasets under the framework provided by the Global Terrestrial Network for Glaciers (GTN-G). New, web accessible data products include glacier thickness data and updated glacier extents from the Randolph Glacier Inventory. We also highlight a 2016 data collection effort led by the US Geological Survey on the Wolverine Glacier watershed, Alaska, USA. A large international team collected glaciological, water quality, snow cover, firn composition, vegetation and freshwater ecology data, using remote sensing/in-situ data and model simulations. We summarize preliminary results and outline our use of cloud-computing technologies to coordinate the integration of complex data types across multiple research teams.

Flow instabilities of Alaskan glaciers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Turrin, James Bradley

Over 300 of the largest glaciers in southern Alaska have been identified as either surge-type or pulse-type, making glaciers with flow instabilities the norm among large glaciers in that region. Consequently, the bulk of mass loss due to climate change will come from these unstable glaciers in the future, yet their response to future climate warming is unknown because their dynamics are still poorly understood. To help broaden our understanding of unstable glacier flow, the decadal-scale ice dynamics of 1 surging and 9 pulsing glaciers are investigated. Bering Glacier had a kinematic wave moving down its ablation zone at 4.4 +/- 2.0 km/yr from 2002 to 2009, which then accelerated to 13.9 +/- 2.0 km/yr as it traversed the piedmont lobe. The wave first appeared in 2001 near the confluence with Bagley Ice Valley and it took 10 years to travel ~64 km. A surge was triggered in 2008 after the wave activated an ice reservoir in the midablation zone, and it climaxed in 2011 while the terminus advanced several km into Vitus Lake. Ruth Glacier pulsed five times between 1973 and 2012, with peak velocities in 1981, 1989, 1997, 2003, and 2010; approximately every 7 years. A typical pulse increased ice velocity 300%, from roughly 40 m/yr to 160 m/yr in the midablation zone, and involved acceleration and deceleration of the ice en masse; no kinematic wave was evident. The pulses are theorized to be due to deformation of a subglacial till causing enhanced basal motion. Eight additional pulsing glaciers are identified based on the spatiotemporal pattern of their velocity fields. These glaciers pulsed where they were either constricted laterally or joined by a tributary, and their surface slopes are 1-2°. These traits are consistent with an overdeepening. This observation leads to a theory of ice motion in overdeepenings that explains the cyclical behavior of pulsing glaciers. It is based on the concept of glaciohydraulic supercooling, and includes sediment transport and erosion

Antarctic Peninsula Tidewater Glacier Dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pettit, E. C.; Scambos, T. A.; Haran, T. M.; Wellner, J. S.; Domack, E. W.; Vernet, M.

2015-12-01

The northern Antarctic Peninsula (nAP, north of 66°S) is a north-south trending mountain range extending transverse across the prevailing westerly winds of the Southern Ocean resulting in an extreme west-to-east precipitation gradient. Snowfall on the west side of the AP is one to two orders of magnitude higher than the east side. This gradient drives short, steep, fast-flowing glaciers into narrow fjords on the west side, while longer lower-sloping glaciers flow down the east side into broader fjord valleys. This pattern in ice dynamics affects ice-ocean interaction on timescales of decades to centuries, and shapes the subglacial topography and submarine bathymetry on timescales of glacial cycles. In our study, we calculate ice flux for the western and eastern nAP using a drainage model that incorporates the modern ice surface topography, the RACMO-2 precipitation estimate, and recent estimates of ice thinning. Our results, coupled with observed rates of ice velocity from InSAR (I. Joughin, personal communication) and Landsat 8 -derived flow rates (this study), provide an estimate of ice thickness and fjord depth in grounded-ice areas for the largest outlet glaciers. East-side glaciers either still terminate in or have recently terminated in ice shelves. Sedimentary evidence from the inner fjords of the western glaciers indicates they had ice shelves during LIA time, and may still have transient floating ice tongues (tabular berg calvings are observed). Although direct oceanographic evidence is limited, the high accumulation rate and rapid ice flux implies cold basal ice for the western nAP glaciers and therefore weak subglacial discharge relative to eastern nAP glaciers and or other tidewater fjord systems such as in Alaska. Finally, despite lower accumulation rates on the east side, the large elongate drainage basins result in a greater ice flux funneled through fewer deeper glaciers. Due to the relation between ice flux and erosion, these east-side glaciers

Columbia Bay, Alaska: an 'upside down' estuary

USGS Publications Warehouse

Walters, R.A.; Josberger, E.G.; Driedger, C.L.

1988-01-01

Circulation and water properties within Columbia Bay, Alaska, are dominated by the effects of Columbia Glacier at the head of the Bay. The basin between the glacier terminus and the terminal moraine (sill depth of about 22 m) responds as an 'upside down' estuary with the subglacial discharge of freshwater entering at the bottom of the basin. The intense vertical mixing caused by the bouyant plume of freshwater creates a homogeneous water mass that exchanges with the far-field water through either a two- or a three-layer flow. In general, the glacier acts as a large heat sink and creates a water mass which is cooler than that in fjords without tidewater glaciers. The predicted retreat of Columbia Glacier would create a 40 km long fjord that has characteristics in common with other fjords in Prince William Sound. ?? 1988.

A Special Report on the Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education--Collection of Defaulted Student Loans.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Welker, Randy S.

In accordance with a Legislative Budget and Audit Committee special request and the provisions of Title 24 of the Alaska Statutes, a review was conducted of the Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education's experience with various collection contractors used to collect defaulted student loans. The primary purpose was to assess the success that…

Meltwater Induced Glacier Landslides - Waxell Ridge, AK

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Molnia, B. F.; Angeli, K. M.; Bratton, D. A.; Keeler, R. H.; Noyles, C.

2006-12-01

Within the past year, two large landslides have originated from south-facing peaks on Waxell Ridge, the bedrock massif that separates the Bagley Icefield from Bering Glacier, Alaska. Each involves a near-summit hanging glacier. In each instance, the presence of meltwater appears to be a triggering factor. The largest of the two, which occurred on September 14, 2005, originated from just below the summit of 3,236-m-high Mt Steller and landed on the surface of Bering Glacier, nearly 2,500 m below. The Alaska Volcano Observatory estimated the volume of this landslide, which consisted of rock, glacier ice, and snow, to be approximately 50 million cubic meters. Unlike most large Alaskan glacier-related landslides, this one was not triggered by an earthquake. However, the energy that the slide released was intense enough to generate a seismic signal that was recorded around the world with magnitudes of 3.8 to greater than 5. The slide extended ~10 km down the Bering Glacier from the point of impact. Much of the surface on which the slide occurred had a slope >50 degrees. The second landslide, located ~6 km to the west of Mt Steller, originated from a secondary summit of a 2,500- m-high unnamed peak. The date of its occurrence is unknown, but its toe sits on winter 2005-2006 snow. Both slides have been examined from helicopter and fixed-wing overflights, and with a variety of vertical and oblique aerial photographs. Oblique aerial photographs obtained of the Mt Steller slide on September 15, 2005 depict a 10-15-m-diameter moulin or englacial stream channel in the truncated 30-m-thick glacier ice that comprises the east wall of the landslide scarp. The presence of this unusual glacial-hydrologic feature at an elevation above 3,000 m, suggests that a large volume of water had recently been flowing on Mt Steller's east ridge and that the water might have had a role in triggering the landslide. Similarly, there is evidence of an englacial channel on the west flank of the

Seismic Monitoring of Ice Generated Events at the Bering Glacier

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fitzgerald, K.; Richardson, J.; Pennington, W.

2008-12-01

The Bering Glacier, located in southeast Alaska, is the largest glacier in North America with a surface area of approximately 5,175 square kilometers. It extends from its source in the Bagley Icefield to its terminus in tidal Vitus Lake, which drains into the Gulf of Alaska. It is known that the glacier progresses downhill through the mechanisms of plastic crystal deformation and basal sliding. However, the basal processes which take place tens to hundreds of meters below the surface are not well understood, except through the study of sub- glacial landforms and passive seismology. Additionally, the sub-glacial processes enabling the surges, which occur approximately every two decades, are poorly understood. Two summer field campaigns in 2007 and 2008 were designed to investigate this process near the terminus of the glacier. During the summer of 2007, a field experiment at the Bering Glacier was conducted using a sparse array of L-22 short period sensors to monitor ice-related events. The array was in place for slightly over a week in August and consisted of five stations centered about the final turn of the glacier west of the Grindle Hills. Many events were observed, but due to the large distance between stations and the highly attenuating surface ice, few events were large enough to be recorded on sufficient stations to be accurately located and described. During August 2008, six stations were deployed for a similar length of time, but with a closer spacing. With this improved array, events were located and described more accurately, leading to additional conclusions about the surface, interior, and sub-glacial ice processes producing seismic signals. While the glacier was not surging during the experiment, this study may provide information on the non-surging, sub-glacial base level activity. It is generally expected that another surge will take place within a few years, and baseline studies such as this may assist in understanding the nature of surges.

New Methodology for Computing Subaerial Landslide-Tsunamis: Application to the 2015 Tyndall Glacier Landslide, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

George, D. L.; Iverson, R. M.; Cannon, C. M.

2016-12-01

Landslide-generated tsunamis pose significant hazards to coastal communities and infrastructure, but developing models to assess these hazards presents challenges beyond those confronted when modeling seismically generated tsunamis. We present a new methodology in which our depth-averaged two-phase model D-Claw (Proc. Roy. Soc. A, 2014, doi: 10.1098/rspa.2013.0819 and doi:10.1098/rspa.2013.0820) is used to simulate all stages of landslide dynamics and subsequent tsunami generation and propagation. D-Claw was developed to simulate landslides and debris-flows, but if granular solids are absent, then the D-Claw equations reduce to the shallow-water equations commonly used to model tsunamis. Because the model describes the evolution of solid and fluid volume fractions, it treats both landslides and tsunamis as special cases of a more general class of phenomena, and the landslide and tsunami can be simulated as a single-layer continuum with spatially and temporally evolving solid-grain concentrations. This seamless approach accommodates wave generation via mass displacement and longitudinal momentum transfer, the dominant mechanisms producing impulse waves when large subaerial landslides impact relatively shallow bodies of water. To test our methodology, we used D-Claw to model a large subaerial landslide and resulting tsunami that occurred on October, 17, 2015, in Taan Fjord near the terminus of Tyndall Glacier, Alaska. The estimated landslide volume derived from radiated long-period seismicity (C. Stark (2015), Abstract EP51D-08, AGU Fall Meeting) was about 70-80 million cubic meters. Guided by satellite imagery and this volume estimate, we inferred an approximate landslide basal slip surface, and we used material property values identical to those used in our previous modeling of the 2014 Oso, Washington, landslide. With these inputs the modeled tsunami inundation patterns on shorelines compare well with observations derived from satellite imagery.

Hydrology and Glacier-Lake-Outburst Floods (1987-2004) and Water Quality (1998-2003) of the Taku River near Juneau, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Neal, Edward G.

2007-01-01

The Taku River Basin originates in British Columbia, Canada, and drains an area of 6,600 square miles at the U.S. Geological Survey's Taku River gaging station. Several mines operated within the basin prior to 1957, and mineral exploration has resumed signaling potential for future mining developments. The U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Douglas Indian Association, Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency conducted a water-quality and flood-hydrology study of the Taku River. Water-quality sampling of the Taku River from 1998 through 2003 established a baseline for assessing potential effects of future mining operations on water quality. The annual mean discharge of the Taku River is 13,700 cubic feet per second. The monthly mean discharge ranges from a minimum of 1,940 cubic feet per second in February to a maximum of 34,400 cubic feet per second in June. Nearly 90 percent of the annual discharge is from May through November. The highest spring discharges are sourced primarily from snowmelt and moderate discharges are sustained throughout the summer by glacial meltwaters. An ice cover usually forms over the Taku River in December persisting through the winter into March and occasionally into April. Glacier-lake-outburst floods originating from two glacier-dammed lakes along the margin of the Tulsequah Glacier in British Columbia, Canada, are the source of the greatest peak discharges on the Taku River. The largest flood during the period of record was 128,000 cubic feet per second on June 25, 2004, resulting from an outburst of Lake No Lake. Lake No Lake is the larger of the two lakes. The outburst-flood contribution to peak discharge was 80,000 cubic feet per second. The volume discharged from Lake No Lake is relatively consistent indicating drainage may be triggered when the lake reaches a critical stage. This suggests prediction of the timing of these outburst floods might be possible if lake

Climate variations and changes in mass of three glaciers in western North America

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hodge, S.M.; Trabant, D.C.; Krimmel, R.M.; Heinrichs, T.A.; March, R.S.; Josberger, E.G.

1998-01-01

Time series of net and seasonal mass balances for three glaciers in western North America, one in the Pacific Northwest and two in Alaska, show various relationships to Pacific hemisphere climate indexes. During the winter season the two coastal, maritime-regime glaciers, over 2000 km apart, are affected almost identically, albeit inversely, by atmospheric and oceanic conditions in both the tropical and North Pacific. The two Alaska glaciers, only 350 km apart, have almost no coherence. Lag correlations show that in winter the maritime glaciers are influenced by concurrent conditions in the North Pacific, but by conditions in the tropical Pacific in August-September of the prior northern summer. The winter balance variations contain interannual El Nino-Southern Oscillation variability superimposed on North Pacific interdecadal variability; the interdecadal 1976-77 climate regime shift is clearly evident. The summer balances and the continental-regime glacier have a general lack of correlations, with no clear, strong, consistent patterns, probably a result of being influenced more by local processes or by circulation patterns outside the Pacific Ocean basin. The results show the Pacific Northwest is strongly influenced by conditions in the tropical Pacific, but that this teleconnection has broken down in recent years, starting in 1989. During the seven years since then (1989-95), all three glaciers have shown, for the first time, coherent signals, which were net mass loss at the highest rate in the entire record. The authors' results agree with those of other recent studies that suggest these recent years are unusual and may be a signature of climate warming.

36 CFR 13.1142 - Can I appeal denial of my commercial fishing lifetime access permit application?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Commercial Fishing § 13.1142 Can I appeal denial of my... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Can I appeal denial of my...

36 CFR 13.1128 - Is a permit required to transport passengers between Bartlett Cove and Gustavus?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Bartlett Cove § 13.1128 Is a permit required to transport... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Is a permit required to...

36 CFR 13.1128 - Is a permit required to transport passengers between Bartlett Cove and Gustavus?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Bartlett Cove § 13.1128 Is a permit required to transport... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Is a permit required to...

Gravimetric determination of the Thickness of Taku Glacier: Impact of Glacier Thickness on Subglacial Hydrology and Potential Erosion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hamm, T. G.; Borthwick, L.; Jarrin, D.; Miller, M.; Wall, R.; Beem, L.; Riverman, K. L.

