Shape-from-shading using Landsat 8 and airborne laser altimetry over ice sheets: toward new regional DEMs of Greenland and Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moussavi, M. S.; Scambos, T.; Haran, T. M.; Klinger, M. J.; Abdalati, W.

2015-12-01

We investigate the capability of Landsat 8's Operational Land Imager (OLI) instrument to quantify subtle ice sheet topography of Greenland and Antarctica. We use photoclinometry, or 'shape-from-shading', a method of deriving surface topography from local variations in image brightness due to varying surface slope. Photoclinomeetry is applicable over ice sheet areas with highly uniform albedo such as regions covered by recent snowfall. OLI imagery is available from both ascending and descending passes near the summer solstice period for both ice sheets. This provides two views of the surface features from two distinct solar azimuth illumination directions. Airborne laser altimetry data from the Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM) instrument (flying on the Operation Ice Bridge program) are used to quantitatively convert the image brightness variations of surface undulations to surface slope. To validate the new DEM products, we use additional laser altimetry profiles collected over independent sites from Ice Bridge and ICESat, and high-resolution WorldView-2 DEMs. The photoclinometry-derived DEM products will be useful for studying surface elevation changes, enhancing bedrock elevation maps through inversion of surface topography, and inferring local variations in snow accumulation rates.

Surface melt effects on Cryosat-2 elevation retrievals in the ablation zone of the Greenland ice sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Slater, T.; McMillan, M.; Shepherd, A.; Leeson, A.; Cornford, S. L.; Hogg, A.; Gilbert, L.; Muir, A. S.; Briggs, K.

2017-12-01

Over the past two decades, there has been an acceleration in the rate of mass losses from the Greenland ice sheet. This acceleration is, in part, attributed to an increasingly negative surface mass balance (SMB), linked to increasing melt water runoff rates due to enhanced surface melting. Understanding the past, present and future evolution in surface melting is central to ongoing monitoring of ice sheet mass balance and, in turn, to building realistic future projections. Currently, regional climate models are commonly used for this purpose, because direct in-situ observations are spatially and temporally sparse due to the logistics and resources required to collect such data. In particular, modelled SMB is used to estimate the extent and magnitude of surface melting, which influences (1) many geodetic mass balance estimates, and (2) snowpack microwave scattering properties. The latter is poorly understood and introduces uncertainty into radar altimeter estimates of ice sheet evolution. Here, we investigate the changes in CryoSat-2 waveforms and elevation measurements caused by the onset of surface melt in the summer months over the ablation zone of the Greenland ice sheet. Specifically, we use CryoSat-2 SARIn mode data acquired between 2011 and 2016, to characterise the effect of high variability in surface melt during this period, and to assess the associated impact on estimates of ice mass balance.

Quantifying Uncertainty in the Greenland Surface Mass Balance Elevation Feedback

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Edwards, T.

2015-12-01

As the shape of the Greenland ice sheet responds to changes in surface mass balance (SMB) and dynamics, it affects the surface mass balance through the atmospheric lapse rate and by altering atmospheric circulation patterns. Positive degree day models include simplified representations of this feedback, but it is difficult to simulate with state-of-the-art models because it requires coupling of regional climate models with dynamical ice sheet models, which is technically challenging. This difficulty, along with the high computational expense of regional climate models, also drastically limits opportunities for exploring the impact of modelling uncertainties on sea level projections. We present a parameterisation of the SMB-elevation feedback in the MAR regional climate model that provides a far easier and quicker estimate than atmosphere-ice sheet model coupling, which can be used with any ice sheet model. This allows us to use ensembles of different parameter values and ice sheet models to assess the effect of uncertainty in the feedback and ice sheet model structure on future sea level projections. We take a Bayesian approach to uncertainty in the feedback parameterisation, scoring the results from multiple possible "SMB lapse rates" according to how well they reproduce a MAR simulation with altered ice sheet topography. We test the impact of the resulting parameterisation on sea level projections using five ice sheet models forced by MAR (in turned forced by two different global climate models) under the emissions scenario A1B. The estimated additional sea level contribution due to the SMB-elevation feedback is 4.3% at 2100 (95% credibility interval 1.8-6.9%), and 9.6% at 2200 (3.6-16.0%).

The impact of dynamic topography on the bedrock elevation and volume of the Pliocene Antarctic Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Austermann, Jacqueline; Pollard, David; Mitrovica, Jerry X.; Moucha, Robert; Forte, Alessandro M.; DeConto, Robert M.

2015-04-01

Reconstructions of the Antarctic ice sheet over long timescales (i.e. Myrs) require estimates of bedrock elevation through time. Ice sheet models have accounted, with varying levels of sophistication, for changes in the bedrock elevation due to glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA), but they have neglected other processes that may perturb topography. One notable example is dynamic topography, the deflection of the solid surface of the Earth due to convective flow within the mantle. Numerically predicted changes in dynamic topography have been used to correct paleo shorelines for this departure from eustasy, but the effect of such changes on ice sheet stability is unknown. In this study we use numerical predictions of time-varying dynamic topography to reconstruct bedrock elevation below the Antarctic ice sheet during the mid Pliocene warm period (~3 Ma). Moreover, we couple this reconstruction to a three-dimensional ice sheet model to explore the impact of dynamic topography on the evolution of the Antarctic ice sheet since the Pliocene. Our modeling indicates significant uplift in the area of the Transantarctic Mountains (TAM) and the adjacent Wilkes basin. This predicted uplift, which is at the lower end of geological inferences of uplift of the TAM, implies a lower elevation of the basin in the Pliocene. Relative to simulations that do not include dynamic topography, the lower elevation leads to a smaller Antarctic Ice Sheet volume and a more significant retreat of the grounding line in the Wilkes basin, both of which are consistent with offshore sediment core data. We conclude that reconstructions of the Antarctic Ice Sheet during the mid-Pliocene warm period should be based on bedrock elevation models that include the impact of both GIA and dynamic topography.

Spatiotemporal Variability of Meltwater Refreezing in Southwest Greenland Ice Sheet Firn

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rennermalm, A. K.; Hock, R.; Tedesco, M.; Corti, G.; Covi, F.; Miège, C.; Kingslake, J.; Leidman, S. Z.; Munsell, S.

2017-12-01

A substantial fraction of the summer meltwater formed on the surface of the Greenland ice sheet is retained in firn, while the remaining portion runs to the ocean through surface and subsurface channels. Refreezing of meltwater in firn can create impenetrable ice lenses, hence being a crucial process in the redistribution of surface runoff. To quantify the impact of refreezing on runoff and current and future Greenland surface mass balance, a three year National Science Foundation funded project titled "Refreezing in the firn of the Greenland ice sheet: Spatiotemporal variability and implications for ice sheet mass balance" started this past year. Here we present an overview of the project and some initial results from the first field season in May 2017 conducted in proximity of the DYE-2 site in the percolation zone of the Southwest Greenland ice sheet at elevations between 1963 and 2355 m a.s.l.. During this fieldwork two automatic weather stations were deployed, outfitted with surface energy balance sensors and 16 m long thermistor strings, over 300 km of ground penetrating radar data were collected, and five 20-26 m deep firn cores were extracted and analyzed for density and stratigraphy. Winter snow accumulation was measured along the radar tracks. Preliminary work on the firn-core data reveals increasing frequency and thickness of ice lenses at lower ice-sheet elevations, in agreement with other recent work in the area. Data collected within this project will facilitate advances in our understanding of the spatiotemporal variability of firn refreezing and its role in the hydrology and surface mass balance of the Greenland Ice Sheet.

A 25-year Record of Antarctic Ice Sheet Elevation and Mass Change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shepherd, A.; Muir, A. S.; Sundal, A.; McMillan, M.; Briggs, K.; Hogg, A.; Engdahl, M.; Gilbert, L.

2017-12-01

Since 1992, the European Remote-Sensing (ERS-1 and ERS-2), ENVISAT, and CryoSat-2 satellite radar altimeters have measured the Antarctic ice sheet surface elevation, repeatedly, at approximately monthly intervals. These data constitute the longest continuous record of ice sheet wide change. In this paper, we use these observations to determine changes in the elevation, volume and mass of the East Antarctic and West Antarctic ice sheets, and of parts of the Antarctic Peninsula ice sheet, over a 25-year period. The root mean square difference between elevation rates computed from our survey and 257,296 estimates determined from airborne laser measurements is 54 cm/yr. The longevity of the satellite altimeter data record allows to identify and chart the evolution of changes associated with meteorology and ice flow, and we estimate that 3.6 % of the continental ice sheet, and 21.7 % of West Antarctica, is in a state of dynamical imbalance. Based on this partitioning, we estimate the mass balance of the East and West Antarctic ice sheet drainage basins and the root mean square difference between these and independent estimates derived from satellite gravimetry is less than 5 Gt yr-1.

A combined surface/volume scattering retracking algorithm for ice sheet satellite altimetry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Davis, Curt H.

1992-01-01

An algorithm that is based upon a combined surface-volume scattering model is developed. It can be used to retrack individual altimeter waveforms over ice sheets. An iterative least-squares procedure is used to fit the combined model to the return waveforms. The retracking algorithm comprises two distinct sections. The first generates initial model parameter estimates from a filtered altimeter waveform. The second uses the initial estimates, the theoretical model, and the waveform data to generate corrected parameter estimates. This retracking algorithm can be used to assess the accuracy of elevations produced from current retracking algorithms when subsurface volume scattering is present. This is extremely important so that repeated altimeter elevation measurements can be used to accurately detect changes in the mass balance of the ice sheets. By analyzing the distribution of the model parameters over large portions of the ice sheet, regional and seasonal variations in the near-surface properties of the snowpack can be quantified.

Recent Changes in the Greenland Ice Sheet as Seen from Space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, Dorothy K.

2011-01-01

Many changes in the Greenland Ice Sheet have been reported in the recent scientific literature and have been attributed to various responses of the ice sheet due to regional (and global) warming. Because melting of the ice sheet would contribute approximately 7 m to sea-level rise, the lives and habitat of hundreds of millions of people worldwide would be directly and indirectly affected if continued ice-sheet melting occurs. As mean-annual global temperatures have increased, there has been an increasing focus on studying the Greenland Ice Sheet using available satellite data, and numerous expeditions have been undertaken. Regional "clear-sky" surface temperature increases since the early 1980s in the Arctic, measured using Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) infrared data, range from 0.57+/-0.02 C to 0.72+/-0.10 C per decade. Arctic warming has important implications for ice-sheet mass balance because much of the periphery of the Greenland Ice Sheet is already near O C during the melt season, and is thus vulnerable to more extensive melting if temperatures continue to increase. An increase in melting of the ice sheet would accelerate sea-level rise, an issue of increasing concern to billions of people worldwide. The surface temperature of the ice sheet has been studied in even greater detail using Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data in the six individual drainage basins as well as for the ice sheet as a whole. Surface temperature trends in the decade of the 2000s have not been strong, according to the MODIS measurements. In addition to surface-temperature increases over the last few decades as measured by AVHRR, other changes have been observed such as accelerated movement of many of Greenland's outlet glaciers and sudden draining of supraglacial lakes. Decreasing mass of the ice sheet since (at least) 2002 has been measured using Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) data, along with an build-up of ice at the higher elevations and a decrease of ice at the lower elevations as measured using airborne Lidar and Ice, Cloud and Land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) data. The seminar will address the above issues using a variety of NASA satellite data and ground observations.

High Resolution Photogrammetric Digital Elevation Models Across Calving Fronts and Meltwater Channels in Greenland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Le Bel, D. A.; Brown, S.; Zappa, C. J.; Bell, R. E.; Frearson, N.; Tinto, K. J.

2014-12-01

Photogrammetric digital elevation models (DEMs) are a powerful approach for understanding elevation change and dynamics along the margins of the large ice sheets. The IcePod system, mounted on a New York Air National Guard LC-130, can measure high-resolution surface elevations with a Riegl VQ580 scanning laser altimeter and Imperx Bobcat IGV-B6620 color visible-wavelength camera (6600x4400 resolution); the surface temperature with a Sofradir IRE-640L infrared camera (spectral response 7.7-9.5 μm, 640x512 resolution); and the structure of snow and ice with two radar systems. We show the use of IcePod imagery to develop DEMs across calving fronts and meltwater channels in Greenland. Multiple over-flights of the Kangerlussaq Airport ramp have provided a test of the technique at a location with accurate, independently-determined elevation. Here the photogrammetric DEM of the airport, constrained by ground control measurements, is compared with the Lidar results. In July 2014 the IcePod ice-ocean imaging system surveyed the calving fronts of five outlet glaciers north of Jakobshavn Isbrae. We used Agisoft PhotoScan to develop a DEM of each calving front using imagery captured by the IcePod systems. Adjacent to the ice sheet, meltwater plumes foster mixing in the fjord, moving warm ocean water into contact with the front of the ice sheet where it can undercut the ice front and trigger calving. The five glaciers provide an opportunity to examine the calving front structure in relation to ocean temperature, fjord circulation, and spatial scale of the meltwater plumes. The combination of the accurate DEM of the calving front and the thermal imagery used to constrain the temperature and dynamics of the adjacent plume provides new insights into the ice-ocean interactions. Ice sheet margins provide insights into the connections between the surface meltwater and the fate of the water at the ice sheet base. Surface meltwater channels are visualized here for the first time using the combination of Lidar, photogrammetry DEMs and infrared imagery. These techniques leverage electromagnetic surface properties that allow us to identify the presence of water, measure the slope and elevation of the channel, as well as the two-dimensional temperature variability of the water/ice/snow in multiple melt channels within a drainage system.

A 19-year radar altimeter elevation change time-series of the East and West Antarctic ice sheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sundal, A. V.; Shepherd, A.; Wingham, D.; Muir, A.; Mcmillan, M.; Galin, N.

2012-12-01

We present 19 years of continuous radar altimeter observations of the East and West Antarctic ice sheets acquired by the ERS-1, ERS-2, and ENVISAT satellites between May 1992 and September 2010. Time-series of surface elevation change were developed at 39,375 crossing points of the satellite orbit ground tracks using the method of dual cycle crossovers (Zwally et al., 1989; Wingham et al., 1998). In total, 46.5 million individual measurements were included in the analysis, encompassing 74 and 76 % of the East and West Antarctic ice sheet, respectively. The satellites were cross-calibrated by calculating differences between elevation changes occurring during periods of mission overlap. We use the merged time-series to explore spatial and temporal patterns of elevation change and to characterise and quantify the signals of Antarctic ice sheet imbalance. References: Wingham, D., Ridout, A., Scharroo, R., Arthern, R. & Shum, C.K. (1998): Antarctic elevation change from 1992 to 1996. Science, 282, 456-458. Zwally, H. J., Brenner, A. C., Major, J. A., Bindschadler, R. A. & Marsh, J. G. (1989): Growth of Greenland ice-sheet - measurements. Science, 246, 1587-1589.

Supraglacial Lakes in the Percolation Zone of the Western Greenland Ice Sheet: Formation and Development using Operation IceBridge Snow Radar and ATM (2009-2014)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, C.; Howat, I. M.; de la Peña, S.

2015-12-01

Surface meltwater lakes on the Greenland Ice Sheet have appeared at higher elevations, extending well into the percolation zone, under recent warming, with the largest expansion occurring in the western Greenland Ice Sheet. The conditions that allow lakes to form atop firn are poorly constrained, but the formation of new lakes imply changes in the permeability of the firn at high elevations, promoting meltwater runoff. We explore the formation and evolution of new surface lakes in this region above 1500 meters, using a combination of satellite imagery and repeat Snow (2-6.5 GHz) radar echograms and LIDAR measurements from NASA's Operation IceBridge of 2009-2014. We identify conditions for surface lake formation at their farthest inland extent and suggest behaviors of persistence and lake drainage are due to differences in regional ice dynamics.

Antarctic Ice-Sheet Mass Balance from Satellite Altimetry 1992 to 2001

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zwally, H. Jay; Brenner, Anita C.; Cornejo, Helen; Giovinetto, Mario; Saba, Jack L.; Yi, Donghui

2003-01-01

A major uncertainty in understanding the causes of the current rate of sea level rise is the potential contributions from mass imbalances of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. Estimates of the current mass balance of the Antarctic ice sheet are derived from surface- elevation changes obtained from 9 years of ERS - 1 & 2 radar altimeter data. Elevation time-series are created from altimeter crossovers among 90-day data periods on a 50 km grid to 81.5 S. The time series are fit with a multivariate linear/sinusoidal function to give the average rate of elevation change (dH/dt). On the major Rome-Filchner, Ross, and Amery ice shelves, the W d t are small or near zero. In contrast, the ice shelves of the Antarctic Peninsula and along the West Antarctic coast appear to be thinning significantly, with a 23 +/- 3 cm per year surface elevation decrease on the Larsen ice shelf and a 65 +/- 4 cm per year decrease on the Dotson ice shelf. On the grounded ice, significant elevation decreases are obtained over most of the drainage basins of the Pine Island and Thwaites glaciers in West Antarctica and inland of Law Dome in East Antarctica. Significant elevation increases are observed within about 200 km of the coast around much of the rest of the ice sheet. Farther inland, the changes are a mixed pattern of increases and decreases with increases of a few centimeters per year at the highest elevations of the East Antarctic plateau. The derived elevation changes are combined with estimates of the bedrock uplift from several models to provide maps of ice thickness change. The ice thickness changes enable estimates of the ice mass balances for the major drainage basins, the overall mass balance, and the current contribution of the ice sheet to global sea level change.

Significance of Thermal Fluvial Incision and Bedrock Transfer due to Ice Advection on Greenland Ice Sheet Topography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crozier, J. A.; Karlstrom, L.; Yang, K.

2017-12-01

Ice sheet surface topography reflects a complicated combination of processes that act directly upon the surface and that are products of ice advection. Using recently-available high resolution ice velocity, imagery, ice surface elevation, and bedrock elevation data sets, we seek to determine the domain of significance of two important processes - thermal fluvial incision and transfer of bedrock topography through the ice sheet - on controlling surface topography in the ablation zone. Evaluating such controls is important for understanding how melting of the GIS surface during the melt season may be directly imprinted in topography through supraglacial drainage networks, and indirectly imprinted through its contribution to basal sliding that affects bedrock transfer. We use methods developed by (Karlstrom and Yang, 2016) to identify supraglacial stream networks on the GIS, and use high resolution surface digital elevation models as well as gridded ice velocity and melt rate models to quantify surface processes. We implement a numerically efficient Fourier domain bedrock transfer function (Gudmundsson, 2003) to predict surface topography due to ice advection over bedrock topography obtained from radar. Despite a number of simplifying assumptions, the bedrock transfer function predicts the observed ice sheet surface in most regions of the GIS with ˜90% accuracy, regardless of the presence or absence of supraglacial drainage networks. This supports the hypothesis that bedrock is the most significant driver of ice surface topography on wavelengths similar to ice thickness. Ice surface topographic asymmetry on the GIS is common, with slopes in the direction of ice flow steeper than those faced opposite to ice flow, consistent with bedrock transfer theory. At smaller wavelengths, topography consistent with fluvial erosion by surface hydrologic features is evident. We quantify the effect of ice advection versus fluvial thermal erosion on supraglacial longitudinal stream profiles, as a function of location on the GIS (hence ice thickness and background melt rate) using spectral techniques to quantify longitudinal stream profiles. This work should provide a predictive guide for which processes are responsible for ice sheet topography scales from several m (DEM resolution) up to several ice thicknesses.

The Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) Summary Mission Timeline and Performance Relative to Pre-Launch Mission Success Criteria

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Webb, Charles E.; Zwally H. Jay; Abdalati, Waleed

2012-01-01

The Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) mission was conceived, primarily, to quantify the spatial and temporal variations in the topography of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. It carried on board the Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS), which measured the round-trip travel time of a laser pulse emitted from the satellite to the surface of the Earth and back. Each range derived from these measurements was combined with precise, concurrent orbit and pointing information to determine the location of the laser spot centroid on the Earth. By developing a time series of precise topographic maps for each ice sheet, changes in their surface elevations can be used to infer their mass balances.

Determination of Interannual to Decadal Changes in Ice Sheet Mass Balance from Satellite Altimetry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zwally, H. Jay; Busalacchi, Antonioa J. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

A major uncertainty in predicting sea level rise is the sensitivity of ice sheet mass balance to climate change, as well as the uncertainty in present mass balance. Since the annual water exchange is about 8 mm of global sea level equivalent, the +/- 25% uncertainty in current mass balance corresponds to +/- 2 mm/yr in sea level change. Furthermore, estimates of the sensitivity of the mass balance to temperature change range from perhaps as much as - 10% to + 10% per K. Although the overall ice mass balance and seasonal and inter-annual variations can be derived from time-series of ice surface elevations from satellite altimetry, satellite radar altimeters have been limited in spatial coverage and elevation accuracy. Nevertheless, new data analysis shows mixed patterns of ice elevation increases and decreases that are significant in terms of regional-scale mass balances. In addition, observed seasonal and interannual variations in elevation demonstrate the potential for relating the variability in mass balance to changes in precipitation, temperature, and melting. From 2001, NASA's ICESat laser altimeter mission will provide significantly better elevation accuracy and spatial coverage to 86 deg latitude and to the margins of the ice sheets. During 3 to 5 years of ICESat-1 operation, an estimate of the overall ice sheet mass balance and sea level contribution will be obtained. The importance of continued ice monitoring after the first ICESat is illustrated by the variability in the area of Greenland surface melt observed over 17-years and its correlation with temperature. In addition, measurement of ice sheet changes, along with measurements of sea level change by a series of ocean altimeters, should enable direct detection of ice level and global sea level correlations.

Characterizing the Siple Coast Ice Stream System using Satellite Images, Improved Topography, and Integrated Aerogeophysical Measurements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Scambos, Ted

2003-01-01

A technique for improving elevation maps of the polar ice sheets has been developed using AVHRR images. The technique is based on 'photoclinometry' or 'shape from shading', a technique used in the past for mapping planetary surfaces where little elevation information was available. The fundamental idea behind photoclinometry is using the brightness of imaged areas to infer their surface slope in the sun-illuminated direction. Our version of the method relies on a calibration of the images based on an existing lower-resolution digital elevation model (DEM), and then using the images to improve the input DEM resolution to the scale of the image data. Most current DEMs covering the ice sheets are based on Radar altimetry data, and have an inherent resolution of 10 to 25 km at best - although the grid scale of the DEM is often finer. These DEMs are highly accurate (to less than 1 meter); but they report the mean elevation of a broad area, thus erasing smaller features of glaciological interest. AVHRR image data, when accurately geolocated and calibrated, provides surface slope measurements (based on the pixel brightness under known lighting conditions) every approximately 1.1 km. The limitations of the technique are noisiness in the image data, small variations in the albedo of the snow surface, and the integration technique used to create an elevation field from the image-derived slopes. Our study applied the technique to several ice sheet areas having some elevation data; Greenland, the Amery Ice Shelf, the Institute Ice Stream, and the Siple Coast. For the latter, the input data set was laser-altimetry data collected under NSF's SOAR Facility (Support Office for Aerogeophysical Research) over the onset area of the Siple Coast. Over the course of the grant, the technique was greatly improved and modified, significantly improving accuracy and reducing noise from the images. Several publications resulted from the work, and a follow-on proposal to NASA has been submitted to apply the same method to MODIS data using ICESat and other elevation input information. This follow-on grant will explore two applications that are facilitated by the improved surface morphology characterizations of the ice sheets: accumulation and temperature variations near small undulations in the ice.

Probability based hydrologic catchments of the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hudson, B. D.

2015-12-01

Greenland Ice Sheet melt water impacts ice sheet flow dynamics, fjord and coastal circulation, and sediment and biogeochemical fluxes. Melt water exiting the ice sheet also is a key term in its mass balance. Because of this, knowledge of the area of the ice sheet that contributes melt water to a given outlet (its hydrologic catchment) is important to many ice sheet studies and is especially critical to methods using river runoff to assess ice sheet mass balance. Yet uncertainty in delineating ice sheet hydrologic catchments is a problem that is rarely acknowledged. Ice sheet catchments are delineated as a function of both basal and surface topography. While surface topography is well known, basal topography is less certain because it is dependent on radar surveys. Here, I a present a Monte Carlo based approach to delineating ice sheet catchments that quantifies the impact of uncertain basal topography. In this scheme, over many iterations I randomly vary the ice sheet bed elevation within published error bounds (using Morlighem et al., 2014 bed and bed error datasets). For each iteration of ice sheet bed elevation, I calculate the hydraulic potentiometric surface and route water over its path of 'steepest' descent to delineate the catchment. I then use all realizations of the catchment to arrive at a probability map of all major melt water outlets in Greenland. I often find that catchment size is uncertain, with small, random perturbations in basal topography leading to large variations in catchments size. While some catchments are well defined, others can double or halve in size within published basal topography error bars. While some uncertainty will likely always remain, this work points to locations where studies of ice sheet hydrology would be the most successful, allows reinterpretation of past results, and points to where future radar surveys would be most advantageous.

Validation of Modelled Ice Dynamics of the Greenland Ice Sheet using Historical Forcing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hoffman, M. J.; Price, S. F.; Howat, I. M.; Bonin, J. A.; Chambers, D. P.; Tezaur, I.; Kennedy, J. H.; Lenaerts, J.; Lipscomb, W. H.; Neumann, T.; Nowicki, S.; Perego, M.; Saba, J. L.; Salinger, A.; Guerber, J. R.

2015-12-01

Although ice sheet models are used for sea level rise projections, the degree to which these models have been validated by observations is fairly limited, due in part to the limited duration of the satellite observation era and the long adjustment time scales of ice sheets. Here we describe a validation framework for the Greenland Ice Sheet applied to the Community Ice Sheet Model by forcing the model annually with flux anomalies at the major outlet glaciers (Enderlin et al., 2014, observed from Landsat/ASTER/Operation IceBridge) and surface mass balance (van Angelen et al., 2013, calculated from RACMO2) for the period 1991-2012. The ice sheet model output is compared to ice surface elevation observations from ICESat and ice sheet mass change observations from GRACE. Early results show promise for assessing the performance of different model configurations. Additionally, we explore the effect of ice sheet model resolution on validation skill.

Advances in Measuring Antarctic Sea-Ice Thickness and Ice-Sheet Elevations with ICESat Laser Altimetry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zwally, H. Jay

2004-01-01

NASA's Ice, Cloud and Land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) has been measuring elevations of the Antarctic ice sheet and sea-ice freeboard elevations with unprecedented accuracy. Since February 20,2003, data has been acquired during three periods of laser operation varying from 36 to 54 days, which is less than the continuous operation of 3 to 5 years planned for the mission. The primary purpose of ICESat is to measure time-series of ice-sheet elevation changes for determination of the present-day mass balance of the ice sheets, study of associations between observed ice changes and polar climate, and estimation of the present and future contributions of the ice sheets to global sea level rise. ICESat data will continue to be acquired for approximately 33 days periods at 3 to 6 month intervals with the second of ICESat's three lasers, and eventually with the third laser. The laser footprints are about 70 m on the surface and are spaced at 172 m along-track. The on-board GPS receiver enables radial orbit determinations to an accuracy better than 5 cm. The orbital altitude is around 600 km at an inclination of 94 degrees with a 8-day repeat pattern for the calibration and validation period, followed by a 91 -day repeat period for the rest of the mission. The expected range precision of single footprint measurements was 10 cm, but the actual range precision of the data has been shown to be much better at 2 to 3 cm. The star-tracking attitude-determination system should enable footprints to be located to 6 m horizontally when attitude calibrations are completed. With the present attitude calibration, the elevation accuracy over the ice sheets ranges from about 30 cm over the low-slope areas to about 80 cm over areas with slopes of 1 to 2 degrees, which is much better than radar altimetry. After the first period of data collection, the spacecraft attitude was controlled to point the laser beam to within 50 m of reference surface tracks over the ice sheets. Detection of ice elevation changes over select areas of the ice sheet is demonstrated with using both crossover analysis and precise-repeat track analysis. Sea ice freeboard-height distributions over the Antarctic sea pack are derived over distances of 50 km and converted into maps of average freeboard thickness and sea-ice thickness.

ICESat's First Year of Measurements Over the Polar Ice Sheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shuman, C. A.

2004-05-01

NASA's Ice, Cloud and Land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) mission was developed to measure changes in elevation of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. Its primary mission goal is to significantly refine estimates of polar ice sheet mass balance. Obtaining precise, spatially dense, ice sheet elevations through time is the first step towards this goal. ICESat data will then enable study of associations between observed ice changes and dynamic or climatic forcing factors, and thus enable improved estimation of the present and future contributions of the ice sheets to global sea level rise. ICESat was launched on January 12, 2003 and acquired science data from February 20th to March 29th with the first of the three lasers of the Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS). Data acquisition with the second laser began on September 25th and continued until November 18th, 2003. For one-year change detection, the second laser is scheduled for operation from approximately February 17th to March 20th, 2004. Additional operational periods will be selected to 1) enable periodic measurements through the year, and 2) to support of other NASA Earth Science Enterprise missions and activities. To obtain these precise ice sheet elevations, GLAS has a 1064 nm wavelength laser operating at 40 Hz with a designed range precision of about 10 cm. The laser footprints are about 70 m in diameter on the Earth's surface and are spaced every 172 m along-track. The on-board GPS receiver enables radial orbit determinations to an accuracy better than 5 cm. The star-tracking attitude-determination system will enable laser footprints to be located to 6 m horizontally when attitude calibration is completed. The orbital altitude averages 600 km at an inclination of 94 degrees with coverage extending from 86 degrees N and S latitude. The spacecraft attitude can be controlled to point the laser beam to within 50 m of surface reference tracks over the ice sheets and to point off-nadir up to 5 degrees to targets of interest. ICESat was designed to operate for 3 to 5 years but laser lifetime is uncertain and may not achieve this goal based on a detailed review following the failure of Laser 1. However, the results from the first full year of ICESat operations demonstrate that the GLAS instrument can measure ice sheet elevations with unprecedented accuracy. This presentation will show ice sheet results using crossover and exact repeat track analyses. Additional data using the remaining lasers will further demonstrate the capability to measure ice sheet elevation changes and improve mass balance assessments of the great polar ice sheets.

Surface topography of the Greenland Ice Sheet from satellite radar altimetry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bindschadler, Robert A.; Zwally, H. Jay; Major, Judith A.; Brenner, Anita C.

1989-01-01

Surface elevation maps of the southern half of the Greenland subcontinent are produced from radar altimeter data acquired by the Seasat satellite. A summary of the processing procedure and examples of return waveform data are given. The elevation data are used to generate a regular grid which is then computer contoured to provide an elevation contour map. Ancillary maps show the statistical quality of the elevation data and various characteristics of the surface. The elevation map is used to define ice flow directions and delineate the major drainage basins. Regular maps of the Jakobshavns Glacier drainage basin and the ice divide in the vicinity of Crete Station are presented. Altimeter derived elevations are compared with elevations measured both by satellite geoceivers and optical surveying.

Ross Sea paleo-ice sheet drainage and deglacial history during and since the LGM

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anderson, John B.; Conway, Howard; Bart, Philip J.; Witus, Alexandra E.; Greenwood, Sarah L.; McKay, Robert M.; Hall, Brenda L.; Ackert, Robert P.; Licht, Kathy; Jakobsson, Martin; Stone, John O.

2014-09-01

Onshore and offshore studies show that an expanded, grounded ice sheet occupied the Ross Sea Embayment during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Results from studies of till provenance and the orientation of geomorphic features on the continental shelf show that more than half of the grounded ice sheet consisted of East Antarctic ice flowing through Transantarctic Mountain (TAM) outlet glaciers; the remainder came from West Antarctica. Terrestrial data indicate little or no thickening in the upper catchment regions in both West and East Antarctica during the LGM. In contrast, evidence from the mouths of the southern and central TAM outlet glaciers indicate surface elevations between 1000 m and 1100 m (above present-day sea level). Farther north along the western margin of the Ross Ice Sheet, surface elevations reached 720 m on Ross Island, and 400 m at Terra Nova Bay. Evidence from Marie Byrd Land at the eastern margin of the ice sheet indicates that the elevation near the present-day grounding line was more than 800 m asl, while at Siple Dome in the central Ross Embayment, the surface elevation was about 950 m asl. Farther north, evidence that the ice sheet was grounded on the middle and the outer continental shelf during the LGM implies that surface elevations had to be at least 100 m above the LGM sea level. The apparent low surface profile and implied low basal shear stress in the central and eastern embayment suggests that although the ice streams may have slowed during the LGM, they remained active. Ice-sheet retreat from the western Ross Embayment during the Holocene is constrained by marine and terrestrial data. Ages from marine sediments suggest that the grounding line had retreated from its LGM outer shelf location only a few tens of kilometer to a location south of Coulman Island by ˜13 ka BP. The ice sheet margin was located in the vicinity of the Drygalski Ice Tongue by ˜11 ka BP, just north of Ross Island by ˜7.8 ka BP, and near Hatherton Glacier by ˜6.8 ka BP. Farther south, 10Be exposure ages from glacial erratics on nunataks near the mouths of Reedy, Scott and Beardmore Glaciers indicate thinning during the mid to late Holocene, but the grounding line did not reach its present position until 2 to 3 ka BP. Marine dates, which are almost exclusively Acid Insoluble Organic (AIO) dates, are consistently older than those derived from terrestrial data. However, even these ages indicate that the ice sheet experienced significant retreat after ˜13 ka BP. Geomorphic features indicate that during the final stages of ice sheet retreat ice flowing through the TAM remained grounded on the shallow western margin of Ross Sea. The timing of retreat from the central Ross Sea remains unresolved; the simplest reconstruction is to assume that the grounding line here started to retreat from the continental shelf more or less in step with the retreat from the western and eastern sectors. An alternative hypothesis, which relies on the validity of radiocarbon ages from marine sediments, is that grounded ice had retreated from the outer continental shelf prior to the LGM. More reliable ages from marine sediments in the central Ross Embayment are needed to test and validate this hypothesis.

Greenland ice sheet surface temperature, melt and mass loss: 2000-06

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hall, D.K.; Williams, R.S.; Luthcke, S.B.; DiGirolamo, N.E.

2008-01-01

A daily time series of 'clear-sky' surface temperature has been compiled of the Greenland ice sheet (GIS) using 1 km resolution moderate-resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) land-surface temperature (LST) maps from 2000 to 2006. We also used mass-concentration data from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) to study mass change in relationship to surface melt from 2003 to 2006. The mean LST of the GIS increased during the study period by ???0.27??Ca-1. The increase was especially notable in the northern half of the ice sheet during the winter months. Melt-season length and timing were also studied in each of the six major drainage basins. Rapid (<15 days) and sustained mass loss below 2000 m elevation was triggered in 2004 and 2005 as recorded by GRACE when surface melt begins. Initiation of large-scale surface melt was followed rapidly by mass loss. This indicates that surface meltwater is flowing rapidly to the base of the ice sheet, causing acceleration of outlet glaciers, thus highlighting the metastability of parts of the GIS and the vulnerability of the ice sheet to air-temperature increases. If air temperatures continue to rise over Greenland, increased surface melt will play a large role in ice-sheet mass loss.

Fusion of Laser Altimetry Data with Dems Derived from Stereo Imaging Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schenk, T.; Csatho, B. M.; Duncan, K.

2016-06-01

During the last two decades surface elevation data have been gathered over the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) from a variety of different sensors including spaceborne and airborne laser altimetry, such as NASA's Ice Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat), Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM) and Laser Vegetation Imaging Sensor (LVIS), as well as from stereo satellite imaging systems, most notably from Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) and Worldview. The spatio-temporal resolution, the accuracy, and the spatial coverage of all these data differ widely. For example, laser altimetry systems are much more accurate than DEMs derived by correlation from imaging systems. On the other hand, DEMs usually have a superior spatial resolution and extended spatial coverage. We present in this paper an overview of the SERAC (Surface Elevation Reconstruction And Change detection) system, designed to cope with the data complexity and the computation of elevation change histories. SERAC simultaneously determines the ice sheet surface shape and the time-series of elevation changes for surface patches whose size depends on the ruggedness of the surface and the point distribution of the sensors involved. By incorporating different sensors, SERAC is a true fusion system that generates the best plausible result (time series of elevation changes) a result that is better than the sum of its individual parts. We follow this up with an example of the Helmheim gacier, involving ICESat, ATM and LVIS laser altimetry data, together with ASTER DEMs.

Subsurface Scattered Photons: Friend or Foe? Improving visible light laser altimeter elevation estimates, and measuring surface properties using subsurface scattered photons

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Greeley, A.; Kurtz, N. T.; Neumann, T.; Cook, W. B.; Markus, T.

2016-12-01

Photon counting laser altimeters such as MABEL (Multiple Altimeter Beam Experimental Lidar) - a single photon counting simulator for ATLAS (Advanced Topographical Laser Altimeter System) - use individual photons with visible wavelengths to measure their range to target surfaces. ATLAS, the sole instrument on NASA's upcoming ICESat-2 mission, will provide scientists a view of Earth's ice sheets, glaciers, and sea ice with unprecedented detail. Precise calibration of these instruments is needed to understand rapidly changing parameters such as sea ice freeboard, and to measure optical properties of surfaces like snow covered ice sheets using subsurface scattered photons. Photons that travel through snow, ice, or water before scattering back to an altimeter receiving system travel farther than photons taking the shortest path between the observatory and the target of interest. These delayed photons produce a negative elevation bias relative to photons scattered directly off these surfaces. We use laboratory measurements of snow surfaces using a flight-tested laser altimeter (MABEL), and Monte Carlo simulations of backscattered photons from snow to estimate elevation biases from subsurface scattered photons. We also use these techniques to demonstrate the ability to retrieve snow surface properties like snow grain size.

Validating Cryosat-2 elevation estimates with airborne laser scanner data for the Greenland ice sheet, Austfonna and Devon ice caps

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simonsen, Sebastian B.; Sandberg Sørensen, Louise; Nilsson, Johan; Helm, Veit; Langley, Kirsty A.; Forsberg, Rene; Hvidegaard, Sine M.; Skourup, Henriette

2015-04-01

The ESA CryoSat-2 satellite, launched in late 2010, carries a new type of radar altimeter especially designed for monitoring changes of sea and land ice. The radar signal might penetrate into the snow pack and the depth of the radar reflecting surface depends on the ratio between the surface and the volume backscatter, which is a function of several different properties such as snow density, crystal structure and surface roughness. In case of large volume scatter, the radar waveforms become broad and the determination of the range (surface elevation) becomes more difficult. Different algorithms (retrackers) are used for the range determination, and estimated surface penetration is highly dependent on the applied retracker. As part of the ESA-CryoVEx/CryoVal-Land Ice projects, DTU Space has gathered accurate airborne laser scanner elevation measurements. Sites on the Greenland ice sheet, Austfonna and Devon ice caps, has been surveyed repeatedly, aligned with Cryosat-2 ground tracks and surface experiments. Here, we utilize elevation estimates from available Cryosat-2 retrackers (ESA level-2 retracker, DTU retracker, etc.) and validate the elevation measurements against ESA-CryoVEx campaigns. A difference between laser and radar elevations is expected due to radar penetration issues, however an inter-comparison between retrackers will shed light on individual performances and biases. Additionally, the geo-location of the radar return will also be a determining factor for the precision. Ultimately, the use of multiple retrackers can provide information about subsurface conditions and utilize more of the waveform information than presently used in radar altimetry.

ICESat's Laser Measurements of Polar Ice, Atmosphere, Ocean, and Land

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zwally, H. J.; Schutz, B.; Abdalati, W.; Abshire, J.; Bentley, C.; Brenner, A.; Bufton, J.; Dezio, J.; Hancock, D.; Harding, D.;

Seasonal and Interannual Variations of Ice Sheet Surface Elevation at the Summit of Greenland: Observed and Modeled

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zwally, H. Jay; Jun, Li; Koblinsky, Chester J. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

Observed seasonal and interannual variations in the surface elevation over the summit of the Greenland ice sheet are modeled using a new temperature-dependent formulation of firn-densification and observed accumulation variations. The observed elevation variations are derived from ERS (European Remote Sensing)-1 and ERS-2 radar altimeter data for the period between April 1992 and April 1999. A multivariate linear/sine function is fitted to an elevation time series constructed from elevation differences measured by radar altimetry at orbital crossovers. The amplitude of the seasonal elevation cycle is 0.25 m peak-to-peak, with a maximum in winter and a minimum in summer. Inter-annually, the elevation decreases to a minimum in 1995, followed by an increase to 1999, with an overall average increase of 4.2 cm a(exp -1) for 1992 to 1999. Our densification formulation uses an initial field-density profile, the AWS (automatic weather station) surface temperature record, and a temperature-dependent constitutive relation for the densification that is based on laboratory measurements of crystal growth rates. The rate constant and the activation energy commonly used in the Arrhenius-type constitutive relation for firn densification are also temperature dependent, giving a stronger temperature and seasonal amplitudes about 10 times greater than previous densification formulations. Summer temperatures are most important, because of the strong non-linear dependence on temperature. Much of firn densification and consequent surface lowering occurs within about three months of the summer season, followed by a surface build-up from snow accumulation until spring. Modeled interannual changes of the surface elevation, using the AWS measurements of surface temperature and accumulation and results of atmospheric modeling of precipitation variations, are in good agreement with the altimeter observations. In the model, the surface elevation decreases about 20 cm over the seven years due to more compaction driven by increasing summer temperatures. The minimum elevation in 1995 is driven mainly by a temporary accumulation decrease and secondarily by warmer temperatures. However, the overall elevation increase over the seven years is dominated by the accumulation increase in the later years.

Multi-Year Elevation Changes Near the West Margin of the Greenland Ice Sheet from Satellite Radar Altimetry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lingle, Craig S.; Brenner, Anita C.; Zwally, H. Jay; DiMarzio, John P.

1991-01-01

Mean changes in the surface elevation near the west margin of the Greenland ice sheet are measured using Seasat altimetry and altimetry from the Geosat Exact Repeat Mission (ERM). The Seasat data extend from early July through early October 1978. The ERM data extend from winter 1986-87 through fall 1988. Both seasonal and multi-year changes are measured using altimetry referenced to GEM T2 orbits. The possible effects of orbit error are minimized by adjusting the orbits into a common ocean surface. Seasonal mean changes in the surface height are recognizable during the Geosat ERM. The multi-year measurements indicate the surface was lower by 0.4 +/- 0.4 m on average in late summer 1987 than in late summer 1978. The surface was lower by 0.2 +/- 0.5 m on average in late summer 1988 than in late summer 1978. As a control case, the computations art also carried out using altimetry referenced to orbits not adjusted into a common ocean surface.

Topography of Sputnik Planitia Basin on Pluto: What We Know and Don't Know

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schenk, P.; Beyer, R. A.; McKinnon, W. B.; Moore, J.; Spencer, J. R.; Stern, A.; Weaver, H. A., Jr.; Olkin, C.; Ennico Smith, K.

2017-12-01

Pluto's topography is complex and reflects a diversity of geologic processes throughout its history. The most dominant feature is the deep 1200-by-2000-km-wide topographic depression enclosing the Sputnik Planitia nitrogen-rich ice sheet. Centered in the encounter hemisphere this large basin is ideally suited for topographic analysis. Despite this, considerable effort is required to constrain the true depth of this giant feature due to the uncertainties in controlling MVIC line-scan images, our primary source for long-wavelength information. Here we will summarize the current state of knowledge of this feature, as processing continues. Current estimates are that the floor of the observed basin (i.e., the top of the ice sheet) is 2-2.5 km depressed below the mean elevation of the surface. There is a highly eroded annular raised arched-ridge surrounding most of the basin that rises up to 1 km above mean surface. The surface of most of the ice sheet appears to be remarkably level within the limits of measurement ( 125 m). Comparison to other similar-sized depressions on Mars and the Moon support the interpretation that this is a large ancient impact structure. The outer 20-40- km of the ice sheet can be either depressed or raised several hundred meters, with the depressed moat forming north of 30° latitude or so, the raised portions forming south of this and corresponding to areas where glacier-like flow of material from the elevated rim regions meets the ice sheet. This suggests that the equatorial areas are areas of net accumulation of ice and the areas to the north are net deflation or lateral flow. The ice sheet is also characterized by polygonal and ovoid `cells' diagnostic of convection. These have shading patterns consistent with cell centers being raised in elevation. Preliminary shape-from-shading measurements suggest elevations of 100-200 m, consistent with weak stereo observations, though much more work is required on all these topics. Interpolation of d/D statistics for smaller craters implies a minimum depth of the original basin floor of 10 km below the rim (assuming that low angle or low-impact-velocity effects do not produce an anomalous basin profile). Pending updates, this would imply a possible maximum thickness of the observed ice sheet of 6 km.

Antarctic surface elevation and slope from multi-mission lidar mapping

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sutterley, T. C.; Velicogna, I.; Neumann, T.; Markus, T.

2017-12-01

We present integrated estimates of surface elevation change and slope for the Antarctic Ice Sheet from a combination of measurements from the Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM), the Land, Vegetation and Ice Sensor (LVIS) and the Ice Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat-1). This technique is a data-driven approach that calculates elevation differentials on a shot-by-shot basis. Our method extends the records of each instrument, increases the overall spatial coverage compared to a single instrument and produces high-quality, integrated maps of surface elevation, surface elevation change and slope. We use our estimates of elevation change to assess the current state of major outlet glaciers in the Bellinghausen Sea, Amundsen Sea and Getz regions of West Antarctica (WAIS). In the Amundsen Sea, we find that thinning rates of Pine Island Glacier have decreased after 2011 while thinning rates of Smith and Kohler glaciers have increased unabated.

Comparison of AltiKa and CryoSat-2 Elevation and Elevation Rates over the Amundsen Sea Sector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Otosaka, I.; Shepherd, A.; Hogg, A.

2017-12-01

Altimeters have been successfully used for more than two decades to observe changes in the ice sheet surface and to estimate the contribution of ice sheets to sea level rise. The Satellite for Argos and AltiKa (SARAL) was launched in February 2013 as a joint mission between the French space agency (CNES) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). While the altimeters previously launched into space are operating at Ku-band (13.6 GHz), the altimeter on board SARAL, AltiKa, is the first instrument to operate at Ka-band (36.8 GHz). The higher frequency of AltiKa is expected to lead to reduced penetration of the radar signal into the snowpack, compared to Ku-band. A comparison of ice sheet elevation measurements recorded at the two frequencies may therefore provide useful information on surface and its scattering properties. In this study, we compare elevation and elevation rates recorded by AltiKa and CryoSat-2 between March 2013 and April 2017 over the Amundsen Sea Sector (ASS), one of the most rapidly changing sectors of West Antarctica. Elevation and elevation rates are computed within 5 km grid cells using a plane fit method, taking into account the contributions of topography and fluctuations in elevation and backscatter. The drifting orbit and imaging modes of CryoSat-2 result in 78,7 % sampling of the study area, whereas AltiKa samples 39,7 % due to its sparser orbit pattern and due to loss of signal in steeply sloping coastal margins. Over the study period, the root mean square difference between elevation and elevation change recorded at Ka-band and Ku-band were 40.3 m and 0.54 m/yr, respectively. While the broad spatial pattern of elevation change is well resolved by both satellites, data gaps along the Getz coastline may be partly responsible for the lower elevation change rate observed at Ka-band. We also compared CryoSat-2 and AltiKa to coincident airborne data from NASA's Operation IceBridge (OIB). The mean difference of elevation rate between space borne data and IceBridge data are respectively -0.09 m/yr and -0.08 m/yr at Ka and Ku band, highlighting the good capability of both CryoSat-2 and AltiKa to accurately map ice sheet elevation change.

Local processes and regional patterns - Interpreting a multi-decadal altimetry record of Greenland Ice Sheet changes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Csatho, B. M.; Schenk, A. F.; Babonis, G. S.; van den Broeke, M. R.; Kuipers Munneke, P.; van der Veen, C. J.; Khan, S. A.; Porter, D. F.

2016-12-01

This study presents a new, comprehensive reconstruction of Greenland Ice Sheet elevation changes, generated using the Surface Elevation And Change detection (SERAC) approach. 35-year long elevation-change time series (1980-2015) were obtained at more than 150,000 locations from observations acquired by NASA's airborne and spaceborne laser altimeters (ATM, LVIS, ICESat), PROMICE laser altimetry data (2007-2011) and a DEM covering the ice sheet margin derived from stereo aerial photographs (1970s-80s). After removing the effect of Glacial Isostatic Adjustment (GIA) and the elastic crustal response to changes in ice loading, the time series were partitioned into changes due to surface processes and ice dynamics and then converted into mass change histories. Using gridded products, we examined ice sheet elevation, and mass change patterns, and compared them with other estimates at different scales from individual outlet glaciers through large drainage basins, on to the entire ice sheet. Both the SERAC time series and the grids derived from these time series revealed significant spatial and temporal variations of dynamic mass loss and widespread intermittent thinning, indicating the complexity of ice sheet response to climate forcing. To investigate the regional and local controls of ice dynamics, we examined thickness change time series near outlet glacier grounding lines. Changes on most outlet glaciers were consistent with one or more episodes of dynamic thinning that propagates upstream from the glacier terminus. The spatial pattern of the onset, duration, and termination of these dynamic thinning events suggest a regional control, such as warming ocean and air temperatures. However, the intricate spatiotemporal pattern of dynamic thickness change suggests that, regardless of the forcing responsible for initial glacier acceleration and thinning, the response of individual glaciers is modulated by local conditions. We use statistical methods, such as principal component analysis and multivariate regression to analyze the dynamic ice-thickness change time series derived by SERAC and to investigate the primary forcings and controls on outlet glacier changes.

connecting the dots between Greenland ice sheet surface melting and ice flow dynamics (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Box, J. E.; Colgan, W. T.; Fettweis, X.; Phillips, T. P.; Stober, M.

2013-12-01

This presentation is of a 'unified theory' in glaciology that first identifies surface albedo as a key factor explaining total ice sheet mass balance and then surveys a mechanistic self-reinforcing interaction between melt water and ice flow dynamics. The theory is applied in a near-real time total Greenland mass balance retrieval based on surface albedo, a powerful integrator of the competing effects of accumulation and ablation. New snowfall reduces sunlight absorption and increases meltwater retention. Melting amplifies absorbed sunlight through thermal metamorphism and bare ice expansion in space and time. By ';following the melt'; we reveal mechanisms linking existing science into a unified theory. Increasing meltwater softens the ice sheet in three ways: 1.) sensible heating given the water temperature exceeds that of the ice sheet interior; 2.) Some infiltrating water refreezes, transferring latent heat to the ice; 3.) Friction from water turbulence heats the ice. It has been shown that for a point on the ice sheet, basal lubrication increases ice flow speed to a time when an efficient sub-glacial drainage network develops that reduces this effect. Yet, with an increasing melt duration the point where the ice sheet glides on a wet bed increases inland to a larger area. This effect draws down the ice surface elevation, contributing to the ';elevation feedback'. In a perpetual warming scenario, the elevation feedback ultimately leads to ice sheet loss reversible only through much slower ice sheet growth in an ice age environment. As the inland ice sheet accelerates, the horizontal extension pulls cracks and crevasses open, trapping more sunlight, amplifying the effect of melt accelerated ice. As the bare ice area increases, the direct sun-exposed crevassed and infiltration area increases further allowing the ice warming process to occur more broadly. Considering hydrofracture [a.k.a. hydrofracking]; surface meltwater fills cracks, attacking the ice integrity. Because water is 'heavier' than ice, water-filled cracks have unlimited capacity to hydraulically ';jack' open fractures, penetrating, fracturing and disaggregating a solid ice body. This process promotes iceberg calving at more than 150, 1km wide marine terminating Greenland glacier fronts. Resulting from a rising trend of surface melting and sea water temperature, meltwater ejection at the underwater front of marine glaciers drives a an increasing turbulent heat exchange between the glacier front and relatively warm sea water melting it faster. Underwater melting promotes an undercutting of the glacier front leading to ice berg calving. Calving through hydrofracture or marine undercutting provide a direct and immediate ice flow speed response mechanism for surface meltwater production. Ice flow speed reacts because calving reduces flow resistance. The above physical processes interact. Cooling shuts these processes down. Negative feedbacks dampen the warming impulse. Live 21 June, 2013 is a new Danish Web site1 that exploits total mass balance rate of decline as a function of albedo to predict GRACE mass rate of change with 80% explained variance. While surface mass balance explains the mass rate of change slightly higher, surface albedo is an observable quantity as is gravity change.

Snow Grain Size Retrieval over the Polar Ice Sheets with the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) Observations

PubMed Central

Yang, Yuekui; Marshak, Alexander; Han, Mei; Palm, Stephen P.; Harding, David J.

2018-01-01

Snow grain size is an important parameter for cryosphere studies. As a proof of concept, this paper presents an approach to retrieve this parameter over Greenland, East and West Antarctica ice sheets from surface reflectances observed with the Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) onboard the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) at 1064 nm. Spaceborne lidar observations overcome many of the disadvantages in passive remote sensing, including difficulties in cloud screening and low sun angle limitations; hence tend to provide more accurate and stable retrievals. Results from the GLAS L2A campaign, which began on 25 September and lasted until 19 November, 2003, show that the mode of the grain size distribution over Greenland is the largest (~300 μm) among the three, West Antarctica is the second (~220 μm) and East Antarctica is the smallest (~190 μm). Snow grain sizes are larger over the coastal regions compared to inland the ice sheets. These results are consistent with previous studies. Applying the broadband snow surface albedo parameterization scheme developed by Garder and Sharp (2010) to the retrieved snow grain size, ice sheet surface albedo is also derived. In the future, more accurate retrievals can be achieved with multiple wavelengths lidar observations. PMID:29636591

Snow Grain Size Retrieval over the Polar Ice Sheets with the Ice, Cloud and Land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) Observations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yang, Yuekui; Marshak, Alexander; Han, Mei; Palm, Stephen P.; Harding, David J.

2016-01-01

Snow grain size is an important parameter for cryosphere studies. As a proof of concept, this paper presents an approach to retrieve this parameter over Greenland, East and West Antarctica ice sheets from surface reflectances observed with the Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) onboard the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) at 1064 nanometers. Spaceborne lidar observations overcome many of the disadvantages in passive remote sensing, including difficulties in cloud screening and low sun angle limitations; hence tend to provide more accurate and stable retrievals. Results from the GLAS L2A campaign, which began on 25 September and lasted until 19 November, 2003, show that the mode of the grain size distribution over Greenland is the largest (approximately 300 microns) among the three, West Antarctica is the second (220 microns) and East Antarctica is the smallest (190 microns). Snow grain sizes are larger over the coastal regions compared to inland the ice sheets. These results are consistent with previous studies. Applying the broadband snow surface albedo parameterization scheme developed by Garder and Sharp (2010) to the retrieved snow grain size, ice sheet surface albedo is also derived. In the future, more accurate retrievals can be achieved with multiple wavelengths lidar observations.

Comparison of Surface Elevation Changes of the Greenland and Antarctic Ice Sheets from Radar and Laser Altimetry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zwally, H. Jay; Brenner, Anita C.; Barbieri, Kristine; DiMarzio, John P.; Li, Jun; Robbins, John; Saba, Jack L.; Yi, Donghui

2012-01-01

A primary purpose of satellite altimeter measurements is determination of the mass balances of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets and changes with time by measurement of changes in the surface elevations. Since the early 1990's, important measurements for this purpose have been made by radar altimeters on ERS-l and 2, Envisat, and CryoSat and a laser altimeter on ICESat. One principal factor limiting direct comparisons between radar and laser measurements is the variable penetration depth of the radar signal and the corresponding location of the effective depth of the radar-measured elevation beneath the surface, in contrast to the laser-measured surface elevation. Although the radar penetration depth varies significantly both spatially and temporally, empirical corrections have been developed to account for this effect. Another limiting factor in direct comparisons is caused by differences in the size of the laser and radar footprints and their respective horizontal locations on the surface. Nevertheless, derived changes in elevation, dHldt, and time-series of elevation, H(t), have been shown to be comparable. For comparisons at different times, corrections for elevation changes caused by variations in the rate offrrn compaction have also been developed. Comparisons between the H(t) and the average dH/dt at some specific locations, such as the Vostok region of East Antarctic, show good agreement among results from ERS-l and 2, Envisat, and ICESat. However, Greenland maps of dHidt from Envisat and ICESat for the same time periods (2003-2008) show some areas of significant differences as well as areas of good agreement. Possible causes of residual differences are investigated and described.

Analytical Incorporation of Velocity Parameters into Ice Sheet Elevation Change Rate Computations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nagarajan, S.; Ahn, Y.; Teegavarapu, R. S. V.

2014-12-01

NASA, ESA and various other agencies have been collecting laser, optical and RADAR altimetry data through various missions to study the elevation changes of the Cryosphere. The laser altimetry collected by various airborne and spaceborne missions provides multi-temporal coverage of Greenland and Antarctica since 1993 to now. Though these missions have increased the data coverage, considering the dynamic nature of the ice surface, it is still sparse both spatially and temporally for accurate elevation change detection studies. The temporal and spatial gaps are usually filled by interpolation techniques. This presentation will demonstrate a method to improve the temporal interpolation. Considering the accuracy, repeat coverage and spatial distribution, the laser scanning data has been widely used to compute elevation change rate of Greenland and Antarctica ice sheets. A major problem with these approaches is non-consideration of ice sheet velocity dynamics into change rate computations. Though the correlation between velocity and elevation change rate have been noticed by Hurkmans et al., 2012, the corrections for velocity changes were applied after computing elevation change rates by assuming linear or higher polynomial relationship. This research will discuss the possibilities of parameterizing ice sheet dynamics as unknowns (dX and dY) in the adjustment mathematical model that computes elevation change (dZ) rates. It is a simultaneous computation of changes in all three directions of the ice surface. Also, the laser points between two time epochs in a crossover area have different distribution and count. Therefore, a registration method that does not require point-to-point correspondence is required to recover the unknown elevation and velocity parameters. This research will experiment the possibilities of registering multi-temporal datasets using volume minimization algorithm, which determines the unknown dX, dY and dZ that minimizes the volume between two or more time-epoch point clouds. In order to make use of other existing data as well as to constrain the adjustment, InSAR velocity will be used as initial values for the parameters dX and dY. The presentation will discuss the results of analytical incorporation of parameters and the volume based registration method for a test site in Greenland.

The Algorithm Theoretical Basis Document for the Derivation of Range and Range Distributions from Laser Pulse Waveform Analysis for Surface Elevations, Roughness, Slope, and Vegetation Heights

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brenner, Anita C.; Zwally, H. Jay; Bentley, Charles R.; Csatho, Bea M.; Harding, David J.; Hofton, Michelle A.; Minster, Jean-Bernard; Roberts, LeeAnne; Saba, Jack L.; Thomas, Robert H.;

Velocity Estimates of Fast-Moving Outlet Glaciers on the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abdalati, Waleed; Krabill, W. B.

1998-01-01

In recent years, airborne laser altimetry has been used with great success to investigate the mass balance characteristics of the Greenland ice sheet. One spinoff of this activity has been the application of these measurements to the study of surface velocities in some of Greenland's fast-moving drainage glaciers. This is accomplished by tracking the motion of elevation features, primarily crevasses, in pairs of aircraft laser altimetry surveys. Detailed elevation measurements are made along or across glaciers of interest with a scanning swath of 150 to 200 meters, and the surveys are repeated several days later, typically to within better than 50 meters of the previous flight line. Surface elevation features are identified in each image, and their offsets are compared yielding detailed velocities over narrow regions. During the 1998 field season, repeat flights were made over three glaciers for the purpose of estimating their surface velocities. These were the Kangerdlugssuaq and Helheim glaciers on the east coast and the Jakobshavn Isbrae on the west coast. Each flows at such high speeds (on the order of a few kilometers per year) that their flow rates are difficult to assess by means of radar interferometry. The flexibility of the aircraft platform, however, allows for detailed measurements of the elevation and flow of these drainage areas, which are responsible for a significant portion of the ice discharge from the Greenland ice sheet. Velocity estimates for transects that span these glaciers will be presented, and where the ice thickness values are available (provided by researchers from the University of Kansas) the fluxes will be calculated.

Estimates of Ice Sheet Mass Balance from Satellite Altimetry: Past and Future

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zwally, H. Jay; Zukor, Dorothy J. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

A major uncertainty in predicting sea level rise is the sensitivity of ice sheet mass balance to climate change, as well as the uncertainty in present mass balance. Since the annual water exchange is about 8 mm of global sea level equivalent, the 20% uncertainty in current mass balance corresponds to 1.6 mm/yr in sea level change. Furthermore, estimates of the sensitivity of the mass balance to temperature change range from perhaps as much as - 10% to + 10% per K. A principal purpose of obtaining ice sheet elevation changes from satellite altimetry has been estimation of the current ice sheet mass balance. Limited information on ice sheet elevation change and their implications about mass balance have been reported by several investigators from radar altimetry (Seasat, Geosat, ERS-1&2). Analysis of ERS-1&2 data over Greenland for 7 years from 1992 to 1999 shows mixed patterns of ice elevation increases and decreases that are significant in terms of regional-scale mass balances. Observed seasonal and interannual variations in ice surface elevation are larger than previously expected because of seasonal and interannUal variations in precipitation, melting, and firn compaction. In the accumulation zone, the variations in firn compaction are modeled as a function of temperature leaving variations in precipitation and the mass balance trend. Significant interannual variations in elevation in some locations, in particular the difference in trends from 1992 to 1995 compared to 1995 to 1999, can be explained by changes in precipitation over Greenland. Over the 7 years, trends in elevation are mostly positive at higher elevations and negative at lower elevations. In addition, trends for the winter seasons (from a trend analysis through the average winter elevations) are more positive than the corresponding trends for the summer. At lower elevations, the 7-year trends in some locations are strongly negative for summer and near zero or slightly positive for winter. These observations also demonstrate the potential for relating the variability in mass balance to changes in precipitation, temperature, and melting. Beginning in January 2002, NASA's ICESat laser altimeter mission will provide significantly better elevation accuracy and spatial coverage to 86E latitude and to the margins of the ice sheets.

Extensive dynamic thinning on the margins of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets.

PubMed

Pritchard, Hamish D; Arthern, Robert J; Vaughan, David G; Edwards, Laura A

2009-10-15

Many glaciers along the margins of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets are accelerating and, for this reason, contribute increasingly to global sea-level rise. Globally, ice losses contribute approximately 1.8 mm yr(-1) (ref. 8), but this could increase if the retreat of ice shelves and tidewater glaciers further enhances the loss of grounded ice or initiates the large-scale collapse of vulnerable parts of the ice sheets. Ice loss as a result of accelerated flow, known as dynamic thinning, is so poorly understood that its potential contribution to sea level over the twenty-first century remains unpredictable. Thinning on the ice-sheet scale has been monitored by using repeat satellite altimetry observations to track small changes in surface elevation, but previous sensors could not resolve most fast-flowing coastal glaciers. Here we report the use of high-resolution ICESat (Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite) laser altimetry to map change along the entire grounded margins of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. To isolate the dynamic signal, we compare rates of elevation change from both fast-flowing and slow-flowing ice with those expected from surface mass-balance fluctuations. We find that dynamic thinning of glaciers now reaches all latitudes in Greenland, has intensified on key Antarctic grounding lines, has endured for decades after ice-shelf collapse, penetrates far into the interior of each ice sheet and is spreading as ice shelves thin by ocean-driven melt. In Greenland, glaciers flowing faster than 100 m yr(-1) thinned at an average rate of 0.84 m yr(-1), and in the Amundsen Sea embayment of Antarctica, thinning exceeded 9.0 m yr(-1) for some glaciers. Our results show that the most profound changes in the ice sheets currently result from glacier dynamics at ocean margins.

Variability of AVHRR-Derived Clear-Sky Surface Temperature over the Greenland Ice Sheet.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stroeve, Julienne; Steffen, Konrad

1998-01-01

The Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer is used to derive surface temperatures for one satellite pass under clear skies over the Greenland ice sheet from 1989 through 1993. The results of these temperatures are presented as monthly means, and their spatial and temporal variability are discussed. Accuracy of the dry snow surface temperatures is estimated to be better than 1 K during summer. This error is expected to increase during polar night due to problems in cloud identification. Results indicate the surface temperature of the Greenland ice sheet is strongly dominated by topography, with minimum surface temperatures associated with the high elevation regions. In the summer, maximum surface temperatures occur during July along the western coast and southern tip of the ice sheet. Minimum temperatures are found at the summit during summer and move farther north during polar night. Large interannual variability in surface temperatures occurs during winter associated with katabatic storm events. Summer temperatures show little variation, although 1992 stands out as being colder than the other years. The reason for the lower temperatures during 1992 is believed to be a result of the 1991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo.