2016-12-01

High resolution measurements of spatial ice thickness variability on the Juneau Icefield are critical to an understanding of current glacial dynamics in the Coast Mountains of Southeast Alaska. In particular, such data are lacking on the Taku Glacier, a tidewater glacier in the Juneau region whose unique advance has slowed in recent years. Significantly, such information is necessary to develop an accurate description of ice dynamics as well as sub-surface hydrology and bedrock erosion. Utilizing relative gravimetry, we sought to modify existing parameterized models of ice thickness with field measurements taken along the centerline of the Taku. Here we present a three-dimensional representation of ice thickness for the Taku, based on in situ observations from July 2016. As the glacier approaches a potential period of rapid terminal retreat, this data gives refined physical information prior to this potential juncture in the tidewater cycle-an observation that may yield insight into marine ice sheet instabilities more broadly.

76 FR 17353 - Migratory Bird Subsistence Harvest in Alaska; Harvest Regulations for Migratory Birds in Alaska...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-03-29

... proposed rule and further internal discussions, the Service is removing the shooting hours restriction... Service, working with partners, developed measures in 2009 to further reduce the potential for shooting... shooting hours restriction, this regulation is similar to one in the State of Alaska's fall regulations...

Use of the Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standard (CMECS) for Geological Studies in Glacier Bay, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cochrane, G. R.; Hodson, T. O.; Allee, R.; Cicchetti, G.; Finkbeiner, M.; Goodin, K.; Handley, L.; Madden, C.; Mayer, G.; Shumchenia, E.

2012-12-01

The U S Geological Survey (USGS) is one of four primary organizations (along with the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, the Evironmental Protection Agency, and NatureServe) responsible for the development of the Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standard (CMECS) over the past decade. In June 2012 the Federal Geographic Data Committee approved CMECS as the first-ever comprehensive federal standard for classifying and describing coastal and marine ecosystems. The USGS has pioneered the application of CMECS in Glacier Bay, Alaska as part of its Seafloor Mapping and Benthic Habitat Studies Project. This presentation briefly describes the standard and its application as part of geological survey studies in the Western Arm of Glacier Bay. CMECS offers a simple, standard framework and common terminology for describing natural and human influenced ecosystems from the upper tidal reaches of estuaries to the deepest portions of the ocean. The framework is organized into two settings, biogeographic and aquatic, and four components, water column, geoform, substrate, and biotic. Each describes a separate aspect of the environment and biota. Settings and components can be used in combination or independently to describe ecosystem features. The hierarchical arrangement of units of the settings and components allows users to apply CMECS to the scale and specificity that best suits their needs. Modifiers allow users to customize the classification to meet specific needs. Biotopes can be described when there is a need for more detailed information on the biota and their environment. USGS efforts focused primarily on the substrate and geoform components. Previous research has demonstrated three classes of bottom type that can be derived from multibeam data that in part determine the distribution of benthic organisms: soft, flat bottom, mixed bottom including coarse sediment and low-relief rock with low to moderate rugosity, and rugose, hard bottom. The

Status and distribution of the Kittlitz's Murrelet Brachyramphus brevirostris along the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak and Aleutian Islands, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Madison, Erica N.; Piatt, John F.; Arimitsu, Mayumi L.; Romano, Marc D.; van Pelt, Thomas I.; Nelson, S. Kim; Williams, Jeffrey C.; DeGange, Anthony R.

2011-01-01

The Kittlitz's Murrelet Brachyramphus brevirostris is adapted for life in glacial-marine ecosystems, being concentrated in the belt of glaciated fjords in the northern Gulf of Alaska from Glacier Bay to Cook Inlet. Most of the remaining birds are scattered along coasts of the Alaska Peninsula and Aleutian Islands, where they reside in protected bays and inlets, often in proximity to remnant glaciers or recently deglaciated landscapes. We summarize existing information on Kittlitz's Murrelet in this mainly unglaciated region, extending from Kodiak Island in the east to the Near Islands in the west. From recent surveys, we estimated that ~2400 Kittlitz's Murrelets were found in several large embayments along the Alaska Peninsula, where adjacent ice fields feed silt-laden water into the bays. On Kodiak Island, where only remnants of ice remain today, observations of Kittlitz's Murrelets at sea were uncommon. The species has been observed historically around the entire Kodiak Archipelago, however, and dozens of nest sites were found in recent years. We found Kittlitz's Murrelets at only a few islands in the Aleutian chain, notably those with long complex shorelines, high mountains and remnant glaciers. The largest population (~1600 birds) of Kittlitz's Murrelet outside the Gulf of Alaska was found at Unalaska Island, which also supports the greatest concentration of glacial ice in the Aleutian Islands. Significant populations were found at Atka (~1100 birds), Attu (~800) and Adak (~200) islands. Smaller numbers have been reported from Unimak, Umnak, Amlia, Kanaga, Tanaga, Kiska islands, and Agattu Island, where dozens of nest sites have been located in recent years. Most of those islands have not been thoroughly surveyed, and significant pockets of Kittlitz's Murrelets may yet be discovered. Our estimate of ~6000 Kittlitz's Murrelets along the Alaska Peninsula and Aleutian Islands is also likely to be conservative because of the survey protocols we employed (i.e. early

33 CFR 165.1704 - Prince William Sound, Alaska-regulated navigation area.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 2 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Prince William Sound, Alaska... District § 165.1704 Prince William Sound, Alaska-regulated navigation area. (a) The following is a... Hinchinbrook Light to Schooner Rock Light, comprising that portion of Prince William Sound between 146°30′ W...

33 CFR 165.1704 - Prince William Sound, Alaska-regulated navigation area.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 2 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Prince William Sound, Alaska... District § 165.1704 Prince William Sound, Alaska-regulated navigation area. (a) The following is a... Hinchinbrook Light to Schooner Rock Light, comprising that portion of Prince William Sound between 146°30′ W...

33 CFR 165.1704 - Prince William Sound, Alaska-regulated navigation area.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 2 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Prince William Sound, Alaska... District § 165.1704 Prince William Sound, Alaska-regulated navigation area. (a) The following is a... Hinchinbrook Light to Schooner Rock Light, comprising that portion of Prince William Sound between 146°30′ W...

33 CFR 165.1704 - Prince William Sound, Alaska-regulated navigation area.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Prince William Sound, Alaska... District § 165.1704 Prince William Sound, Alaska-regulated navigation area. (a) The following is a... Hinchinbrook Light to Schooner Rock Light, comprising that portion of Prince William Sound between 146°30′ W...

33 CFR 165.1704 - Prince William Sound, Alaska-regulated navigation area.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 2 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Prince William Sound, Alaska... District § 165.1704 Prince William Sound, Alaska-regulated navigation area. (a) The following is a... Hinchinbrook Light to Schooner Rock Light, comprising that portion of Prince William Sound between 146°30′ W...

Multi-decadal elevation changes on Bagley Ice Valley and Malaspina Glacier, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Muskett, Reginald R.; Lingle, Craig S.; Tangborn, Wendell V.; Rabus, Bernhard T.

2003-08-01

Digital elevation models (DEMs) of Bagley Ice Valley and Malaspina Glacier produced by (i) Intermap Technologies, Inc. (ITI) from airborne interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) data acquired 4-13 September 2000, (ii) the German Aerospace Center (DRL) from spaceborne InSAR data acquired by the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) 11-22 February 2000, and (iii) the US Geological Survey (USGS) from aerial photographs acquired in 1972/73, were differenced to estimate glacier surface elevation changes from 1972 to 2000. Spatially non-uniform thickening, 10 +/- 7 m on average, is observed on Bagley Ice Valley (accumulation area) while non-uniform thinning, 47 +/- 5 m on average, is observed on the glaciers of the Malaspina complex (mostly ablation area). Even larger thinning is observed on the retreating tidewater Tyndall Glacier. These changes have resulted from increased temperature and precipitation associated with climate warming, and rapid tidewater retreat.

36 CFR 13.1310 - Pets.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Pets. 13.1310 Section 13.1310... SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Kenai Fjords National Park General Provisions § 13.1310 Pets. (a) Pets are prohibited— (1) In the Exit Glacier Developed Area except in the parking lot, on the...

36 CFR 13.1310 - Pets.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Pets. 13.1310 Section 13.1310... SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Kenai Fjords National Park General Provisions § 13.1310 Pets. (a) Pets are prohibited— (1) In the Exit Glacier Developed Area except in the parking lot, on the...

36 CFR 13.1310 - Pets.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Pets. 13.1310 Section 13.1310... SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Kenai Fjords National Park General Provisions § 13.1310 Pets. (a) Pets are prohibited— (1) In the Exit Glacier Developed Area except in the parking lot, on the...

36 CFR 13.1174 - Whale water restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Whale water restrictions. 13.1174 Section 13.1174 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel Operating Restrictions § 13.1174 Whale...

36 CFR 13.1174 - Whale water restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Whale water restrictions. 13.1174 Section 13.1174 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vessel Operating Restrictions § 13.1174 Whale...

Ice-proximal sediment dynamics and their effect on the stability of Muir Glacier, Alaska: A case study of non-climatic glacier response

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hunter, L.E.; Powell, R.D.

1992-01-01

Recent studies have shown that water depth at tidewater termini affect calving rates and, therefore, glacier mass balance and terminus stability. Grounding-line water depths are themselves governed by glacial and marine processes that interact during the formation of morainal bank depocenters. These morainal banks can fluctuate 10s of meters in height within an interval of a few weeks. Recent investigations in Glacier Bay have focused on quantitatively assessing sediment budgets in the ice-proximal environment. The monitoring of morainal banks in upper Muir Inlet has included repeated bathymetric mapping, sediment trap studies, bottom grab sampling, glacier and iceberg sampling, and submersiblemore » ROV investigations within 1 km of the terminus. Such relationships are important in interpreting recent changes in the dynamics of Muir Glacier where a century of retreat has been succeeded by quasi stability. The new glacier regime has accompanied basin infilling from approximately 100 m depth to a maximum of 52 m at the grounding line. Two large grounding-line fans have aggraded to deltas and reduced the length of the calving margin from 900 m to 290 m wide. These effects have reduced the ice flow velocities by 45%. Annual morainal bank growth ranged from 10[sup 6] to 10[sup 7] m[sup 3] and is the result of glacifluvial dumping, suspension settling from turbid overflow plumes, debris dumping from ice-cliff and iceberg melting, glacier squeezing and pushing of morainal bank sediment, and sediment gravity flow processes. Each of these processes are an integral facet of the morainal bank dynamics and glacier response. These studies of Muir Glacier indicate that glacier response to sediment dynamics need to be addresses before climatic implications are made.« less

Radio-echo sounding of Caucasus glaciers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lavrentiev, Ivan; Kutuzov, Stanislav; Vasilenko, Evgeny; Macheret, Yuri

2013-04-01

Accurate glacier volume and ice-thickness estimations are highly important for many glaciological applications. Recent glacier reduction is affecting local river discharge and contributes to the global sea level rise. However, direct measurements of ice thickness are very sparse due to its high cost and laboriousness. One of the glacierized mountain regions with a lack of direct ice-thickness measurements is Caucasus. So far data for several seismic and GPR profiles have been reported for only 3 glaciers from more than 1.7 thousands located in Caucasus. In 2010-2012 a number of ground base and airborne radio-echo sounding surveys have been accomplished in Caucasus Mountains using 20 MHz monopulse radar VIRL-6. Special aerial version of this ground penetrating radar was designed for helicopter-born measurements. The radar has a relatively long (10 m) receiving and transmitting antennas, which together with receiving, recording and transmitting devices can be mounted on a special girder, being suspended from a helicopter. VIRL-6 radar is light weight and can be quickly transformed into ground version. Equipment has been used on 16 glaciers including biggest glacier in Caucasus - Bezengi (36 km2) most of which have a highly crevassed surfaces and heterogeneous internal structure. Independent data were obtained also for two glaciers using ground version of the same VIRL-6 radar. In total more than 120 km of radar profiles were obtained. Results showed good agreement between ground and aerial measurements. Ice-thickness values exceeded 420 m for some of the Central Caucasus glaciers. Successful use of VIRL-6 radar in Caucasus opens up the possibility of using such equipment on different types of glaciers in polar and mountain regions, including temperate, polythermal and surging glaciers.

Associations between accelerated glacier mass wastage and increased summer temperature in coastal regions

USGS Publications Warehouse

Dyurgerov, M.; McCabe, G.J.

2006-01-01

Low-elevation glaciers in coastal regions of Alaska, the Canadian Arctic, individual ice caps around the Greenland ice sheet, and the Patagonia Ice Fields have an aggregate glacier area of about 332 ?? 103 km 2 and account for approximately 42% of all the glacier area outside the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. They have shown volume loss, especially since the end of the 1980s, increasing from about 45% in the 1960s to nearly 67% in 2003 of the total wastage from all glaciers on Earth outside those two largest ice sheets. Thus, a disproportionally large contribution of coastal glacier ablation to sea level rise is evident. We examine cumulative standardized departures (1961-2000 reference period) of glacier mass balances and air temperature data in these four coastal regions. Analyses indicate a strong association between increases in glacier volume losses and summer air temperature at regional and global scales. Increases in glacier volume losses in the coastal regions also coincide with an accelerated rate of ice discharge from outlet glaciers draining the Greenland and West Antarctic ice sheets. These processes imply further increases in sea level rise. ?? 2006 Regents of the University of Colorado.

Increasing rock-avalanche size and mobility in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Alaska detected from 1984 to 2016 Landsat imagery

USGS Publications Warehouse

Coe, Jeffrey A.; Bessette-Kirton, Erin; Geertsema, Marten

2018-01-01

In the USA, climate change is expected to have an adverse impact on slope stability in Alaska. However, to date, there has been limited work done in Alaska to assess if changes in slope stability are occurring. To address this issue, we used 30-m Landsat imagery acquired from 1984 to 2016 to establish an inventory of 24 rock avalanches in a 5000-km2 area of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in southeast Alaska. A search of available earthquake catalogs revealed that none of the avalanches were triggered by earthquakes. Analyses of rock-avalanche magnitude, mobility, and frequency reveal a cluster of large (areas ranging from 5.5 to 22.2 km2), highly mobile (height/length < 0.3) rock avalanches that occurred from June 2012 through June 2016 (near the end of the 33-year period of record). These rock avalanches began about 2  years after the long-term trend in mean annual maximum air temperature may have exceeded 0 °C. Possibly more important, most of these rock avalanches occurred during a multiple-year period of record-breaking warm winter and spring air temperatures. These observations suggested to us that rock avalanches in the study area may be becoming larger because of rock-permafrost degradation. However, other factors, such as accumulating elastic strain, glacial thinning, and increased precipitation, may also play an important role in preconditioning slopes for failure during periods of warm temperatures.

Internationally coordinated glacier monitoring: strategy and datasets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hoelzle, Martin; Armstrong, Richard; Fetterer, Florence; Gärtner-Roer, Isabelle; Haeberli, Wilfried; Kääb, Andreas; Kargel, Jeff; Nussbaumer, Samuel; Paul, Frank; Raup, Bruce; Zemp, Michael

2014-05-01

(c) the Randolph Glacier Inventory (RGI), a new and globally complete digital dataset of outlines from about 180,000 glaciers with some meta-information, which has been used for many applications relating to the IPCC AR5 report. Concerning glacier changes, a database (Fluctuations of Glaciers) exists containing information about mass balance, front variations including past reconstructed time series, geodetic changes and special events. Annual mass balance reporting contains information for about 125 glaciers with a subset of 37 glaciers with continuous observational series since 1980 or earlier. Front variation observations of around 1800 glaciers are available from most of the mountain ranges world-wide. This database was recently updated with 26 glaciers having an unprecedented dataset of length changes from from reconstructions of well-dated historical evidence going back as far as the 16th century. Geodetic observations of about 430 glaciers are available. The database is completed by a dataset containing information on special events including glacier surges, glacier lake outbursts, ice avalanches, eruptions of ice-clad volcanoes, etc. related to about 200 glaciers. A special database of glacier photographs contains 13,000 pictures from around 500 glaciers, some of them dating back to the 19th century. A key challenge is to combine and extend the traditional observations with fast evolving datasets from new technologies.

Remote Sensing Observations of Advancing and Surging Tidewater Glaciers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McNabb, R. W.; Kääb, A.; Nuth, C.; Girod, L.; Truffer, M.; Fahnestock, M. A.

2017-12-01

Progress has been made in understanding the glaciological frontiers of tidewater glacier dynamics and surge dynamics, though many aspects of these topics are not well-understood. Advances in the processing of digital elevation models (DEMs) from ASTER imagery, as well as the increased availability and temporal density of satellite images such as Landsat and the Sentinel missions, provide an unprecedented wealth of satellite data over glaciers, providing new opportunities to learn about these topics. As one of the largest glaciated regions in the world outside of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, glaciers in Alaska and adjacent regions in Canada have been highlighted for their elevated contributions to global sea level rise, through both high levels of melt and frontal ablation/calving from a large number of tidewater glaciers. The region is also home to a number of surging glaciers. We focus on several tidewater glaciers in the region, including Turner, Tsaa, Harvard, and Meares Glaciers. Turner Glacier is a surge-type tidewater glacier with a surge period of approximately eight years, while Tsaa Glacier is a tidwewater glacier that has shown rapid swings in terminus position on the order of a year. Harvard and Meares Glaciers have been steadily advancing since at least the mid-20th century, in contrast with neighboring glaciers that are retreating. Using a combination of ASTER, Landsat, and Sentinel data, we present and examine high-resolution time series of elevation, velocity, and terminus position for these glaciers, as well as updated estimates of volume change and frontal ablation rates, including on sub-annual time scales. Preliminary investigations of elevation change on Turner Glacier show that changes are most pronounced in the lower reaches of the glacier, below a prominent icefall approximately 15km from the head of the glacier. On Harvard and Meares Glaciers, elevation changes in the upper reaches of both glaciers have been generally small or

Partitioning the Water Budget in a Glacierized Basin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

O'Neel, S.; Sass, L.; McGrath, D.; McNeil, C.; Myers, K. F.; Bergstrom, A.; Koch, J. C.; Ostman, J. S.; Arendt, A. A.; LeWinter, A.; Larsen, C. F.; Marshall, H. P.

2017-12-01

Glaciers couple to the ecosystems in which they reside through their mass balance and subsequent runoff. The unique timing and composition of glacier runoff notably impacts ecological and socio-economically important processes, including thermal modulation of streams, nearshore primary production, and groundwater exchange. Predicting how these linkages will evolve as glaciers continue to retreat requires a better understanding of basin- to region-scale water budgets. Here we develop a partitioned water balance for Alaska's Wolverine Glacier basin for 2016. Our presentation will highlight mass-balance forcing and sensitivity, as well as analyses of hydrometric and geochemical partitioning. These observations provide constraints for hypsometry-based regional projections of glacier change, which form the basis of future biogeochemical scenarios. Local climate records show relatively minor warming and drying over the 1967 -2016 interval, yet the impact on the glacier was substantial; the average annual balance rate over the study interval is -0.5 m/yr. We performed a sensitivity experiment that suggests that elevation-independent processes drive first-order variability in glacier-wide mass balance solutions Analysis of runoff and precipitation data suggest that previously ignored components of the hydrologic cycle (groundwater, evapotranspiration, off-glacier snowpack storage, and snow redistribution) may substantially contribute to the basin wide water budget. Initial geochemical assessments (carbon, water isotopes, major ions) highlight unique source signatures (glacier-derived, snow-melt, groundwater), which will be further explored using a mixing model approach. Applying a range of climate forcings over centennial time-scales suggests the regional equilibrium line altitude is likely to increase by more than 100 m, which will result in extensive glacier area losses. Such changes will likely modify the runoff from this basin by increasing inter-annual streamflow

20th-century glacial-marine sedimentation in Vitus Lake, Bering Glacier, Alaska, U.S.A.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Molnia, B.F.; Post, A.; Carlson, P.R.

1996-01-01

Vitus Lake, the ice-marginal basin at the southeastern edge of Bering Glacier, Alaska, U.S.A., is a site of modern, rapid, glacial-marine sedimentation. Rather than being a fresh-water lake, Vitus Lake is a tidally influenced, marine to brackish embayment connected to the Pacific Ocean by an inlet, the Seal River. Vitus Lake consists of five deep bedrock basins, separated by interbasinal highs. Glacial erosion has cut these basins as much as 250 m below sea level. High-resolution seismic reflection surveys conducted in 1991 and 1993 of four of Vitus Lake's basins reveal a complex, variable three-component acoustic stratigraphy. Although not fully sampled, the stratigraphy is inferred to be primarily glacial-marine units of (1) basal contorted and deformed glacial-marine and glacial sediments deposited by basal ice-contact processes and submarine mass-wasting; (2) acoustically well-stratified glacial-marine sediment, which unconformably overlies the basal unit and which grades upward into (3) acoustically transparent or nearly transparent glacial-marine sediment. Maximum thicknesses of conformable glacial-marine sediment exceed 100 m. All of the acoustically transparent and stratified deposits in Vitus Lake are modern in age, having accumulated between 1967 and 1993. The basins where these three-part sequences of "present-day" glacial-marine sediment are accumulating are themselves cut into older sequences of stratified glacial and glacial-marine deposits. These older units outcrop on the islands in Vitus Lake. In 1967, as the result of a major surge, glacier ice completely filled all five basins. Subsequent terminus retreat, which continued through August 1993, exposed these basins, providing new locations for glacial-marine sediment accumulation. A correlation of sediment thicknesses measured from seismic profiles at specific locations within the basins, with the year that each location became ice-free, shows that the sediment accumulation at some locations

36 CFR 13.1114 - May I collect goat hair?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false May I collect goat hair? 13.1114 Section 13.1114 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve General Provisions § 13.1114 May I collect goat...

Using stereo satellite imagery to account for ablation, entrainment, and compaction in volume calculations for rock avalanches on Glaciers: Application to the 2016 Lamplugh Rock Avalanche in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bessette-Kirton, Erin; Coe, Jeffrey A.; Zhou, Wendy

2018-01-01

The use of preevent and postevent digital elevation models (DEMs) to estimate the volume of rock avalanches on glaciers is complicated by ablation of ice before and after the rock avalanche, scour of material during rock avalanche emplacement, and postevent ablation and compaction of the rock avalanche deposit. We present a model to account for these processes in volume estimates of rock avalanches on glaciers. We applied our model by calculating the volume of the 28 June 2016 Lamplugh rock avalanche in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska. We derived preevent and postevent 2‐m resolution DEMs from WorldView satellite stereo imagery. Using data from DEM differencing, we reconstructed the rock avalanche and adjacent surfaces at the time of occurrence by accounting for elevation changes due to ablation and scour of the ice surface, and postevent deposit changes. We accounted for uncertainties in our DEMs through precise coregistration and an assessment of relative elevation accuracy in bedrock control areas. The rock avalanche initially displaced 51.7 ± 1.5 Mm3 of intact rock and then scoured and entrained 13.2 ± 2.2 Mm3 of snow and ice during emplacement. We calculated the total deposit volume to be 69.9 ± 7.9 Mm3. Volume estimates that did not account for topographic changes due to ablation, scour, and compaction underestimated the deposit volume by 31.0–46.8 Mm3. Our model provides an improved framework for estimating uncertainties affecting rock avalanche volume measurements in glacial environments. These improvements can contribute to advances in the understanding of rock avalanche hazards and dynamics.

Methane seeps along boundaries of arctic permafrost thaw and melting glaciers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anthony, P.; Walter Anthony, K. M.; Grosse, G.; Chanton, J.

2014-12-01

Methane, a potent greenhouse gas, accumulates in subsurface hydrocarbon reservoirs. In the Arctic, impermeable icy permafrost and glacial overburden form a 'cryosphere cap' that traps gas leaking from these reservoirs, restricting flow to the atmosphere. We document the release of geologic methane to the atmosphere from abundant gas seeps concentrated along boundaries of permafrost thaw and receding glaciers in Alaska. Through aerial and ground surveys we mapped >150,000 seeps identified as bubbling-induced open holes in lake ice. Subcap methane seeps had anomalously high fluxes, 14C-depletion, and stable isotope values matching known coalbed and thermogenic methane accumulations in Alaska. Additionally, we observed younger subcap methane seeps in Greenland that were associated with ice-sheet retreat since the Little Ice Age. These correlations suggest that in a warming climate, continued disintegration of permafrost, glaciers, and parts of the polar ice sheets will relax pressure on subsurface seals and further open conduits, allowing a transient expulsion of geologic methane currently trapped by the cryosphere cap.

Dramatic increase in the relative abundance of large male dungeness crabs Cancer magister following closure of commercial fishing in Glacier Bay, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Taggart, S. James; Shirley, Thomas C.; O'Clair, Charles E.; Mondragon, Jennifer

2004-01-01

The size structure of the population of the Dungeness crab Cancer magister was studied at six sites in or near Glacier Bay, Alaska, before and after the closure of commercial fishing. Seven years of preclosure and 4 years of postclosure data are presented. After the closure of Glacier Bay to commercial fishing, the number and size of legal-sized male Dungeness crabs increased dramatically at the experimental sites. Female and sublegal-sized male crabs, the portions of the population not directly targeted by commercial fishing, did not increase in size or abundance following the closure. There was not a large shift in the size-abundance distribution of male crabs at the control site that is still open to commercial fishing. Marine protected areas are being widely promoted as effective tools for managing fisheries while simultaneously meeting marine conservation goals and maintaining marine biodiversity. Our data demonstrate that the size of male Dungeness crabs can markedly increase in a marine reserve, which supports the concept that marine reserves could help maintain genetic diversity in Dungeness crabs and other crab species subjected to size-limit fisheries and possibly increase the fertility of females. ?? 2004 by the American Fisheries Society.

Alaska: Glaciers of Kenai Fjords National Park and Katmai and Lake Clark National Parks and Preserve

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Giffen, bruce A.; Hall, Dorothy K.; Chien, Janet Y. L.

2011-01-01

There are hundreds of glaciers in Kenai Fjords National Park (KEFJ) and Katmai National Park and Preserve (KATM) covering over 2276 sq km of park land (circa 2000). There are two primary glacierized areas in KEFJ -- the Harding Icefield and the Grewingk-Yalik Glacier Complex, and three primary glacierized areas in KATM - the Mt. Douglas area, the Kukak Volcano to Mt. Katmai area and the Mt. Martin area. Most glaciers in these parks terminate on land, though a few terminate in lakes. Only KEFJ has tidewater glaciers, which terminate in the ocean. Glacier mapping and analysis of the change in glacier extent has been accomplished on a decadal scale using satellite imagery, primarily Landsat data from the 1970s, 1980s, and from 2000. Landsat Multispectral Scanner (MSS), Thematic Mapper (TM) and Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) imagery was used to map glacier extent on a park-wide basis. Classification of glacier ice using image processing software, along with extensive manual editing, was employed to create Geographic Information System (GIS) outlines of the glacier extent for each park. Many glaciers that originate in KEFJ but terminate outside the park boundaries were also mapped. Results of the analysis show that there has been a reduction in the amount of glacier ice cover in the two parks over the study period. Our measurements show a reduction of approximately 21 sq km, or -1.5% (from 1986 to 2000), and 76 sq km, or -7.7% (from 1986/87 to 2000), in KEFJ and KATM, respectively. This work represents the first comprehensive study of glaciers of KATM. Issues that complicate the mapping of glacier extent include: debris-cover (moraine and volcanic ash), shadows, clouds, fresh snow, lingering snow from the previous season, and differences in spatial resolution between the MSS and TM or ETM+ sensors. Similar glacier mapping efforts in western Canada estimate mapping errors of 3-4%. Measurements were also collected from a suite of glaciers in KEFJ and KATM detailing

JPL-20170926-TECHf-0001-Robot Descends into Alaska Moulin

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-09-26

JPL engineer Andy Klesh lowers a robotic submersible into a moulin. Klesh and JPL's John Leichty used robots and probes to explore the Matanuska Glacier in Alaska this past July. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Global glacier and ice sheet surface velocities derived from 31 years of Landsat imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gardner, A. S.; Scambos, T. A.; Fahnestock, M. A.

2016-12-01

Glaciers and ice sheets are contributing substantial volumes of water to the world's oceans due to enhanced melt resulting from changes in ocean and atmospheric conditions and respective feedbacks. Improving understanding of the processes leading to accelerated rates of ice loss is necessary for reducing uncertainties sea level projections. One key to doing this is to assemble and analyze long records of glacier change that characterize grounded ice response to changes in driving stress, buttressing, and basal conditions. As part of the NASA funded GO_LIVE project we exploit 31 years of Landsat imagery to construct detailed time histories of global glacier velocities. Early exploration of the dataset reveals the diversity of information to be gleaned: sudden tidewater glacier speedups in the Antarctic Peninsula, rifting of Antarctic ice shelves, high variability in velocities near glacier grounding lines, frequent surge activity in the mountainous regions of Alaska and High Mountain Asia, and the slowdown of land-terminating valley glaciers in Arctic Canada and elsewhere.

36 CFR 36.19 - Special actions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Special actions. 36.19... MANAGEMENT REGULATIONS FOR PUBLIC LANDS IN ALASKA Program Structure § 36.19 Special actions. (a) Emergency special actions. In an emergency situation, if necessary to ensure the continued viability of a fish or...