ICESat and ICESat-2: Preparing to assess decadal-scale elevation change over the ice sheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Webb, C. E.; Markus, T.; Neumann, T.; Anthony, M.

2016-12-01

One of the first, and most dramatic, assessments of elevation change to occur after the Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) enters its science orbit in early 2018 will be to compare the altimetry data being collected to the baseline established by the original ICESat mission between 2003 and 2009. Both missions use altimeters that send laser pulses from the satellite to the Earth. By measuring the travel time, the range to the surface can be inferred, and then combined with the position of the satellite and the pointing direction of the laser to determine where the pulse landed on the surface and its height there. The first ICESat mission employed a single-beam, full-waveform altimeter with a near-infrared (1064-nm wavelength) laser pulsed at 40 Hz. This produced surface heights at 170-meter intervals along reference tracks that extended to +/- 86 degrees latitude. ICESat-2 will carry an altimeter that sends a green (532-nm wavelength) laser through a diffractive optical element to be split into six beams, and pulsed at 10kHz. This will yield overlapping footprints every 70 cm along each beam track, extending to +/-88 degrees latitude. Rather than capturing the full returned waveform, however, the altimeter will use photon-counting detectors to measure the travel times of individual photons. Once on the ground, these data will be used in the science data processing system to produce a latitude, longitude and ellipsoidal height, marking the location from which each photon returned from the surface. Higher-level data products will characterize the surface more precisely by aggregating photons to reduce noise along each of the six beam tracks. Here, we describe the ICESat and ICESat-2 measurements and ice sheet data products, and discuss possible methods for comparing them to assess elevation change over the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets in the nine years between the two missions.

ICESat-2, its retrievals of ice sheet elevation change and sea ice freeboard, and potential synergies with CryoSat-2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Neumann, Thomas; Markus, Thorsten; Smith, Benjamin; Kwok, Ron

2017-04-01

Understanding the causes and magnitudes of changes in the cryosphere remains a priority for Earth science research. Over the past decade, NASA's and ESA's Earth-observing satellites have documented a decrease in both the areal extent and thickness of Arctic sea ice, and an ongoing loss of grounded ice from the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. Understanding the pace and mechanisms of these changes requires long-term observations of ice-sheet mass, sea-ice thickness, and sea-ice extent. NASA's ICESat-2 mission is the next-generation space-borne laser altimeter mission and will use three pairs of beams, each pair separated by about 3 km across-track with a pair spacing of 90 m. The spot size is 17 m with an along-track sampling interval of 0.7 m. This measurement concept is a result of the lessons learned from the original ICESat mission. The multi-beam approach is critical for removing the effects of ice sheet surface slope from the elevation change measurements of most interest. For sea ice, the dense spatial sampling (eliminating along-track gaps) and the small footprint size are especially useful for sea surface height measurements in the, often narrow, leads needed for sea ice freeboard and ice thickness retrievals. Currently, algorithms are being developed to calculate ice sheet elevation change and sea ice freeboard from ICESat-2 data. The orbits of ICESat-2 and Cryosat-2 both converge at 88 degrees of latitude, though the orbit altitude differences result in different ground track patterns between the two missions. This presentation will present an overview of algorithm approaches and how ICESat-2 and Cryosat-2 data may augment each other.

The Effect of Topographic Shadowing by Ice on Irradiance in the Greenland Ice Sheet Ablation Zone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leidman, S. Z.; Rennermalm, A. K.; Ryan, J.; Cooper, M. G.; Smith, L. C.

2017-12-01

Accurately predicting runoff contributions to global sea level rise requires more refined surface mass balance (SMB) models of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS). Topographic shadowing has shown to be important in the SMB of snow-covered regions, yet SMB models for the GrIS generally ignore how surface topography affects spatial variability of incoming solar radiation on a surface. In the ablation zone of Southwest Greenland, deeply incised supraglacial drainage features, fracturing, and large-scale bed deformation result in extensive areas of rough surface topography. This topography blocks direct radiation such that shadowed areas receive less energy for melting while other topographic features such as peaks recieve more energy. In this study, we quantify how shadowing from local topography features changes incoming solar radiation. We apply the ArcGIS Pro Solar Radiation Toolset to calculate the direct and diffuse irradiance in sunlit and shadowed areas by determining the sun's movement for every half hour increment of 2016. Multiple digital elevation models (DEMs) with spatial resolutions ranging from 0.06 to 5m were derived from fixed wing and quadcopter UAV imagery collected in summer 2016 and the ArcticDEM dataset. Our findings show that shadowing significantly decreases irradiance compared to smoothed surfaces where local topography is removed. This decrease is exponentially proportional to the DEM pixel sized with 5m DEMs only able to capture a small percentage of the effect. Applying these calculations to the ArcticDEM to cover a larger study area indicates that decreases in irradiance are nonlinearly proportional to elevation with highly crevassed areas showing a larger effect from shadowing. Even so, shading at higher elevations reduces irradiance enough to result in several centimeters snow water equivalence (SWE) per year of over-prediction of runoff in SMB models. Furthermore, analysis of solar radiation products shows that shadowing predicts albedo variability far better than a range of variables derived from UAV imagery mosaics including slope, aspect, elevation, or the distance to dark surface features. In summary, implementation of the effect of shadowing on irradiance should therefore be considered for accurate surface mass balance calculations for the Greenland ice sheet.

Records of past ice sheet fluctuations in interior East Antarctica

USGS Publications Warehouse

Liu, Xiaohan; Huang, Feixin; Kong, Ping; Fang, Aimin; Li, Xiaoli

2007-01-01

The results of a land-based multi-disciplinary study of the past ice surface elevation in the Grove Mountains of interior East Antarctica support a dynamic evolution of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS). Moraine boulders of sedimentary rocks and spore pollen assemblage imply a significant shrinkage of the EAIS, with its margin retreating south of the Grove Mountains (~450 km south of recent coast line) before the middle Pliocene. The exposure ages indicate that the ice sheet subsequently re-advanced, with the ice surface rising locally at least 450 m higher than today. It then went back down constantly from before 2.3 Ma to 1.6 Ma. The glacial topography and existence of soil show that the ice surface fluctuation continued since the early Quaternary, but with highest levels never exceeding ~100 m higher than today.

Subglacial efficiency and storage modified by the temporal pattern of high-elevation meltwater input

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andrews, L. C.; Dow, C. F.; Poinar, K.; Nowicki, S.

2017-12-01

Ice flow in marginal region of the Greenland Ice Sheet dynamically responds to summer melting as surface meltwater is routed through the supraglacial hydrologic system to the bed of the ice sheet via crevasses and moulins. Given the expected increases in surface melt production and extent, and the potential for high elevation surface-to-bed connections, it is imperative to understand how meltwater delivered to the bed from different high-elevation supraglacial storage features affects the evolution of the subglacial hydrologic system and associated ice dynamics. Here, we use the two-dimensional subglacial hydrologic model, GLaDS, which includes distributed and channelized water flow, to test how the subglacial system of an idealized outlet glacier responds to cases of high-elevation firn-aquifer-type and supraglacial-lake-type englacial drainage over the course of 5 years. Model outputs driven by these high elevation drainage types are compared to steady-state model results, where the subglacial system only receives the 1980-2016 mean MERRA-2 runoff via low-elevation moulins. Across all experiments, the subglacial hydrologic system displays inter-annual memory, resulting in multiyear declines in subglacial pressure during the onset of seasonal melting and growth of subglacial channels. The gradual addition of water in firn-aquifer-type drainage scenarios resulted in small increases in subglacial water storage but limited changes in subglacial efficiency and channelization. Rapid, supraglacial-lake-type drainage resulted in short-term local increases in subglacial water pressure and storage, which gave way to spatially extensive decreases in subglacial pressure and downstream channelization. These preliminary results suggest that the character of high-elevation englacial drainage can have a strong, and possibly outsized, control on subglacial efficiency throughout the ablation zone. Therefore, understanding both how high elevation meltwater is stored supraglacially and the probability of crevassing at high elevations will play an important role in how the subglacial system, proglacial discharge and ice motion will respond to future increases in surface melt production and runoff.

Subglacial efficiency and storage modified by the temporal pattern of high-elevation meltwater input

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ackley, S. F.; Maksym, T.; Stammerjohn, S. E.; Gao, Y.; Weissling, B.

2016-12-01

Ice flow in marginal region of the Greenland Ice Sheet dynamically responds to summer melting as surface meltwater is routed through the supraglacial hydrologic system to the bed of the ice sheet via crevasses and moulins. Given the expected increases in surface melt production and extent, and the potential for high elevation surface-to-bed connections, it is imperative to understand how meltwater delivered to the bed from different high-elevation supraglacial storage features affects the evolution of the subglacial hydrologic system and associated ice dynamics. Here, we use the two-dimensional subglacial hydrologic model, GLaDS, which includes distributed and channelized water flow, to test how the subglacial system of an idealized outlet glacier responds to cases of high-elevation firn-aquifer-type and supraglacial-lake-type englacial drainage over the course of 5 years. Model outputs driven by these high elevation drainage types are compared to steady-state model results, where the subglacial system only receives the 1980-2016 mean MERRA-2 runoff via low-elevation moulins. Across all experiments, the subglacial hydrologic system displays inter-annual memory, resulting in multiyear declines in subglacial pressure during the onset of seasonal melting and growth of subglacial channels. The gradual addition of water in firn-aquifer-type drainage scenarios resulted in small increases in subglacial water storage but limited changes in subglacial efficiency and channelization. Rapid, supraglacial-lake-type drainage resulted in short-term local increases in subglacial water pressure and storage, which gave way to spatially extensive decreases in subglacial pressure and downstream channelization. These preliminary results suggest that the character of high-elevation englacial drainage can have a strong, and possibly outsized, control on subglacial efficiency throughout the ablation zone. Therefore, understanding both how high elevation meltwater is stored supraglacially and the probability of crevassing at high elevations will play an important role in how the subglacial system, proglacial discharge and ice motion will respond to future increases in surface melt production and runoff.

Moulin Migration and Development on the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chu, V. W.; Yang, L.

2017-12-01

Extensive river networks that terminate into moulins efficiently drain the surface of the Greenland ice sheet. These river moulins connect surface meltwater to englacial and subglacial drainage networks, where increased meltwater can enhance ice sliding dynamics. Previous moulin studies were limited to small geographic areas using field observations and/or high-resolution aerial/satellite imagery, or to medium-resolution satellite imagery for larger areas. In this study, high-resolution moulin maps created from WorldView-1/2/3 imagery near Russell Glacier in southwest Greenland show development of moulins and their migration between 2012 and 2015. Moulins are mapped and categorized as being located: in crevasse fields, along a single ice fracture, within drained lake basins, or having no visible formation mechanism. A majority of moulins mapped in 2015 (73%) are linked to moulins in 2012 and are analysed for their movement patterns and compared to ice velocity and strain rates. New moulins most commonly form in crevassed, thinner ice near the ice sheet edge, but significant quantities also develop at higher elevations (22% above 1300 m elevation).

An ice sheet model validation framework for the Greenland ice sheet.

PubMed

Price, Stephen F; Hoffman, Matthew J; Bonin, Jennifer A; Howat, Ian M; Neumann, Thomas; Saba, Jack; Tezaur, Irina; Guerber, Jeffrey; Chambers, Don P; Evans, Katherine J; Kennedy, Joseph H; Lenaerts, Jan; Lipscomb, William H; Perego, Mauro; Salinger, Andrew G; Tuminaro, Raymond S; van den Broeke, Michiel R; Nowicki, Sophie M J

2017-01-01

We propose a new ice sheet model validation framework - the Cryospheric Model Comparison Tool (CmCt) - that takes advantage of ice sheet altimetry and gravimetry observations collected over the past several decades and is applied here to modeling of the Greenland ice sheet. We use realistic simulations performed with the Community Ice Sheet Model (CISM) along with two idealized, non-dynamic models to demonstrate the framework and its use. Dynamic simulations with CISM are forced from 1991 to 2013 using combinations of reanalysis-based surface mass balance and observations of outlet glacier flux change. We propose and demonstrate qualitative and quantitative metrics for use in evaluating the different model simulations against the observations. We find that the altimetry observations used here are largely ambiguous in terms of their ability to distinguish one simulation from another. Based on basin- and whole-ice-sheet scale metrics, we find that simulations using both idealized conceptual models and dynamic, numerical models provide an equally reasonable representation of the ice sheet surface (mean elevation differences of <1 m). This is likely due to their short period of record, biases inherent to digital elevation models used for model initial conditions, and biases resulting from firn dynamics, which are not explicitly accounted for in the models or observations. On the other hand, we find that the gravimetry observations used here are able to unambiguously distinguish between simulations of varying complexity, and along with the CmCt, can provide a quantitative score for assessing a particular model and/or simulation. The new framework demonstrates that our proposed metrics can distinguish relatively better from relatively worse simulations and that dynamic ice sheet models, when appropriately initialized and forced with the right boundary conditions, demonstrate predictive skill with respect to observed dynamic changes occurring on Greenland over the past few decades. An extensible design will allow for continued use of the CmCt as future altimetry, gravimetry, and other remotely sensed data become available for use in ice sheet model validation.

Changes in the firn structure of the western Greenland Ice Sheet caused by recent warming

DOE PAGES

de la Peña, S.; Howat, I. M.; Nienow, P. W.; ...

2015-06-11

Atmospheric warming over the Greenland Ice Sheet during the last 2 decades has increased the amount of surface meltwater production, resulting in the migration of melt and percolation regimes to higher altitudes and an increase in the amount of ice content from refrozen meltwater found in the firn above the superimposed ice zone. Here we present field and airborne radar observations of buried ice layers within the near-surface (0–20 m) firn in western Greenland, obtained from campaigns between 1998 and 2014. We find a sharp increase in firn-ice content in the form of thick widespread layers in the percolation zone,more » which decreases the capacity of the firn to store meltwater. The estimated total annual ice content retained in the near-surface firn in areas with positive surface mass balance west of the ice divide in Greenland reached a maximum of 74 ± 25 Gt in 2012, when compared to the 1958–1999 average of 13 ± 2 Gt, while the percolation zone area more than doubled between 2003 and 2012. Increased melt and column densification resulted in surface lowering averaging -0.80 ± 0.39 m yr -1 between 1800 and 2800 m in the accumulation zone of western Greenland. Since 2007, modeled annual melt and refreezing rates in the percolation zone at elevations below 2100 m surpass the annual snowfall from the previous year, implying that mass gain in the region is retained after melt in the form of refrozen meltwater. Furthermore, if current melt trends over high elevation regions continue, subsequent changes in firn structure will have implications for the hydrology of the ice sheet and related abrupt seasonal densification could become increasingly significant for altimetry-derived ice sheet mass balance estimates.« less

Potential Elevation Biases for Laser Altimeters from Subsurface Scattered Photons: Laboratory and Model Exploration of Green Light Scattering in Snow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Greeley, A.; Neumann, T.; Markus, T.; Kurtz, N. T.; Cook, W. B.

2015-12-01

Existing visible light laser altimeters such as MABEL (Multiple Altimeter Beam Experimental Lidar) - a single photon counting simulator for ATLAS (Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System) on NASA's upcoming ICESat-2 mission - and ATM (Airborne Topographic Mapper) on NASA's Operation IceBridge mission provide scientists a view of Earth's ice sheets, glaciers, and sea ice with unprecedented detail. Precise calibration of these instruments is needed to understand rapidly changing parameters like sea ice freeboard and to measure optical properties of surfaces like snow covered ice sheets using subsurface scattered photons. Photons travelling into snow, ice, or water before scattering back to the altimeter receiving system (subsurface photons) travel farther and longer than photons scattering off the surface only, causing a bias in the measured elevation. We seek to identify subsurface photons in a laboratory setting using a flight-tested laser altimeter (MABEL) and to quantify their effect on surface elevation estimates for laser altimeter systems. We also compare these estimates with previous laboratory measurements of green laser light transmission through snow, as well as Monte Carlo simulations of backscattered photons from snow.

Applications of Future NASA Decadal Missions for Observing Earth's Land and Water Processes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Luvall, Jeffrey C.; Hook, Simon; Brown, Molly E.; Tzortziou, Maria A.; Carroll, Mark; Escobar, Vanessa M.; Omar, Ali

2013-01-01

Misson Objective: To collect altimetry data of the Earth's surface optimized to measure ice sheet elevation change and sea ice thickness, while also generating an estimate of global vegetation biomass.

The Glacier and Land Ice Surface Topography Interferometer (GLISTIN): A Novel Ka-band Digitally Beamformed Interferometer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moller, Delwyn K.; Heavey, Brandon; Hodges, Richard; Rengarajan, Sembiam; Rignot, Eric; Rogez, Francois; Sadowy, Gregory; Simard, Marc; Zawadzki, Mark

2006-01-01

The estimation of the mass balance of ice sheets and glaciers on Earth is a problem of considerable scientific and societal importance. A key measurement to understanding, monitoring and forecasting these changes is ice-surface topography, both for ice-sheet and glacial regions. As such NASA identified 'ice topographic mapping instruments capable of providing precise elevation and detailed imagery data for measurements on glacial scales for detailed monitoring of ice sheet, and glacier changes' as a science priority for the most recent Instrument Incubator Program (IIP) opportunities. Funded under this opportunity is the technological development for a Ka-Band (35GHz) single-pass digitally beamformed interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR). Unique to this concept is the ability to map a significant swath impervious of cloud cover with measurement accuracies comparable to laser altimeters but with variable resolution as appropriate to the differing scales-of-interest over ice-sheets and glaciers.

Interannual variation of the Antarctic Ice Sheet from a combined analysis of satellite gravimetry and altimetry data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mémin, A.; Flament, T.; Alizier, B.; Watson, C.; Rémy, F.

2015-07-01

Assessment of the long term mass balance of the Antarctic Ice Sheet, and thus the determination of its contribution to sea level rise, requires an understanding of interannual variability and associated causal mechanisms. We performed a combined analysis of surface-mass and elevation changes using data from the GRACE and Envisat satellite missions, respectively. Using empirical orthogonal functions and singular value decompositions of each data set, we find a quasi 4.7-yr periodic signal between 08/2002 and 10/2010 that accounts for ∼ 15- 30% of the time variability of the filtered and detrended surface-mass and elevation data. Computation of the density of this variable mass load corresponds to snow or uncompacted firn. Changes reach maximum amplitude within the first 100 km from the coast where it contributes up to 30-35% of the annual rate of accumulation. Extending the analysis to 09/2014 using surface-mass changes only, we have found anomalies with a periodicity of about 4-6 yrs that circle the AIS in about 9-10 yrs. These properties connect the observed anomalies to the Antarctic Circumpolar Wave (ACW) which is known to affect several key climate variables, including precipitation. It suggests that variability in the surface-mass balance of the Antarctic Ice Sheet may also be modulated by the ACW.

Investigation of Controls on Ice Dynamics in Northeast Greenland from Ice-Thickness Change Record Using Ice Sheet System Model (ISSM)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Csatho, B. M.; Larour, E. Y.; Schenk, A. F.; Schlegel, N.; Duncan, K.

2015-12-01

We present a new, complete ice thickness change reconstruction of the NE sector of the Greenland Ice Sheet for 1978-2014, partitioned into changes due to surface processes and ice dynamics. Elevation changes are computed from all available stereoscopic DEMs, and laser altimetry data (ICESat, ATM, LVIS). Surface Mass Balance and firn-compaction estimates are from RACMO2.3. Originating nearly at the divide of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS), the dynamically active North East Ice Stream (NEGIS) is capable of rapidly transmitting ice-marginal forcing far inland. Thus, NEGIS provides a possible mechanism for a rapid drawdown of ice from the ice sheet interior as marginal warming, thinning and retreat continues. Our altimetry record shows accelerating dynamic thinning of Zachariæ Isstrom, initially limited to the deepest part of the fjord near the calving front (1978-2000) and then extending at least 75 km inland. At the same time, changes over the Nioghalvfjerdsfjorden (N79) Glacier are negligible. We also detect localized large dynamic changes at higher elevations on the ice sheet. These thickness changes, often occurring at the onset of fast flow, could indicate rapid variations of basal lubrication due to rerouting of subglacial drainage. We investigate the possible causes of the observed spatiotemporal pattern of ice sheet elevation changes using the Ice Sheet System Model (ISSM). This work build on our previous studies examining the sensitivity of ice flow within the Northeast Greenland Ice Stream (NEGIS) to key fields, including ice viscosity, basal drag. We assimilate the new altimetry record into ISSM to improve the reconstruction of basal friction and ice viscosity. Finally, airborne geophysical (gravity, magnetic) and ice-penetrating radar data is examined to identify the potential geologic controls on the ice thickness change pattern. Our study provides the first comprehensive reconstruction of ice thickness changes for the entire NEGIS drainage basin during the last 40 years. Through the use of ISSM, we examine possible mechanism explaining the observed changes. The improved understanding gained through this research will contribute better projections of future ice loss from this most vulnerable region of the GrIS.

The Ice, Cloud, and Land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2): Science Requirements, Concept, and Implementation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Markus, Thorsten; Neumann, Tom; Martino, Anthony; Abdalati, Waleed; Brunt, Kelly; Csatho, Beata; Farrell, Sinead; Fricker, Helen; Gardner, Alex; Harding, David;

A daily, 1 km resolution data set of downscaled Greenland ice sheet surface mass balance (1958-2015)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Noël, Brice; van de Berg, Willem Jan; Machguth, Horst; Lhermitte, Stef; Howat, Ian; Fettweis, Xavier; van den Broeke, Michiel R.

2016-10-01

This study presents a data set of daily, 1 km resolution Greenland ice sheet (GrIS) surface mass balance (SMB) covering the period 1958-2015. Applying corrections for elevation, bare ice albedo and accumulation bias, the high-resolution product is statistically downscaled from the native daily output of the polar regional climate model RACMO2.3 at 11 km. The data set includes all individual SMB components projected to a down-sampled version of the Greenland Ice Mapping Project (GIMP) digital elevation model and ice mask. The 1 km mask better resolves narrow ablation zones, valley glaciers, fjords and disconnected ice caps. Relative to the 11 km product, the more detailed representation of isolated glaciated areas leads to increased precipitation over the southeastern GrIS. In addition, the downscaled product shows a significant increase in runoff owing to better resolved low-lying marginal glaciated regions. The combined corrections for elevation and bare ice albedo markedly improve model agreement with a newly compiled data set of ablation measurements.

Entrainment, transport and concentration of meteorites in polar ice sheets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Drewry, D. J.

1986-01-01

Glaciers and ice sheets act as slow-moving conveyancing systems for material added to both their upper and lower surfaces. Because the transit time for most materials is extremely long the ice acts as a major global storage facility. The effects of horizontal and vertical motions on the flow patterns of Antarctic ice sheets are summarized. The determination of the source areas of meteorites and their transport paths is a problem of central importance since it relates not only directly to concentration mechanisms but also to the wider issues in glaciology and meteorites. The ice and snow into which a meteorite falls, and which moves with it to the concentration area, encodes information about the infall area. The principle environmental conditions being former elevation, temperature (also related to elevation), and age of the ice. This encoded information could be used to identify the infall area.

Determination of Local Slope on the Greenland Ice Sheet Using a Multibeam Photon-Counting Lidar in Preparation for the ICESat-2 Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brunt, Kelly M.; Neumann, Thomas Allen; Walsh, Kaitlin M.; Markus, Thorsten

2013-01-01

The greatest changes in elevation in Greenland and Antarctica are happening along the margins of the ice sheets where the surface frequently has significant slopes. For this reason, the upcoming Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) mission utilizes pairs of laser altimeter beams that are perpendicular to the flight direction in order to extract slope information in addition to elevation. The Multiple Altimeter Beam Experimental Lidar (MABEL) is a high-altitude airborne laser altimeter designed as a simulator for ICESat-2. The MABEL design uses multiple beams at fixed angles and allows for local slope determination. Here, we present local slopes as determined by MABEL and compare them to those determined by the Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM) over the same flight lines in Greenland. We make these comparisons with consideration for the planned ICESat-2 beam geometry. Results indicate that the mean slope residuals between MABEL and ATM remain small (< 0.05 degrees) through a wide range of localized slopes using ICESat-2 beam geometry. Furthermore, when MABEL data are subsampled by a factor of 4 to mimic the planned ICESat-2 transmit-energy configuration, the results are indistinguishable from the full-data-rate analysis. Results from MABEL suggest that ICESat-2 beam geometry and transmit-energy configuration are appropriate for the determination of slope on approx. 90-m spatial scales, a measurement that will be fundamental to deconvolving the effects of surface slope from the ice-sheet surface change derived from ICESat-2.

Determination of Local Slope on the Greenland Ice Sheet Using a Multibeam Photon-Counting Lidar in Preparation for the ICESat-2 Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brunt, Kelly M.; Neumann, Thomas A.; Walsh, Kaitlin M.; Markus, Thorsten

2014-01-01

The greatest changes in elevation in Greenland and Antarctica are happening along the margins of the ice sheets where the surface frequently has significant slopes. For this reason, the upcoming Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) mission utilizes pairs of laser altimeter beams that are perpendicular to the flight direction in order to extract slope information in addition to elevation. The Multiple Altimeter Beam Experimental Lidar (MABEL) is a high-altitude airborne laser altimeter designed as a simulator for ICESat-2. The MABEL design uses multiple beams at fixed angles and allows for local slope determination. Here, we present local slopes as determined by MABEL and compare them to those determined by the Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM) over the same flight lines in Greenland. We make these comparisons with consideration for the planned ICESat-2 beam geometry. Results indicate that the mean slope residuals between MABEL and ATM remain small (< 0.05?) through a wide range of localized slopes using ICESat-2 beam geometry. Furthermore, when MABEL data are subsampled by a factor of 4 to mimic the planned ICESat-2 transmit-energy configuration, the results are indistinguishable from the full-data-rate analysis. Results from MABEL suggest that ICESat-2 beam geometry and transmit-energy configuration are appropriate for the determination of slope on 90-m spatial scales, a measurement that will be fundamental to deconvolving the effects of surface slope from the ice-sheet surface change derived from ICESat-2.

Development of a multi-sensor elevation time series pole-ward of 86°S in support of altimetry validation and ice sheet mass balance studies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Studinger, M.; Brunt, K. M.; Casey, K.; Medley, B.; Neumann, T.; Manizade, S.; Linkswiler, M. A.

2015-12-01

In order to produce a cross-calibrated long-term record of ice-surface elevation change for input into ice sheet models and mass balance studies it is necessary to "link the measurements made by airborne laser altimeters, satellite measurements of ICESat, ICESat-2, and CryoSat-2" [IceBridge Level 1 Science Requirements, 2012] and determine the biases and the spatial variations between radar altimeters and laser altimeters using different wavelengths. The convergence zones of all ICESat tracks (86°S) and all ICESat-2 and CryoSat-2 tracks (88°S) are in regions of relatively low accumulation, making them ideal for satellite altimetry calibration. In preparation for ICESat-2 validation, the IceBridge and ICESat-2 science teams have designed IceBridge data acquisitions around 86°S and 88°S. Several aspects need to be considered when comparing and combining elevation measurements from different radar and laser altimeters, including: a) foot print size and spatial sampling pattern; b) accuracy and precision of each data sets; c) varying signal penetration into the snow; and d) changes in geodetic reference frames over time, such as the International Terrestrial Reference Frame (ITRF). The presentation will focus on the analysis of several IceBridge flights around 86 and 88°S with the LVIS and ATM airborne laser altimeters and will evaluate the accuracy and precision of these data sets. To properly interpret the observed elevation change (dh/dt) as mass change, however, the various processes that control surface elevation fluctuations must be quantified and therefore future work will quantify the spatial variability in snow accumulation rates pole-ward of 86°S and in particular around 88°S. Our goal is to develop a cross-validated multi-sensor time series of surface elevation change pole-ward of 86°S that, in combination with measured accumulation rates, will support ICESat-2 calibration and validation and ice sheet mass balance studies.

Empirical Retrieval of Surface Melt Magnitude from Coupled MODIS Optical and Thermal Measurements over the Greenland Ice Sheet during the 2001 Ablation Season

PubMed Central

Lampkin, Derrick; Peng, Rui

2008-01-01

Accelerated ice flow near the equilibrium line of west-central Greenland Ice Sheet (GIS) has been attributed to an increase in infiltrated surface melt water as a response to climate warming. The assessment of surface melting events must be more than the detection of melt onset or extent. Retrieval of surface melt magnitude is necessary to improve understanding of ice sheet flow and surface melt coupling. In this paper, we report on a new technique to quantify the magnitude of surface melt. Cloud-free dates of June 10, July 5, 7, 9, and 11, 2001 Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) daily reflectance Band 5 (1.230-1.250μm) and surface temperature images rescaled to 1km over western Greenland were used in the retrieval algorithm. An optical-thermal feature space partitioned as a function of melt magnitude was derived using a one-dimensional thermal snowmelt model (SNTHERM89). SNTHERM89 was forced by hourly meteorological data from the Greenland Climate Network (GC-Net) at reference sites spanning dry snow, percolation, and wet snow zones in the Jakobshavn drainage basin in western GIS. Melt magnitude or effective melt (E-melt) was derived for satellite composite periods covering May, June, and July displaying low fractions (0-1%) at elevations greater than 2500m and fractions at or greater than 15% at elevations lower than 1000m assessed for only the upper 5 cm of the snow surface. Validation of E-melt involved comparison of intensity to dry and wet zones determined from QSCAT backscatter. Higher intensities (> 8%) were distributed in wet snow zones, while lower intensities were grouped in dry zones at a first order accuracy of ∼ ±2%. PMID:27873793

Empirical Retrieval of Surface Melt Magnitude from Coupled MODIS Optical and Thermal Measurements over the Greenland Ice Sheet during the 2001 Ablation Season.

PubMed

Lampkin, Derrick; Peng, Rui

2008-08-22

Accelerated ice flow near the equilibrium line of west-central Greenland Ice Sheet (GIS) has been attributed to an increase in infiltrated surface melt water as a response to climate warming. The assessment of surface melting events must be more than the detection of melt onset or extent. Retrieval of surface melt magnitude is necessary to improve understanding of ice sheet flow and surface melt coupling. In this paper, we report on a new technique to quantify the magnitude of surface melt. Cloud-free dates of June 10, July 5, 7, 9, and 11, 2001 Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) daily reflectance Band 5 (1.230-1.250μm) and surface temperature images rescaled to 1km over western Greenland were used in the retrieval algorithm. An optical-thermal feature space partitioned as a function of melt magnitude was derived using a one-dimensional thermal snowmelt model (SNTHERM89). SNTHERM89 was forced by hourly meteorological data from the Greenland Climate Network (GC-Net) at reference sites spanning dry snow, percolation, and wet snow zones in the Jakobshavn drainage basin in western GIS. Melt magnitude or effective melt (E-melt) was derived for satellite composite periods covering May, June, and July displaying low fractions (0-1%) at elevations greater than 2500m and fractions at or greater than 15% at elevations lower than 1000m assessed for only the upper 5 cm of the snow surface. Validation of E-melt involved comparison of intensity to dry and wet zones determined from QSCAT backscatter. Higher intensities (> 8%) were distributed in wet snow zones, while lower intensities were grouped in dry zones at a first order accuracy of ~ ±2%.

Continuous measurements of surface mass balance, firn compaction, and meltwater retention in Greenland for altimetry validation.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de la Peña, S.; Howat, I.; Behar, A.; Price, S. F.; Thanga, J.; Crowell, J. M.; Huseas, S.; Tedesco, M.