Preliminary bathymetry of Northwestern Fiord and Neoglacial changes of Northwestern Glacier

USGS Publications Warehouse

Post, Austin

1980-01-01

The first preliminary bathymetry (at 1:20,000 scale) and other scientific investigations of Northwestern Fiord, Alaska, were conducted by the Research Vessel Growler in 1978, disclosing this 10.5-mile-long branched waterway to be a deep basin enclosed by a terminal-moraine shoal. The basin was formerly filled by Northwestern Glacier, which began a drastic retreat around 1909 and reached the head of the main arm around 1960. Soundings and profiles show the main channel to be as much as 970 feet deep and to have the typical U shape of a severely glacially eroded valley; since the glacier 's retreat, sediments have formed nearly level deposits in the deepest reaches, while the rest of the basin has a hard, rocky bottom. Preneoglacial forest debris dated by carbon-14 indicates Northwestern Glacier to have advanced into the fiord prior to 1,385 years before present (B.P.); a branch glacier evidently advanced into forest 1,635 years B.P. The combined glaciers from several arms culminated on the present terminal-moraine shoal around 1894. (USGS)

Icequake Tremors During Glacier Calving (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Walter, F.; O'Neel, S.; Bassis, J. N.; Fricker, H. A.; Pfeffer, W. T.

2009-12-01

Calving poses the largest uncertainty in the prediction of sea-level rise in response to global climate changes. A physically-based calving law has yet to be successfully implemented into ice-sheet models in order to adequately describe the mass loss of tidewater glaciers and ice shelves. Observations from a variety of glacial environments are needed in order to develop a theoretical framework for glacier calving. To this end, several recent investigations on glacier calving have involved the recording of seismic waves. In this context, the study of icequakes has been of high value, as it allows for detecting and monitoring of calving activity. However, there are unanswered fundamental questions concerning source aspects of calving-related seismic activity, such as focal depths of icequakes preceding and accompanying calving events, failure mechanisms and the role of fracturing and crevasse formation upstream from the glacier terminus. Icequake sources associated with opening of surface crevasses are well understood. As glacier ice is often homogeneous these waveforms are relatively simple and can be modeled using the moment tensor representation of a seismic point source. Calving-related seismicity, on the other hand, is more complex, and occurs near the terminus of a glacier, which is often highly heterogeneous due to pervasive crevassing. The signals last up to several minutes or even hours and exhibit both low-frequency (1-3Hz) as well as high-frequency (10-20Hz) energy or tremor-like waveforms. These characteristics can be explained by finite source properties, such as connecting and migrating fractures and repeated slip across contact planes between two bodies of ice. In this presentation we discuss sources of calving-related seismicity by comparing seismic calving records from several different glacial settings. We consider icequakes recorded during tidewater calving at Columbia Glacier, Alaska, during lake calving on Gornergletscher, Switzerland, and during

Glaciers of Europe

USGS Publications Warehouse

Williams, Richard S.; Ferrigno, Jane G.

1993-01-01

ALPS: AUSTRIAN: An overview is provided on the occurrence of the glaciers in the Eastern Alps of Austria and on the climatic conditions in this area, Historical documents on the glaciers have been available since the Middle Ages. Special glaciological observations and topographic surveys of individual glaciers were initiated as early as 1846. Recent data in an inventory based on aerial photographs taken in 1969 show 925 glaciers in the Austrian Alps with a total area of 542 square kilometers. Present research topics include studies of mass and energy balance, relations of glaciers and climate, physical glaciology, a complete inventory of the glaciers, and testing of remote sensing methods. The location of the glacier areas is shown on Landsat multispectral scanner images; the improved capabilities of the Landsat thematic mapper are illustrated with an example from the Oztaler Alpen group. ALPS: SWISS: According to a glacier inventory published in 1976, which is based on aerial photography of 1973, there are 1,828 glacier units in the Swiss Alps that cover a total area of 1fl42 square kilometers. The Rhonegletscher, currently the ninth largest in the country, was one of the first to be studied in detail. Its surface has been surveyed repeatedly; velocity profiles were measured, and the fluctuations of its terminus were mapped and recorded from 1874 to 1914. Recent research on the glacier has included climatological, hydrological, and massbalance studies. Glaciological research has been conducted on various other glaciers in Switzerland concerning glacier hydrology, glacier hazards, fluctuations of glacier termini, ice mechanics, ice cores, and mass balance. Good maps are available showing the extent of glaciers from the latter decades of the 19th century. More recently, the entire country has been mapped at scales of 1:25,000, 1:50,000, 1:100,000, 1:200,000, and 1:500,000. The 1:25,000-scale series very accurately represents the glaciers as well as locates

Updated Estimates of Glacier Mass Change for Western North America

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Menounos, B.; Gardner, A. S.; Howat, I.; Berthier, E.; Dehecq, A.; Noh, M. J.; Pelto, B. M.

2017-12-01

Alpine glaciers are critical components in Western North America's hydrologic cycle. We use varied remotely-sensed datasets to provide updated mass change estimates for Region 2 of the Randolf Glacier Inventory (RGI-02 - all North American glaciers outside of Alaska). Our datasets include: i) aerial laser altimetry surveys completed over many thousands of square kilometers; and ii) multiple Terabytes of high resolution optical stereo imagery (World View 1-3 and Pleiades). Our data from the period 2014-2017 includes the majority of glaciers in RGI-02, specifically those ice masses in the Rocky Mountains (US and Canada), Interior Ranges in British Columbia and the Cascade Mountains (Washington). We co-registered and bias corrected the recent surface models to the Shuttle Radar Topographic Mapping (SRTM) data acquired in February, 2000. In British Columbia, our estimates of mass change are within the uncertainty estimates obtained for the period 1985-2000, but estimates from some regions indicate accelerated mass loss. Work is also underway to update glacier mass change estimates for glaciers in Washington and Montana. Finally, we use re-analysis data (ERA interim and ERA5) to evaluate the meteorological drivers that explain the temporal and spatial variability of mass change evident in our analysis.

Airborne and spaceborne DEM- and laser altimetry-derived surface elevation and volume changes of the Bering Glacier system, Alaska, USA, and Yukon, Canada, 1972-2006

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Muskett, Reginald R.; Lingle, Craig S.; Sauber, Jeanne M.; Post, Austin S.; Tangborn, Wendell V.; Rabus, Bernhard T.; Echelmeyer, Keith A.

Using airborne and spaceborne high-resolution digital elevation models and laser altimetry, we present estimates of interannual and multi-decadal surface elevation changes on the Bering Glacier system, Alaska, USA, and Yukon, Canada, from 1972 to 2006. We find: (1) the rate of lowering during 1972-95 was 0.9±0.1 m a-1; (2) this rate accelerated to 3.0±0.7 m a-1 during 1995-2000; and (3) during 2000-03 the lowering rate was 1.5±0.4 m a-1. From 1972 to 2003, 70% of the area of the system experienced a volume loss of 191±17 km3, which was an area-average surface elevation lowering of 1.7±0.2 m a-1. From November 2004 to November 2006, surface elevations across Bering Glacier, from McIntosh Peak on the south to Waxell Ridge on the north, rose as much as 53 m. Up-glacier on Bagley Ice Valley about 10 km east of Juniper Island nunatak, surface elevations lowered as much as 28 m from October 2003 to October 2006. NASA Terra/MODIS observations from May to September 2006 indicated muddy outburst floods from the Bering terminus into Vitus Lake. This suggests basal-englacial hydrologic storage changes were a contributing factor in the surface elevation changes in the fall of 2006.

Deep-seated gravitational slope deformations near the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, east-central Alaska Range, Alaska, USA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Newman, S. D.; Clague, J. J.; Rabus, B.; Stead, D.

2013-12-01

Multiple, active, deep-seated gravitational slope deformations (DSGSD) are present near the Trans-Alaska Pipeline and Richardson Highway in the east-central Alaska Range, Alaska, USA. We documented spatial and temporal variations in rates of surface movement of the DSGSDs between 2003 and 2011 using RADARSAT-1 and RADARSAT-2 D-InSAR images. Deformation rates exceed 10 cm/month over very large areas (>1 km2) of many rock slopes. Recent climatic change and strong seismic shaking, especially during the 2002 M 7.9 Denali Fault earthquake, appear to have exacerbated slope deformation. We also mapped DSGSD geological and morphological characteristics using field- and GIS-based methods, and constructed a conceptual 2D distinct-element numerical model of one of the DSGSDs. Preliminary results indicate that large-scale buckling or kink-band slumping may be occurring. The DSGSDs are capable of generating long-runout landslides that might impact the Trans-Alaska Pipeline and Richardson Highway. They could also block tributary valleys, thereby impounding lakes that might drain suddenly. Wrapped 24-day RADARSAT-2 descending spotlight interferogram showing deformation north of Fels Glacier. The interferogram is partially transparent and is overlaid on a 2009 WorldView-1 panchromatic image. Acquisition interval: August 2 - August 26, 2011. UTM Zone 6N.

Mercury and water-quality data from Rink Creek, Salmon River, and Good River, Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Alaska, November 2009-October 2011

USGS Publications Warehouse

Nagorski, Sonia A.; Neal, Edward G.; Brabets, Timothy P.

2013-01-01

Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (GBNPP), Alaska, like many pristine high latitude areas, is exposed to atmospherically deposited contaminants such as mercury (Hg). Although the harmful effects of Hg are well established, information on this contaminant in southeast Alaska is scarce. Here, we assess the level of this contaminant in several aquatic components (water, sediments, and biological tissue) in three adjacent, small streams in GBNPP that drain contrasting landscapes but receive similar atmospheric inputs: Rink Creek, Salmon River, and Good River. Twenty water samples were collected from 2009 to 2011 and processed and analyzed for total mercury and methylmercury (filtered and particulate), and dissolved organic carbon quantity and quality. Ancillary stream water parameters (discharge, pH, dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, and temperature) were measured at the time of sampling. Major cations, anions, and nutrients were measured four times. In addition, total mercury was analyzed in streambed sediment in 2010 and in juvenile coho salmon and several taxa of benthic macroinvertebrates in the early summer of 2010 and 2011.

The Neoglacial landscape and human history of Glacier Bay, Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, southeast Alaska, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Connor, C.; Streveler, G.; Post, A.; Monteith, D.; Howell, W.

2009-01-01

The Neoglacial landscape of the Huna Tlingit homeland in Glacier Bay is recreated through new interpretations of the lower Bay's fjordal geomorphology, late Quaternary geology and its ethnographic landscape. Geological interpretation is enhanced by 38 radiocarbon dates compiled from published and unpublished sources, as well as 15 newly dated samples. Neoglacial changes in ice positions, outwash and lake extents are reconstructed for c. 5500?????"200 cal. yr ago, and portrayed as a set of three landscapes at 1600?????"1000, 500?????"300 and 300?????"200 cal. yr ago. This history reveals episodic ice advance towards the Bay mouth, transforming it from a fjordal seascape into a terrestrial environment dominated by glacier outwash sediments and ice-marginal lake features. This extensive outwash plain was building in lower Glacier Bay by at least 1600 cal. yr ago, and had filled the lower bay by 500 cal. yr ago. The geologic landscape evokes the human-described landscape found in the ethnographic literature. Neoglacial climate and landscape dynamism created difficult but endurable environmental conditions for the Huna Tlingit people living there. Choosing to cope with environmental hardship was perhaps preferable to the more severely deteriorating conditions outside of the Bay as well as conflicts with competing groups. The central portion of the outwash plain persisted until it was overridden by ice moving into Icy Strait between AD 1724?????"1794. This final ice advance was very abrupt after a prolonged still-stand, evicting the Huna Tlingit from their Glacier Bay homeland. ?? 2009 SAGE Publications.

Geologic characteristics of benthic habitats in Glacier Bay, southeast Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Harney, Jodi N.; Cochrane, Guy R.; Etherington, Lisa L.; Dartnell, Pete; Golden, Nadine E.; Chezar, Hank

2006-01-01

In April 2004, more than 40 hours of georeferenced submarine digital video was collected in water depths of 15-370 m in Glacier Bay to (1) ground-truth existing geophysical data (bathymetry and acoustic reflectance), (2) examine and record geologic characteristics of the sea floor, and (3) investigate the relation between substrate types and benthic communities, and (4) construct predictive maps of seafloor geomorphology and habitat distribution. Common substrates observed include rock, boulders, cobbles, rippled sand, bioturbated mud, and extensive beds of living horse mussels and scallops. Four principal sea-floor geomorphic types are distinguished by using video observations. Their distribution in lower and central Glacier Bay is predicted using a supervised, hierarchical decision-tree statistical classification of geophysical data.