2016-12-01

Observations made in recent years by repeated altimetry from CryoSat-2 and NASA's Operation IceBridge reveal large fluctuations in the firn volume of the Greenland Ice Sheet. Although an order of magnitude smaller than ice thinning rates observed in some areas at the margins of the ice sheet, short-term departures in surface elevation trends occur over most of the accumulation zone of Greenland. Changes in the thickness of the firn column are influenced by variability in surface mass balance, firn compaction, and abrupt seasonal densification near the surface caused by refreezing at depth of variable amounts of surface meltwater in the summer. These processes and dynamic thinning cannot be differentiated from each other by altimetry alone. Until recently, nearly all information on density and surface mass balance changes over the firn layer came from ice core and snow pit stratigraphy that provided annual rates with relatively large uncertainties. Here we present direct, continuous measurements of firn density and surface mass balance along with annual estimates of firn ice content used to assess observed elevation change in the percolation zone of western Greenland in relation to firn processes. Since 2012, autonomous in-situ firn compaction sensors have monitored several sites in the catchment area of Jakobshavn Isbrae, and since 2015 surface mass balance and surface displacement has been measured continuously using a combination of sensors. In addition to identify the different components in the altimetry signal, The temporal resolution of the data acquired provide a means to monitor short-term changes in the near-surface firn, and identifying individual events causing surface elevation displacement.

Corrosion behavior of HVOF coated sheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yilbas, B. S.; Abdul-Aleem, B. J.; Khalid, M.

2003-12-01

High velocity oxygen-fuel (HVOF) thermal spray coating finds application in industry due to its superior resistance to corrosion and thermal loading. In the HVOF process, the metallic powders at elevated temperature are sprayed at supersonic speed onto a substrate material. The powder granules sprayed impact onto each other, forming a mechanical bonding across the coating layer. In most of the cases, the distances among the particles (powder granules sprayed) are not the same, which in turn results in inhomogeneous structure across the coating layer. Moreover, the rate of oxidation of the powder granules during the spraying process varies. Consequently, the electrochemical response of the coating layer surfaces next to the base material and free to atmosphere differs. In the current study, the electrochemical response of a coating sheet formed during HVOF thermal spraying was investigated. NiCrMoNb alloy (similar to Inconel 625) wass used for the powder granules. Thermal spraying was carried out onto a smooth surface of stainless steel workpiece (without grid blasting), and later the coating layer was removed from the surface to obtain the coating sheet for the electrochemical tests. It was found that the corrosion rate of the smooth surface (surface next to the stainless steel surface before its removal) is considerably larger than that corresponding to the rough surface (free surface) of the coating sheet, and no specific patterns were observed for the pit sites.

The Research on Elevation Change of Antarctic Ice Sheet Based on CRYOSAT-2 Alimeter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Q.; Wan, J.; Liu, S.; Li, Y.

2018-04-01

In this paper, the Cryosat-2 altimeter data distributed by the ESA, and these data are processed to extract the information of the elevation change of the Antarctic ice sheet from 2010 to 2017. Firstly, the main pretreatment preprocessing for Cryosat-2 altimetry data is crossover adjustment and elimination of rough difference. Then the grid DEM of the Antarctic ice sheet was constructed by using the kriging interpolation method,and analyzed the spatial characteristic time characteristics of the Antarctic ice sheet. The latitude-weighted elevation can be obtained by using the elevation data of each cycle, and then the general trend of the Antarctic ice sheet elevation variation can be seen roughly.

Assessing the Impact of Laurentide Ice-sheet Topography on Glacial Climate

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ullman, D. J.; LeGrande, A. N.; Carlson, A. E.; Anslow, F. S.; Licciardi, J. M.

2014-01-01

Simulations of past climates require altered boundary conditions to account for known shifts in the Earth system. For the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and subsequent deglaciation, the existence of large Northern Hemisphere ice sheets caused profound changes in surface topography and albedo. While ice-sheet extent is fairly well known, numerous conflicting reconstructions of ice-sheet topography suggest that precision in this boundary condition is lacking. Here we use a high-resolution and oxygen-isotopeenabled fully coupled global circulation model (GCM) (GISS ModelE2-R), along with two different reconstructions of the Laurentide Ice Sheet (LIS) that provide maximum and minimum estimates of LIS elevation, to assess the range of climate variability in response to uncertainty in this boundary condition.We present this comparison at two equilibrium time slices: the LGM, when differences in ice-sheet topography are maximized, and 14 ka, when differences in maximum ice-sheet height are smaller but still exist. Overall, we find significant differences in the climate response to LIS topography, with the larger LIS resulting in enhanced Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation and warmer surface air temperatures, particularly over northeastern Asia and the North Pacific. These up- and downstream effects are associated with differences in the development of planetary waves in the upper atmosphere, with the larger LIS resulting in a weaker trough over northeastern Asia that leads to the warmer temperatures and decreased albedo from snow and sea-ice cover. Differences between the 14 ka simulations are similar in spatial extent but smaller in magnitude, suggesting that climate is responding primarily to the larger difference in maximum LIS elevation in the LGM simulations. These results suggest that such uncertainty in ice-sheet boundary conditions alone may significantly impact the results of paleoclimate simulations and their ability to successfully simulate past climates, with implications for estimating climate sensitivity to greenhouse gas forcing utilizing past climate states.

Radar Thickness Measurements over the Southern Part of the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chuah, Teong Sek; Gogineni, Siva Prasad; Allen, Christopher; Wohletz, Brad; Wong, Y. C.; Ng, P. Y.; Ajayi, E.

1996-01-01

We performed ice thickness measurements over the southern part of the Greenland ice sheet during June and July 1993. We used an airborne coherent radar depth sounder for these measurements. The radar was operated from a NASA P-3 aircraft equipped with GPS receivers. Radar data were collected in conjunction with laser altimeter and microwave altimeter measurements of ice surface elevation. This report provides radio echograms and thickness profiles from data collected during 1993.

A high-resolution synthetic bed elevation grid of the Antarctic continent

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Graham, Felicity S.; Roberts, Jason L.; Galton-Fenzi, Ben K.; Young, Duncan; Blankenship, Donald; Siegert, Martin J.

2017-05-01

Digital elevation models of Antarctic bed topography are smoothed and interpolated onto low-resolution ( > 1 km) grids as current observed topography data are generally sparsely and unevenly sampled. This issue has potential implications for numerical simulations of ice-sheet dynamics, especially in regions prone to instability where detailed knowledge of the topography, including fine-scale roughness, is required. Here, we present a high-resolution (100 m) synthetic bed elevation terrain for Antarctica, encompassing the continent, continental shelf, and seas south of 60° S. Although not identically matching observations, the synthetic bed surface - denoted as HRES - preserves topographic roughness characteristics of airborne and ground-based ice-penetrating radar data measured by the ICECAP (Investigating the Cryospheric Evolution of the Central Antarctic Plate) consortium or used to create the Bedmap1 compilation. Broad-scale ( > 5 km resolution) features of the Antarctic landscape are incorporated using a low-pass filter of the Bedmap2 bed elevation data. HRES has applicability in high-resolution ice-sheet modelling studies, including investigations of the interaction between topography, ice-sheet dynamics, and hydrology, where processes are highly sensitive to bed elevations and fine-scale roughness. The data are available for download from the Australian Antarctic Data Centre (doi:10.4225/15/57464ADE22F50).

Seasonal variations of the backscattering coefficient measured by radar altimeters over the Antarctic Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ibrahime Adodo, Fifi; Remy, Frédérique; Picard, Ghislain

2018-05-01

Spaceborne radar altimeters are a valuable tool for observing the Antarctic Ice Sheet. The radar wave interaction with the snow provides information on both the surface and the subsurface of the snowpack due to its dependence on the snow properties. However, the penetration of the radar wave within the snowpack also induces a negative bias on the estimated surface elevation. Empirical corrections of this space- and time-varying bias are usually based on the backscattering coefficient variability. We investigate the spatial and seasonal variations of the backscattering coefficient at the S (3.2 GHz ˜ 9.4 cm), Ku (13.6 GHz ˜ 2.3 cm) and Ka (37 GHz ˜ 0.8 cm) bands. We identified that the backscattering coefficient at Ku band reaches a maximum in winter in part of the continent (Region 1) and in the summer in the remaining (Region 2), while the evolution at other frequencies is relatively uniform over the whole continent. To explain this contrasting behavior between frequencies and between regions, we studied the sensitivity of the backscattering coefficient at three frequencies to several parameters (surface snow density, snow temperature and snow grain size) using an electromagnetic model. The results show that the seasonal cycle of the backscattering coefficient at Ka frequency is dominated by the volume echo and is mainly driven by snow temperature evolution everywhere. In contrast, at S band, the cycle is dominated by the surface echo. At Ku band, the seasonal cycle is dominated by the volume echo in Region 1 and by the surface echo in Region 2. This investigation provides new information on the seasonal dynamics of the Antarctic Ice Sheet surface and provides new clues to build more accurate corrections of the radar altimeter surface elevation signal in the future.

The Effect of Firn-Aquifer Drainage on the Greenland Subglacial System or Subglacial Efficiency and Storage Modified by the Temporal Pattern of High-Elevation Meltwater Input

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Andrews, Lauren C.; Poinar, Kristin; Dow, Christine F.; Nowicki, Sophie M.

2017-01-01

Ice flow in marginal region of the Greenland Ice Sheet dynamically responds to summer melting as surface meltwater is routed through the supraglacial hydrologic system to the bed of the ice sheet via crevasses and moulins. Given the expected increases in surface melt production and extent, and the potential for high elevation surface-to-bed connections, it is imperative to understand how meltwater delivered to the bed from different high-elevation supraglacial storage features affects the evolution of the subglacial hydrologic system and associated ice dynamics. Here, we use the two-dimensional subglacial hydrologic model, GLaDS, which includes distributed and channelized water flow, to test how the subglacial system of an idealized outlet glacier responds to cases of high-elevation firn-aquifer-type and supraglacial-lake-type englacial drainage over the course of 5 years. Model outputs driven by these high elevation drainage types are compared to steady-state model results, where the subglacial system only receives the 1980- 2016 mean MERRA-2 runoff via low-elevation moulins. Across all experiments, the subglacial hydrologic system displays inter-annual memory, resulting in multiyear declines in subglacial pressure during the onset of seasonal melting and growth of subglacial channels. The gradual addition of water in firn-aquifer-type drainage scenarios resulted in small increases in subglacial water storage but limited changes in subglacial efficiency and channelization. Rapid, supraglacial- lake-type drainage resulted in short-term local increases in subglacial water pressure and storage, which gave way to spatially extensive decreases in subglacial pressure and downstream channelization. These preliminary results suggest that the character of high-elevation englacial drainage can have a strong, and possibly outsized, control on subglacial efficiency throughout the ablation zone. Therefore, understanding both how high elevation meltwater is stored supraglacially and the probability of crevassing at high elevations will play an important role in how the subglacial system, proglacial discharge and ice motion will respond to future increases in surface melt production and runoff.

The influence of meltwater on the thermal structure and flow of the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Poinar, Kristin

As the climate has warmed over the past decades, the amount of melt on the Greenland Ice Sheet has increased, and areas higher on the ice sheet have begun to melt regularly. This increase in melt has been hypothesized to enhance ice flow in myriad ways, including through basal lubrication and englacial refreezing. By developing and interpreting thermal ice-sheet models and analyzing remote sensing data, I evaluate the effect of these processes on ice flow and sea-level rise from the Greenland Ice Sheet. I first develop a thermal ice sheet model that is applicable to western Greenland. Key components of this model are its treatment of multiple phases (solid ice and liquid water) and its viscosity-dependent velocity field. I apply the model to Jakobshavn Isbrae, a fast-flowing outlet glacier. This is an important benchmark for my model, which I next apply to the topics outlined above. I use the thermal model to calculate the effect of englacial latent-heat transfer (meltwater refreezing within englacial features such as firn and crevasses) on ice dynamics in western Greenland. I find that in slow-moving areas, this can significantly warm the ice, but that englacial latent heat transfer has only a minimal effect on ice motion (60%) of the ice flux into the ocean, evidence of deep englacial warming is virtually absent. Thus, the effects of englacial latent heat transfer on ice motion are likely limited to slow-moving regions, which limits its importance to ice-sheet mass balance. Next, I couple a model for ice fracture to a modified version of my thermal model to calculate the depth and shape evolution of water-filled crevasses that form in crevasse fields. At most elevations and for typical water input volumes, crevasses penetrate to the top ~200--300 meters depth, warm the ice there by ~10°C, and may persist englacially, in a liquid state, for multiple decades. The surface hydrological network limits the amount of water that can reach most crevasses. We find that the depth and longevity of such crevasses is relatively robust to realistic increases in melt volumes over the coming century, so that we should not expect large changes in the englacial hydrological system under near-future climate regimes. These inferences put important constraints on the timescales of the Greenland supraglacial-to-subglacial water cycle. Finally, I assess the likelihood that higher-elevation surface melt could deliver water to regions where the bed is currently frozen. This hypothetical process is important because it could potentially greatly accelerate the seaward motion of the ice sheet. By analyzing surface strain rates and comparing them to my modeled basal temperature field, I find that this scenario is unlikely to occur: the conditions necessary to form surface-to-bed conduits are rarely found at higher elevations (~1600 meters) that may overlie frozen beds.

An ice sheet model validation framework for the Greenland ice sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Price, Stephen F.; Hoffman, Matthew J.; Bonin, Jennifer A.; Howat, Ian M.; Neumann, Thomas; Saba, Jack; Tezaur, Irina; Guerber, Jeffrey; Chambers, Don P.; Evans, Katherine J.; Kennedy, Joseph H.; Lenaerts, Jan; Lipscomb, William H.; Perego, Mauro; Salinger, Andrew G.; Tuminaro, Raymond S.; van den Broeke, Michiel R.; Nowicki, Sophie M. J.

2017-01-01

We propose a new ice sheet model validation framework - the Cryospheric Model Comparison Tool (CmCt) - that takes advantage of ice sheet altimetry and gravimetry observations collected over the past several decades and is applied here to modeling of the Greenland ice sheet. We use realistic simulations performed with the Community Ice Sheet Model (CISM) along with two idealized, non-dynamic models to demonstrate the framework and its use. Dynamic simulations with CISM are forced from 1991 to 2013, using combinations of reanalysis-based surface mass balance and observations of outlet glacier flux change. We propose and demonstrate qualitative and quantitative metrics for use in evaluating the different model simulations against the observations. We find that the altimetry observations used here are largely ambiguous in terms of their ability to distinguish one simulation from another. Based on basin-scale and whole-ice-sheet-scale metrics, we find that simulations using both idealized conceptual models and dynamic, numerical models provide an equally reasonable representation of the ice sheet surface (mean elevation differences of < 1 m). This is likely due to their short period of record, biases inherent to digital elevation models used for model initial conditions, and biases resulting from firn dynamics, which are not explicitly accounted for in the models or observations. On the other hand, we find that the gravimetry observations used here are able to unambiguously distinguish between simulations of varying complexity, and along with the CmCt, can provide a quantitative score for assessing a particular model and/or simulation. The new framework demonstrates that our proposed metrics can distinguish relatively better from relatively worse simulations and that dynamic ice sheet models, when appropriately initialized and forced with the right boundary conditions, demonstrate a predictive skill with respect to observed dynamic changes that have occurred on Greenland over the past few decades. An extensible design will allow for continued use of the CmCt as future altimetry, gravimetry, and other remotely sensed data become available for use in ice sheet model validation.

An ice sheet model validation framework for the Greenland ice sheet

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

Price, Stephen F.; Hoffman, Matthew J.; Bonin, Jennifer A.

We propose a new ice sheet model validation framework the Cryospheric Model Comparison Tool (CMCT) that takes advantage of ice sheet altimetry and gravimetry observations collected over the past several decades and is applied here to modeling of the Greenland ice sheet. We use realistic simulations performed with the Community Ice Sheet Model (CISM) along with two idealized, non-dynamic models to demonstrate the framework and its use. Dynamic simulations with CISM are forced from 1991 to 2013 using combinations of reanalysis-based surface mass balance and observations of outlet glacier flux change. We propose and demonstrate qualitative and quanti- tative metricsmore » for use in evaluating the different model simulations against the observations. We find 10 that the altimetry observations used here are largely ambiguous in terms of their ability to distinguish one simulation from another. Based on basin- and whole-ice-sheet scale metrics, the model initial condition as well as output from idealized and dynamic models all provide an equally reasonable representation of the ice sheet surface (mean elevation differences of <1 m). This is likely due to their short period of record, biases inherent to digital elevation models used for model initial conditions, and biases resulting from firn dynamics, which are not explicitly accounted for in the models or observations. On the other hand, we find that the gravimetry observations used here are able to unambiguously distinguish between simulations of varying complexity, and along with the CMCT, can provide a quantitative score for assessing a particular model and/or simulation. The new framework demonstrates that our proposed metrics can distinguish relatively better from relatively worse simulations and that dynamic ice sheet models, when appropriately initialized and forced with the right boundary conditions, demonstrate predictive skill with respect to observed dynamic changes occurring on Greenland over the past few decades. An extensible design will allow for continued use of the CMCT as future altimetry, gravimetry, and other remotely sensed data become available for use in ice sheet model validation.« less

An ice sheet model validation framework for the Greenland ice sheet

DOE PAGES

Price, Stephen F.; Hoffman, Matthew J.; Bonin, Jennifer A.; ...

2017-01-17

We propose a new ice sheet model validation framework the Cryospheric Model Comparison Tool (CMCT) that takes advantage of ice sheet altimetry and gravimetry observations collected over the past several decades and is applied here to modeling of the Greenland ice sheet. We use realistic simulations performed with the Community Ice Sheet Model (CISM) along with two idealized, non-dynamic models to demonstrate the framework and its use. Dynamic simulations with CISM are forced from 1991 to 2013 using combinations of reanalysis-based surface mass balance and observations of outlet glacier flux change. We propose and demonstrate qualitative and quanti- tative metricsmore » for use in evaluating the different model simulations against the observations. We find 10 that the altimetry observations used here are largely ambiguous in terms of their ability to distinguish one simulation from another. Based on basin- and whole-ice-sheet scale metrics, the model initial condition as well as output from idealized and dynamic models all provide an equally reasonable representation of the ice sheet surface (mean elevation differences of <1 m). This is likely due to their short period of record, biases inherent to digital elevation models used for model initial conditions, and biases resulting from firn dynamics, which are not explicitly accounted for in the models or observations. On the other hand, we find that the gravimetry observations used here are able to unambiguously distinguish between simulations of varying complexity, and along with the CMCT, can provide a quantitative score for assessing a particular model and/or simulation. The new framework demonstrates that our proposed metrics can distinguish relatively better from relatively worse simulations and that dynamic ice sheet models, when appropriately initialized and forced with the right boundary conditions, demonstrate predictive skill with respect to observed dynamic changes occurring on Greenland over the past few decades. An extensible design will allow for continued use of the CMCT as future altimetry, gravimetry, and other remotely sensed data become available for use in ice sheet model validation.« less

An ice sheet model validation framework for the Greenland ice sheet

PubMed Central

Price, Stephen F.; Hoffman, Matthew J.; Bonin, Jennifer A.; Howat, Ian M.; Neumann, Thomas; Saba, Jack; Tezaur, Irina; Guerber, Jeffrey; Chambers, Don P.; Evans, Katherine J.; Kennedy, Joseph H.; Lenaerts, Jan; Lipscomb, William H.; Perego, Mauro; Salinger, Andrew G.; Tuminaro, Raymond S.; van den Broeke, Michiel R.; Nowicki, Sophie M. J.

2018-01-01

We propose a new ice sheet model validation framework – the Cryospheric Model Comparison Tool (CmCt) – that takes advantage of ice sheet altimetry and gravimetry observations collected over the past several decades and is applied here to modeling of the Greenland ice sheet. We use realistic simulations performed with the Community Ice Sheet Model (CISM) along with two idealized, non-dynamic models to demonstrate the framework and its use. Dynamic simulations with CISM are forced from 1991 to 2013 using combinations of reanalysis-based surface mass balance and observations of outlet glacier flux change. We propose and demonstrate qualitative and quantitative metrics for use in evaluating the different model simulations against the observations. We find that the altimetry observations used here are largely ambiguous in terms of their ability to distinguish one simulation from another. Based on basin- and whole-ice-sheet scale metrics, we find that simulations using both idealized conceptual models and dynamic, numerical models provide an equally reasonable representation of the ice sheet surface (mean elevation differences of <1 m). This is likely due to their short period of record, biases inherent to digital elevation models used for model initial conditions, and biases resulting from firn dynamics, which are not explicitly accounted for in the models or observations. On the other hand, we find that the gravimetry observations used here are able to unambiguously distinguish between simulations of varying complexity, and along with the CmCt, can provide a quantitative score for assessing a particular model and/or simulation. The new framework demonstrates that our proposed metrics can distinguish relatively better from relatively worse simulations and that dynamic ice sheet models, when appropriately initialized and forced with the right boundary conditions, demonstrate predictive skill with respect to observed dynamic changes occurring on Greenland over the past few decades. An extensible design will allow for continued use of the CmCt as future altimetry, gravimetry, and other remotely sensed data become available for use in ice sheet model validation. PMID:29697704

An Ice Sheet Model Validation Framework for the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Price, Stephen F.; Hoffman, Matthew J.; Bonin, Jennifer A.; Howat, Ian M.; Neumann, Thomas A.; Saba, Jack; Tezaur, Irina; Guerber, Jeffrey R.; Chambers, Don P.; Evans, Katherine J.;

Modeling the transition between upper plane bed regime and sheet flow without an active layer formulation. Preliminary results.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Viparelli, E.; Hernandez Moreira, R. R.; Blom, A.

2015-12-01

A perusal of the literature on bedload transport revealed that, notwithstanding the large number of studies on bedform morphology performed in the past decades, the upper plane bed regime has not been thoroughly investigated and the distinction between the upper plane bed and sheet flow transport regimes is still poorly defined. Previous experimental work demonstrated that the upper plane bed regime is characterized by long wavelength and small amplitude bedforms that migrate downstream. These bedforms, however, were not observed in experiments on sheet flow transport suggesting that the upper plane bed and the sheet flow are two different regimes. We thus designed and performed experiments in a sediment feed flume in the hydraulic laboratory of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of South Carolina at Columbia to study the transition from upper plane bed to sheet flow regime. Periodic measurements of water surface and bed elevation, bedform geometry and thicknesses of the bedload layer were performed by eyes, and with cameras, movies and a system of six ultrasonic probes that record the variations of bed elevation at a point over time. We used the time series of bed elevations to determine the probability functions of bed elevation. These probability functions are implemented in a continuous model of river morphodynamics, i.e. a model that does not use the active layer approximation to describe the sediment fluxes between the bedload and the deposit and that should thus be able to capture the details of the vertical and streamwise variation of the deposit grain size distribution. This model is validated against the experimental results for the case of uniform material. We then use the validated model in the attempt to study if and how the spatial distribution of grain sizes in the deposit changes from upper plane bed regime to sheet flow and if these results are influenced by the imposed rates of base level rise.

Holocene thinning of the Greenland ice sheet.

PubMed

Vinther, B M; Buchardt, S L; Clausen, H B; Dahl-Jensen, D; Johnsen, S J; Fisher, D A; Koerner, R M; Raynaud, D; Lipenkov, V; Andersen, K K; Blunier, T; Rasmussen, S O; Steffensen, J P; Svensson, A M

2009-09-17

On entering an era of global warming, the stability of the Greenland ice sheet (GIS) is an important concern, especially in the light of new evidence of rapidly changing flow and melt conditions at the GIS margins. Studying the response of the GIS to past climatic change may help to advance our understanding of GIS dynamics. The previous interpretation of evidence from stable isotopes (delta(18)O) in water from GIS ice cores was that Holocene climate variability on the GIS differed spatially and that a consistent Holocene climate optimum-the unusually warm period from about 9,000 to 6,000 years ago found in many northern-latitude palaeoclimate records-did not exist. Here we extract both the Greenland Holocene temperature history and the evolution of GIS surface elevation at four GIS locations. We achieve this by comparing delta(18)O from GIS ice cores with delta(18)O from ice cores from small marginal icecaps. Contrary to the earlier interpretation of delta(18)O evidence from ice cores, our new temperature history reveals a pronounced Holocene climatic optimum in Greenland coinciding with maximum thinning near the GIS margins. Our delta(18)O-based results are corroborated by the air content of ice cores, a proxy for surface elevation. State-of-the-art ice sheet models are generally found to be underestimating the extent and changes in GIS elevation and area; our findings may help to improve the ability of models to reproduce the GIS response to Holocene climate.

Tracking surface and subsurface lakes on the Greenland Ice Sheet using Sentinel-1 SAR and Landsat-8 OLI imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miles, Katie; Willis, Ian; Benedek, Corinne; Williamson, Andrew; Tedesco, Marco

2017-04-01

Supraglacial lakes (SGLs) on the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) are an important component of the ice sheet's mass balance and hydrology, with their drainage affecting ice dynamics. This study uses imagery from the recently launched Sentinel-1A Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) to investigate SGLs in West Greenland. SAR can image through cloud and in darkness, overcoming some of the limitations of commonly used optical sensors. A semi automated algorithm is developed to detect surface lakes from Sentinel images during the 2015 summer. It generally detects water in all locations where a Landsat-8 NDWI classification (with a relatively high threshold value) detects water. A combined set of images from Landsat-8 and Sentinel-1 is used to track lake behaviour at a comparable temporal resolution to that which is possible with MODIS, but at a higher spatial resolution. A fully automated lake drainage detection algorithm is used to investigate both rapid and slow drainages for both small and large lakes through the summer. Our combined Landsat-Sentinel dataset, with a temporal resolution of three days, could track smaller lakes (mean 0.089 km2) than are resolvable in MODIS (minimum 0.125 km2). Small lake drainage events (lakes smaller than can be detected using MODIS) were found to occur at lower elevations ( 200 m) and slightly earlier in the melt season than larger events, as were slow lake drainage events compared to rapid events. The Sentinel imagery allows the analysis to be extended manually into the early winter to calculate the dates and elevations of lake freeze-through more precisely than is possible with optical imagery (mean 30 August, 1270 m mean elevation). Finally, the Sentinel imagery allows subsurface lakes (which are invisible to optical sensors) to be detected, and, for the first time, their dates of appearance and freeze-through to be calculated (mean 9 August and 7 October, respectively). These subsurface lakes occur at higher elevations than the surface lakes detected in this study (1593 m mean elevation). Sentinel imagery therefore provides great potential for tracking melting, water movement and freezing within the firn zone of the GrIS.

New constraints on the structure and dynamics of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet from the joint IPY/Ice Bridge ICECAP aerogeophysical project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blankenship, D. D.; Young, D. A.; Siegert, M. J.; van Ommen, T. D.; Roberts, J. L.; Wright, A.; Warner, R. C.; Holt, J. W.; Young, N. W.; Le Meur, E.; Legresy, B.; Cavitte, M.; Icecap Team

2010-12-01

Ice within marine basins of East Antarctica, and their outlets, represent the ultimate limit on sea level change. The region of East Antarctica between the Ross Sea and Wilkes Land hosts a number of major basin, but has been poorly understood. Long range aerogeophysics from US, Australian and French stations, with significant British and IceBridge support, has, under the banner of the ICECAP project, greatly improved our knowledge of ice thickness, surface elevation, and crustal structure of the Wilkes and Aurora Subglacial Basins, as well as the Totten Glacier, Cook Ice Shelf, and Byrd Glacier. We will discuss the evolution of the Wilkes and Aurora Subglacial Basins, new constraints on the geometry of the major outlet glaciers, as well as our results from surface elevation change measurements over dynamic regions of the ice sheet. We will discuss the implications of our data for the presence of mid Pleistocene ice in central East Antarctica. Future directions for ICECAP will be discussed.

Study of elevation changes along a profile crossing the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hvidegaard, S. M.; Sandberg, L.

2009-04-01

In recent years much research has focused on determining how the Greenland Ice Sheet is responding to the observed climate changes. There is wide agreement on the fact that the Ice Sheet is currently loosing mass, and studies have shown that the mass loss is found near the ice edge and that no significant changes are found in the central part of the Ice Sheet. As a part of European Space Agency's CryoSat Validation Experiment (CryoVEx) running from 2004 to 2008, the National Space Institute (DTU Space) measured the elevations along a profile crossing the Greenland Ice Sheet. The elevation observations were carried out in 2004, 2006 and 2008 using airborne laser altimetry from a Twin Otter aircraft. The observed profile follows the old EGIG line (Expédition Glaciologique au Groenland, measured in the 1950's) situated between 69-71N, heading nearly east-west. This unique dataset gives the opportunity to study elevation changes along the profile crossing the ice sheet. With this work, we outline the observed elevation changes from the different zones of the ice sheet. We furthermore compare elevation changes based on coincident ICESat and airborne laser altimeter data.

Synthesis of a quarter-century of satellite and airborne altimetry records to resolve long-term ice sheet elevation change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nilsson, J.; Paolo, F. S.; Simonsen, S.; Gardner, A. S.

2017-12-01

Satellite and airborne altimetry provide the longest continuous record from which the mass balance of the Antarctic ice sheet can be derived, starting with the launch of ERS-1 in 1992. Accurate knowledge of the long-term mass balance is vital for understanding the geophysical processes governing the ice sheet contribution to present day sea-level rise. However, this record is comprised of several different measurement systems, with different accuracies and varying resolution. This poses a major challenge on the interpretation and reconstruction of consistent elevation-change time series for determining long-term ice sheet trends and variability. Previous studies using data from multiple satellite altimetry missions have relied on a cross-calibration technique based on crossover bias analysis to merge records from different sensors. This methodology, though accurate, limits the spatial coverage to typical resolutions of 10-50 km, restricting the approach to regional or continental-wide studies. In this study, we present a novel framework for seamless integration of heterogeneous altimetry records, using an adaptive least-squares minimization technique. The procedure allows reconstructing time series at fine spatial (<5 km) and temporal (monthly) scales, while accounting for sensor-dependent biases and heterogeneous data quality. We synthesize altimetry records spanning the time period 1992-2016 to derive long-term time series of elevation change for the Antarctica ice sheet, including both data from the European Space Agency (ERS-1, ERS-2, Envisat and CryoSat-2) and NASA (ICESat and Operation IceBridge), with future inclusion of data from NASA's ICESat-2. Mission specific errors, estimated from independent airborne measurements and crossover analysis, are propagated to derive uncertainty bounds for each individual time series. We also perform an extensive analysis of the major corrections applied to raw satellite altimetry data to assess their overall effect on the estimated uncertainty. This methodology will allow us to determine robust long-term changes in the surface elevation of grounded Antarctic ice. Such a dataset will be invaluable to advancing ice sheet assimilation efforts and to disentangle causal mechanisms of modern ice sheet response to environmental forcing.

Comparison between AVHRR surface temperature data and in-situ weather station temperatures over the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rezvanbehbahani, S.; Csatho, B. M.; Comiso, J. C.; Babonis, G. S.

2011-12-01

Advanced Very-High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) images have been exhaustively used to measure surface temperature time series of the Greenland Ice sheet. The purpose of this study is to assess the accuracy of monthly average ice sheet surface temperatures, derived from thermal infrared AVHRR satellite imagery on a 6.25 km grid. In-situ temperature data sets are from the Greenland Collection Network (GC-Net). GC-Net stations comprise sensors monitoring air temperature at 1 and 2 meter above the snow surface, gathered at every 60 seconds and monthly averaged to match the AVHRR temporal resolution. Our preliminary results confirm the good agreement between satellite and in-situ temperature measurements reported by previous studies. However, some large discrepancies still exist. While AVHRR provides ice surface temperature, in-situ stations measure air temperatures at different elevations above the snow surface. Since most in-situ data on ice sheets are collected by Automatic Weather Station (AWS) instruments, it is important to characterize the difference between surface and air temperatures. Therefore, we compared and analyzed average monthly AVHRR ice surface temperatures using data collected in 2002. Differences between these temperatures correlate with in-situ temperatures and GC-Net station elevations, with increasing differences at lower elevations and higher temperatures. The Summit Station (3199 m above sea level) and the Swiss Camp (1176 m above sea level) results were compared as high altitude and low altitude stations for 2002, respectively. Our results show that AVHRR derived temperatures were 0.5°K warmer than AWS temperature at the Summit Station, while this difference was 2.8°K in the opposite direction for the Swiss Camp with surface temperatures being lower than air temperatures. The positive bias of 0.5°K at the high altitude Summit Station (surface warmer than air) is within the retrieval error of AVHRR temperatures and might be in part due to atmospheric inversion. The large negative bias of 2.8°K at the low altitude Swiss Camp (surface colder than the air) could be caused by a combination of different factors including local effects such as more windy circumstances above the snow surface and biases introduced by the cloud-masking applied on the AVHRR images. Usually only satellite images acquired in clear-sky conditions are used for deriving monthly AVHRR average temperatures. Since cloud-free days are usually warmer, satellite derived temperatures tend to underestimate the real average temperatures, especially regions with frequent cloud cover, such as Swiss Camp. Therefore, cautions must be exercised while using ice surface temperatures derived from satellite imagery for glaciological applications. Eliminating the cloudy day's' temperature from the in-situ data prior to the comparison with AVHRR derived temperatures will provide a better assessment of AVHRR surface temperature measurement accuracy.