Amchitka Island, Alaska, special sampling project 1997

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

U.S. Department of Energy, Nevada Operations Office

2000-06-28

This 1997 special sampling project represents a special radiobiological sampling effort to augment the 1996 Long-Term Hydrological Monitoring Program (LTHMP) for Amchitka Island in Alaska. Lying in the western portion of the Aleutian Islands arc, near the International Date Line, Amchitka Island is one of the southernmost islands of the Rat Island Chain. Between 1965 and 1971, the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission conducted three underground nuclear tests on Amchitka Island. In 1996, Greenpeace collected biota samples and speculated that several long-lived, man-made radionuclides detected (i.e., americium-241, plutonium-239 and -240, beryllium-7, and cesium-137) leaked into the surface environment from underground cavitiesmore » created during the testing. The nuclides of interest are detected at extremely low concentrations throughout the environment. The objectives of this special sampling project were to scientifically refute the Greenpeace conclusions that the underground cavities were leaking contaminants to the surface. This was achieved by first confirming the presence of these radionuclides in the Amchitka Island surface environment and, second, if the radionuclides were present, determining if the source is the underground cavity or worldwide fallout. This special sampling and analysis determined that the only nonfallout-related radionuclide detected was a low level of tritium from the Long Shot test, which had been previously documented. The tritium contamination is monitored and continues a decreasing trend due to radioactive decay and dilution.« less

The use of multi-channel ground penetrating radar and stream monitoring to investigate the seasonal evolution of englacial and subglacial drainage systems at the terminus of Exit Glacier, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kilgore, Susan Marlena

Concerns regarding the issue of climate change and, in particular, the rapid retreat of glaciers around the world, have placed great importance on glacial monitoring. Some of the methods most commonly used to observe glacial change---direct mass balance measurements and remote sensing---provide valuable information about glacier change. However, these methods do not address the englacial and subglacial environments. Surface meltwater that enters englacial and subglacial hydrological networks can contribute to acceleration of ice flow, increased calving on marine-terminating glaciers, surges or outburst floods, and greater overall ablation rates. Because subsurface drainage systems often freeze during the winter and re-form each summer, examining the seasonal evolution of these networks is crucial for assessing the impact that internal drainage may have on the behavior of a glacier each year. The goal of this study is to determine the role englacial and subglacial drainage system evolution plays in influencing summer ablation and discharge at the terminus of Exit Glacier, a small valley glacier located in South-central Alaska. During the summers of 2010 and 2011, we used ground-penetrating radar (GPR) to locate internal drainage features on the lower 100 meters of the glacier. GPR surveys were conducted in June and August of each year in an effort to observe the evolution of the drainage systems over the course of an ablation season. Three antenna frequencies---250, 500, and 800 MHz---were used on a dual frequency GPR so that various resolutions and depths in the ice could be viewed simultaneously. Stream monitoring was conducted to document discharge in the proglacial stream throughout the 2011 season. These data were compared with weather records to differentiate noticeable meltwater releases from precipitation events. Additionally, morphological changes in the glacier were observed through photographic documentation. Throughout the observation period, significant

Glacier monitoring and glacier-climate interactions in the tropical Andes: A review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Veettil, Bijeesh Kozhikkodan; Wang, Shanshan; Florêncio de Souza, Sergio; Bremer, Ulisses Franz; Simões, Jefferson Cardia

2017-08-01

In this review, we summarized the evolution of glacier monitoring in the tropical Andes during the last few decades, particularly after the development of remote sensing and photogrammetry. Advantages and limitations of glacier mapping, applied so far, in Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia are discussed in detail. Glacier parameters such as the equilibrium line altitude, snowline and mass balance were given special attention in understanding the complex cryosphere-climate interactions, particularly using remote sensing techniques. Glaciers in the inner and the outer tropics were considered separately based on the precipitation and temperature conditions within a new framework. The applicability of various methods to use glacier records to understand and reconstruct the tropical Andean climate between the Last Glacial Maximum (11,700 years ago) and the present is also explored in this paper. Results from various studies published recently were analyzed and we tried to understand the differences in the magnitudes of glacier responses towards the climatic perturbations in the inner tropics and the outer tropics. Inner tropical glaciers, particularly those in Venezuela and Colombia near the January Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), are more vulnerable to increase in temperature. Surface energy balance experiments show that outer tropical glaciers respond to precipitation variability very rapidly in comparison with the temperature variability, particularly when moving towards the subtropics. We also analyzed the gradients in glacier response to climate change from the Pacific coast towards the Amazon Basin as well as with the elevation. Based on the current trends synthesised from recent studies, it is hypothesized that the glaciers in the inner tropics and the southern wet outer tropics will disappear first as a response to global warming whereas glaciers in the northern wet outer tropics and dry outer tropics show resistance to warming trends due to

Future streamflow droughts in glacierized catchments: the impact of dynamic glacier modelling and changing thresholds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Van Tiel, Marit; Van Loon, Anne; Wanders, Niko; Vis, Marc; Teuling, Ryan; Stahl, Kerstin

2017-04-01

In glacierized catchments, snowpack and glaciers function as an important storage of water and hydrographs of highly glacierized catchments in mid- and high latitudes thus show a clear seasonality with low flows in winter and high flows in summer. Due to the ongoing climate change we expect this type of storage capacity to decrease with resultant consequences for the discharge regime. In this study we focus on streamflow droughts, here defined as below average water availability specifically in the high flow season, and which methods are most suitable to characterize future streamflow droughts as regimes change. Two glacierized catchments, Nigardsbreen (Norway) and Wolverine (Alaska), are used as case study and streamflow droughts are compared between two periods, 1975-2004 and 2071-2100. Streamflow is simulated with the HBV light model, calibrated on observed discharge and seasonal glacier mass balances, for two climate change scenarios (RCP 4.5 & RCP 8.5). In studies on future streamflow drought often the same variable threshold of the past has been applied to the future, but in regions where a regime shift is expected this method gives severe "droughts" in the historic high-flow period. We applied the new alternative transient variable threshold, a threshold that adapts to the changing hydrological regime and is thus better able to cope with this issue, but has never been thoroughly tested in glacierized catchments. As the glacier area representation in the hydrological modelling can also influence the modelled discharge and the derived streamflow droughts, we evaluated in this study both the difference between the historical variable threshold (HVT) and transient variable threshold (TVT) and two different glacier area conceptualisations (constant area (C) and dynamical area (D)), resulting in four scenarios: HVT-C, HVT-D, TVT-C and TVT-D. Results show a drastic decrease in the number of droughts in the HVT-C scenario due to increased glacier melt. The deficit

Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys

Science.gov Websites

Name Title Gabriel Wolken, Ph.D. Program Manager Katreen Wikstrom Jones M.Sc. Geologist Research flood forecasting) rely on a quantitative assessment of distributed snow thickness and stored water . 2015. End-of-winter snow depth variability on glaciers in Alaska. Journal of Geophysical Research

24 CFR 598.515 - Alaska and Hawaii.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 3 2014-04-01 2013-04-01 true Alaska and Hawaii. 598.515 Section 598.515 Housing and Urban Development Regulations Relating to Housing and Urban Development (Continued... DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY FACILITIES URBAN EMPOWERMENT ZONES: ROUND TWO AND THREE DESIGNATIONS Special Rules § 598...

24 CFR 598.515 - Alaska and Hawaii.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 3 2011-04-01 2010-04-01 true Alaska and Hawaii. 598.515 Section 598.515 Housing and Urban Development Regulations Relating to Housing and Urban Development (Continued... DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY FACILITIES URBAN EMPOWERMENT ZONES: ROUND TWO AND THREE DESIGNATIONS Special Rules § 598...

24 CFR 598.515 - Alaska and Hawaii.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 3 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Alaska and Hawaii. 598.515 Section 598.515 Housing and Urban Development Regulations Relating to Housing and Urban Development (Continued... DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY FACILITIES URBAN EMPOWERMENT ZONES: ROUND TWO AND THREE DESIGNATIONS Special Rules § 598...

24 CFR 598.515 - Alaska and Hawaii.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 3 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Alaska and Hawaii. 598.515 Section 598.515 Housing and Urban Development Regulations Relating to Housing and Urban Development (Continued... DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY FACILITIES URBAN EMPOWERMENT ZONES: ROUND TWO AND THREE DESIGNATIONS Special Rules § 598...

Satellite image atlas of glaciers of the world

USGS Publications Warehouse

Williams, Richard S.; Ferrigno, Jane G.; Williams, Richard S.; Ferrigno, Jane G.

1988-01-01

U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1386, Satellite Image Atlas of Glaciers of the World, contains 11 chapters designated by the letters A through K. Chapter A provides a comprehensive, yet concise, review of the "State of the Earth's Cryosphere at the Beginning of the 21st Century: Glaciers, Global Snow Cover, Floating Ice, and Permafrost and Periglacial Environments," and a "Map/Poster of the Earth's Dynamic Cryosphere," and a set of eight "Supplemental Cryosphere Notes" about the Earth's Dynamic Cryosphere and the Earth System. The next 10 chapters, B through K, are arranged geographically and present glaciological information from Landsat and other sources of historic and modern data on each of the geographic areas. Chapter B covers Antarctica; Chapter C, Greenland; Chapter D, Iceland; Chapter E, Continental Europe (except for the European part of the former Soviet Union), including the Alps, the Pyrenees, Norway, Sweden, Svalbard (Norway), and Jan Mayen (Norway); Chapter F, Asia, including the European part of the former Soviet Union, China, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, and Bhutan; Chapter G, Turkey, Iran, and Africa; Chapter H, Irian Jaya (Indonesia) and New Zealand; Chapter I, South America; Chapter J, North America (excluding Alaska); and Chapter K, Alaska. Chapters A–D each include map plates.

Anthropogenic aerosols as a source of ancient dissolved organic matter in glaciers

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stubbins, Aron; Hood, Eran; Raymond, Peter A.; Aiken, George R.; Sleighter, Rachel L.; Hernes, Peter J.; Butman, David; Hatcher, Patrick G.; Striegl, Robert G.; Schuster, Paul F.; Abdulla, Hussain A.N.; Vermilyea, Andrew W.; Scott, Durelle T.; Spencer, Robert G.M.

2012-01-01

Glacier-derived dissolved organic matter represents a quantitatively significant source of ancient, yet highly bioavailable carbon to downstream ecosystems. This finding runs counter to logical perceptions of age–reactivity relationships, in which the least reactive material withstands degradation the longest and is therefore the oldest. The remnants of ancient peatlands and forests overrun by glaciers have been invoked as the source of this organic matter. Here, we examine the radiocarbon age and chemical composition of dissolved organic matter in snow, glacier surface water, ice and glacier outflow samples from Alaska to determine the origin of the organic matter. Low levels of compounds derived from vascular plants indicate that the organic matter does not originate from forests or peatlands. Instead, we show that the organic matter on the surface of the glaciers is radiocarbon depleted, consistent with an anthropogenic aerosol source. Fluorescence spectrophotometry measurements reveal the presence of protein-like compounds of microbial or aerosol origin. In addition, ultrahigh-resolution mass spectrometry measurements document the presence of combustion products found in anthropogenic aerosols. Based on the presence of these compounds, we suggest that aerosols derived from fossil fuel burning are a source of pre-aged organic matter to glacier surfaces. Furthermore, we show that the molecular signature of the organic matter is conserved in snow, glacier water and outflow, suggesting that the anthropogenic carbon is exported relatively unchanged in glacier outflows.

2011 Updates on the Long-term Glacier Monitoring Program in Denali National Park and Preserve

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burrows, R. A.; Adema, G. W.; Herreid, S. J.; Arendt, A. A.; Larsen, C. F.

2011-12-01

+/- 29 m/year with a positive trend. Monitoring glacier behavior and trends using a variety of techniques provides insight to the complexity of glacier change and increases our ability to distinguish local effects from regional and global trends. Parkwide analysis of glacier extent change since the 1950's shows a consistent trend of retreat, except for glaciers that have surged. Longitudinal surface elevation profiling and comparative photography shows relative stability in larger glaciers, but dramatic long-term mass loss on small, relatively low elevation, valley glaciers characteristic of the eastern portion of DENA. These patterns of ice loss are somewhat unique to the Alaska Range and contrast with big losses of ice mass from large glaciers that border the Gulf of Alaska.

Implications for the dynamic health of a glacier from comparison of conventional and reference-surface balances

USGS Publications Warehouse

Harrison, W.D.; Cox, L.H.; Hock, R.; March, R.S.; Pettit, E.C.

2009-01-01

Conventional and reference-surface mass-balance data from Gulkana and Wolverine Glaciers, Alaska, USA, are used to address the questions of how rapidly these glaciers are adjusting (or 'responding') to climate, whether their responses are stable, and whether the glaciers are likely to survive in today's climate. Instability means that a glacier will eventually vanish, or at least become greatly reduced in volume, if the climate stabilizes at its present state. A simple non-linear theory of response is presented for the analysis. The response of Gulkana Glacier is characterized by a timescale of several decades, but its stability and therefore its survival in today's climate are uncertain. Wolverine seems to be responding to climate more slowly, on the timescale of one to several centuries. Its stability is also uncertain, but a slower response time would make it more susceptible to climate changes.

Progress toward Consensus Estimates of Regional Glacier Mass Balances for IPCC AR5

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arendt, A. A.; Gardner, A. S.; Cogley, J. G.

2011-12-01

Glaciers are potentially large contributors to rising sea level. Since the last IPCC report in 2007 (AR4), there has been a widespread increase in the use of geodetic observations from satellite and airborne platforms to complement field observations of glacier mass balance, as well as significant improvements in the global glacier inventory. Here we summarize our ongoing efforts to integrate data from multiple sources to arrive at a consensus estimate for each region, and to quantify uncertainties in those estimates. We will use examples from Alaska to illustrate methods for combining Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE), elevation differencing and field observations into a single time series with related uncertainty estimates. We will pay particular attention to reconciling discrepancies between GRACE estimates from multiple processing centers. We will also investigate the extent to which improvements in the glacier inventory affect the accuracy of our regional mass balances.

The United States National Climate Assessment - Alaska Technical Regional Report

USGS Publications Warehouse

Markon, Carl J.; Trainor, Sarah F.; Chapin, F. Stuart; Markon, Carl J.; Trainor, Sarah F.; Chapin, F. Stuart

2012-01-01

The Alaskan landscape is changing, both in terms of effects of human activities as a consequence of increased population, social and economic development and their effects on the local and broad landscape; and those effects that accompany naturally occurring hazards such as volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and tsunamis. Some of the most prevalent changes, however, are those resulting from a changing climate, with both near term and potential upcoming effects expected to continue into the future. Alaska's average annual statewide temperatures have increased by nearly 4°F from 1949 to 2005, with significant spatial variability due to the large latitudinal and longitudinal expanse of the State. Increases in mean annual temperature have been greatest in the interior region, and smallest in the State's southwest coastal regions. In general, however, trends point toward increases in both minimum temperatures, and in fewer extreme cold days. Trends in precipitation are somewhat similar to those in temperature, but with more variability. On the whole, Alaska saw a 10-percent increase in precipitation from 1949 to 2005, with the greatest increases recorded in winter. The National Climate Assessment has designated two well-established scenarios developed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (Nakicenovic and others, 2001) as a minimum set that technical and author teams considered as context in preparing portions of this assessment. These two scenarios are referred to as the Special Report on Emissions Scenarios A2 and B1 scenarios, which assume either a continuation of recent trends in fossil fuel use (A2) or a vigorous global effort to reduce fossil fuel use (B1). Temperature increases from 4 to 22°F are predicted (to 2070-2099) depending on which emissions scenario (A2 or B1) is used with the least warming in southeast Alaska and the greatest in the northwest. Concomitant with temperature changes, by the end of the 21st century the growing season is expected

Sea otter studies in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bodkin, James L.; Kloecker, Kimberly A.; Esslinger, George G.; Monson, Daniel H.; DeGroot, J.D.; Doherty, J.

2002-01-01

Following translocations to the outer coast of Southeast Alaska in 1965, sea otters have been expanding their range and increasing in abundance. We began conducting surveys for sea otters in Cross Sound, Icy Strait, and Glacier Bay, Alaska in 1994, following initial reports (in 1993) of their presence in Glacier Bay. Since 1995, the number of sea otters in Glacier Bay proper has increased from around 5 to more than 1500. Between 1993 and 1997 sea otters were apparently only occasional visitors to Glacier Bay, but in 1998 long-term residence was established as indicated by the presence of adult females and their dependent pups. Sea otter distribution is limited to the Lower Bay, south of Sandy Cove, and is not continuous within that area. Concentrations occur in the vicinity of Sita Reef and Boulder Island and between Pt. Carolus and Rush Pt. on the west side of the Bay (Figure 1). We describe the diet of sea otters during 2001 in Glacier Bay based on visual observations of prey during 456 successful forage dives. In Glacier Bay, diet consisted of 62% clam, 15% mussel, 9% crab, 7% unidentified, 4& urchins, and 4% other. Most prey recovered by sea otters are commercially, socially, or ecologically important species. Species of clam include Saxidomus gigantea, Protothaca staminea, and Mya truncata. Urchins are primarily Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis and the mussel is Modiolus modiolus. Crabs include species of three genera: Cancer, Chinoecetes, and Telmessus. Although we characterize diet at broad geographic scales, we found diet to vary between sites separated by as little as several hundred meters. Dietary variation among and within sites can reflect differences in prey availability and individual specialization. We estimated species composition, density, biomass, and sizes of subtidal clams, urchins, and mussels at 9 sites in lower Glacier Bay. All sites were selected based on the presence of abundant clam siphons. Sites were not selected to allow inference to

Digital outlines and topography of the glaciers of the American West

USGS Publications Warehouse

Fountain, Andrew G.; Hoffman, Matthew; Jackson, Keith; Basagic, Hassan; Nylen, Thomas; Percy, David

2007-01-01

Alpine glaciers have generally receded during the past century (post-“Little Ice Age”) because of climate warming (Oerlemans and others, 1998; Mann and others, 1999; Dyurgerov and Meier, 2000; Grove, 2001). This general retreat has accelerated since the mid 1970s, when a shift in atmospheric circulation occurred (McCabe and Fountain, 1995; Dyurgerov and Meier, 2000). The loss in glacier cover has had several profound effects. First, the shrinkage of glaciers results in a net increase in stream flow, typically in late summer when water supplies are at the lowest levels (Fountain and Tangborn, 1985). This additional water is important to ecosystems (Hall and Fagre, 2003) and to human water needs (Tangborn, 1980). However, if shrinkage continues, the net contribution to stream flow will diminish, and the effect upon these benefactors will be adverse. Glacier shrinkage is also a significant factor in current sea level rise (Meier, 1984; Dyurgerov and Meier, 2000). Second, many of the glaciers in the West Coast States are located on stratovolcanoes, and continued recession will leave oversteepened river valleys. These valleys, once buttressed by ice are now subject to failure, creating conditions for lahars (Walder and Driedger, 1994; O’Connor and others, 2001). Finally, reduction or loss of glaciers reduce or eliminate glacial activity as an important geomorphic process on landscape evolution and alters erosion rates in high alpine areas (Hallet and others, 1996). Because of the importance of glaciers to studies of climate change, hazards, and landscape modification, glacier inventories have been published for Alaska (Manley, in press), China (http://wdcdgg.westgis.ac.cn/DATABASE/Glacier/Glacier.asp), Nepal (Mool and others, 2001), Switzerland (Paul and others, 2002), and the Tyrolian Alps of Austria (Paul, 2002), among other locales. To provide the necessary data for assessing the magnitude and rate of glacier change in the American West, exclusive of Alaska

Investigating plume dynamics at the ocean-glacier interface with turbulence profiling and autonomous vessels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jackson, R. H.; Nash, J. D.; Sutherland, D. A.; Amundson, J. M.; Kienholz, C.; Skyllingstad, E. D.; Motyka, R. J.

2017-12-01

The exchanges of heat and freshwater at tidewater glacier termini are modulated by small-scale turbulent processes. However, few observations have been obtained near the ocean-glacier interface, limiting our ability to quantify turbulent fluxes or test melt parameterizations in ocean-glacier models. Here, we explore the turbulent plume dynamics at LeConte Glacier, Alaska with three extensive field campaigns in May, August and September (2016-17). Two autonomous vessels collected repeat transects of velocity and water properties near the glacier, often within 20 m of the terminus. Concurrent shipboard surveying measured turbulence with a vertical microstructure profiler, along with water properties and velocity. These high-resolution surveys provide a 3D view of the circulation and allow us to quantify turbulent fluxes in the near-glacier region. We observe two regimes at the terminus: an energetic upwelling plume driven by subglacial discharge at a persistent location, and submarine melt-driven convection along other parts of the terminus. We trace the evolution of the subglacial discharge plume as it flows away from the glacier, from an initial stage of vigorous mixing to a more quiescent outflow downstream. Resolving these spatial patterns of upwelling and mixing near glaciers is a key step towards understanding submarine melt rates and glacial fjord circulation.

Geologic methane seeps along boundaries of Arctic permafrost thaw and melting glaciers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Walter Anthony, Katey M.; Anthony, Peter; Grosse, Guido; Chanton, Jeffrey

2012-06-01

Methane, a potent greenhouse gas, accumulates in subsurface hydrocarbon reservoirs, such as coal beds and natural gas deposits. In the Arctic, permafrost and glaciers form a `cryosphere cap' that traps gas leaking from these reservoirs, restricting flow to the atmosphere. With a carbon store of over 1,200Pg, the Arctic geologic methane reservoir is large when compared with the global atmospheric methane pool of around 5Pg. As such, the Earth's climate is sensitive to the escape of even a small fraction of this methane. Here, we document the release of 14C-depleted methane to the atmosphere from abundant gas seeps concentrated along boundaries of permafrost thaw and receding glaciers in Alaska and Greenland, using aerial and ground surface survey data and in situ measurements of methane isotopes and flux. We mapped over 150,000 seeps, which we identified as bubble-induced open holes in lake ice. These seeps were characterized by anomalously high methane fluxes, and in Alaska by ancient radiocarbon ages and stable isotope values that matched those of coal bed and thermogenic methane accumulations. Younger seeps in Greenland were associated with zones of ice-sheet retreat since the Little Ice Age. Our findings imply that in a warming climate, disintegration of permafrost, glaciers and parts of the polar ice sheets could facilitate the transient expulsion of 14C-depleted methane trapped by the cryosphere cap.

Ecology of selected marine communities in Glacier Bay: Zooplankton, forage fish, seabirds and marine mammals

USGS Publications Warehouse

Robards, Martin D.; Drew, Gary S.; Piatt, John F.; Anson, Jennifer Marie; Abookire, Alisa A.; Bodkin, James L.; Hooge, Philip N.; Speckman, Suzann G.

2003-01-01

We studied oceanography (including primary production), secondary production, small schooling fish (SSF), and marine bird and mammal predators in Glacier Bay during 1999 and 2000. Results from these field efforts were combined with a review of current literature relating to the Glacier Bay environment. Since the conceptual model developed by Hale and Wright (1979) ‘changes and cycles’ continue to be the underlying theme of the Glacier Bay ecosystem. We found marked seasonality in many of the parameters that we investigated over the two years of research, and here we provide a comprehensive description of the distribution and relative abundance of a wide array of marine biota. Glacier Bay is a tidally mixed estuary that leads into basins, which stratify in summer, with the upper arms behaving as traditional estuaries. The Bay is characterized by renewal and mixing events throughout the year, and markedly higher primary production than in many neighboring southeast Alaska fjords (Hooge and Hooge, 2002). Zooplankton diversity and abundance within the upper 50 meters of the water column in Glacier Bay is similar to communities seen throughout the Gulf of Alaska. Zooplankton in the lower regions of Glacier Bay peak in abundance in late May or early June, as observed at Auke Bay and in the Gulf of Alaska. The key distinction between the lower Bay and other estuaries in the Gulf of Alaska is that a second smaller peak in densities occurs in August. The upper Bay behaved uniformly in temporal trends, peaking in July. Densities had begun to decline in August, but were still more than twice those observed in that region in May. The highest density of zooplankton observed was 17,870 organisms/m3 in Tarr Inlet during July. Trends in zooplankton community abundance and diversity within the lower Bay were distinct from upper-Glacier Bay trends. Whereas the lower Bay is strongly influenced by Gulf of Alaska processes, local processes are the strongest influence in the upper

Glacier-terminus fluctuations in the Wrangell and Chugach mountains resulting from non-climate controls

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sturm, M.; Hall, D.K.; Benson, C.S.

Non-climatically controlled fluctuations of glacier termini were studied in two regions in Alaska. In the Wrangell Mountains, eight glaciers on Mt. Wrangell, an active volcano, have been monitored over the past 30 years using terrestrial surveys, aerial photogrammetry and digitally registered satellite images. Results, which are consistent between different methods of measurement, indicate that the termini of most glaciers were stationary or had retreated slightly. However, the termini of the 30-km-long Ahtna Glacier and the smaller Center and South MacKeith glaciers began to advance in the early 1960s and have advanced steadily at rates between 5 and 18 m yr-1more » since then. These three glaciers flow from the summit caldera of ML Wrangell near the active North Crater, where increased volcanic heating since 1964 has melted over 7 x 107 M3 of ice. The authors suspect that volcanic meltwater has changed the basal conditions for the glaciers, resulting in their advance. In College Fjord, Prince William Sound, the terminus fluctuations of two tidewater glaciers have been monitored since 1931 by terrestrial surveying, photogrammetry, and most recently, from satellite imagery. Harvard Glacier, a 40-kmlong tidewater glacier, has been advancing steadily at nearly 20 m yr-1 since 1931, while the adjacent Yale Glacier has retreated at approximately 50 m yr-1 during the same period, though for short periods, both rates have been much higher.« less

A glacier runoff extension to the Precipitation Runoff Modeling System

USGS Publications Warehouse

Van Beusekom, Ashley E.; Viger, Roland

2016-01-01

A module to simulate glacier runoff, PRMSglacier, was added to PRMS (Precipitation Runoff Modeling System), a distributed-parameter, physical-process hydrological simulation code. The extension does not require extensive on-glacier measurements or computational expense but still relies on physical principles over empirical relations as much as is feasible while maintaining model usability. PRMSglacier is validated on two basins in Alaska, Wolverine, and Gulkana Glacier basin, which have been studied since 1966 and have a substantial amount of data with which to test model performance over a long period of time covering a wide range of climatic and hydrologic conditions. When error in field measurements is considered, the Nash-Sutcliffe efficiencies of streamflow are 0.87 and 0.86, the absolute bias fractions of the winter mass balance simulations are 0.10 and 0.08, and the absolute bias fractions of the summer mass balances are 0.01 and 0.03, all computed over 42 years for the Wolverine and Gulkana Glacier basins, respectively. Without taking into account measurement error, the values are still within the range achieved by the more computationally expensive codes tested over shorter time periods.

Examining a Half Century of Northwestern North American Glacier Behavior

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Molnia, B. F.; Fahey, M. J.; Friesen, B.; Josberger, E. G.

2015-12-01

comparison to the 1950s maps will provide a unique survey of glacier change across western North America from Alaska to northwestern Washington. Each pair of glacier maps will be accompanied with a summary document describing the changes that have occurred at that glacier. From north to south, the nine IGY glaciers span a distance of more than 2,600 km.

Preliminary hydrodynamic analysis of landslide-generated waves in Tidal Inlet, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Geist, Eric L.; Jakob, Matthias; Wieczoreck, Gerald F.; Dartnell, Peter

2003-01-01

A landslide block perched on the northern wall of Tidal Inlet, Glacier Bay National Park (Figure 1), has the potential to generate large waves in Tidal Inlet and the western arm of Glacier Bay if it were to fail catastrophically. Landslide-generated waves are a particular concern for cruise ships transiting through Glacier Bay on a daily basis during the summer months. The objective of this study is to estimate the range of wave amplitudes and periods in the western arm of Glacier Bay from a catastrophic landslide in Tidal Inlet. This study draws upon preliminary findings of a field survey by Wieczorek et al. (2003), and evaluates the effects of variations in landslide source parameters on the wave characteristics.

Glacial runoff strongly influences food webs in Gulf of Alaska fjords

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arimitsu, M.; Piatt, J. F.; Mueter, F. J.

2015-12-01

Melting glaciers contribute large volumes of freshwater to the Gulf of Alaska coast. Rates of glacier volume loss have increased markedly in recent decades, raising concern about the eventual loss of glaciers as a source of freshwater in coastal waters. To better understand the influence of glacier melt water on fjord ecosystems, we sampled oceanography, nutrients, zooplankton, forage fish, and seabirds within four fjords in the coastal Gulf of Alaska. We used generalized additive models and geostatistics to identify the range of influence of glacier runoff in fjords of varying estuarine and topographic complexity. We also modeled the responses of chlorophyll a concentration, copepod biomass, fish and seabird abundance to physical, nutrient and biotic predictor variables. Physical and nutrient signatures of glacial runoff extended 10-20 km into coastal fjords. Glacially modified physical gradients and among-fjord differences explained 66% of the variation in phytoplankton abundance, which drives ecosystem structure at higher trophic levels. Copepod, euphausiid, fish and seabird distribution and abundance were also related to environmental gradients that could be traced to glacial freshwater input. Seabird density was predicted by prey availability and silica concentrations, which may indicate upwelling areas where this nutrient is in excess. Similarities in ecosystem structure among fjords were due to influx of cold, fresh, sediment and nutrient laden water, while differences were due to fjord topography and the relative importance of estuarine vs. ocean influences. We anticipate continued changes in the volume and magnitude of glacial runoff will affect coastal marine food webs in the future.

The forest ecosystem of southeast Alaska: 8. Water.

Treesearch

Donald C. Schmiege; Austin E. Helmers; Daniel M. Bishop

1974-01-01

One of the most striking characteristics of southeast Alaska is the abundance of water. Large glaciers, icefields, and thousands of streams result from heavy precipitation throughout the year. Published and unpublished data on water regimen, temperature, sedimentation, and chemistry are combined. These serve as a basis for understanding how this valuable resource may...

Water flow through temperate glaciers

USGS Publications Warehouse

Fountain, A.G.; Walder, J.S.

1998-01-01

Understanding water movement through a glacier is fundamental to several critical issues in glaciology, including glacier dynamics, glacier-induced floods, and the prediction of runoff from glacierized drainage basins. to this end we have synthesized a conceptual model os water movement through a temperate glacier from the surface to the outlet stream. Processes that regulate the rate and distribution of water input at the glacier surface and that regulate water movement from the surface to the bed play important but commonly neglected roles in glacier hydrology. Where a glacier is covered by a layer of porous, permeable firn (the accumulation zone), the flux of water to the glacier interior varies slowly because the firn temporarily stores water and thereby smooths out variations in the supply rate. In the firn-free ablation zone, in contrast, the flux of water into the glacier depends directly on the rate of surface melt or rainfall and therefore varies greatly in time. Water moves from the surface to the bed through an upward branching arborescent network consisting of both steeply inclined conduits, formed by the enlargement of intergranular veins, and gently inclined conduits, sprqwned by water flow along the bottoms of near-surface fractures (crevasses). Englacial drainage conduits deliver water to the glacier bed at a linited number of points, probably a long distance downglacier of where water enters the glacier. Englacial conduits supplied from the accumulation zone are quasi steady state features that convey the slowly varying water flux delivered via the firn. their size adjusts so that they are usually full of water and flow is pressurized. In contrast, water flow in englacial conduits supplied from the ablation area is pressurized only near times of peak daily flow or during rainstorms; flow is otherwise in an open-channel configuration. The subglacial drainage system typically consists of several elements that are distinct both morpphologically and

How can we Optimize Global Satellite Observations of Glacier Velocity and Elevation Changes?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Willis, M. J.; Pritchard, M. E.; Zheng, W.