Meltwater storage in low-density near-surface bare ice in the Greenland ice sheet ablation zone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cooper, Matthew G.; Smith, Laurence C.; Rennermalm, Asa K.; Miège, Clément; Pitcher, Lincoln H.; Ryan, Jonathan C.; Yang, Kang; Cooley, Sarah W.

2018-03-01

We document the density and hydrologic properties of bare, ablating ice in a mid-elevation (1215 m a.s.l.) supraglacial internally drained catchment in the Kangerlussuaq sector of the western Greenland ice sheet. We find low-density (0.43-0.91 g cm-3, μ = 0.69 g cm-3) ice to at least 1.1 m depth below the ice sheet surface. This near-surface, low-density ice consists of alternating layers of water-saturated, porous ice and clear solid ice lenses, overlain by a thin (< 0.5 m), even lower density (0.33-0.56 g cm-3, μ = 0.45 g cm-3) unsaturated weathering crust. Ice density data from 10 shallow (0.9-1.1 m) ice cores along an 800 m transect suggest an average 14-18 cm of specific meltwater storage within this low-density ice. Water saturation of this ice is confirmed through measurable water levels (1-29 cm above hole bottoms, μ = 10 cm) in 84 % of cryoconite holes and rapid refilling of 83 % of 1 m drilled holes sampled along the transect. These findings are consistent with descriptions of shallow, depth-limited aquifers on the weathered surface of glaciers worldwide and confirm the potential for substantial transient meltwater storage within porous low-density ice on the Greenland ice sheet ablation zone surface. A conservative estimate for the ˜ 63 km2 supraglacial catchment yields 0.009-0.012 km3 of liquid meltwater storage in near-surface, porous ice. Further work is required to determine if these findings are representative of broader areas of the Greenland ice sheet ablation zone, and to assess the implications for sub-seasonal mass balance processes, surface lowering observations from airborne and satellite altimetry, and supraglacial runoff processes.

Changes in micro-relief during different water erosive stages of purple soil under simulated rainfall.

PubMed

Luo, Jian; Zheng, Zicheng; Li, Tingxuan; He, Shuqin

2018-02-22

This study investigated the variation characteristics of micro-topography during successive erosive stages of water erosion: splash erosion (SpE), sheet erosion (ShE), and rill erosion (RE). Micro-topography was quantified using surface elevation change, soil roughness (SR) and multifractal model. Results showed that the area of soil surface elevation decay increased gradually with the development of water erosion. With rainfall, the combined effects of the detachment by raindrop impact and the transport of runoff decreased SR, whereas rill erosion contributed to increase SR. With the increase in slope gradient, soil erosion area gradually decreased at the splash erosion stage. By contrast, soil erosion area initially decreased and then increased at the sheet and rill erosion stages. The width of the D q spectra (ΔD) values increased at the splash erosion stage and then decreased at the sheet and rill erosion stages on the 10° slope, opposite to that on the 15° slope. The ΔD values decreased with the evolution of water erosive stages on the 20° slope. The slope had an enhancing effect on the evolution of water erosion. In this study, we clarified the essence of micro-topography and laid a theoretical foundation for further understanding diverse hydrological processes.

ICESAT GLAS Altimetry Measurements: Received Signal Dynamic Range and Saturation Correction

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sun, Xiaoli; Abshire, James B.; Borsa, Adrian A.; Fricker, Helen Amanda; Yi, Donghui; Dimarzio, John P.; Paolo, Fernando S.; Brunt, Kelly M.; Harding, David J.; Neumann, Gregory A.

2017-01-01

NASAs Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat), which operated between 2003 and 2009, made the first satellite-based global lidar measurement of earths ice sheet elevations, sea-ice thickness, and vegetation canopy structure. The primary instrument on ICESat was the Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS), which measured the distance from the spacecraft to the earth's surface via the roundtrip travel time of individual laser pulses. GLAS utilized pulsed lasers and a direct detection receiver consisting of a silicon avalanche photodiode and a waveform digitizer. Early in the mission, the peak power of the received signal from snow and ice surfaces was found to span a wider dynamic range than anticipated, often exceeding the linear dynamic range of the GLAS 1064-nm detector assembly. The resulting saturation of the receiver distorted the recorded signal and resulted in range biases as large as approximately 50 cm for ice- and snow-covered surfaces. We developed a correction for this saturation range bias based on laboratory tests using a spare flight detector, and refined the correction by comparing GLAS elevation estimates with those derived from Global Positioning System surveys over the calibration site at the salar de Uyuni, Bolivia. Applying the saturation correction largely eliminated the range bias due to receiver saturation for affected ICESat measurements over Uyuni and significantly reduced the discrepancies at orbit crossovers located on flat regions of the Antarctic ice sheet.

Late Wisconsin and early holocene glacial history, inner Ross Embayment, Antarctica

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Denton, George H.; Bockheim, James G.; Wilson, Scott C.; Stuiver, Minze

1991-01-01

Lateral drift sheets of outlet glaciers that pass through the Transantarctic Mountains constrain past changes of the huge Ross ice drainage system of the Antarctic Ice Sheet. Drift stratigraphy suggests correlation of Reedy III (Reedy Glacier), Beardmore, Britannia (Hatherton/Darwin Glaciers), Ross Sea (McMurdo Sound), and younger (Terra Nova Bay) drifts; radiocarbon dates place the outer limits of Ross Sea drift in late Wisconsin time at 24,000 to 13,000 yr B.P. Outlet glacier profiles from these drifts constrain late Wisconsin ice sheet surface elevations. Within these constraint, two extreme late Wisconsin reconstructions are given of the Ross ice drainage system. Both show little elevation change of the polar plateau coincident with extensive ice shelf grounding along the inner Ross Embayment. However, in the central Ross Embayment, one reconstruction shows floating shelf ice, where as the other shows a grounded ice sheet. Massive late Wisconsin/Holocene recession of grounded ice from the western Ross Embayment, which was underway at 13,040 yr B.P. and completed by 6600 to 6020 yr B.P., was accompanied by little change in plateau ice levels inland of the Transantarctic Mountains.

Geenland Glacier Albedo Variability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2004-01-01

The program for Arctic Regional Climate Assessment (PARCA) is a NASA-funded project with the prime goal of addressing the mass balance of the Greenland ice sheet. Since the formal initiation of the program in 1995, there has been a significant improvement in the estimates of the mass balance of the ice sheet. Results from this program reveal that the high-elevation regions of the ice sheet are approximately in balance, but the margins are thinning. Laser surveys reveal significant thinning along 70 percent of the ice sheet periphery below 2000 m elevations, and in at least one outlet glacier, Kangerdlugssuaq in southeast Greenland, thinning has been as much as 10 m/yr. This study examines the albedo variability in four outlet glaciers to help separate out the relative contributions of surface melting versus ice dynamics to the recent mass balance changes. Analysis of AVHRR Polar Pathfinder albedo shows that at the Petermann and Jakobshavn glaciers, there has been a negative trend in albedo at the glacier terminus from 1981 to 2000, whereas the Stor+strommen and Kangerdlugssuaq glaciers show slightly positive trends in albedo. These findings are consistent with recent observations of melt extent from passive microwave data which show more melt on the western side of Greenland and slightly less on the eastern side. Significance of albedo trends will depend on where and when the albedo changes occur. Since the majority of surface melt occurs in the shallow sloping western margin of the ice sheet where the shortwave radiation dominates the energy balance in summer (e.g. Jakobshavn region) this region will be more sensitive to changes in albedo than in regions where this is not the case. Near the Jakobshavn glacier, even larger changes in albedo have been observed, with decreases as much as 20 percent per decade.

Greenland Glacier Albedo Variability

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2004-01-01

The program for Arctic Regional Climate Assessment (PARCA) is a NASA-funded project with the prime goal of addressing the mass balance of the Greenland ice sheet. Since the formal initiation of the program in 1995, there has been a significant improvement in the estimates of the mass balance of the ice sheet. Results from this program reveal that the high-elevation regions of the ice sheet are approximately in balance, but the margins are thinning. Laser surveys reveal significant thinning along 70 percent of the ice sheet periphery below 2000 m elevations, and in at least one outlet glacier, Kangerdlugssuaq in southeast Greenland, thinning has been as much as 10 m/yr. This study examines the albedo variability in four outlet glaciers to help separate out the relative contributions of surface melting versus ice dynamics to the recent mass balance changes. Analysis of AVHRR Polar Pathfinder albedo shows that at the Petermann and Jakobshavn glaciers, there has been a negative trend in albedo at the glacier terminus from 1981 to 2000, whereas the Stor+strommen and Kangerdlugssuaq glaciers show slightly positive trends in albedo. These findings are consistent with recent observations of melt extent from passive microwave data which show more melt on the western side of Greenland and slightly less on the eastern side. Significance of albedo trends will depend on where and when the albedo changes occur. Since the majority of surface melt occurs in the shallow sloping western margin of the ice sheet where the shortwave radiation dominates the energy balance in summer (e.g. Jakobshavn region) this region will be more sensitive to changes in albedo than in regions where this is not the case. Near the Jakobshavn glacier, even larger changes in albedo have been observed, with decreases as much as 20 percent per decade.

Inception of the Laurentide Ice Sheet using asynchronous coupling of a regional atmospheric model and an ice model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Birch, L.; Cronin, T.; Tziperman, E.

2017-12-01

The climate over the past 0.8 million years has been dominated by ice ages. Ice sheets have grown about every 100 kyrs, starting from warm interglacials, until they spanned continents. State-of-the-art global climate models (GCMs) have difficulty simulating glacial inception, or the transition of Earth's climate from an interglacial to a glacial state. It has been suggested that this failure may be related to their poorly resolved local mountain topography, due to their coarse spatial resolution. We examine this idea as well as the possible role of ice flow dynamics missing in GCMs. We investigate the growth of the Laurentide Ice Sheet at 115 kya by focusing on the mountain glaciers of Canada's Baffin Island, where geologic evidence indicates the last inception occurred. We use the Weather Research and Forecasting model (WRF) in a regional, cloud-resolving configuration with resolved mountain terrain to explore how quickly Baffin Island could become glaciated with the favorable yet realizable conditions of 115 kya insolation, cool summers, and wet winters. Using the model-derived mountain glacier mass balance, we force an ice sheet model based on the shallow-ice approximation, capturing the ice flow that may be critical to the spread of ice sheets away from mountain ice caps. The ice sheet model calculates the surface area newly covered by ice and the change in the ice surface elevation, which we then use to run WRF again. Through this type of iterated asynchronous coupling, we investigate how the regional climate responds to both larger areas of ice cover and changes in ice surface elevation. In addition, we use the NOAH-MP Land model to characterize the importance of land processes, like refreezing. We find that initial ice growth on the Penny Ice Cap causes regional cooling that increases the accumulation on the Barnes Ice Cap. We investigate how ice and topography changes on Baffin Island may impact both the regional climate and the large-scale circulation.

Uncertainties in Ice-Sheet Altimetry from a Spaceborne 1064-nm Single-Channel Lidar Due to Undetected Thin Clouds

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yang, Yuekui; Marshak, Alexander; Varnai, Tamas; Wiscombe, Warren; Yang, Ping

2010-01-01

In support of the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat)-II mission, this paper studies the bias in surface-elevation measurements caused by undetected thin clouds. The ICESat-II satellite may only have a 1064-nm single-channel lidar onboard. Less sensitive to clouds than the 532-nm channel, the 1064-nm channel tends to miss thin clouds. Previous studies have demonstrated that scattering by cloud particles increases the photon-path length, thus resulting in biases in ice-sheet-elevation measurements from spaceborne lidars. This effect is referred to as atmospheric path delay. This paper complements previous studies in the following ways: First, atmospheric path delay is estimated over the ice sheets based on cloud statistics from the Geoscience Laser Altimeter System onboard ICESat and the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) onboard Terra and Aqua. Second, the effect of cloud particle size and shape is studied with the state-of-the-art phase functions developed for MODIS cirrus- cloud microphysical model. Third, the contribution of various orders of scattering events to the path delay is studied, and an analytical model of the first-order scattering contribution is developed. This paper focuses on the path delay as a function of telescope field of view (FOV). The results show that reducing telescope FOV can significantly reduce the expected path delay. As an example, the average path delays for FOV = 167 microrad (a 100-m-diameter circle on the surface) caused by thin undetected clouds by the 1064-nm channel over Greenland and East Antarctica are illustrated.

The wide-spread presence of rib-like patterns in basal shear of ice streams detected by surface data inversion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sergienko, O. V.

2013-12-01

The direct observations of the basal conditions under continental-scale ice sheets are logistically impossible. A possible approach to estimate conditions at the ice - bed interface is from surface observations by means of inverse methods. The recent advances in remote and ground-based observations have allowed to acquire a wealth observations from Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. Using high-resolution data sets of ice surface and bed elevations and surface velocities, inversions for basal conditions have been performed for several ice streams in Greenland and Antarctica. The inversion results reveal the wide-spread presence of rib-like spatial structures in basal shear. The analysis of the hydraulic potential distribution shows that these rib-like structures co-locate with highs of the gradient of hydraulic potential. This suggests that subglacial water plays a role in the development and evolution of the basal shear ribs.

Extraction of Ice Sheet Layers from Two Intersected Radar Echograms Near Neem Ice Core in Greenland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xiong, S.; Muller, J.-P.

2016-06-01

Accumulation of snow and ice over time result in ice sheet layers. These can be remotely sensed where there is a contrast in electromagnetic properties, which reflect variations of the ice density, acidity and fabric orientation. Internal ice layers are assumed to be isochronous, deep beneath the ice surface, and parallel to the direction of ice flow. The distribution of internal layers is related to ice sheet dynamics, such as the basal melt rate, basal elevation variation and changes in ice flow mode, which are important parameters to model the ice sheet. Radar echo sounder is an effective instrument used to study the sedimentology of the Earth and planets. Ice Penetrating Radar (IPR) is specific kind of radar echo sounder, which extends studies of ice sheets from surface to subsurface to deep internal ice sheets depending on the frequency utilised. In this study, we examine a study site where folded ice occurs in the internal ice sheet south of the North Greenland Eemian ice drilling (NEEM) station, where two intersected radar echograms acquired by the Multi-channel Coherent Radar Depth Sounder (MCoRDS) employed in the NASA's Operation IceBridge (OIB) mission imaged this folded ice. We propose a slice processing flow based on a Radon Transform to trace and extract these two sets of curved ice sheet layers, which can then be viewed in 3-D, demonstrating the 3-D structure of the ice folds.

Controlling the metal to semiconductor transition of MoS 2 and WS 2 in solution

DOE PAGES

Chou, Stanley Shihyao; Yi-Kai Huang; Kim, Jaemyung; ...

2015-01-22

Lithiation-exfoliation produces single to few-layered MoS 2 and WS 2 sheets dispersible in water. However, the process transforms them from the pristine semiconducting 2H phase to a distorted metallic phase. Recovery of the semiconducting properties typically involves heating of the chemically exfoliated sheets at elevated temperatures. Therefore, it has been largely limited to sheets deposited on solid substrates. We report the dispersion of chemically exfoliated MoS 2 sheets in high boiling point organic solvents enabled by surface functionalization and the controllable recovery of their semiconducting properties directly in solution. Ultimately, this process connects the scalability of chemical exfoliation with themore » simplicity of solution processing, enabling a facile method for tuning the metal to semiconductor transitions of MoS 2 and WS 2 within a liquid medium.« less

7. (Second sheet of a twosheet set entitled 'Kongensgade 5154') ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

7. (Second sheet of a two-sheet set entitled 'Kongensgade 51-54') KONGENSGADE (FRONT) ELEVATIONS OF KONGENSGADE 53 (only part of this elevation shown, for full elevation overlap with complementary photograph VI-50-6), & KONGENSGADE 54 (LEFT TO RIGHT) - King Street Area Study, Kongensgade 5-18, 36, 37B, 51-58 (Houses), 5-18, 36-37B, 51-58 King Street, Frederiksted, St. Croix, VI

Assessment of Cloud Screening with Apparent Surface Reflectance in Support of the ICESat-2 Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yang, Yuekui; Marshak, Alexander; Palm, Stephen P.; Wang, Zhuosen; Schaaf, Crystal

2011-01-01

The separation of cloud and clear scenes is usually one of the first steps in satellite data analysis. Before deriving a geophysical product, almost every satellite mission requires a cloud mask to label a scene as either clear or cloudy through a cloud detection procedure. For clear scenes, products such as surface properties may be retrieved; for cloudy scenes, scientist can focus on studying the cloud properties. Hence the quality of cloud detection directly affects the quality of most satellite operational and research products. This is certainly true for the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite-2 (lCESat-2), which is the successor to the ICESat-l. As a top priority mission, ICESat-2 will continue to provide measurements of ice sheets and sea ice elevation on a global scale. Studies have shown that clouds can significantly affect the accuracy of the retrieved results. For example, some of the photons (a photon is a basic unit of light) in the laser beam will be scattered by cloud particles on its way. So instead of traveling in a straight line, these photons are scattered sideways and have traveled a longer path. This will result in biases in ice sheet elevation measurements. Hence cloud screening must be done and be done accurately before the retrievals.

Relation of structure to mechanical properties of thin thoria dispersion strengthened nickel-chromium (TD-NiCr alloy sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Whittenberger, J. D.

1975-01-01

A study of the relation between structure and mechanical properties of thin TD-NiCr sheet indicated that the elevated temperature tensile, stress-rupture, and creep strength properties depend primarily on the grain aspect ratio and sheet thickness. In general, the strength properties increased with increasing grain aspect ratio and sheet thickness. Tensile testing revealed an absence of ductility at elevated temperatures. A threshold stress for creep appears to exist. Even small amounts of prior creep deformation at elevated temperatures can produce severe creep damage.

Simulating ice thickness and velocity evolution of Upernavik Isstrøm 1849-2017 with ISSM

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haubner, K.; Box, J.; Schlegel, N.; Larour, E. Y.; Morlighem, M.; Solgaard, A.; Kjeldsen, K. K.; Larsen, S. H.; Rignot, E. J.; Dupont, T. K.; Kjaer, K. H.

2017-12-01

Tidewater terminus changes have a significant influence on glacier velocity and mass balance and impact therefore Greenland's ice mass balance. Improving glacier front changes in ice sheet models helps understanding the processes that are driving glacier mass changes and improves predictions on Greenland's mass loss. We use the level set based moving boundary capability (Bondzio et al., 2016) included in the Ice Sheet System Model ISSM to reconstruct velocity and thickness changes on Upernavik Isstrøm, Greenland from 1849 to 2017. During the simulation, we use various data sets. For the model initialization, trim line data and an observed calving front position determine the shape of the ice surface elevation. The terminus changes are prescribed by observations. Data sets like the GIMP DEM, ArcticDEM, IceBridge surface elevation and ice surface velocities from the ESA project CCI and NASA project MEaSUREs help evaluating the simulation performance. The simulation is sensitive to the prescribed terminus changes, showing an average acceleration along the three flow lines between 50% and 190% from 1849 to 2017. Simulated ice surface velocity and elevation between 1990 and 2012 are within +/-20% of observations (GIMP, ArcticDEM, IceBridge, CCI and MEaSUREs). Simulated mass changes indicate increased dynamical ice loss from 1932 onward, amplified by increased negative SMB anomalies after 1998. More detailed information about methods and findings can be found in Haubner et al., 2017 (in TC discussion, describing simulation results between 1849-2012). Future goals are the comparison of ice surface velocity changes simulated with prescribed terminus retreat against other retreat schemes (Morlighem et al., 2016; Levermann et al., 2012; Bondzio et al., 2017) and applying the method onto other tidewater glaciers.

25 years of elevation changes of the Greenland Ice Sheet from ERS, Envisat, and CryoSat-2 radar altimetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sandberg Sørensen, Louise; Simonsen, Sebastian B.; Forsberg, René; Khvorostovsky, Kirill; Meister, Rakia; Engdahl, Marcus E.

2018-08-01

The shape of the large ice sheets responds rapidly to climate change, making the elevation changes of these ice-covered regions an essential climate variable. Consistent, long time series of these elevation changes are of great scientific value. Here, we present a newly-developed data product of 25 years of elevation changes of the Greenland Ice Sheet, derived from satellite radar altimetry. The data product is made publicly available within the Greenland Ice Sheets project as part of the ESA Climate Change Initiative programme. Analyzing repeated elevation measurements from radar altimetry is widely used for monitoring changes of ice-covered regions. The Greenland Ice Sheet has been mapped by conventional radar altimetry since the launch of ERS-1 in 1991, which was followed by ERS-2, Envisat and currently CryoSat-2. The recently launched Sentinel-3A will provide a continuation of the radar altimetry time series. Since 2010, CryoSat-2 has for the first time measured the changes in the coastal regions of the ice sheet with radar altimetry, with its novel SAR Interferometric (SARIn) mode, which provides improved measurement over regions with steep slopes. Here, we apply a mission-specific combination of cross-over, along-track and plane-fit elevation change algorithms to radar data from the ERS-1, ERS-2, Envisat and CryoSat-2 radar missions, resulting in 25 years of nearly continuous elevation change estimates (1992-2016) of the Greenland Ice Sheet. This analysis has been made possible through the recent reprocessing in the REAPER project, of data from the ERS-1 and ERS-2 radar missions, making them consistent with Envisat data. The 25 years of elevation changes are evaluated as 5-year running means, shifted almost continuously by one year. A clear acceleration in thinning is evident in the 5-year maps of elevation following 2003, while only small elevation changes observed in the maps from the 1990s.

6. (First sheet of a twosheet set entitled 'Kongensgade 5154') ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

6. (First sheet of a two-sheet set entitled 'Kongensgade 51-54') KONGENSGADE (FRONT) ELEVATIONS OF KONGENSGADE 51, 52 & 53 (only part of Kongensgade 53 elevation shown, for full elevation overlap with complementary photograph VI-50-7) (LEFT TO RIGHT) - King Street Area Study, Kongensgade 5-18, 36, 37B, 51-58 (Houses), 5-18, 36-37B, 51-58 King Street, Frederiksted, St. Croix, VI

Laser-assisted micro sheet forming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holtkamp, Jens; Gillner, Arnold

2008-01-01

The fast growing market for micro technical products requires parts with increasing complexity. While sheet metal forming enables low cost mass production with short cycle times, it is limited by the maximum degree of deformation and the quality of the cut edge. The technology of warm forming partially eliminates these deficiencies. This operation takes place at elevated temperatures before structural transformation is initiated. It combines characteristic advantages of traditional cold and hot forming processes. Lasers as heat sources provide a high, selective and controllable energy input. The general difficulty of a uniform temperature distribution during the heating process can be reached by using an Axicon which generates an annulus on the sheet metal surface. The temperature of the workpiece, measured by a pyrometer, is tuned by a PI-Controller. A tool incorporating a multistage operation die is used for the manufacturing of up to three parts at the same time. The tool is integrated into a hydraulical press. A gearwheel made of the magnesium alloy AZ31 is chosen as metal demonstrator. The quality of these punched parts could be significantly improved at elevated temperatures

Hyperspectral, photogrammetric and morphological characterization of surface impurities over the Greenland ice sheet from remote sensing observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tedesco, M.; Alexander, P. M.; Briggs, K.; Linares, M.; Mote, T. L.

2016-12-01

The spatial and temporal evolution of surface impurities over the Greenland ice sheet plays a crucial role in modulating the meltwater production in view of the associated feedback on albedo. Recent studies have pointed to a `darkening' of the west portion of the ice sheet with this reduction in albedo likely associated with the increasing presence of surface impurities (e.g., soot, dust) and biological activity (e.g., cryoconite holes, algae, bacteria). Regional climate models currently do not account for the presence, evolution and impact on albedo of such impurities, mostly because the underlying processes driving the spectral and morphological evolution of impurities are poorly known. One for the reasons for this is the lack of hyperspectral and high-spatial resolution data over specific regions of the Greenland ice sheet. To put things in perspective: there is more hyperspectral data at high spatial resolution for the planet Mars than for the Greenland ice sheet. In this presentation, we report the results of an analysis using the few available hyperspectral data collected over Greenland by the HYPERION and AVIRIS sensors, in conjunction with visible (RGB) helicopter-based high resolution images and LANDSAT/WorldView data for characterizing the spectral and morphological evolution of surface impurities and cryoconite holes over western Greenland. The hyperspectral data is used to characterize the abundance of different `endmembers' and the temporal evolution (inter-seasonal and intra-seasonal) of surface impurities composition and concentration. Digital photographs from helicopter are used to characterize the size and distribution of cryoconite holes as a function of elevation and, lastly, LANDSAT/WV images are used to study the evolution of `mysterious' shapes that form as a consequence of the accumulation of impurities and the ice flow.

Evaluation of a 12-km Satellite-Era Reanalysis of Surface Mass Balance for the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cullather, R. I.; Nowicki, S.; Zhao, B.; Max, S.

2016-12-01

The recent contribution to sea level change from the Greenland Ice Sheet is thought to be strongly driven by surface processes including melt and runoff. Global reanalyses are potential means of reconstructing the historical time series of ice sheet surface mass balance (SMB), but lack spatial resolution needed to resolve ablation areas along the periphery of the ice sheet. In this work, the Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications, version 2 (MERRA-2) is used to examine the spatial and temporal variability of surface melt over the Greenland Ice Sheet. MERRA-2 is produced for the period 1980 to the present at a grid spacing of ½° latitude by ⅝° longitude, and includes snow hydrology processes including compaction, meltwater percolation and refreezing, runoff, and a prognostic surface albedo. The configuration of the MERRA-2 system allows for the background model - the Goddard Earth Observing System model, version 5 (GEOS-5) - to be carried in phase space through analyzed states via the computation of analysis increments, a capability referred to as "replay". Here, a MERRA-2 replay integration is conducted in which atmospheric forcing fields are interpolated and adjusted to sub- atmospheric grid-scale resolution. These adjustments include lapse-rate effects on temperature, humidity, precipitation, and other atmospheric variables that are known to have a strong elevation dependency over ice sheets. The surface coupling is performed such that mass and energy are conserved. The atmospheric forcing influences the surface representation, which operates on land surface tiles with an approximate 12-km spacing. This produces a high-resolution, downscaled SMB which is interactively coupled to the reanalysis model. We compare the downscaled SMB product with other reanalyses, regional climate model values, and a second MERRA-2 replay in which the background model has been replaced with a 12-km, non-hydrostatic version of GEOS-5. The assessment focuses on regional changes in SMB and SMB components, the identification of changes and temporal variability in the SMB equilibrium line, and the relation between SMB and other climate variables related to general circulation.

Towards monitoring surface and subsurface lakes on the Greenland Ice Sheet using Sentinel-1 SAR and Landsat-8 OLI imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miles, Katie E.; Willis, Ian C.; Benedek, Corinne L.; Williamson, Andrew G.; Tedesco, Marco

2017-07-01

Supraglacial lakes are an important component of the Greenland Ice Sheet’s mass balance and hydrology, with their drainage affecting ice dynamics. This study uses imagery from the recently launched Sentinel-1A Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite to investigate supraglacial lakes in West Greenland. A semi-automated algorithm is developed to detect surface lakes from Sentinel-1 images during the 2015 summer. A combined Landsat-8 and Sentinel-1 dataset, which has a comparable temporal resolution to MODIS (3 days versus daily) but a higher spatial resolution (25-40 m versus 250-500 m), is then used together with a fully-automated lake drainage detection algorithm. Rapid (< 4 days) and slow (> 4 days) drainages are investigated for both small (< 0.125 km2, the minimum size detectable by MODIS) and large (≥ 0.125 km2) lakes through the summer. Drainage events of small lakes occur at lower elevations (mean 159 m), and slightly earlier (mean 4.5 days) in the melt season than those of large lakes. The analysis is extended manually into the early winter to calculate the dates and elevations of lake freeze-through more precisely than is possible with optical imagery (mean 30 August; 1270 m mean elevation). Finally, the Sentinel-1 imagery is used to detect subsurface lakes and, for the first time, their dates of appearance and freeze-through (mean 9 August and 7 October, respectively). These subsurface lakes occur at higher elevations than the surface lakes detected in this study (mean 1593 m and 1185 m, respectively). Sentinel-1 imagery therefore provides great potential for tracking melting, water movement and freezing within both the firn zone and ablation area of the Greenland Ice Sheet.

Inter-annual Variations in Snow/Firn Density over the Greenland Ice Sheet by Combining GRACE gravimetry and Envisat Altimetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Su, X.; Shum, C. K.; Guo, J.; Howat, I.; Jezek, K. C.; Luo, Z.; Zhou, Z.

2017-12-01

Satellite altimetry has been used to monitor elevation and volume change of polar ice sheets since the 1990s. In order to derive mass change from the measured volume change, different density assumptions are commonly used in the research community, which may cause discrepancies on accurately estimating ice sheets mass balance. In this study, we investigate the inter-annual anomalies of mass change from GRACE gravimetry and elevation change from Envisat altimetry during years 2003-2009, with the objective of determining inter-annual variations of snow/firn density over the Greenland ice sheet (GrIS). High positive correlations (0.6 or higher) between these two inter-annual anomalies at are found over 93% of the GrIS, which suggests that both techniques detect the same geophysical process at the inter-annual timescale. Interpreting the two anomalies in terms of near surface density variations, over 80% of the GrIS, the inter-annual variation in average density is between the densities of snow and pure ice. In particular, at the Summit of Central Greenland, we validate the satellite data estimated density with the in situ data available from 75 snow pits and 9 ice cores. This study provides constraints on the currently applied density assumptions for the GrIS.

Inland thinning on the Greenland ice sheet controlled by outlet glacier geometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Felikson, Denis; Bartholomaus, Timothy C.; Catania, Ginny A.; Korsgaard, Niels J.; Kjær, Kurt H.; Morlighem, Mathieu; Noël, Brice; van den Broeke, Michiel; Stearns, Leigh A.; Shroyer, Emily L.; Sutherland, David A.; Nash, Jonathan D.

2017-04-01

Greenland’s contribution to future sea-level rise remains uncertain and a wide range of upper and lower bounds has been proposed. These predictions depend strongly on how mass loss--which is focused at the termini of marine-terminating outlet glaciers--can penetrate inland to the ice-sheet interior. Previous studies have shown that, at regional scales, Greenland ice sheet mass loss is correlated with atmospheric and oceanic warming. However, mass loss within individual outlet glacier catchments exhibits unexplained heterogeneity, hindering our ability to project ice-sheet response to future environmental forcing. Using digital elevation model differencing, we spatially resolve the dynamic portion of surface elevation change from 1985 to present within 16 outlet glacier catchments in West Greenland, where significant heterogeneity in ice loss exists. We show that the up-glacier extent of thinning and, thus, mass loss, is limited by glacier geometry. We find that 94% of the total dynamic loss occurs between the terminus and the location where the down-glacier advective speed of a kinematic wave of thinning is at least three times larger than its diffusive speed. This empirical threshold enables the identification of glaciers that are not currently thinning but are most susceptible to future thinning in the coming decades.

The geomicrobiology of the Greenland Ice Sheet: impact on DOC export (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wadham, J. L.; Stibal, M.; Lawson, E. C.; Barnett, M. J.; Hasan, F.; Telling, J.; Anesio, A.; Lis, G.; Cullen, D.; Butler, C.; Tranter, M.; Nienow, P. W.