2015-12-01

We have started a global compilation of glacier surface elevation change rates measured by altimeters and differencing of Digital Elevation Models and glacier velocities measured by Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and optical feature tracking as well as from Interferometric SAR (InSAR). Our goal is to compile statistics on recent ice flow velocities and surface elevation change rates near the fronts of all available glaciers using literature and our own data sets of the Russian Arctic, Patagonia, Alaska, Greenland and Antarctica, the Himalayas, and other locations. We quantify the percentage of the glaciers on the planet that can be regarded as fast flowing glaciers, with surface velocities of more than 50 meters per year, while also recording glaciers that have elevation change rates of more than 2 meters per year. We examine whether glaciers have significant interannual variations in velocities, or have accelerated or stagnated where time series of ice motions are available. We use glacier boundaries and identifiers from the Randolph Glacier Inventory. Our survey highlights glaciers that are likely to react quickly to changes in their mass accumulation rates. The study also identifies geographical areas where our knowledge of glacier dynamics remains poor. Our survey helps guide how frequently observations must be made in order to provide quality satellite-derived velocity and ice elevation observations at a variety of glacier thermal regimes, speeds and widths. Our objectives are to determine to what extent the joint NASA and Indian Space Research Organization Synthetic Aperture Radar mission (NISAR) will be able to provide global precision coverage of ice speed changes and to determine how to optimize observations from the global constellation of satellite missions to record important changes to glacier elevations and velocities worldwide.

Glaciation of alpine valleys: The glacier - debris-covered glacier - rock glacier continuum

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anderson, Robert S.; Anderson, Leif S.; Armstrong, William H.; Rossi, Matthew W.; Crump, Sarah E.

2018-06-01

Alpine ice varies from pure ice glaciers to partially debris-covered glaciers to rock glaciers, as defined by the degree of debris cover. In many low- to mid-latitude mountain ranges, the few bare ice glaciers that do exist in the present climate are small and are found where snow is focused by avalanches and where direct exposure to radiation is minimized. Instead, valley heads are more likely to be populated by rock glaciers, which can number in the hundreds. These rock-cloaked glaciers represent some of the most identifiable components of the cryosphere today in low- to mid-latitude settings, and the over-steepened snouts pose an often overlooked hazard to travel in alpine terrain. Geomorphically, rock glaciers serve as conveyor belts atop which rock is pulled away from the base of cliffs. In this work, we show how rock glaciers can be treated as an end-member case that is captured in numerical models of glaciers that include ice dynamics, debris dynamics, and the feedbacks between them. Specifically, we focus on the transition from debris-covered glaciers, where the modern equilibrium line altitude (ELA) intersects the topography, to rock glaciers, where the modern ELA lies above the topography. On debris-covered glaciers (i.e., glaciers with a partial rock mantle), rock delivered to the glacier from its headwall, or from sidewall debris swept into the glacier at tributary junctions, travels englacially to emerge below the ELA. There it accumulates on the surface and damps the rate of melt of underlying ice. This allows the termini of debris-covered glaciers to extend beyond debris-free counterparts, thereby decreasing the ratio of accumulation area to total area of the glacier (AAR). In contrast, rock glaciers (i.e., glaciers with a full rock mantle) occur where and when the environmental ELA rises above the topography. They require avalanches and rockfall from steep headwalls. The occurrence of rock glaciers reflects this dependence on avalanche sources

Colonization and development of stream communities across a 200-year gradient in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Milner, Alexander M.; Knudsen, E. Eric; Soiseth, Chad; Robertson, Anne L.; Schell, Don; Phillips, Ian T.; Magnusson, Katrina

2000-01-01

In May 1997, physical and biological variables were studied in 16 streams of different ages and contrasting stages of development following glacial recession in Glacier Bay National Park, southeast Alaska. The number of microcrustacean and macroinvertebrate taxa and juvenile fish abundance and diversity were significantly greater in older streams. Microcrustacean diversity was related to the amount of instream wood and percent pool habitat, while the number of macroinvertebrate taxa was related to bed stability, amount of instream wood, and percent pool habitat. The percent contribution of Ephemeroptera to stream benthic communities increased significantly with stream age and the amount of coarse benthic organic matter. Juvenile Dolly Varden (Salvelinus malma) were dominant in the younger streams, but juvenile coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) abundance was greater in older streams associated with increased pool habitat. Upstream lakes significantly influenced channel stability, percent Chironomidae, total macroinvertebrate and meiofaunal abundance, and percent fish cover. Stable isotope analyses indicated nitrogen enrichment from marine sources in macroinvertebrates and juvenile fish in older streams with established salmon runs. The findings are encapsulated in a conceptual summary of stream development that proposes stream assemblages to be determined by direct interactions with the terrestrial, marine, and lake ecosystems.

78 FR 15669 - Marine Mammals: Alaska Harbor Seal Habitats

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-03-12

... that ship presence could be altering population birth/death rates, which are difficult to measure. A... Alaska are now experiencing high rates of ice loss due to climate change, which is likely to further... Inlet, Glacier Bay, found that vessel presence altered seal haulout patterns by increasing the rate of...

Mass balance, meteorology, area altitude distribution, glacier-surface altitude, ice motion, terminus position, and runoff at Gulkana Glacier, Alaska, 1996 balance year

USGS Publications Warehouse

March, Rod S.

2003-01-01

The 1996 measured winter snow, maximum winter snow, net, and annual balances in the Gulkana Glacier Basin were evaluated on the basis of meteorological, hydrological, and glaciological data. Averaged over the glacier, the measured winter snow balance was 0.87 meter on April 18, 1996, 1.1 standard deviation below the long-term average; the maximum winter snow balance, 1.06 meters, was reached on May 28, 1996; and the net balance (from August 30, 1995, to August 24, 1996) was -0.53 meter, 0.53 standard deviation below the long-term average. The annual balance (October 1, 1995, to September 30, 1996) was -0.37 meter. Area-averaged balances were reported using both the 1967 and 1993 area altitude distributions (the numbers previously given in this abstract use the 1993 area altitude distribution). Net balance was about 25 percent less negative using the 1993 area altitude distribution than the 1967 distribution. Annual average air temperature was 0.9 degree Celsius warmer than that recorded with the analog sensor used since 1966. Total precipitation catch for the year was 0.78 meter, 0.8 standard deviations below normal. The annual average wind speed was 3.5 meters per second in the first year of measuring wind speed. Annual runoff averaged 1.50 meters over the basin, 1.0 standard deviation below the long-term average. Glacier-surface altitude and ice-motion changes measured at three index sites document seasonal ice-speed and glacier-thickness changes. Both showed a continuation of a slowing and thinning trend present in the 1990s. The glacier terminus and lower ablation area were defined for 1996 with a handheld Global Positioning System survey of 126 locations spread out over about 4 kilometers on the lower glacier margin. From 1949 to 1996, the terminus retreated about 1,650 meters for an average retreat rate of 35 meters per year.

Disruption of Drift glacier and origin of floods during the 1989-1990 eruptions of Redoubt Volcano, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Trabant, D.C.; Waitt, R.B.; Major, J.J.

1994-01-01

Melting of snow and glacier ice during the 1989-1990 eruption of Redoubt Volcano caused winter flooding of the Drift River. Drift glacier was beheaded when 113 to 121 ?? 106 m3 of perennial snow and ice were mechanically entrained in hot-rock avalanches and pyroclastic flows initiated by the four largest eruptions between 14 December 1989 and 14 March 1990. The disruption of Drift glacier was dominated by mechanical disaggregation and entrainment of snow and glacier ice. Hot-rock avalanches, debris flows, and pyroclastic flows incised deep canyons in the glacier ice thereby maintaining a large ice-surface area available for scour by subsequent flows. Downvalley flow rheologies were transformed by the melting of snow and ice entrained along the upper and middle reaches of the glacier and by seasonal snowpack incorporated from the surface of the lower glacier and from the river valley. The seasonal snowpack in the Drift River valley contributed to lahars and floods a cumulative volume equivalent to about 35 ?? 106 m3 of water, which amounts to nearly 30% of the cumulative flow volume 22 km downstream from the volcano. The absence of high-water marks in depressions and of ice-collapse features in the glacier indicated that no large quantities of meltwater that could potentially generate lahars were stored on or under the glacier; the water that generated the lahars that swept Drift River valley was produced from the proximal, eruption-induced volcaniclastic flows by melting of snow and ice. ?? 1994.

Mass-balance measurements in Alaska and suggestions for simplified observation programs

USGS Publications Warehouse

Trabant, D.C.; March, R.S.

1999-01-01

US Geological Survey glacier fieldwork in Alaska includes repetitious measurements, corrections for leaning or bending stakes, an ability to reliably measure seasonal snow as deep as 10 m, absolute identification of summer surfaces in the accumulation area, and annual evaluation of internal accumulation, internal ablation, and glacier-thickness changes. Prescribed field measurement and note-taking techniques help eliminate field errors and expedite the interpretative process. In the office, field notes are transferred to computerized spread-sheets for analysis, release on the World Wide Web, and archival storage. The spreadsheets have error traps to help eliminate note-taking and transcription errors. Rigorous error analysis ends when mass-balance measurements are extrapolated and integrated with area to determine glacier and basin mass balances. Unassessable errors in the glacier and basin mass-balance data reduce the value of the data set for correlations with climate change indices. The minimum glacier mass-balance program has at least three measurement sites on a glacier and the measurements must include the seasonal components of mass balance as well as the annual balance.

Directly measuring melt at a vertical face tidewater glacier: is it possible?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sutherland, D.; Amundson, J. M.; Duncan, D.; Jackson, R. H.; Kienholz, C.; Motyka, R. J.; Nash, J. D.

2017-12-01

Direct observations of melt on the underwater portion of tidewater glaciers have proved elusive, mostly due to the inherent dangers of making measurements next to a calving ice front. Additionally, the melting process itself is often masked by large ice speeds, variable calving across the glacier front, and enhanced melting due to rising subglacial discharge plumes. Here, we use repeat multibeam sonar images of LeConte Glacier to assess the possibility of measuring terminus melt in situ. LeConte Glacier is a fast-moving tidewater system in southeast Alaska with ice speeds of 25 m d-1 and previously estimated submarine melting that accounts for 50% of ice loss at the front. In August 2016, May 2017, and September 2017, we conducted intensive fieldwork at the 1.5 km long, 250 m deep glacier front, collecting dozens of repeat multibeam images of the underwater terminus. Combined with coincident time-lapse photography and surface radar measurements, we attempt to disentangle the ambient melt at the glacier face from ice motion and calving. We use a suite of oceanographic observations of the emerging subglacial discharge plume to separate portions of the glacier front that show evidence of enhanced melting versus portions outside of the affected plume areas. We find a complex, time-varying geometry, with regions of undercutting, overcutting, and large discharge channels. Measurements like these are critical to i) improving numerical model parameterizations of coupled glacier-ocean interactions and ii) developing a process-based understanding of how the literal ice-ocean boundary evolves in time and space.

IceTrendr: a linear time-series approach to monitoring glacier environments using Landsat

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nelson, P.; Kennedy, R. E.; Nolin, A. W.; Hughes, J. M.; Braaten, J.

2017-12-01

Arctic glaciers in Alaska and Canada have experienced some of the greatest ice mass loss of any region in recent decades. A challenge to understanding these changing ecosystems, however, is developing globally-consistent, multi-decadal monitoring of glacier ice. We present a toolset and approach that captures, labels, and maps glacier change for use in climate science, hydrology, and Earth science education using Landsat Time Series (LTS). The core step is "temporal segmentation," wherein a yearly LTS is cleaned using pre-processing steps, converted to a snow/ice index, and then simplified into the salient shape of the change trajectory ("temporal signature") using linear segmentation. Such signatures can be characterized as simple `stable' or `transition of glacier ice to rock' to more complex multi-year changes like `transition of glacier ice to debris-covered glacier ice to open water to bare rock to vegetation'. This pilot study demonstrates the potential for interactively mapping, visualizing, and labeling glacier changes. What is truly innovative is that IceTrendr not only maps the changes but also uses expert knowledge to label the changes and such labels can be applied to other glaciers exhibiting statistically similar temporal signatures. Our key findings are that the IceTrendr concept and software can provide important functionality for glaciologists and educators interested in studying glacier changes during the Landsat TM timeframe (1984-present). Issues of concern with using dense Landsat time-series approaches for glacier monitoring include many missing images during the period 1984-1995 and that automated cloud mask are challenged and require the user to manually identify cloud-free images. IceTrendr is much more than just a simple "then and now" approach to glacier mapping. This process is a means of integrating the power of computing, remote sensing, and expert knowledge to "tell the story" of glacier changes.

Prehistoric Alaska: The land

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wilson, Frederic H.; Weber, Florence R.; Rennick, Penny

1994-01-01

Many Alaskans know the dynamic nature of Alaska’s landscape firsthand. The 1964 earthquake, the 1989 eruption of Mount Redoubt volcano, the frequent earthquakes in the Aleutians and the ever-shifting meanders of the Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers remind them of constant changes to the land. These changes are part of the continuing story of the geologic growth and development of Alaska during hundreds of millions of years. By geologic time, Alaska has only recently come into existence and the dynamic processes that formed it continue to affect it. The landscape we see today has been shaped by glacier and stream erosion or their indirect effects, and to a lesser extent by volcanoes. Most prominently, if less obviously, Alaska has been built by slow movements of the Earth’s crust we call tectonic or mountain-building.During 5 billion years of geologic time, the Earth’s crust has repeatedly broken apart into plates. These plates have recombined, and have shifted positions relative to each other, to the Earth’s rotational axis and to the equator. Large parts of the Earth’s crust, including Alaska, have been built and destroyed by tectonic forces. Alaska is a collage of transported and locally formed fragments of crusts As erosion and deposition reshape the land surface, climatic changes, brought on partly by changing ocean and atmospheric circulation patterns, alter the location and extent of tropical, temperate and arctic environments. We need to understand the results of these processes as they acted upon Alaska to understand the formation of Alaska. Rocks can provide hints of previous environments because they contain traces of ocean floor and lost lands, bits and pieces of ancient history.

Internationally coordinated glacier monitoring - a timeline since 1894

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nussbaumer, Samuel U.; Armstrong, Richard; Fetterer, Florence; Gärtner-Roer, Isabelle; Hoelzle, Martin; Machguth, Horst; Mölg, Nico; Paul, Frank; Raup, Bruce H.; Zemp, Michael

2016-04-01

glacier retreat and mass loss is a global phenomenon. Glaciological and geodetic observations show that the rates of the 21st-century mass loss are unprecedented on a global scale, for the time period observed, and probably also for recorded history, as indicated in glacier reconstructions from written and illustrated documents. The databases are supplemented by specific index datasets (e.g., glacier thickness data) and a dataset containing information on special events including glacier surges, glacier lake outbursts, ice avalanches, eruptions of ice-clad volcanoes, etc. related to about 200 glaciers. A special database of glacier photographs (GPC - Glacier Photograph Collection) contains more than 15,000 pictures from around 500 glaciers, some of them dating back to the mid-19th century. Current efforts are to close remaining observational gaps regarding data both from in-situ measurements and remote sensing, to establish a well-distributed baseline for sound estimates of climate-related glacier changes and their impacts. Within the framework of dedicated capacity building and twinning activities, disrupted long-term mass balance programmes in Central Asia have recently been resumed, and the continuation of mass balance measurements in the Tropical Andes has been supported. New data also emerge from several research projects using NASA and ESA sensors and are actively integrated into the GTN-G databases. Key tasks for the future include the quantitative assessment of uncertainties of available measurements, and their representativeness for changes in the respective mountain ranges. For this, a well-considered integration of in-situ measurements, remotely sensed observations, and numerical modelling is required.

Tsivat Basin conduit system persists through two surges, Bering Piedmont Glacier, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Fleisher, P.J.; Cadwell, D.H.; Muller, E.H.

1998-01-01

The 1993-1995 surge of Bering Glacier, Alaska, occurred in two distinct phases. Phase 1 of the surge began on the eastern sector in July, 1993 and ended in July, 1994 after a powerful outburst of subglacial meltwater into Tsivat Lake basin on the north side of Weeping Peat Island. Within days, jokulhlaup discharge built a 1.5 km2 delta of ice blocks (25-30 m) buried in outwash. By late October 1994, discharge temporarily shifted to a vent on Weeping Peat Island, where a second smaller outburst dissected the island and built two new sandar. During phase 2, which began in spring 1995 and ended within five months, continuous discharge issued from several vents along the ice front on Weeping Peat Island before returining to the Tsivat Basin. Surge related changes include a five- to six-fold increase in meltwater turbidity; the redirection of supercooled water in two ice-contact lakes; and an increase in the rate of glaciolacustrine sedimentation. US Geological Survey aerial photos by Austin Post show large ice blocks in braided channels indicating excessive subglacial discharge in a similar position adjacent to Weeping Peat Island during the 1966-1967 surge. During the subsequent three decades of retreat, the location of ice-marginal, subglacial discharge vents remained aligned on a linear trend that describes the position of a persistent subglacial conduit system. The presence of a major conduit system, possibly stabilized by subglacial bedrock topography, is suggested by: 1) high-level subglacial meltwater venting along the northern side of Weeping Peat Island during the 1966-1967 surge, 2) persistent low-level discharge between surges, and 3) the recurrence of localizing meltwater outbursts associated with both phases of the 1993-1005 surge.

Geologic strip map along the Hines Creek Fault showing evidence for Cenozoic displacement in the western Mount Hayes and northeastern Healy quadrangles, eastern Alaska Range, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Nokleberg, Warren J.; Aleinikoff, John N.; Bundtzen, Thomas K.; Hanshaw, Maiana N.

2013-01-01

Geologic mapping of the Hines Creek Fault and the adjacent Trident Glacier and McGinnis Glacier Faults to the north in the eastern Alaska Range, Alaska, reveals that these faults were active during the Cenozoic. Previously, the Hines Creek Fault, which is considered to be part of the strike-slip Denali Fault system (Ridgway and others, 2002; Nokleberg and Richter, 2007), was interpreted to have been welded shut during the intrusion of the Upper Cretaceous Buchanan Creek pluton (Wahrhaftig and others, 1975; Gilbert, 1977; Sherwood and Craddock, 1979; Csejtey and others, 1992). Our geologic mapping along the west- to west-northwest-striking Hines Creek Fault in the northeastern Healy quadrangle and central to northwestern Mount Hayes quadrangle reveals that (1) the Buchanan Creek pluton is truncated by the Hines Creek Fault and (2) a tectonic collage of fault-bounded slices of various granitic plutons, metagabbro, metabasalt, and sedimentary rock of the Pingston terrane occurs south of the Hines Creek Fault.

Methods for Automating Analysis of Glacier Morphology for Regional Modelling: Centerlines, Extensions, and Elevation Bands

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Viger, R. J.; Van Beusekom, A. E.

2016-12-01

The treatment of glaciers in modeling requires information about their shape and extent. This presentation discusses new methods and their application in a new glacier-capable variant of the USGS PRMS model, a physically-based, spatially distributed daily time-step model designed to simulate the runoff and evolution of glaciers through time. In addition to developing parameters describing PRMS land surfaces (hydrologic response units, HRUs), several of the analyses and products are likely of interest to cryospheric science community in general. The first method is a (fully automated) variation of logic previously presented in the literature for definition of the glacier centerline. Given that the surface of a glacier might be convex, using traditional topographic analyses based on a DEM to trace a path down the glacier is not reliable. Instead a path is derived based on a cost function. Although only a single path is presented in our results, the method can be easily modified to delineate a branched network of centerlines for each glacier. The second method extends the glacier terminus downslope by an arbitrary distance, according to local surface topography. This product is can be used to explore possible, if unlikely, scenarios under which glacier area grows. More usefully, this method can be used to approximate glacier extents from previous years without needing historical imagery. The final method presents an approach for segmenting the glacier into altitude-based HRUs. Successful integration of this information with traditional approaches for discretizing the non-glacierized portions of a basin requires several additional steps. These include synthesizing the glacier centerline network with one developed with a traditional DEM analysis, ensuring that flow can be routed under and beyond glaciers to a basin outlet. Results are presented based on analysis of the Copper River Basin, Alaska.

3D Thermal/Mechanical Evolution Of The Plate Boundary Corner In SE Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barker, A.; Koons, P.; Upton, P.; Pavlis, T.; Chapman, J.

2007-12-01

The St Elias orogen of southeast Alaska forms part of an actively deforming plate boundary corner. The corner accommodates the transition from a strike-slip lateral boundary to a convergent normal boundary. Oblique convergence of the Yakutat microplate into the corner generates early stage tectonic characteristics associated with other corner systems (e.g. Himalayan Eastern Syntaxis). In combination with the high relief, the extreme erosive processes of the region redistribute crustal material, partition tectonic strain, and influence the advection of deep crustal material. The evolution of the convergent corner is investigated using 3D numerical models and sandbox analog models. Preliminary model results indicate the deformation partitions into a narrow two-sided orogen along the lateral boundary. The pattern transitions into a wider zone of shortening bounded by inboard and outboard directed thrusts along the frontal boundary. The inclusion of erosion boundary conditions leads to nascent tectonic aneurysm behavior, involving increased strain localization and focused vertical advection of deep crustal material. Thermal models, using the 3D velocity field from these mechanical solutions, show a vertical deflection (towards the surface) of isotherms beneath the eroding region. Sensitivity of the aneurysm behavior is related to the efficiency of the imposed erosion rate (i.e. greater erosion rates led to greater bedrock uplift rates). Higher erosion rates are localized within zones containing major glacier systems in SE Alaska: Bering Glacier, Bagley Icefield, Malaspina Glacier, and Seward Glacier. Combined thermal/mechanical solutions identify the glacier valleys as rheological weakspots, defined by localized strain and differential advection of deep crustal material.

Glaciers as a source of ancient and labile organic matter to the marine environment.

Treesearch

Eran Hood; Jason Fellman; Robert G.M. Spencer; Peter J. Hernes; Rick Edwards; David D' Amore; Durelle Scott

2009-01-01

Riverine organic matter supports of the order of one-fifth of estuarine metabolism. Coastal ecosystems are therefore sensitive to alteration of both the quantity and lability of terrigenous dissolved organic matter (DOM) delivered by rivers. Here we characterize streamwater DOM from 11 coastal watersheds on the Gulf of Alaska that vary widely in glacier coverage. In...

Dust storm in Alaska

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-11-18

Dust storm in Alaska captured by Aqua/MODIS on Nov. 17, 2013 at 21:45 UTC. When glaciers grind against underlying bedrock, they produce a silty powder with grains finer than sand. Geologists call it “glacial flour” or “rock flour.” This iron- and feldspar-rich substance often finds its ways into rivers and lakes, coloring the water brown, grey, or aqua. When river or lake levels are low, the flour accumulates on drying riverbanks and deltas, leaving raw material for winds to lift into the air and create plumes of dust. Scientists are monitoring Arctic dust for a number of reasons. Dust storms can reduce visibility enough to disrupt air travel, and they can pose health hazards to people on the ground. Dust is also a key source of iron for phytoplankton in regional waters. Finally, there is the possibility that dust events are becoming more frequent and severe due to ongoing recession of glaciers in coastal Alaska. To read more about dust storm in this region go to: earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=79518 Credit: NASA/GSFC/Jeff Schmaltz/MODIS Land Rapid Response Team NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

50 CFR 26.33 - Special regulations.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 50 Wildlife and Fisheries 6 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Special regulations. 26.33 Section 26.33... NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE SYSTEM PUBLIC ENTRY AND USE Public Use and Recreation § 26.33 Special regulations. (a) Special regulations shall be issued for public use, access, and recreation within certain...

50 CFR 26.33 - Special regulations.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 50 Wildlife and Fisheries 8 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Special regulations. 26.33 Section 26.33... NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE SYSTEM PUBLIC ENTRY AND USE Public Use and Recreation § 26.33 Special regulations. (a) Special regulations shall be issued for public use, access, and recreation within certain...

Characteristics of sediment discharge in the subarctic Yukon River, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Chikita, K.A.; Kemnitz, R.; Kumai, R.

2002-01-01

The characteristics of sediment discharge in the Yukon River, Alaska were investigated by monitoring water discharge, water turbidity and water temperature. The river-transported sediment, 90 wt.% or more, consists of silt and clay (grain size ??? 62.5 ??m), which probably originated in the glacier-covered mountains mostly in the Alaska Range. For early June to late August 1999, we continuously measured water turbidity and temperature near the estuary and in the middle of Yukon River by using self-recording turbidimeters and temperature data loggers. The water turbidity (ppm) was converted to suspended sediment concentration (SSC; mg/l) of river water, using a relation between simultaneous turbidity and SSC at each of the two sites, and then, the suspended sediment discharge, approximately equal to water discharge times SSC, was numerically obtained every 1 or 2 h. It should be noted that the sediment discharge in the Yukon River is controlled by SSC rather than water discharge. As a result, a peak sediment discharge occurred in mid or late August by local sediment runoffs due to glacier-melt (or glacier-melt plus rainfall), while a peak water discharge was produced by snowmelt in late June or early July. Application of the "extended Shields diagram" indicates that almost all the river-transported sediments are under complete suspension. ?? 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Supraglacial Ponds Regulate Runoff From Himalayan Debris-Covered Glaciers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Irvine-Fynn, Tristram D. L.; Porter, Philip R.; Rowan, Ann V.; Quincey, Duncan J.; Gibson, Morgan J.; Bridge, Jonathan W.; Watson, C. Scott; Hubbard, Alun; Glasser, Neil F.

2017-12-01

Meltwater and runoff from glaciers in High Mountain Asia is a vital freshwater resource for one-fifth of the Earth's population. Between 13% and 36% of the region's glacierized areas exhibit surface debris cover and associated supraglacial ponds whose hydrological buffering roles remain unconstrained. We present a high-resolution meltwater hydrograph from the extensively debris-covered Khumbu Glacier, Nepal, spanning a 7 month period in 2014. Supraglacial ponds and accompanying debris cover modulate proglacial discharge by acting as transient and evolving reservoirs. Diurnally, the supraglacial pond system may store >23% of observed mean daily discharge, with mean recession constants ranging from 31 to 108 h. Given projections of increased debris cover and supraglacial pond extent across High Mountain Asia, we conclude that runoff regimes may become progressively buffered by the presence of supraglacial reservoirs. Incorporation of these processes is critical to improve predictions of the region's freshwater resource availability and cascading environmental effects downstream.

What color should snow algae be and what does it mean for glacier melt?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dial, R. J.; Ganey, G. Q.; Loso, M.; Burgess, A. B.; Skiles, M.

2017-12-01

Specialized microbes colonize glaciers and ice sheets worldwide and, like all organisms, they are unable to metabolize water in its solid form. It is well understood that net solar radiation controls melt in almost all snow and ice covered environments, and theoretical and empirical studies have documented the substantial reduction of albedo by these microbes both on ice and on snow, implicating a microbial role in glacier melt. If glacial microbiomes are limited by liquid water, and the albedo-reducing properties of individual cells enhance melt rates, then natural selection should favor those microbes that melt ice and snow crystals most efficiently. Here we: (1) argue that natural selection favors a red color on snow and a near-black color on ice based on instantaneous radiative forcing. (2) Review results of the first replicated, controlled field experiment to both quantify the impact of microbes on snowmelt in "red-snow" communities and demonstrate their water-limitation and (3) show the extent of snow-algae's spatial distribution and estimate their contribution to snowmelt across a large Alaskan icefield using remote sensing. On the 700 km2 of a 2,000 km2 maritime icefield in Alaska where red-snow was present, microbes increased snowmelt over 20% by volume, a percentage likely to increase as the climate warms and particulate pollution intensifies with important implications for models of sea level rise.

Spatial distribution of mercury in southeastern Alaskan streams influenced by glaciers, wetlands, and salmon

USGS Publications Warehouse

Nagorski, Sonia A.; Engstrom, Daniel R.; Hudson, John P.; Krabbenhoft, David P.; Hood, Eran; DeWild, John F.; Aiken, George R.

2014-01-01

Southeastern Alaska is a remote coastal-maritime ecosystem that is experiencing increased deposition of mercury (Hg) as well as rapid glacier loss. Here we present the results of the first reported survey of total and methyl Hg (MeHg) concentrations in regional streams and biota. Overall, streams draining large wetland areas had higher Hg concentrations in water, mayflies, and juvenile salmon than those from glacially-influenced or recently deglaciated watersheds. Filtered MeHg was positively correlated with wetland abundance. Aqueous Hg occurred predominantly in the particulate fraction of glacier streams but in the filtered fraction of wetland-rich streams. Colonization by anadromous salmon in both glacier and wetland-rich streams may be contributing additional marine-derived Hg. The spatial distribution of Hg in the range of streams presented here shows that watersheds are variably, yet fairly predictably, sensitive to atmospheric and marine inputs of Hg.