2010-12-01

The Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) is the largest mass of ice in the northern hemisphere, and contributes ~370 km3 in runoff annually to the Arctic Ocean. While recent work has highlighted runoff increases of up to 100% from the GrIS over the next century, very little is known about the associated impacts upon rates of sediment-bound and dissolved organic carbon export from the ice sheet to the coastal ocean. This is relevant given recent work that has suggested that the high proportion of labile dissolved organic carbon (DOC) present in glacial runoff may be important in sustaining the productivity of ecosystems downstream. Here we report the phylogenetic and functional diversity of micro-organisms inhabiting the surface and basal regions of the Greenland Ice Sheet (at Leverett Glacier, SW Greenland), and whose activity influences the biogeochemical composition of runoff. Real time PCR data on runoff, together with 16S-rRNA bacterial clone libraries on sediments, demonstrate a subglacial microbial community that contrasts phylogenetically and functionally with the ice sheet surface ecosystem. We envisage that large sectors of the subglacial environment are microbially active, with overridden paleosols and in-washed surface organic matter providing a carbon substrate for a range of metabolic pathways. This includes methanogenesis which proceeds at rates similar to deep ocean sediments and via a CO2/H2 pathway. These subglacial microbial communities serve to chemically modify the DOC composition of meltwater inputs from the ice sheet surface and modulate the reactivity of bulk DOC exported in runoff. Evidence for subglacial microbial influences on DOC in runoff includes elevated concentrations of dissolved carbohydrates (e.g. glucose and fructose of up to 1 μmol/L), which are preferentially exported during subglacial outburst events. We examine the temporal changes in DOC export in runoff from the ice sheet over a full melt season, and consider how changes in total runoff over the coming century may perturb this contribution.

The Last Interglacial History of the Antarctic Ice sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bradley, Sarah; Siddall, Mark; Milne, Glenn A.; Masson-Delmotte, Valerie; Wolff, Eric; Hindmarsh, Richard C. A.

2014-05-01

In this paper we present a summary of the work which was conducted as part of the 'PAST4FUTURE -WP4.1: Sea Level and Ice sheets' project. The overall aim of this study was to understand the response of the Antarctic Ice sheet (AIS) to climate forcing during the Last interglacial (LIG) and its contribution to the observed higher than present sea level during this period. The study involved the application and development of a novel technique which combined East Antarctic stable isotope ice core data with the output from a Glacial Isostatic Adjustment (GIA) model [Bradley et al., 2012]. We investigated if the stable isotope ice core data are sensitive to detecting isostatically driven changes in the surface elevation driven by changes in the ice-loading history of the AIS and if so, could we address some key questions relating to the LIG history of the AIS. Although it is believed that the West Antarctic Ice sheet (WAIS) reduced in size during the LIG compared to the Holocene, major uncertainties and unknowns remain unresolved: Did the WAIS collapse? What would the contribution of such a collapse be the higher than present LIG eustatic sea level (ESL)? We will show that a simulated collapse of the WAIS does not generate a significant elevation driven signal at the EAIS LIG ice core sites, and as such, these ice core records cannot be used to assess WAIS stability over this period. However, we will present 'treasure maps' [Bradley et al., 2012] to identify regions of the AIS where results from geological studies and/or new paleoclimate data may be sensitive to detecting a WAIS collapse. These maps can act as a useful tool for the wider science community/field scientists as a guide to highlight sites suitable to constrain the evolution of the WAIS during the LIG. Studies have proposed that the surface temperature across the East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS) was significantly warmer, 2-5°C during the LIG compared to present [Lang and Wolff, 2011]. These higher temperatures are estimated primarily using the difference in the δD peak in the LIG stable isotope ice core data relative to the records for the present interglacial; a feature which is referred to as the 'LIG overshoot'. Generally studies have attributed most of this signal to changes in the Antarctic climate [Masson-Delmotte et al., 2011]. However, a previously overlooked contribution is the influence of changes in surface elevation driven by changes in ice-loading history of the EAIS [Bradley et al., 2013]. We will show that introducing a relatively moderate reduction in the amount of thickening of the EAIS over the LIG, can generate a significant elevation driven δD signal at the EAIS ice core sites, and as such elevation effects can account for a significant fraction of the LIG overshoot. We will conclude that the potential contribution of this process must be considered when using the EAIS stable isotope ice core data to make estimated of the LIG surface temperature. Finally, we will provide estimates of the contribution of the AIS to both ESL and to the higher than observed relative sea level during the LIG. Bradley, S. L., M. Siddall, G. A. Milne, V. Masson-Delmotte, and E. Wolff (2012), Where might we find evidence of a Last Interglacial West Antarctic Ice Sheet collapse in Antarctic ice core records?, Global and Planetary Change, 88-89(0), 64-75. Bradley, S. L., M. Siddall, G. A. Milne, V. Masson-Delmotte, and E. Wolff (2013), Combining ice core records and ice sheet models to explore the evolution of the East Antarctic Ice sheet during the Last Interglacial period, Global and Planetary Change, 100, 278-290. Lang, N., and E. W. Wolff (2011), Interglacial and glacial variability from the last 800 ka in marine, ice and terrestrial archives, Clim. Past., 7(2), 361-380. Masson-Delmotte, V., et al. (2011), A comparison of the present and last interglacial periods in six Antarctic ice cores, Clim. Past., 7(2), 397-423.

Generation and evaluation of Cryosat-2 SARIn L1b Interferometric elevation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

DONG, Y.; Zhang, K.; Liu, Q.; MA, J.; WANG, J.

2016-12-01

CryoSat-2 radar altimeter data have successfully used in mapping surface elevations of ice caps and ice sheets, finding the change of surface height in polar area. The SARIn mode of Synthetic Aperture Interferometric Altimeter (SIRAL), which working similar with the traditional Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (IFSAR) method, can improve the across- and along-track resolution by IFSAR processing algorithm. In this study, three L1b Baseline-C SARIn tracks over the Filchner ice shelf are used to generate the location and height of ground points in sloping glacial terrain. The elevation data is mapped and validated with IceBridge Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM) data acquired at Nov. 2, 2012. The comparison with ATM data shows a mean difference of -1.91 m with a stand deviation of 4.04 m.

3. (Photocopy of the second sheet of a threesheet set ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

3. (Photocopy of the second sheet of a three-sheet set entitled 'Kongensgade 45B-51') KING STREET (FRONT) ELEVATION OF KONGENSGADE 48 AND KING STREET (SIDE) ELEVATION OF KONGENS TVAERGADE 2 (2 KINGS CROSS ST.) - King Street Area Study, King Street, Christiansted, St. Croix, VI

A Historical Forcing Ice Sheet Model Validation Framework for Greenland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Price, S. F.; Hoffman, M. J.; Howat, I. M.; Bonin, J. A.; Chambers, D. P.; Kalashnikova, I.; Neumann, T.; Nowicki, S.; Perego, M.; Salinger, A.

2014-12-01

We propose an ice sheet model testing and validation framework for Greenland for the years 2000 to the present. Following Perego et al. (2014), we start with a realistic ice sheet initial condition that is in quasi-equilibrium with climate forcing from the late 1990's. This initial condition is integrated forward in time while simultaneously applying (1) surface mass balance forcing (van Angelen et al., 2013) and (2) outlet glacier flux anomalies, defined using a new dataset of Greenland outlet glacier flux for the past decade (Enderlin et al., 2014). Modeled rates of mass and elevation change are compared directly to remote sensing observations obtained from GRACE and ICESat. Here, we present a detailed description of the proposed validation framework including the ice sheet model and model forcing approach, the model-to-observation comparison process, and initial results comparing model output and observations for the time period 2000-2013.

Surface Deformation and Gravity Changes from Surface and Internal Loads

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hager, Bradford H.; Fang, Ming

2002-01-01

Air and space borne remote sensing have made it possible to monitor the mass and energy transport at various scales within the cryosphere-hydrosphere-atmosphere system. The recent surface mass balance (the rate of net gain of snow and ice at a geographic point) map for the Antarctic ice sheet is constructed by interpolating sparse in situ observations (about 1,800 points) with empirically calibrated satellite data of passive back emission of microwaves. The digital elevation model obtained from satellite radar altimetry is used to improve the delineation of the ice flow drainage basins. As important as these results are, the uncertainty remains up to about 2 mm/yr of eustatic sea level change with the net imbalance. In other words, we are still unable to determine even the sign of the contribution of the Antarctic ice sheet to contemporary sea level change. The problem is more likely with the discharge rather than accumulation.

Evaluating the sensitivity of an ice sheet model to changes in bed elevation and inclusion of membrane stresses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aschwanden, Andy; Bueler, Ed; Khroulev, Constantine

2010-05-01

To predict Greenland's contribution to global sea level rise in the next few centuries with some confidence, an accurate representation of its current state is crucial. Simulations of the present state of Greenland using the "Parallel Ice Sheet Model" (PISM) capture the essential flow features but overestimate the current volume by about 30%. Possible sources of error include (1) limited understanding of physical processes involved, (2) the choice of approximations made by the numerical model, (3) values of tunable parameters, and (4) uncertainties in boundary conditions. The response of an ice sheet model to given forcing contains the above mentioned error sources, with unknown weights. In this work we focus on a small subset, namely errors arising from uncertainties in bed elevation and whether or not membrane stresses are included in the stress balance. CReSIS provides recently updated bedrock maps for Greenland include high-resolution data for Jacobshavn Isbræ and Petermann Glacier. We present a four-way comparison between the original BEDMAP, the new CReSIS bedrock data, a non-sliding shallow ice model, and hybrid model which includes the shallow shelf approximation as a sliding law. Large gradients possibly found in high-resolution bedrock elevation are expected to make a hybrid model the more appropriate choice. To elucidate this question, runs are performed on a unprecedented high spatial resolution of 2km for the whole ice sheet. Finally, model predictions are evaluated against observed quantities such as surface velocities, ice thickness, and temperature profiles in bore holes using different metrics.

Ice-sheet thinning and acceleration at Camp Century, Greenlan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Colgan, W. T.

2017-12-01

Camp Century, Greenland (77.18 °N, 61.12 °W, 1900 m), is located approximately 150 km inland from the ice-sheet margin in Northwest Greenland. In-situ and remotely-sensed measurements of ice-sheet elevation at Camp Century exhibit a thinning trend between 1964 and the present. A comparison of 1966 and 2017 firn density profiles indicates that a portion of this ice-sheet thinning is attributable to increased firn compaction rate. In-situ measurements of increasing ice surface velocity over the 1977-2017 period indicate that enhanced horizontal divergence of ice flux is also contributing to ice dynamic thinning at Camp Century. This apparent ice dynamic thinning could potentially result from a migrating local flow divide or decreasing effective ice viscosity. In a shorter-term context, observations of decadal-scale ice-sheet thinning and acceleration at Camp Century highlights underappreciated transience in inland ice form and flow during the satellite era. In a longer-term context, these multi-decadal observations contrast with inferences of millennial-scale ice-sheet thickening and deceleration at Camp Century.

SPICE: Sentinel-3 Performance Improvement for Ice Sheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McMillan, M.; Escola, R.; Roca, M.; Thibaut, P.; Aublanc, J.; Shepherd, A.; Remy, F.; Benveniste, J.; Ambrózio, A.; Restano, M.

2017-12-01

For the past 25 years, polar-orbiting satellite radar altimeters have provided a valuable record of ice sheet elevation change and mass balance. One of the principle challenges associated with radar altimetry comes from the relatively large ground footprint of conventional pulse-limited radars, which reduces their capacity to make measurements in areas of complex topographic terrain. In recent years, progress has been made towards improving ground resolution, through the implementation of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), or Delay-Doppler, techniques. In 2010, the launch of CryoSat-2 heralded the start of a new era of SAR Interferometric (SARIn) altimetry. However, because the satellite operated in SARIn and LRM mode over the ice sheets, many of the non-interferometric SAR altimeter processing techniques have been optimized for water and sea ice surfaces only. The launch of Sentinel-3, which provides full non-interferometric SAR coverage of the ice sheets, therefore presents the opportunity to further develop these SAR processing methodologies over ice sheets. Here we present results from SPICE, a 2 year study that focuses on (1) developing and evaluating Sentinel-3 SAR altimetry processing methodologies over the Polar ice sheets, and (2) investigating radar wave penetration through comparisons of Ku- and Ka-band satellite measurements. The project, which is funded by ESA's SEOM (Scientific Exploitation of Operational Missions) programme, has worked in advance of the operational phase of Sentinel-3, to emulate Sentinel-3 SAR and pseudo-LRM data from dedicated CryoSat-2 SAR acquisitions made at the Lake Vostok, Dome C and Spirit sites in East Antarctica, and from reprocessed SARIn data in Greenland. In Phase 1 of the project we have evaluated existing processing methodologies, and in Phase 2 we are investigating new evolutions to the Delay-Doppler Processing (DDP) and retracking chains. In this presentation we (1) evaluate the existing Sentinel-3 processing chain by comparing our emulated Sentinel-3 elevations to reference airborne datasets, (2) describe new developments to the DDP and retracking algorithms that are aimed at improving the certainty of retrievals over ice sheets, and (3) investigate radar wave penetration by comparing our SAR data to waveforms and elevations acquired by AltiKa at Ka-band.

Comparative Study of Three Data Assimilation Methods for Ice Sheet Model Initialisation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mosbeux, Cyrille; Gillet-Chaulet, Fabien; Gagliardini, Olivier

2015-04-01

The current global warming has direct consequences on ice-sheet mass loss contributing to sea level rise. This loss is generally driven by an acceleration of some coastal outlet glaciers and reproducing these mechanisms is one of the major issues in ice-sheet and ice flow modelling. The construction of an initial state, as close as possible to current observations, is required as a prerequisite before producing any reliable projection of the evolution of ice-sheets. For this step, inverse methods are often used to infer badly known or unknown parameters. For instance, the adjoint inverse method has been implemented and applied with success by different authors in different ice flow models in order to infer the basal drag [ Schafer et al., 2012; Gillet-chauletet al., 2012; Morlighem et al., 2010]. Others data fields, such as ice surface and bedrock topography, are easily measurable with more or less uncertainty but only locally along tracks and interpolated on finer model grid. All these approximations lead to errors on the data elevation model and give rise to an ill-posed problem inducing non-physical anomalies in flux divergence [Seroussi et al, 2011]. A solution to dissipate these divergences of flux is to conduct a surface relaxation step at the expense of the accuracy of the modelled surface [Gillet-Chaulet et al., 2012]. Other solutions, based on the inversion of ice thickness and basal drag were proposed [Perego et al., 2014; Pralong & Gudmundsson, 2011]. In this study, we create a twin experiment to compare three different assimilation algorithms based on inverse methods and nudging to constrain the bedrock friction and the bedrock elevation: (i) cyclic inversion of friction parameter and bedrock topography using adjoint method, (ii) cycles coupling inversion of friction parameter using adjoint method and nudging of bedrock topography, (iii) one step inversion of both parameters with adjoint method. The three methods show a clear improvement in parameters knowledge leading to a significant reduction of flux divergence of the model before forecasting.

Ice Elevation Changes in the Ellsworth Mountains, Antarctica Using Multiple Cosmogenic Nuclides

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marrero, S.; Hein, A.; Sugden, D.; Woodward, J.; Dunning, S.; Reid, K.

2014-12-01

Well-dated geologic data points provide important indicators that can be used for the reconstruction of ice sheet dynamics and as constraints in ice sheet models predicting future change. Cosmogenic nuclides, which accumulate in rocks exposed at the earth's surface, can be used to directly date the exposure age of the rock surfaces that have been created through glacial erosion or deposition. The technique requires a detailed understanding of the local geomorphology as well as awareness of the post-depositional processes that may affect the interpretation of exposure ages. Initial surface exposure ages (10Be, 26Al, 21Ne, and 36Cl ) from local limestone bedrock and other glacially deposited exotic lithologies provide a history spanning from 0 to 1.1 Ma in the Patriot, Independence, and Marble Hills in the southern Ellsworth Mountains, Antarctica. Using the new surface exposure ages combined with geomorphological mapping, we will discuss the implications for the glacial history of the southern Ellsworth Mountains.

Using Multiple Cosmogenic Nuclides to Investigate Ice Elevation Changes in the Ellsworth Mountains, Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marrero, Shasta; Hein, Andy; Sugden, David; Woodward, John; Dunning, Stuart; Freeman, Stewart; Shanks, Richard

2015-04-01

Well-dated geologic data points provide important indicators that can be used for the reconstruction of ice sheet dynamics and as constraints in ice sheet models predicting future change. Cosmogenic nuclides, which accumulate in rocks exposed at the earth's surface, can be used to directly date the exposure age of the rock surfaces that have been created through glacial erosion or deposition. The technique requires a detailed understanding of the local geomorphology as well as awareness of the post-depositional processes that may affect the interpretation of exposure ages. Surface exposure ages (10Be, 26Al, 21Ne, and 36Cl) from local limestone bedrock and other glacially deposited exotic lithologies provide a history spanning from 0 to more than 1 million years in the Patriot, Independence, and Marble Hills in the southern Ellsworth Mountains, Antarctica. Using the new surface exposure ages combined with geomorphological mapping, we will discuss the implications for the glacial history of the southern Ellsworth Mountains.

Temporal variability of the Antarctic Ice sheet observed from space-based geodesy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Memin, A.; King, M. A.; Boy, J. P.; Remy, F.

2017-12-01

Quantifying the Antarctic Ice Sheet (AIS) mass balance still remains challenging as several processes compete to differing degrees at the basin scale with regional variations, leading to multiple mass redistribution patterns. For instance, analysis of linear trends in surface-height variations from 1992-2003 and 2002-2006 shows that the AIS is subject to decimetric scale variability over periods of a few years. Every year, snowfalls in Antarctica represent the equivalent of 6 mm of the mean sea level. Therefore, any fluctuation in precipitation can lead to changes in sea level. Besides, over the last decade, several major glaciers have been thinning at an accelerating rate. Understanding the processes that interact on the ice sheet is therefore important to precisely determine the response of the ice sheet to a rapid changing climate and estimate its contribution to sea level changes. We estimate seasonal and interannual changes of the AIS between January 2003 and October 2010 and to the end of 2016 from a combined analysis of surface-elevation and surface-mass changes derived from Envisat data and GRACE solutions, and from GRACE solutions only, respectively. While we obtain a good correlation for the interannual signal between the two techniques, important differences (in amplitude, phase, and spatial pattern) are obtained for the seasonal signal. We investigate these discrepancies by comparing the crustal motion observed by GPS and those predicted using monthly surface mass balance derived from the regional atmospheric climate model RACMO.

Greenland meltwater storage in firn limited by near-surface ice formation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Machguth, Horst; Macferrin, Mike; van As, Dirk; Box, Jason E.; Charalampidis, Charalampos; Colgan, William; Fausto, Robert S.; Meijer, Harro A. J.; Mosley-Thompson, Ellen; van de Wal, Roderik S. W.

2016-04-01

Approximately half of Greenland’s current annual mass loss is attributed to runoff from surface melt. At higher elevations, however, melt does not necessarily equal runoff, because meltwater can refreeze in the porous near-surface snow and firn. Two recent studies suggest that all or most of Greenland’s firn pore space is available for meltwater storage, making the firn an important buffer against contribution to sea level rise for decades to come. Here, we employ in situ observations and historical legacy data to demonstrate that surface runoff begins to dominate over meltwater storage well before firn pore space has been completely filled. Our observations frame the recent exceptional melt summers in 2010 and 2012 (refs ,), revealing significant changes in firn structure at different elevations caused by successive intensive melt events. In the upper regions (more than ~1,900 m above sea level), firn has undergone substantial densification, while at lower elevations, where melt is most abundant, porous firn has lost most of its capability to retain meltwater. Here, the formation of near-surface ice layers renders deep pore space difficult to access, forcing meltwater to enter an efficient surface discharge system and intensifying ice sheet mass loss earlier than previously suggested.

ICESAT Laser Altimeter Pointing, Ranging and Timing Calibration from Integrated Residual Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Luthcke, Scott B.; Rowlands, D. D.; Carabajal, C. C.; Harding, D. H.; Bufton, J. L.; Williams, T. A.

2003-01-01

On January 12, 2003 the Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) was successfully placed into orbit. The ICESat mission carries the Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS), which has a primary measurement of short-pulse laser- ranging to the Earth s surface at 1064nm wavelength at a rate of 40 pulses per second. The instrument has collected precise elevation measurements of the ice sheets, sea ice roughness and thickness, ocean and land surface elevations and surface reflectivity. The accurate geolocation of GLAS s surface returns, the spots from which the laser energy reflects on the Earth s surface, is a critical issue in the scientific application of these data. Pointing, ranging, timing and orbit errors must be compensated to accurately geolocate the laser altimeter surface returns. Towards this end, the laser range observations can be fully exploited in an integrated residual analysis to accurately calibrate these geolocation/instrument parameters. ICESat laser altimeter data have been simultaneously processed as direct altimetry from ocean sweeps along with dynamic crossovers in order to calibrate pointing, ranging and timing. The calibration methodology and current calibration results are discussed along with future efforts.

CryoSat-2 Processing and Model Interpretation of Greenland Ice Sheet Volume Changes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nilsson, J.; Gardner, A. S.; Sandberg Sorensen, L.

2015-12-01

CryoSat-2 was launched in late 2010 tasked with monitoring the changes of the Earth's land and sea ice. It carries a novel radar altimeter allowing the satellite to monitor changes in highly complex terrain, such as smaller ice caps, glaciers and the marginal areas of the ice sheets. Here we present on the development and validation of an independent elevation retrieval processing chain and respective elevation changes based on ESA's L1B data. Overall we find large improvement in both accuracy and precision over Greenland relative to ESA's L2 product when comparing against both airborne data and crossover analysis. The seasonal component and spatial sampling of the surface elevation changes where also compared against ICESat derived changes from 2003-2009. The comparison showed good agreement between the to product on a local scale. However, a global sampling bias was detected in the seasonal signal due to the clustering of CryoSat-2 data in higher elevation areas. The retrieval processing chain presented here does not correct for changes in surface scattering conditions and appears to be insensitive to the 2012 melt event (Nilsson et al., 2015). This in contrast to the elevation changes derived from ESA's L2 elevation product, which where found to be sensitive to the effects of the melt event. The positive elevation bias created by the event introduced a discrepancy between the two products with a magnitude of roughly 90 km3/year. This difference can directly be attributed to the differences in retracking procedure pointing to the importance of the retracking of the radar waveforms for altimetric volume change studies. Greenland 2012 melt event effects on CryoSat-2 radar altimetry./ Nilsson, Johan; Vallelonga, Paul Travis; Simonsen, Sebastian Bjerregaard; Sørensen, Louise Sandberg; Forsberg, René; Dahl-Jensen, Dorthe; Hirabayashi, Motohiro; Goto-Azuma, Kumiko; Hvidberg, Christine S.; Kjær, Helle A.; Satow, Kazuhide.

Evaluation of three methods of different levels of complexity to represent the interactions between the Greenland ice sheet and the atmosphere at the century time scale.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Le clec'h, Sébastien; Fettweis, Xavier; Quiquet, Aurelien; Dumas, Christophe; Kageyama, Masa; Charbit, Sylvie; Ritz, Catherine

2017-04-01

Based on numerous studies showing implications of polar ice sheets on the climate system, the climate community recommended the development of methods to account for feedbacks between polar ice sheets and the other climate components. In this study we used three methods of different levels of complexity to represent the interactions between a Greenland ice sheet model (GRISLI) and a regional atmospheric model (MAR) under the RCP8.5 scenario. The simplest method, i.e. uncoupled, does not account for interactions between both models. In this method MAR computes varying atmospheric conditions using the same present-day observed Greenland ice sheet topography and extent. The outputs are then used to force GRISLI. The second method is a one-way coupling method in which the MAR outputs are corrected to account for topography changes before their transfer to GRISLI. The third method is a fully coupled method allowing the full representation of interactions between MAR and GRISLI. In this case, the ice sheet topography and its extent as seen by the atmospheric model is updated for each ice sheet model time step. The three methods are evaluated regarding the Greenland ice sheet response from 2000 to 2150. As expected, the uncoupled method shows a coastal thinning of the ice sheet due to a decreasing surface mass balance for coastal regions related to increased mean surface temperature. The one-way coupling and the full coupling methods tend to amplify the surface mass balance due to surface elevation feedback. The uncoupled method tends to underestimate the Greenland ice sheet volume reduction compared to both coupling methods over 150 years. This underestimation is of the same order of magnitude of the ice loss from the Greenland peripheral glaciers at the end of the 21st century. As for the uncoupled method, the thinning of the ice sheet occurs in coastal regions for both coupling methods. However compared to the one-way coupling method, the fully coupled method tends to increase the spatial variability of the surface mass balance changes through time. Our results also indicate that differences between the two coupling methods increase with time, which suggests that the choice of the method should depend on the timescale considered. Beyond century scale projections the fully coupled method is necessary in order to avoid underestimation of the ice sheet volume reduction, whilst the one-way method seems to be sufficient to represent the interactions between the atmosphere and the GrIS for projections by the end of the century.

ICESat: Ice, Cloud and Land Elevation Satellite

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zwally, Jay; Shuman, Christopher

2002-01-01

Ice exists in the natural environment in many forms. The Earth dynamic ice features shows that at high elevations and/or high latitudes,snow that falls to the ground can gradually build up tu form thick consolidated ice masses called glaciers. Glaciers flow downhill under the force of gravity and can extend into areas that are too warm to support year-round snow cover. The snow line, called the equilibrium line on a glacier or ice sheet, separates the ice areas that melt on the surface and become show free in summer (net ablation zone) from the ice area that remain snow covered during the entire year (net accumulation zone). Snow near the surface of a glacier that is gradually being compressed into solid ice is called firm.

Firn Thickness Changes (1982-2015) Driven by SMB from MERRA-2, RACMO2.3, ERA-Int and AVHRR Surface Temperature and the Impacts to Greenland Ice Sheet Mass Balance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, J.; Medley, B.; Neumann, T.; Smith, B. E.; Luthcke, S. B.; Zwally, H. J.

2016-12-01

Surface mass balance (SMB) data are essential in the derivation of ice sheet mass balance. This is because ice sheet mass change consists of short-term and long-term variations. The short-term variations are directly given by the SMB data. For altimetry based ice sheet mass balance studies, these short-term mass changes are converted to firn thickness changes by using a firn densification-elevation model, and then the variations are subtracted from the altimetry measurements to give the long-term ice thickness changes that are associated with the density of ice. So far various SMB data sets such as ERA-Interim, RACMO and MERRA are available and some have been widely used in large number of ice sheet mass balance studies. However theses data sets exhibit the clear discrepancies in both random and systematic manner. In this study, we use our time dependent firn densification- elevation model, driven by the SMB data from MERRA-2, RACMO2.3 and ERA-Int for the period of 1982-2015 and the temperature variations from AVHRR for the same period to examine the corresponding firn thickness variations and the impacts to the mass changes over the Greenland ice sheet. The model was initialized with the1980's climate. Our results show that the relative smaller (centimeter level) differences in the firn thickness driven by the different data set occur at the early stage (1980's) of the model run. As the time progressing, the discrepancies between the SMB data sets accumulate, and the corresponding firn thickness differences quickly become larger with the value > 2m at the end of the period. Although the overall rates for the whole period driven by each of the three data sets are small ranging -0.2 - 0.2 cm a-1 (-3.0-2.7 Gt a-1), the decadal rates can vary greatly with magnitude > 3 cm a-1 and the impact to the Greenland mass change exceeds 30 Gt a-1.

GPS-derived estimates of surface mass balance and ocean-induced basal melt for Pine Island Glacier ice shelf, Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shean, David E.; Christianson, Knut; Larson, Kristine M.; Ligtenberg, Stefan R. M.; Joughin, Ian R.; Smith, Ben E.; Stevens, C. Max; Bushuk, Mitchell; Holland, David M.

2017-11-01

In the last 2 decades, Pine Island Glacier (PIG) experienced marked speedup, thinning, and grounding-line retreat, likely due to marine ice-sheet instability and ice-shelf basal melt. To better understand these processes, we combined 2008-2010 and 2012-2014 GPS records with dynamic firn model output to constrain local surface and basal mass balance for PIG. We used GPS interferometric reflectometry to precisely measure absolute surface elevation (zsurf) and Lagrangian surface elevation change (Dzsurf/ Dt). Observed surface elevation relative to a firn layer tracer for the initial surface (zsurf - zsurf0') is consistent with model estimates of surface mass balance (SMB, primarily snow accumulation). A relatively abrupt ˜ 0.2-0.3 m surface elevation decrease, likely due to surface melt and increased compaction rates, is observed during a period of warm atmospheric temperatures from December 2012 to January 2013. Observed Dzsurf/ Dt trends (-1 to -4 m yr-1) for the PIG shelf sites are all highly linear. Corresponding basal melt rate estimates range from ˜ 10 to 40 m yr-1, in good agreement with those derived from ice-bottom acoustic ranging, phase-sensitive ice-penetrating radar, and high-resolution stereo digital elevation model (DEM) records. The GPS and DEM records document higher melt rates within and near features associated with longitudinal extension (i.e., transverse surface depressions, rifts). Basal melt rates for the 2012-2014 period show limited temporal variability despite large changes in ocean temperature recorded by moorings in Pine Island Bay. Our results demonstrate the value of long-term GPS records for ice-shelf mass balance studies, with implications for the sensitivity of ice-ocean interaction at PIG.

Greenland Ice Sheet: High-Elevation Balance and Peripheral Thinning.

PubMed

Krabill; Abdalati; Frederick; Manizade; Martin; Sonntag; Swift; Thomas; Wright; Yungel

2000-07-21

Aircraft laser-altimeter surveys over northern Greenland in 1994 and 1999 have been coupled with previously reported data from southern Greenland to analyze the recent mass-balance of the Greenland Ice Sheet. Above 2000 meters elevation, the ice sheet is in balance on average but has some regions of local thickening or thinning. Thinning predominates at lower elevations, with rates exceeding 1 meter per year close to the coast. Interpolation of our results between flight lines indicates a net loss of about 51 cubic kilometers of ice per year from the entire ice sheet, sufficient to raise sea level by 0.13 millimeter per year-approximately 7% of the observed rise.

Recent Ice Sheet and Glacier Elevation Changes in Greenland from Aircraft Laser Altimetry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Krabill, William B.; Thomas, R.; Sonntag, J.; Manizade, S.; Yungel, J.

2008-01-01

The Arctic Ice Mapping group (Project AIM) at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Wallops Flight Facility has been conducting systematic topographic surveys of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GIS) since 1993, using scanning airborne laser altimeters combined with Global Positioning System (UPS) technology. Earlier surveys showed the ice sheet above 2000-rn elevation to be in balance, but with localized regions of thickening or thinning. Thinning predominates at lower elevations and thinning rates have recently increased, resulting in a negative mass balance for the entire ice sheet. Recently, critical segments of near-coastal flight lines in Greenland were resurveyed. Results from the new data will be presented.

GLOBATO: An enhanced global relief model at 30 arc-seconds resolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

O'Leary, V.; Amante, C.

2017-12-01

The National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), an office of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), first developed a digital bathymetric and elevation model, ETOPO5, from publicly available data in 1993. For nearly 25 years, NCEI's ETOPO family of global relief models have supported research at a planetary scale, including tsunami forecasting, ocean circulation modeling, visualization of the seafloor, understanding geological phenomena, and aiding the development of other global and regional elevation models. GLOBATO (GLObal BAThymetry and TOpography) is now the most detailed version released by NCEI with a horizontal resolution of 30 arc-seconds and succeeds ETOPO1 with the inclusion of several new or updated data-sets for the seafloor as well as land areas. GLOBATO is a compilation of data derived from models of satellite measurements, ship depth soundings, and multibeam surveys, as well as regional models developed for Greenland and Antarctica. These data were converted from different formats, resolutions, spatial distributions, and projections into a single global model using GDAL v2.2 and MB-System v5.5. As with previous NCEI models, GLOBATO is available in two formats, "bedrock elevation" (measured as the base of major ice sheets) and "ice surface elevation" (measured as the surface of major ice sheets) which provides comprehensive topographic and bathymetric coverage between +- 90 degrees latitude and +- 180 degrees longitude. Adhering to best practices, GLOBATO, all related digital products, and any supporting documentation are available online through the NCEI data portal. These new, high resolution models will better support the variety of research ETOPO1 has made possible.

Interaction of ice sheets and climate during the past 800 000 years

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stap, L. B.; van de Wal, R. S. W.; de Boer, B.; Bintanja, R.; Lourens, L. J.

2014-12-01

During the Cenozoic, land ice and climate interacted on many different timescales. On long timescales, the effect of land ice on global climate and sea level is mainly set by large ice sheets in North America, Eurasia, Greenland and Antarctica. The climatic forcing of these ice sheets is largely determined by the meridional temperature profile resulting from radiation and greenhouse gas (GHG) forcing. As a response, the ice sheets cause an increase in albedo and surface elevation, which operates as a feedback in the climate system. To quantify the importance of these climate-land ice processes, a zonally averaged energy balance climate model is coupled to five one-dimensional ice sheet models, representing the major ice sheets. In this study, we focus on the transient simulation of the past 800 000 years, where a high-confidence CO2 record from ice core samples is used as input in combination with Milankovitch radiation changes. We obtain simulations of atmospheric temperature, ice volume and sea level that are in good agreement with recent proxy-data reconstructions. We examine long-term climate-ice-sheet interactions by a comparison of simulations with uncoupled and coupled ice sheets. We show that these interactions amplify global temperature anomalies by up to a factor of 2.6, and that they increase polar amplification by 94%. We demonstrate that, on these long timescales, the ice-albedo feedback has a larger and more global influence on the meridional atmospheric temperature profile than the surface-height-temperature feedback. Furthermore, we assess the influence of CO2 and insolation by performing runs with one or both of these variables held constant. We find that atmospheric temperature is controlled by a complex interaction of CO2 and insolation, and both variables serve as thresholds for northern hemispheric glaciation.

Getting around Antarctica: New High-Resolution Mappings of the Grounded and Freely-Floating Boundaries of the Antarctic Ice Sheet Created for the International Polar Year

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bindschadler, R.; Choi, H.; Wichlacz, A.; Bingham, R.; Bohlander, J.; Brunt, K.; Corr, H.; Drews, R.; Fricker, H.; Hall, M.;

15. Power plant elevations and cross sections, sheet 64 of ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

15. Power plant elevations and cross sections, sheet 64 of 130 - Naval Air Station Fallon, Power Plant, 800 Complex, off Carson Road near intersection of Pasture & Berney Roads, Fallon, Churchill County, NV

Large subglacial lakes in East Antarctica at the onset of fast-flowing ice streams.

PubMed

Bell, Robin E; Studinger, Michael; Shuman, Christopher A; Fahnestock, Mark A; Joughin, Ian

2007-02-22

Water plays a crucial role in ice-sheet stability and the onset of ice streams. Subglacial lake water moves between lakes and rapidly drains, causing catastrophic floods. The exact mechanisms by which subglacial lakes influence ice-sheet dynamics are unknown, however, and large subglacial lakes have not been closely associated with rapidly flowing ice streams. Here we use satellite imagery and ice-surface elevations to identify a region of subglacial lakes, similar in total area to Lake Vostok, at the onset region of the Recovery Glacier ice stream in East Antarctica and predicted by ice-sheet models. We define four lakes through extensive, flat, featureless regions of ice surface bounded by upstream troughs and downstream ridges. Using ice velocities determined using interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR), we find the onset of rapid flow (moving at 20 to 30 m yr(-1)) of the tributaries to the Recovery Glacier ice stream in a 280-km-wide segment at the downslope margins of these four subglacial lakes. We conclude that the subglacial lakes initiate and maintain rapid ice flow through either active modification of the basal thermal regime of the ice sheet by lake accretion or through scouring bedrock channels in periodic drainage events. We suggest that the role of subglacial lakes needs to be considered in ice-sheet mass balance assessments.

Altimetry, gravimetry, GPS and viscoelastic modeling data for the joint inversion for glacial isostatic adjustment in Antarctica (ESA STSE Project REGINA)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sasgen, Ingo; Martín-Español, Alba; Horvath, Alexander; Klemann, Volker; Petrie, Elizabeth J.; Wouters, Bert; Horwath, Martin; Pail, Roland; Bamber, Jonathan L.; Clarke, Peter J.; Konrad, Hannes; Wilson, Terry; Drinkwater, Mark R.

2018-03-01

The poorly known correction for the ongoing deformation of the solid Earth caused by glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) is a major uncertainty in determining the mass balance of the Antarctic ice sheet from measurements of satellite gravimetry and to a lesser extent satellite altimetry. In the past decade, much progress has been made in consistently modeling ice sheet and solid Earth interactions; however, forward-modeling solutions of GIA in Antarctica remain uncertain due to the sparsity of constraints on the ice sheet evolution, as well as the Earth's rheological properties. An alternative approach towards estimating GIA is the joint inversion of multiple satellite data - namely, satellite gravimetry, satellite altimetry and GPS, which reflect, with different sensitivities, trends in recent glacial changes and GIA. Crucial to the success of this approach is the accuracy of the space-geodetic data sets. Here, we present reprocessed rates of surface-ice elevation change (Envisat/Ice, Cloud,and land Elevation Satellite, ICESat; 2003-2009), gravity field change (Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment, GRACE; 2003-2009) and bedrock uplift (GPS; 1995-2013). The data analysis is complemented by the forward modeling of viscoelastic response functions to disc load forcing, allowing us to relate GIA-induced surface displacements with gravity changes for different rheological parameters of the solid Earth. The data and modeling results presented here are available in the PANGAEA database (https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.875745). The data sets are the input streams for the joint inversion estimate of present-day ice-mass change and GIA, focusing on Antarctica. However, the methods, code and data provided in this paper can be used to solve other problems, such as volume balances of the Antarctic ice sheet, or can be applied to other geographical regions in the case of the viscoelastic response functions. This paper presents the first of two contributions summarizing the work carried out within a European Space Agency funded study: Regional glacial isostatic adjustment and CryoSat elevation rate corrections in Antarctica (REGINA).

ICESat Laser Altimeter Pointing, Ranging and Timing Calibration from Integrated Residual Analysis: A Summary of Early Mission Results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lutchke, Scott B.; Rowlands, David D.; Harding, David J.; Bufton, Jack L.; Carabajal, Claudia C.; Williams, Teresa A.

2003-01-01

On January 12, 2003 the Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) was successfUlly placed into orbit. The ICESat mission carries the Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS), which consists of three near-infrared lasers that operate at 40 short pulses per second. The instrument has collected precise elevation measurements of the ice sheets, sea ice roughness and thickness, ocean and land surface elevations and surface reflectivity. The accurate geolocation of GLAS's surface returns, the spots from which the laser energy reflects on the Earth's surface, is a critical issue in the scientific application of these data Pointing, ranging, timing and orbit errors must be compensated to accurately geolocate the laser altimeter surface returns. Towards this end, the laser range observations can be fully exploited in an integrated residual analysis to accurately calibrate these geolocation/instrument parameters. Early mission ICESat data have been simultaneously processed as direct altimetry from ocean sweeps along with dynamic crossovers resulting in a preliminary calibration of laser pointing, ranging and timing. The calibration methodology and early mission analysis results are summarized in this paper along with future calibration activities

Cascading water underneath Wilkes Land, East Antarctic ice sheet, observed using altimetry and digital elevation models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flament, T.; Berthier, E.; Rémy, F.

2014-04-01

We describe a major subglacial lake drainage close to the ice divide in Wilkes Land, East Antarctica, and the subsequent cascading of water underneath the ice sheet toward the coast. To analyse the event, we combined altimetry data from several sources and subglacial topography. We estimated the total volume of water that drained from Lake CookE2 by differencing digital elevation models (DEM) derived from ASTER and SPOT5 stereo imagery acquired in January 2006 and February 2012. At 5.2 ± 1.5 km3, this is the largest single subglacial drainage event reported so far in Antarctica. Elevation differences between ICESat laser altimetry spanning 2003-2009 and the SPOT5 DEM indicate that the discharge started in November 2006 and lasted approximately 2 years. A 13 m uplift of the surface, corresponding to a refilling of about 0.6 ± 0.3 km3, was observed between the end of the discharge in October 2008 and February 2012. Using the 35-day temporal resolution of Envisat radar altimetry, we monitored the subsequent filling and drainage of connected subglacial lakes located downstream of CookE2. The total volume of water traveling within the theoretical 500-km-long flow paths computed with the BEDMAP2 data set is similar to the volume that drained from Lake CookE2, and our observations suggest that most of the water released from Lake CookE2 did not reach the coast but remained trapped underneath the ice sheet. Our study illustrates how combining multiple remote sensing techniques allows monitoring of the timing and magnitude of subglacial water flow beneath the East Antarctic ice sheet.

38. OUTLET WORKS: CONTROL HOUSE PLAN AND ELEVATIONS. Sheet ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

38. OUTLET WORKS: CONTROL HOUSE - PLAN AND ELEVATIONS. Sheet 32, August 20, 1938. File no. SA 121/71. - Prado Dam, Outlet Works, Santa Ana River near junction of State Highways 71 & 91, Corona, Riverside County, CA

34. OUTLET WORKS: GATES ELEVATIONS AND SECTION. Sheet 43, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

34. OUTLET WORKS: GATES - ELEVATIONS AND SECTION. Sheet 43, August 20, 1938. File no. SA 121/89(?). - Prado Dam, Outlet Works, Santa Ana River near junction of State Highways 71 & 91, Corona, Riverside County, CA

43. OUTLET WORKS: SERVICE BRIDGE PLAN AND ELEVATION. Sheet ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

43. OUTLET WORKS: SERVICE BRIDGE - PLAN AND ELEVATION. Sheet 37, August 20, 1938. File no. SA 121/76. - Prado Dam, Outlet Works, Santa Ana River near junction of State Highways 71 & 91, Corona, Riverside County, CA

10. Fuel tanks concrete form plans, elevations and details, sheet ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

10. Fuel tanks concrete form plans, elevations and details, sheet 95 of 130 - Naval Air Station Fallon, Fuel Tanks, 800 Complex, off Carson Road near intersection of Pasture & Berney Roads, Fallon, Churchill County, NV

Surface elevation change on ice caps in the Qaanaaq region, northwestern Greenland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saito, Jun; Sugiyama, Shin; Tsutaki, Shun; Sawagaki, Takanobu

2016-09-01

A large number of glaciers and ice caps (GICs) are distributed along the Greenland coast, physically separated from the ice sheet. The total area of these GICs accounts for 5% of Greenland's ice cover. Melt water input from the GICs to the ocean substantially contributed to sea-level rise over the last century. Here, we report surface elevation changes of six ice caps near Qaanaaq (77°28‧N, 69°13‧W) in northwestern Greenland based on photogrammetric analysis of stereo pair satellite images. We processed the images with a digital map plotting instrument to generate digital elevation models (DEMs) in 2006 and 2010 with a grid resolution of 500 m. Generated DEMs were compared to measure surface elevation changes between 2006 and 2010. Over the study area of the six ice caps, covering 1215 km2, the mean rate of elevation change was -1.1 ± 0.1 m a-1. This rate is significantly greater than that previously reported for the 2003-2008 period (-0.6 ± 0.1 m a-1) for GICs all of northwestern Greenland. This increased mass loss is consistent with the rise in summer temperatures in this region at a rate of 0.12 °C a-1 for the 1997-2013 period.

Monitoring Antarctic ice sheet surface melting with TIMESAT algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ye, Y.; Cheng, X.; Li, X.; Liang, L.

2011-12-01

Antarctic ice sheet contributes significantly to the global heat budget by controlling the exchange of heat, moisture, and momentum at the surface-atmosphere interface, which directly influence the global atmospheric circulation and climate change. Ice sheet melting will cause snow humidity increase, which will accelerate the disintegration and movement of ice sheet. As a result, detecting Antarctic ice sheet melting is essential for global climate change research. In the past decades, various methods have been proposed for extracting snowmelt information from multi-channel satellite passive microwave data. Some methods are based on brightness temperature values or a composite index of them, and others are based on edge detection. TIMESAT (Time-series of Satellite sensor data) is an algorithm for extracting seasonality information from time-series of satellite sensor data. With TIMESAT long-time series brightness temperature (SSM/I 19H) is simulated by Double Logistic function. Snow is classified to wet and dry snow with generalized Gaussian model. The results were compared with those from a wavelet algorithm. On this basis, Antarctic automatic weather station data were used for ground verification. It shows that this algorithm is effective in ice sheet melting detection. The spatial distribution of melting areas(Fig.1) shows that, the majority of melting areas are located on the edge of Antarctic ice shelf region. It is affected by land cover type, surface elevation and geographic location (latitude). In addition, the Antarctic ice sheet melting varies with seasons. It is particularly acute in summer, peaking at December and January, staying low in March. In summary, from 1988 to 2008, Ross Ice Shelf and Ronnie Ice Shelf have the greatest interannual variability in amount of melting, which largely determines the overall interannual variability in Antarctica. Other regions, especially Larsen Ice Shelf and Wilkins Ice Shelf, which is in the Antarctic Peninsula region, have relative stable and consistent melt occurrence from year to year.

Use and Limitations of a Climate-Quality Data Record to Study Temperature Trends on the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hall, D. K.; Comiso, J. C.; Shuman, C. A.; Koenig, L.; DiGirolamo, N. E.

2011-12-01

Enhanced melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet has been documented in recent literature along with surface-temperature increases measured using infrared satellite data since 1981. Using a recently-developed climate-quality data record, 11- and 12-year trends in the clear-sky ice-surface temperature (IST) of the Greenland Ice Sheet have been studied using the Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) IST product. Daily and monthly MODIS ISTs of the Greenland Ice Sheet beginning on 1 March 2000 and continuing through 31 December 2010 are now available at 6.25-km spatial resolution on a polar stereographic grid as described in Hall et al. (submitted). This record will be elevated in status to a climate-data record (CDR) when more years of data become available either from the MODIS on the Terra or Aqua satellites, or from the Visible Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) to be launched in October 2011. Maps showing the maximum extent of melt for the entire ice sheet and for the six major drainage basins have been developed from the MODIS IST dataset. Twelve-year trends in the extent of melt and duration of the melt season on the ice sheet vary in different drainage basins with some basins melting progressively earlier over the course of the study period. Some (but not all) of the basins also show a progressively-longer duration of melt. Twelve-year trends in IST are compared with in-situ data, and climate data from the Modern Era Retrospective-Analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA) Reanalysis. Hall, D.K., J.C. Comiso, N.E. DiGirolamo, C.A. Shuman, J. Key and L.S. Koenig, submitted for journal publication: A Satellite-Derived Climate-Quality Data Record of the Clear-Sky Surface Temperature of the Greenland Ice Sheet.

Mass Changes of the Greenland and Antarctic Ice Sheets and Shelves and Contributions to Sea-level Rise: 1992-2002

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zwally, H. Jay; Giovinetto, Mario B.; Li, Jun; Cornejo, Helen G.; Beckley, Matthew A.; Brenner, Anita C.; Saba, Jack L.; Yi, Donghui

2005-01-01

Changes in ice mass are estimated from elevation changes derived from 10.5 years (Greenland) and 9 years (Antarctica) of satellite radar altimetry data from the European Remote-sensing Satellites ERS-1 and -2. For the first time, the dH/dt values are adjusted for changes in surface elevation resulting from temperature-driven variations in the rate of fun compaction. The Greenland ice sheet is thinning at the margins (-42 plus or minus 2 Gta(sup -1) below the equilibrium line altitude (ELA)) and growing inland (+53 plus or minus 2 Gt a(sup -1)above the ELA) with a small overall mass gain (+11 plus or minus 3 Gt a(sup -1); -0.03 mm a(sup -1) SLE (sea level equivalent)). The ice sheet in West Antarctica (WA) is losing mass (-47 (dot) 4 GT a(sup -1) and the ice sheet in East Antarctica (EA) shows a small mass gain (+16 plus or minus 11 Gt a(sup -1) for a combined net change of -31 plus or minus 12 Gt a(sup -1) (+0.08 mm a(sup -1) SLE)). The contribution of the three ice sheets to sea level is +0.05 plus or minus 0.03 mm a(sup -1). The Antarctic ice shelves show corresponding mass changes of -95 (dot) 11 Gt a(sup -1) in WA and +142 plus or minus 10 Gt a(sup -1) in EA. Thinning at the margins of the Greenland ice sheet and growth at higher elevations is an expected response to increasing temperatures and precipitation in a warming climate. The marked thinnings in the Pine Island and Thwaites Glacier basins of WA and the Totten Glacier basin in EA are probably ice-dynamic responses to long-term climate change and perhaps past removal of their adjacent ice shelves. The ice growth in the southern Antarctic Peninsula and parts of EA may be due to increasing precipitation during the last century.

Coupled ice sheet - climate simulations of the last glacial inception and last glacial maximum with a model of intermediate complexity that includes a dynamical downscaling of heat and moisture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Quiquet, Aurélien; Roche, Didier M.

2017-04-01

Comprehensive fully coupled ice sheet - climate models allowing for multi-millenia transient simulations are becoming available. They represent powerful tools to investigate ice sheet - climate interactions during the repeated retreats and advances of continental ice sheets of the Pleistocene. However, in such models, most of the time, the spatial resolution of the ice sheet model is one order of magnitude lower than the one of the atmospheric model. As such, orography-induced precipitation is only poorly represented. In this work, we briefly present the most recent improvements of the ice sheet - climate coupling within the model of intermediate complexity iLOVECLIM. On the one hand, from the native atmospheric resolution (T21), we have included a dynamical downscaling of heat and moisture at the ice sheet model resolution (40 km x 40 km). This downscaling accounts for feedbacks of sub-grid precipitation on large scale energy and water budgets. From the sub-grid atmospheric variables, we compute an ice sheet surface mass balance required by the ice sheet model. On the other hand, we also explicitly use oceanic temperatures to compute sub-shelf melting at a given depth. Based on palaeo evidences for rate of change of eustatic sea level, we discuss the capability of our new model to correctly simulate the last glacial inception ( 116 kaBP) and the ice volume of the last glacial maximum ( 21 kaBP). We show that the model performs well in certain areas (e.g. Canadian archipelago) but some model biases are consistent over time periods (e.g. Kara-Barents sector). We explore various model sensitivities (e.g. initial state, vegetation, albedo) and we discuss the importance of the downscaling of precipitation for ice nucleation over elevated area and for the surface mass balance of larger ice sheets.

Dynamic behaviour of the East Antarctic ice sheet during Pliocene warmth

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cook, Carys P.; van de Flierdt, Tina; Williams, Trevor; Hemming, Sidney R.; Iwai, Masao; Kobayashi, Munemasa; Jimenez-Espejo, Francisco J.; Escutia, Carlota; González, Jhon Jairo; Khim, Boo-Keun; McKay, Robert M.; Passchier, Sandra; Bohaty, Steven M.; Riesselman, Christina R.; Tauxe, Lisa; Sugisaki, Saiko; Galindo, Alberto Lopez; Patterson, Molly O.; Sangiorgi, Francesca; Pierce, Elizabeth L.; Brinkhuis, Henk; Klaus, Adam; Fehr, Annick; Bendle, James A. P.; Bijl, Peter K.; Carr, Stephanie A.; Dunbar, Robert B.; Flores, José Abel; Hayden, Travis G.; Katsuki, Kota; Kong, Gee Soo; Nakai, Mutsumi; Olney, Matthew P.; Pekar, Stephen F.; Pross, Jörg; Röhl, Ursula; Sakai, Toyosaburo; Shrivastava, Prakash K.; Stickley, Catherine E.; Tuo, Shouting; Welsh, Kevin; Yamane, Masako

2013-09-01

Warm intervals within the Pliocene epoch (5.33-2.58 million years ago) were characterized by global temperatures comparable to those predicted for the end of this century and atmospheric CO2 concentrations similar to today. Estimates for global sea level highstands during these times imply possible retreat of the East Antarctic ice sheet, but ice-proximal evidence from the Antarctic margin is scarce. Here we present new data from Pliocene marine sediments recovered offshore of Adélie Land, East Antarctica, that reveal dynamic behaviour of the East Antarctic ice sheet in the vicinity of the low-lying Wilkes Subglacial Basin during times of past climatic warmth. Sedimentary sequences deposited between 5.3 and 3.3 million years ago indicate increases in Southern Ocean surface water productivity, associated with elevated circum-Antarctic temperatures. The geochemical provenance of detrital material deposited during these warm intervals suggests active erosion of continental bedrock from within the Wilkes Subglacial Basin, an area today buried beneath the East Antarctic ice sheet. We interpret this erosion to be associated with retreat of the ice sheet margin several hundreds of kilometres inland and conclude that the East Antarctic ice sheet was sensitive to climatic warmth during the Pliocene.

The dynamics of climate-induced deglacial ice stream acceleration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Robel, A.; Tziperman, E.

2015-12-01

Geological observations indicate that ice streams were a significant contributor to ice flow in the Laurentide Ice Sheet during the Last Glacial Maximum. Conceptual and simple model studies have also argued that the gradual development of ice streams increases the sensitivity of large ice sheets to weak climate forcing. In this study, we use an idealized configuration of the Parallel Ice Sheet Model to explore the role of ice streams in rapid deglaciation. In a growing ice sheet, ice streams develop gradually as the bed warms and the margin expands outward onto the continental shelf. Then, a weak change in equilibrium line altitude commensurate with Milankovitch forcing results in a rapid deglacial response, as ice stream acceleration leads to enhanced calving and surface melting at low elevations. We explain the dynamical mechanism that drives this ice stream acceleration and its broader applicability as a feedback for enhancing ice sheet decay in response to climate forcing. We show how our idealized ice sheet simulations match geomorphological observations of deglacial ice stream variability and previous model-data analyses. We conclude with observations on the potential for interaction between ice streams and other feedback mechanisms within the earth system.

Efficient meltwater drainage through supraglacial streams and rivers on the southwest Greenland ice sheet.

PubMed

Smith, Laurence C; Chu, Vena W; Yang, Kang; Gleason, Colin J; Pitcher, Lincoln H; Rennermalm, Asa K; Legleiter, Carl J; Behar, Alberto E; Overstreet, Brandon T; Moustafa, Samiah E; Tedesco, Marco; Forster, Richard R; LeWinter, Adam L; Finnegan, David C; Sheng, Yongwei; Balog, James

2015-01-27

Thermally incised meltwater channels that flow each summer across melt-prone surfaces of the Greenland ice sheet have received little direct study. We use high-resolution WorldView-1/2 satellite mapping and in situ measurements to characterize supraglacial water storage, drainage pattern, and discharge across 6,812 km(2) of southwest Greenland in July 2012, after a record melt event. Efficient surface drainage was routed through 523 high-order stream/river channel networks, all of which terminated in moulins before reaching the ice edge. Low surface water storage (3.6 ± 0.9 cm), negligible impoundment by supraglacial lakes or topographic depressions, and high discharge to moulins (2.54-2.81 cm⋅d(-1)) indicate that the surface drainage system conveyed its own storage volume every <2 d to the bed. Moulin discharges mapped inside ∼52% of the source ice watershed for Isortoq, a major proglacial river, totaled ∼41-98% of observed proglacial discharge, highlighting the importance of supraglacial river drainage to true outflow from the ice edge. However, Isortoq discharges tended lower than runoff simulations from the Modèle Atmosphérique Régional (MAR) regional climate model (0.056-0.112 km(3)⋅d(-1) vs. ∼0.103 km(3)⋅d(-1)), and when integrated over the melt season, totaled just 37-75% of MAR, suggesting nontrivial subglacial water storage even in this melt-prone region of the ice sheet. We conclude that (i) the interior surface of the ice sheet can be efficiently drained under optimal conditions, (ii) that digital elevation models alone cannot fully describe supraglacial drainage and its connection to subglacial systems, and (iii) that predicting outflow from climate models alone, without recognition of subglacial processes, may overestimate true meltwater export from the ice sheet to the ocean.

Efficient meltwater drainage through supraglacial streams and rivers on the southwest Greenland ice sheet

PubMed Central

Smith, Laurence C.; Chu, Vena W.; Yang, Kang; Gleason, Colin J.; Pitcher, Lincoln H.; Rennermalm, Asa K.; Legleiter, Carl J.; Behar, Alberto E.; Overstreet, Brandon T.; Moustafa, Samiah E.; Tedesco, Marco; Forster, Richard R.; LeWinter, Adam L.; Finnegan, David C.; Sheng, Yongwei; Balog, James

2015-01-01

Thermally incised meltwater channels that flow each summer across melt-prone surfaces of the Greenland ice sheet have received little direct study. We use high-resolution WorldView-1/2 satellite mapping and in situ measurements to characterize supraglacial water storage, drainage pattern, and discharge across 6,812 km2 of southwest Greenland in July 2012, after a record melt event. Efficient surface drainage was routed through 523 high-order stream/river channel networks, all of which terminated in moulins before reaching the ice edge. Low surface water storage (3.6 ± 0.9 cm), negligible impoundment by supraglacial lakes or topographic depressions, and high discharge to moulins (2.54–2.81 cm⋅d−1) indicate that the surface drainage system conveyed its own storage volume every <2 d to the bed. Moulin discharges mapped inside ∼52% of the source ice watershed for Isortoq, a major proglacial river, totaled ∼41–98% of observed proglacial discharge, highlighting the importance of supraglacial river drainage to true outflow from the ice edge. However, Isortoq discharges tended lower than runoff simulations from the Modèle Atmosphérique Régional (MAR) regional climate model (0.056–0.112 km3⋅d−1 vs. ∼0.103 km3⋅d−1), and when integrated over the melt season, totaled just 37–75% of MAR, suggesting nontrivial subglacial water storage even in this melt-prone region of the ice sheet. We conclude that (i) the interior surface of the ice sheet can be efficiently drained under optimal conditions, (ii) that digital elevation models alone cannot fully describe supraglacial drainage and its connection to subglacial systems, and (iii) that predicting outflow from climate models alone, without recognition of subglacial processes, may overestimate true meltwater export from the ice sheet to the ocean. PMID:25583477

A first assessment of Sentinel-3 SAR altimetry over ice sheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McMillan, M.; Muir, A. S.; Shepherd, A.

2017-12-01

The first Sentinel-3 satellite was launched in 2016 and carries onboard a Ku-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) altimeter. With coverage up to a latitude of 81.5 degrees and a repeat period of 27 days, it offers the opportunity to measure surface topography and elevation change across much of the Antarctic and Greenland Ice Sheets, therefore continuing the existing 25 year radar altimeter record. The global operation of Sentinel-3 in SAR mode differs from all past Ku-band instruments; for the first time SAR measurements are routinely acquired across the interiors of the ice sheets; however unlike CryoSat-2 it does not carry an interferometer to aid signal retrieval in regions of complex coastal terrain. In view of these differences and the novel characteristics of the Sentinel-3 system, assessments of the performance of the instrument are required, to evaluate the satellite's utility for monitoring Earth's Polar regions. Here, we analyse data acquired during the first year of routine operations, to assess the performance of the Sentinel-3 SAR altimeter to date. We focus both on inland ice sheet regions, where Sentinel-3 provides the first operational SAR altimeter measurements, and also on coastal areas with more complex topography. We investigate SAR waveforms and retrieved elevations in both regions, and through comparison to measurements from earlier missions examine the impact of the different modes of operation. We also conduct a high level evaluation of the data, by comparing it to reference airborne altimetry, to provide an assessment of Sentinel-3 performance to date over ice sheets.

Apparatus for making photovoltaic devices

DOEpatents

Foote, James B.; Kaake, Steven A. F.; Meyers, Peter V.; Nolan, James F.

1994-12-13

A process and apparatus (70) for making a large area photovoltaic device (22) that is capable of generating low cost electrical power. The apparatus (70) for performing the process includes an enclosure (126) providing a controlled environment in which an oven (156) is located. At least one and preferably a plurality of deposition stations (74,76,78) provide heated vapors of semiconductor material within the oven (156) for continuous elevated temperature deposition of semiconductor material on a sheet substrate (24) including a glass sheet (26) conveyed within the oven. The sheet substrate (24) is conveyed on a roller conveyor (184) within the oven (156) and the semiconductor material whose main layer (82) is cadmium telluride is deposited on an upwardly facing surface (28) of the substrate by each deposition station from a location within the oven above the roller conveyor. A cooling station (86) rapidly cools the substrate (24) after deposition of the semiconductor material thereon to strengthen the glass sheet of the substrate.

Process for making photovoltaic devices and resultant product

DOEpatents

Foote, James B.; Kaake, Steven A. F.; Meyers, Peter V.; Nolan, James F.

1996-07-16

A process and apparatus (70) for making a large area photovoltaic device (22) that is capable of generating low cost electrical power. The apparatus (70) for performing the process includes an enclosure (126) providing a controlled environment in which an oven (156) is located. At least one and preferably a plurality of deposition stations (74,76,78) provide heated vapors of semiconductor material within the oven (156) for continuous elevated temperature deposition of semiconductor material on a sheet substrate (24) including a glass sheet (26) conveyed within the oven. The sheet substrate (24) is conveyed on a roller conveyor (184) within the oven (156) and the semiconductor material whose main layer (82) is cadmium telluride is deposited on an upwardly facing surface (28) of the substrate by each deposition station from a location within the oven above the roller conveyor. A cooling station (86) rapidly cools the substrate (24) after deposition of the semiconductor material thereon to strengthen the glass sheet of the substrate.

Process for making photovoltaic devices and resultant product

DOEpatents

Foote, James B.; Kaake, Steven A. F.; Meyers, Peter V.; Nolan, James F.

1995-11-28

A process and apparatus (70) for making a large area photovoltaic device (22) that is capable of generating low cost electrical power. The apparatus (70) for performing the process includes an enclosure (126) providing a controlled environment in which an oven (156) is located. At least one and preferably a plurality of deposition stations (74,76,78) provide heated vapors of semiconductor material within the oven (156) for continuous elevated temperature deposition of semiconductor material on a sheet substrate (24) including a glass sheet (26) conveyed within the oven. The sheet substrate (24) is conveyed on a roller conveyor (184) within the oven (156) and the semiconductor material whose main layer (82) is cadmium telluride is deposited on an upwardly facing surface (28) of the substrate by each deposition station from a location within the oven above the roller conveyor. A cooling station (86) rapidly cools the substrate (24) after deposition of the semiconductor material thereon to strengthen the glass sheet of the substrate.

Process for making photovoltaic devices and resultant product

DOEpatents

Foote, James B.; Kaake, Steven A. F.; Meyers, Peter V.; Nolan, James F.

1993-09-28

A process and apparatus (70) for making a large area photovoltaic device (22) that is capable of generating low cost electrical power. The apparatus (70) for performing the process includes an enclosure (126) providing a controlled environment in which an oven (156) is located. At least one and preferably a plurality of deposition stations (74,76,78) provide heated vapors of semiconductor material within the oven (156) for continuous elevated temperature deposition of semiconductor material on a sheet substrate (24) including a glass sheet (26) conveyed within the oven. The sheet substrate (24) is conveyed on a roller conveyor (184) within the oven (156) and the semiconductor material whose main layer (82) is cadmium telluride is deposited on an upwardly facing surface (28) of the substrate by each deposition station from a location within the oven above the roller conveyor. A cooling station (86) rapidly cools the substrate (24) after deposition of the semiconductor material thereon to strengthen the glass sheet of the substrate.

A new, multi-resolution bedrock elevation map of the Greenland ice sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Griggs, J. A.; Bamber, J. L.; Grisbed Consortium

2010-12-01

Gridded bedrock elevation for the Greenland ice sheet has previously been constructed with a 5 km posting. The true resolution of the data set was, in places, however, considerably coarser than this due to the across-track spacing of ice-penetrating radar transects. Errors were estimated to be on the order of a few percent in the centre of the ice sheet, increasing markedly in relative magnitude near the margins, where accurate thickness is particularly critical for numerical modelling and other applications. We use new airborne and satellite estimates of ice thickness and surface elevation to determine the bed topography for the whole of Greenland. This is a dynamic product, which will be updated frequently as new data, such as that from NASA’s Operation Ice Bridge, becomes available. The University of Kansas has in recent years, flown an airborne ice-penetrating radar system with close flightline spacing over several key outlet glacier systems. This allows us to produce a multi-resolution bedrock elevation dataset with the high spatial resolution needed for ice dynamic modelling over these key outlet glaciers and coarser resolution over the more sparsely sampled interior. Airborne ice thickness and elevation from CReSIS obtained between 1993 and 2009 are combined with JPL/UCI/Iowa data collected by the WISE (Warm Ice Sounding Experiment) covering the marginal areas along the south west coast from 2009. Data collected in the 1970’s by the Technical University of Denmark were also used in interior areas with sparse coverage from other sources. Marginal elevation data from the ICESat laser altimeter and the Greenland Ice Mapping Program were used to help constrain the ice thickness and bed topography close to the ice sheet margin where, typically, the terrestrial observations have poor sampling between flight tracks. The GRISBed consortium currently consists of: W. Blake, S. Gogineni, A. Hoch, C. M. Laird, C. Leuschen, J. Meisel, J. Paden, J. Plummer, F. Rodriguez-Morales and L. Smith, CReSIS, University of Kansas; E. Rignot, JPL and University of California, Irvine; Y. Gim, JPL; J. Mouginot, University of California, Irvine; D. Kirchner, University of Iowa; I. Howat, Byrd Polar Research Center, Ohio State University; I. Joughin and B. Smith, University of Washington; T. Scambos, NSIDC; S. Martin, University of Washington; T. Wagner, NASA.

Balance Mass Flux and Velocity Across the Equilibrium Line in Ice Drainage Systems of Greenland

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zwally, H. Jay; Giovinetto, Mario B.; Koblinsky, Chester J. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

Estimates of balance mass flux and the depth-averaged ice velocity through the cross-section aligned with the equilibrium line are produced for each of six drainage systems in Greenland. (The equilibrium line, which lies at approximately 1200 m elevation on the ice sheet, is the boundary between the area of net snow accumulation at higher elevations and the areas of net melting at lower elevations around the ice sheet.) Ice drainage divides and six major drainage systems are delineated using surface topography from ERS (European Remote Sensing) radar altimeter data. The net accumulation rate in the accumulation zone bounded by the equilibrium line is 399 Gt/yr and net ablation rate in the remaining area is 231 Gt/yr. (1 GigaTon of ice is 1090 kM(exp 3). The mean balance mass flux and depth-averaged ice velocity at the cross-section aligned with the modeled equilibrium line are 0.1011 Gt kM(exp -2)/yr and 0.111 km/yr, respectively, with little variation in these values from system to system. The ratio of the ice mass above the equilibrium line to the rate of mass output implies an effective exchange time of approximately 6000 years for total mass exchange. The range of exchange times, from a low of 3 ka in the SE drainage system to 14 ka in the NE, suggests a rank as to which regions of the ice sheet may respond more rapidly to climate fluctuations.

Relevance of detail in basal topography for basal slipperiness inversions: a case study on Pine Island Glacier, Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kyrke-Smith, Teresa M.; Gudmundsson, G. Hilmar; Farrell, Patrick E.

2018-04-01

Given high-resolution satellite-derived surface elevation and velocity data, ice-sheet models generally estimate mechanical basal boundary conditions using surface-to-bed inversion methods. In this work, we address the sensitivity of results from inversion methods to the accuracy of the bed elevation data on Pine Island Glacier. We show that misfit between observations and model output is reduced when high-resolution bed topography is used in the inverse model. By looking at results with a range of detail included in the bed elevation, we consider the separation of basal drag due to the bed topography (form drag) and that due to inherent bed properties (skin drag). The mean value of basal shear stress is reduced when more detailed topography is included in the model. This suggests that without a fully resolved bed a significant amount of the basal shear stress recovered from inversion methods may be due to the unresolved bed topography. However, the spatial structure of the retrieved fields is robust as the bed accuracy is varied; the fields are instead sensitive to the degree of regularisation applied to the inversion. While the implications for the future temporal evolution of PIG are not quantified here directly, our work raises the possibility that skin drag may be overestimated in the current generation of numerical ice-sheet models of this area. These shortcomings could be overcome by inverting simultaneously for both bed topography and basal slipperiness.

Eemian interglacial reconstructed from a Greenland folded ice core.

PubMed

2013-01-24

Efforts to extract a Greenland ice core with a complete record of the Eemian interglacial (130,000 to 115,000 years ago) have until now been unsuccessful. The response of the Greenland ice sheet to the warmer-than-present climate of the Eemian has thus remained unclear. Here we present the new North Greenland Eemian Ice Drilling ('NEEM') ice core and show only a modest ice-sheet response to the strong warming in the early Eemian. We reconstructed the Eemian record from folded ice using globally homogeneous parameters known from dated Greenland and Antarctic ice-core records. On the basis of water stable isotopes, NEEM surface temperatures after the onset of the Eemian (126,000 years ago) peaked at 8 ± 4 degrees Celsius above the mean of the past millennium, followed by a gradual cooling that was probably driven by the decreasing summer insolation. Between 128,000 and 122,000 years ago, the thickness of the northwest Greenland ice sheet decreased by 400 ± 250 metres, reaching surface elevations 122,000 years ago of 130 ± 300 metres lower than the present. Extensive surface melt occurred at the NEEM site during the Eemian, a phenomenon witnessed when melt layers formed again at NEEM during the exceptional heat of July 2012. With additional warming, surface melt might become more common in the future.

Ice Sheet Change Detection by Satellite Image Differencing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bindschadler, Robert A.; Scambos, Ted A.; Choi, Hyeungu; Haran, Terry M.

2010-01-01

Differencing of digital satellite image pairs highlights subtle changes in near-identical scenes of Earth surfaces. Using the mathematical relationships relevant to photoclinometry, we examine the effectiveness of this method for the study of localized ice sheet surface topography changes using numerical experiments. We then test these results by differencing images of several regions in West Antarctica, including some where changes have previously been identified in altimeter profiles. The technique works well with coregistered images having low noise, high radiometric sensitivity, and near-identical solar illumination geometry. Clouds and frosts detract from resolving surface features. The ETM(plus) sensor on Landsat-7, ALI sensor on EO-1, and MODIS sensor on the Aqua and Terra satellite platforms all have potential for detecting localized topographic changes such as shifting dunes, surface inflation and deflation features associated with sub-glacial lake fill-drain events, or grounding line changes. Availability and frequency of MODIS images favor this sensor for wide application, and using it, we demonstrate both qualitative identification of changes in topography and quantitative mapping of slope and elevation changes.

Use and Limitations of a Climate-Quality Data Record to Study Temperature Trends on the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, Dorothy K.; Comiso, Josefino C.; Shuman, Christopher A.; Koenig, Lora S.; DiGirolamo, Nicolo E.

2011-01-01

Enhanced melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet has been documented in recent literature along with surface-temperature increases measured using infrared satellite data since 1981. Using a recently-developed climate-quality data record, 11- and 12-year trends in the clear-sky ice-surface temperature (IST) of the Greenland Ice Sheet have been studied using the Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) IST product. Daily and monthly MODIS ISTs of the Greenland Ice Sheet beginning on 1 March 2000 and continuing through 31 December 2010 are now available at 6.25-km spatial resolution on a polar stereographic grid as described in Hall et al. (submitted). This record will be elevated in status to a climate-data record (CDR) when more years of data become available either from the MODIS on the Terra or Aqua satellites, or from the Visible Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) to be launched in October 2011. Maps showing the maximum extent of melt for the entire ice sheet and for the six major drainage basins have been developed from the MODIS IST dataset. Twelve-year trends of the duration of the melt season on the ice sheet vary in different drainage basins with some basins melting progressively earlier over the course of the study period. Some (but not all) of the basins also show a progressively-longer duration of melt. IST 12-year trends are compared with in-situ data, and climate data from the Modern Era Retrospective-Analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA) Reanalysis.

Heinrich events modeled in transient glacial simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ziemen, Florian; Kapsch, Marie; Mikolajewicz, Uwe

2017-04-01

Heinrich events are among the most prominent events of climate variability recorded in proxies across the northern hemisphere. They are the archetype of ice sheet — climate interactions on millennial time scales. Nevertheless, the exact mechanisms that cause Heinrich events are still under debate, and their climatic consequences are far from being fully understood. We address open questions by studying Heinrich events in a coupled ice sheet model (ISM) atmosphere-ocean-vegetation general circulation model (AOVGCM) framework, where this variability occurs as part of the model generated internal variability. The framework consists of a northern hemisphere setup of the modified Parallel Ice Sheet Model (mPISM) coupled to the global AOVGCM ECHAM5/MPIOM/LPJ. The simulations were performed fully coupled and with transient orbital and greenhouse gas forcing. They span from several millennia before the last glacial maximum into the deglaciation. To make these long simulations feasible, the atmosphere is accelerated by a factor of 10 relative to the other model components using a periodical-synchronous coupling technique. To disentangle effects of the Heinrich events and the deglaciation, we focus on the events occurring before the deglaciation. The modeled Heinrich events show a peak ice discharge of about 0.05 Sv and raise the sea level by 2.3 m on average. The resulting surface water freshening reduces the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation and ocean heat release. The reduction in ocean heat release causes a sub-surface warming and decreases the air temperature and precipitation regionally and downstream into Eurasia. The surface elevation decrease of the ice sheet enhances moisture transport onto the ice sheet and thus increases precipitation over the Hudson Bay area, thereby accelerating the recovery after an event.

Contamination of the Arctic reflected in microbial metagenomes from the Greenland ice sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hauptmann, Aviaja L.; Sicheritz-Pontén, Thomas; Cameron, Karen A.; Bælum, Jacob; Plichta, Damian R.; Dalgaard, Marlene; Stibal, Marek

2017-07-01

Globally emitted contaminants accumulate in the Arctic and are stored in the frozen environments of the cryosphere. Climate change influences the release of these contaminants through elevated melt rates, resulting in increased contamination locally. Our understanding of how biological processes interact with contamination in the Arctic is limited. Through shotgun metagenomic data and binned genomes from metagenomes we show that microbial communities, sampled from multiple surface ice locations on the Greenland ice sheet, have the potential for resistance to and degradation of contaminants. The microbial potential to degrade anthropogenic contaminants, such as toxic and persistent polychlorinated biphenyls, was found to be spatially variable and not limited to regions close to human activities. Binned genomes showed close resemblance to microorganisms isolated from contaminated habitats. These results indicate that, from a microbiological perspective, the Greenland ice sheet cannot be seen as a pristine environment.

The Reference Elevation Model of Antarctica (REMA): A High Resolution, Time-Stamped Digital Elevation Model for the Antarctic Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Howat, I.; Noh, M. J.; Porter, C. C.; Smith, B. E.; Morin, P. J.

2017-12-01

We are creating the Reference Elevation Model of Antarctica (REMA), a continuous, high resolution (2-8 m), high precision (accuracy better than 1 m) reference surface for a wide range of glaciological and geodetic applications. REMA will be constructed from stereo-photogrammetric Digital Surface Models (DSM) extracted from pairs of submeter resolution DigitalGlobe satellite imagery and vertically registred to precise elevations from near-coincident airborne LiDAR, ground-based GPS surveys and Cryosat-2 radar altimetry. Both a seamless mosaic and individual, time-stamped DSM strips, collected primarily between 2012 and 2016, will be distributed to enable change measurement. These data will be used for mapping bed topography from ice thickness, measuring ice thickness changes, constraining ice flow and geodynamic models, mapping glacial geomorphology, terrain corrections and filtering of remote sensing observations, and many other science tasks. Is will also be critical for mapping ice traverse routes, landing sites and other field logistics planning. REMA will also provide a critical elevation benchmark for future satellite altimetry missions including ICESat-2. Here we report on REMA production progress, initial accuracy assessment and data availability.

Potential subglacial lake locations and meltwater drainage pathways beneath the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Livingstone, S. J.; Clark, C. D.; Woodward, J.; Kingslake, J.

2013-11-01

We use the Shreve hydraulic potential equation as a simplified approach to investigate potential subglacial lake locations and meltwater drainage pathways beneath the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets. We validate the method by demonstrating its ability to recall the locations of >60% of the known subglacial lakes beneath the Antarctic Ice Sheet. This is despite uncertainty in the ice-sheet bed elevation and our simplified modelling approach. However, we predict many more lakes than are observed. Hence we suggest that thousands of subglacial lakes remain to be found. Applying our technique to the Greenland Ice Sheet, where very few subglacial lakes have so far been observed, recalls 1607 potential lake locations, covering 1.2% of the bed. Our results will therefore provide suitable targets for geophysical surveys aimed at identifying lakes beneath Greenland. We also apply the technique to modelled past ice-sheet configurations and find that during deglaciation both ice sheets likely had more subglacial lakes at their beds. These lakes, inherited from past ice-sheet configurations, would not form under current surface conditions, but are able to persist, suggesting a retreating ice-sheet will have many more subglacial lakes than advancing ones. We also investigate subglacial drainage pathways of the present-day and former Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. Key sectors of the ice sheets, such as the Siple Coast (Antarctica) and NE Greenland Ice Stream system, are suggested to have been susceptible to subglacial drainage switching. We discuss how our results impact our understanding of meltwater drainage, basal lubrication and ice-stream formation.

Final Laurentide ice-sheet deglaciation and Holocene climate-sea level change

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ullman, David J.; Carlson, Anders E.; Hostetler, Steven W.; Clark, Peter U.; Cuzzone, Joshua; Milne, Glenn A.; Winsor, Kelsey; Caffee, Marc A.

2016-01-01

Despite elevated summer insolation forcing during the early Holocene, global ice sheets retained nearly half of their volume from the Last Glacial Maximum, as indicated by deglacial records of global mean sea level (GMSL). Partitioning the GMSL rise among potential sources requires accurate dating of ice-sheet extent to estimate ice-sheet volume. Here, we date the final retreat of the Laurentide Ice Sheet with 10Be surface exposure ages for the Labrador Dome, the largest of the remnant Laurentide ice domes during the Holocene. We show that the Labrador Dome deposited moraines during North Atlantic cold events at ∼10.3 ka, 9.3 ka and 8.2 ka, suggesting that these regional climate events helped stabilize the retreating Labrador Dome in the early Holocene. After Hudson Bay became seasonally ice free at ∼8.2 ka, the majority of Laurentide ice-sheet melted abruptly within a few centuries. We demonstrate through high-resolution regional climate model simulations that the thermal properties of a seasonally ice-free Hudson Bay would have increased Laurentide ice-sheet ablation and thus contributed to the subsequent rapid Labrador Dome retreat. Finally, our new 10Be chronology indicates full Laurentide ice-sheet had completely deglaciated by 6.7 ± 0.4 ka, which re quires that Antarctic ice sheets contributed 3.6–6.5 m to GMSL rise since 6.3–7.1 ka.

7. ARCHITECTURAL ELEVATIONS AND FLOOR PLANS OF OFFICE, SHEET 1 ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

7. ARCHITECTURAL ELEVATIONS AND FLOOR PLANS OF OFFICE, SHEET 1 OF 1, 8' X 10' NEGATIVE MADE FROM COPIES OF ORIGINAL PLANS, MAY 21, 1913; WALLOWA-WHITMAN NATIONAL FOREST SUPERVISOR'S OFFICE, BAKER CITY, OREGON - Wallowa Ranger Station, Office, 602 First Street, Wallowa, Wallowa County, OR

LIVVkit 2: An extensible land ice verification and validation toolkit for comparing observations and models?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kennedy, J. H.; Bennett, A. R.; Evans, K. J.; Fyke, J. G.; Vargo, L.; Price, S. F.; Hoffman, M. J.

2016-12-01

Accurate representation of ice sheets and glaciers are essential for robust predictions of arctic climate within Earth System models. Verification and Validation (V&V) is a set of techniques used to quantify the correctness and accuracy of a model, which builds developer/modeler confidence, and can be used to enhance the credibility of the model. Fundamentally, V&V is a continuous process because each model change requires a new round of V&V testing. The Community Ice Sheet Model (CISM) development community is actively developing LIVVkit, the Land Ice Verification and Validation toolkit, which is designed to easily integrate into an ice-sheet model's development workflow (on both personal and high-performance computers) to provide continuous V&V testing.LIVVkit is a robust and extensible python package for V&V, which has components for both software V&V (construction and use) and model V&V (mathematics and physics). The model Verification component is used, for example, to verify model results against community intercomparisons such as ISMIP-HOM. The model validation component is used, for example, to generate a series of diagnostic plots showing the differences between model results against observations for variables such as thickness, surface elevation, basal topography, surface velocity, surface mass balance, etc. Because many different ice-sheet models are under active development, new validation datasets are becoming available, and new methods of analysing these models are actively being researched, LIVVkit includes a framework to easily extend the model V&V analyses by ice-sheet modelers. This allows modelers and developers to develop evaluations of parameters, implement changes, and quickly see how those changes effect the ice-sheet model and earth system model (when coupled). Furthermore, LIVVkit outputs a portable hierarchical website allowing evaluations to be easily shared, published, and analysed throughout the arctic and Earth system communities.

Elevation Change of the Southern Greenland Ice Sheet from Satellite Radar Altimeter Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Haines, Bruce J.

1999-01-01

Long-term changes in the thickness of the polar ice sheets are important indicators of climate change. Understanding the contributions to the global water mass balance from the accumulation or ablation of grounded ice in Greenland and Antarctica is considered crucial for determining the source of the about 2 mm/yr sea-level rise in the last century. Though the Antarctic ice sheet is much larger than its northern counterpart, the Greenland ice sheet is more likely to undergo dramatic changes in response to a warming trend. This can be attributed to the warmer Greenland climate, as well as a potential for amplification of a global warming trend in the polar regions of the Northern Hemisphere. In collaboration with Drs. Curt Davis and Craig Kluever of the University of Missouri, we are using data from satellite radar altimeters to measure changes in the elevation of the Southern Greenland ice sheet from 1978 to the present. Difficulties with systematic altimeter measurement errors, particularly in intersatellite comparisons, beset earlier studies of the Greenland ice sheet thickness. We use altimeter data collected contemporaneously over the global ocean to establish a reference for correcting ice-sheet data. In addition, the waveform data from the ice-sheet radar returns are reprocessed to better determine the range from the satellite to the ice surface. At JPL, we are focusing our efforts principally on the reduction of orbit errors and range biases in the measurement systems on the various altimeter missions. Our approach emphasizes global characterization and reduction of the long-period orbit errors and range biases using altimeter data from NASA's Ocean Pathfinder program. Along-track sea-height residuals are sequentially filtered and backwards smoothed, and the radial orbit errors are modeled as sinusoids with a wavelength equal to one revolution of the satellite. The amplitudes of the sinusoids are treated as exponentially-correlated noise processes with a time-constant of six days. Measurement errors (e.g., altimeter range bias) are simultaneously recovered as constant parameters. The corrections derived from the global ocean analysis are then applied over the Greenland ice sheet. The orbit error and measurement bias corrections for different missions are developed in a single framework to enable robust linkage of ice-sheet measurements from 1978 to the present. In 1998, we completed our re-evaluation of the 1978 Seasat and 1985-1989 Geosat Exact Repeat Mission data. The estimates of ice thickness over Southern Greenland (south of 72N and above 2000 m) from 1978 to 1988 show large regional variations (+/-18 cm/yr), but yield an overall rate of +1.5 +/- 0.5 cm/yr (one standard error). Accounting for systematic errors, the estimate may not be significantly different from the null growth rate. The average elevation change from 1978 to 1988 is too small to assess whether the Greenland ice sheet is undergoing a long-term change.

15. SUPERSTRUCTURE PLANS, ELEVATION AND DETAILS, SHEET 4 OF 117, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

15. SUPERSTRUCTURE PLANS, ELEVATION AND DETAILS, SHEET 4 OF 117, 1920. - Sacramento River Water Treatment Plant Intake Pier & Access Bridge, Spanning Sacramento River approximately 175 feet west of eastern levee on river; roughly .5 mile downstream from confluence of Sacramento & American Rivers, Sacramento, Sacramento County, CA

16. INTAKE PIER, PLANS ELEVATIONS, AND SECTIONS, SHEETS 5 OF ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

16. INTAKE PIER, PLANS ELEVATIONS, AND SECTIONS, SHEETS 5 OF 117, 1920. - Sacramento River Water Treatment Plant Intake Pier & Access Bridge, Spanning Sacramento River approximately 175 feet west of eastern levee on river; roughly .5 mile downstream from confluence of Sacramento & American Rivers, Sacramento, Sacramento County, CA

7. ELEVATIONS OF FIRE EQUIPMENT BUILDING, SHEET 1 OF 2, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

7. ELEVATIONS OF FIRE EQUIPMENT BUILDING, SHEET 1 OF 2, 8' X 10' NEGATIVE AND PRINT MADE FROM COPIES OF ORIGINAL PLANS, MAY 6, 1936, WALLOWA-WHITMAN NATIONAL FOREST SUPERVISOR'S OFFICE, BAKER CITY, OREGON. - Wallowa Ranger Station, Fire Equipment Building, 602 First Street, Wallowa, Wallowa County, OR

5. ARCHITECTURAL ELEVATIONS AND FLOOR PLANS OF GARAGE, SHEET 1 ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

5. ARCHITECTURAL ELEVATIONS AND FLOOR PLANS OF GARAGE, SHEET 1 OF 1, 8' X 10' NEGATIVE AND PRINT MADE FROM COPIES OF ORIGINAL PLANS, MAY 15, 1936, WALLOWA-WHITMAN NATIONAL FOREST SUPERVISOR'S, OFFICE, BAKER CITY, OREGON. - Wallowa Ranger Station, Garage, 602 First Street, Wallowa, Wallowa County, OR

5. ARCHITECTURAL ELEVATIONS AND FLOOR PLAN OF GAS HOUSE, SHEET ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

5. ARCHITECTURAL ELEVATIONS AND FLOOR PLAN OF GAS HOUSE, SHEET 1 OF 1, 8' X 10' NEGATIVE AND PRINT MADE FROM COPIES OF ORIGINAL PLANS, MAY 18, 1936, WALLOWA-WHITMAN NATIONAL FOREST SUPERVISOR'S, OFFICE, BAKER CITY, OREGON. - Wallowa Ranger Station, Gas House, 602 First Street, Wallowa, Wallowa County, OR

Physical Limits on Hmax, the Maximum Height of Glaciers and Ice Sheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lipovsky, B. P.

2017-12-01

The longest glaciers and ice sheets on Earth never achieve a topographic relief, or height, greater than about Hmax = 4 km. What laws govern this apparent maximum height to which a glacier or ice sheet may rise? Two types of answer appear possible: one relating to geological process and the other to ice dynamics. In the first type of answer, one might suppose that if Earth had 100 km tall mountains then there would be many 20 km tall glaciers. The counterpoint to this argument is that recent evidence suggests that glaciers themselves limit the maximum height of mountain ranges. We turn, then, to ice dynamical explanations for Hmax. The classical ice dynamical theory of Nye (1951), however, does not predict any break in scaling to give rise to a maximum height, Hmax. I present a simple model for the height of glaciers and ice sheets. The expression is derived from a simplified representation of a thermomechanically coupled ice sheet that experiences a basal shear stress governed by Coulomb friction (i.e., a stress proportional to the overburden pressure minus the water pressure). I compare this model to satellite-derived digital elevation map measurements of glacier surface height profiles for the 200,000 glaciers in the Randolph Glacier Inventory (Pfeffer et al., 2014) as well as flowlines from the Greenland and Antarctic Ice Sheets. The simplified model provides a surprisingly good fit to these global observations. Small glaciers less than 1 km in length are characterized by having negligible influence of basal melt water, cold ( -15C) beds, and high surface slopes ( 30 deg). Glaciers longer than a critical distance 30km are characterized by having an ice-bed interface that is weakened by the presence of meltwater and is therefore not capable of supporting steep surface slopes. The simplified model makes predictions of ice volume change as a function of surface temperature, accumulation rate, and geothermal heat flux. For this reason, it provides insights into both past and future global ice volume changes.

Spatial extent and temporal variability of Greenland firn aquifers detected by ground and airborne radars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miège, Clément; Forster, Richard R.; Brucker, Ludovic; Koenig, Lora S.; Solomon, D. Kip; Paden, John D.; Box, Jason E.; Burgess, Evan W.; Miller, Julie Z.; McNerney, Laura; Brautigam, Noah; Fausto, Robert S.; Gogineni, Sivaprasad

2016-12-01

We document the existence of widespread firn aquifers in an elevation range of 1200-2000 m, in the high snow-accumulation regions of the Greenland ice sheet. We use NASA Operation IceBridge accumulation radar data from five campaigns (2010-2014) to estimate a firn-aquifer total extent of 21,900 km2. We investigate two locations in Southeast Greenland, where repeated radar profiles allow mapping of aquifer-extent and water table variations. In the upper part of Helheim Glacier the water table rises in spring following above-average summer melt, showing the direct firn-aquifer response to surface meltwater production changes. After spring 2012, a drainage of the firn-aquifer lower margin (5 km) is inferred from both 750 MHz accumulation radar and 195 MHz multicoherent radar depth sounder data. For 2011-2014, we use a ground-penetrating radar profile located at our Ridgeline field site and find a spatially stable aquifer with a water table fluctuating less than 2.5 m vertically. When combining radar data with surface topography, we find that the upper elevation edge of firn aquifers is located directly downstream of locally high surface slopes. Using a steady state 2-D groundwater flow model, water is simulated to flow laterally in an unconfined aquifer, topographically driven by ice sheet surface undulations until the water encounters crevasses. Simulations suggest that local flow cells form within the Helheim aquifer, allowing water to discharge in the firn at the steep-to-flat transitions of surface topography. Supported by visible imagery, we infer that water drains into crevasses, but its volume and rate remain unconstrained.

Uneven onset and pace of ice-dynamical imbalance in the Amundsen Sea Embayment, West Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Konrad, Hannes; Gilbert, Lin; Cornford, Stephen L.; Payne, Antony; Hogg, Anna; Muir, Alan; Shepherd, Andrew

2017-01-01

We combine measurements acquired by five satellite altimeter missions to obtain an uninterrupted record of ice sheet elevation change over the Amundsen Sea Embayment, West Antarctica, since 1992. Using these data, we examine the onset of surface lowering arising through ice-dynamical imbalance, and the pace at which it has propagated inland, by tracking elevation changes along glacier flow lines. Surface lowering has spread slowest (<6 km/yr) along the Pope, Smith, and Kohler (PSK) Glaciers, due to their small extent. Pine Island Glacier (PIG) is characterized by a continuous inland spreading of surface lowering, notably fast at rates of 13 to 15 km/yr along tributaries draining the southeastern lobe, possibly due to basal conditions or tributary geometry. Surface lowering on Thwaites Glacier (THG) has been episodic and has spread inland fastest (10 to 12 km/yr) along its central flow lines. The current episodes of surface lowering started approximately 10 years before the first measurements on PSK, around 1990 on PIG, and around 2000 on THG. Ice-dynamical imbalance across the sector has therefore been uneven during the satellite record.

Sea-level response to abrupt ocean warming of Antarctic ice shelves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pattyn, Frank

2016-04-01

Antarctica's contribution to global sea-level rise increases steadily. A fundamental question remains whether the ice discharge will lead to marine ice sheet instability (MISI) and collapse of certain sectors of the ice sheet or whether ice loss will increase linearly with the warming trends. Therefore, we employ a newly developed ice sheet model of the Antarctic ice sheet, called f.ETISh (fast Elementary Thermomechanical Ice Sheet model) to simulate ice sheet response to abrupt perturbations in ocean and atmospheric temperature. The f.ETISh model is a vertically integrated hybrid (SSA/SIA) ice sheet model including ice shelves. Although vertically integrated, thermomechanical coupling is ensured through a simplified representation of ice sheet thermodynamics based on an analytical solution of the vertical temperature profile, including strain heating and horizontal advection. The marine boundary is represented by a flux condition either coherent with power-law basal sliding (Pollard & Deconto (2012) based on Schoof (2007)) or according to Coulomb basal friction (Tsai et al., 2015), both taking into account ice-shelf buttressing. Model initialization is based on optimization of the basal friction field. Besides the traditional MISMIP tests, new tests with respect to MISI in plan-view models have been devised. The model is forced with stepwise ocean and atmosphere temperature perturbations. The former is based on a parametrised sub-shelf melt (limited to ice shelves), while the latter is based on present-day mass balance/surface temperature and corrected for elevation changes. Surface melting is introduced using a PDD model. Results show a general linear response in mass loss to ocean warming. Nonlinear response due to MISI occurs under specific conditions and is highly sensitive to the basal conditions near the grounding line, governed by both the initial conditions and the basal sliding/deformation model. The Coulomb friction model leads to significantly higher sensitivity compared to power-law sliding. On longer time scales, West-antarctic inter-basin connections favor nonlinear response.

Airborne Laser Altimetry Mapping of the Greenland Ice Sheet: Application to Mass Balance Assessment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abdalati, W.; Krabill, W.; Frederick, E.; Manizade, S.; Martin, C.; Sonntag, J.; Swift, R.; Thomas, R.; Wright, W.; Yungel, J.

2000-01-01

In 1998 and '99, the Arctic Ice Mapping (AIM) program completed resurveys of lines occupied 5 years earlier revealing elevation changes of the Greenland ice sheet and identifying areas of significant thinning, thickening and balance. In planning these surveys, consideration had to be given to the spatial constraints associated with aircraft operation, the spatial nature of ice sheet behavior, and limited resources, as well as temporal issues, such as seasonal and interannual variability in the context of measurement accuracy. This paper examines the extent to which the sampling and survey strategy is valid for drawing conclusions on the current state of balance of the Greenland ice sheet. The surveys covered the entire ice sheet with an average distance of 21.4 km between each location on the ice sheet and the nearest flight line. For most of the ice sheet, the elevation changes show relatively little spatial variability, and their magnitudes are significantly smaller than the observed elevation change signal. As a result, we conclude that the density of the sampling and the accuracy of the measurements are sufficient to draw meaningful conclusions on the state of balance of the entire ice sheet over the five-year survey period. Outlet glaciers, however, show far more spatial and temporal variability, and each of the major ones is likely to require individual surveys in order to determine its balance.

IGLOO: an Intermediate Complexity Framework to Simulate Greenland Ice-Ocean Interactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perrette, M.; Calov, R.; Beckmann, J.; Alexander, D.; Beyer, S.; Ganopolski, A.

2017-12-01

The Greenland ice-sheet is a major contributor to current and future sea level rise associated to climate warming. It is widely believed that over a century time scale, surface melting is the main driver of Greenland ice volume change, in contrast to melting by the ocean. It is due to relatively warmer air and less ice area exposed to melting by ocean water compared to Antarctica, its southern, larger twin. Yet most modeling studies do not have adequate grid resolution to represent fine-scale outlet glaciers and fjords at the margin of the ice sheet, where ice-ocean interaction occurs, and must use rather crude parameterizations to represent this process. Additionally, the ice-sheet area grounded below sea level has been reassessed upwards in the most recent estimates of bedrock elevation under the Greenland ice sheet, revealing a larger potential for marine-mediated melting than previously thought. In this work, we develop an original approach to estimate potential Greenland ice sheet contribution to sea level rise from ocean melting, in an intermediate complexity framework, IGLOO. We use a medium-resolution (5km) ice-sheet model coupled interactively to a number of 1-D flowline models for the individual outlet glaciers. We propose a semi-objective methodology to derive 1-D glacier geometries from 2-D Greenland datasets, as well as preliminary results of coupled ice-sheet-glaciers simulations with IGLOO.

Anisotropy influence on the failure of Ti6Al4V sheets deformed at room and elevated temperature

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Q. L.; Ghiotti, A.; Bruschi, S.

2018-05-01

Ti6Al4V sheets are usually difficult-to-form at room temperature as a consequence of their strong basal texture and hcp crystal lattice. The heating of the alloy below the beta transus temperature is recognized to enhance its formability, reducing the flow stress and increasing the ductility. However, the influence of the sheet anisotropy on the material failure hasn't been studied yet. To this aim, the paper presents the anisotropy influence on the failure characteristics of Ti6Al4V titanium alloy sheets making use of tensile tests carried out at room temperature and 600°C on smooth, notched and shear samples in order to have various stress states. The fracture strain is measured and the effect of the sample orientation and stress state is identified. To determine the actual stress state for each sample geometry, a numerical model is set up and calibrated using elasto-plastic data from uni-axial tensile tests on smooth samples. Finally, the fracture surfaces are observed through SEM analysis to explain the failure characteristics.

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 footprint returns to estimate glacier ice elevations and surface characteristics. Additional information is included in the original extended abstract.

Impact of MODIS Sensor Calibration Updates on Greenland Ice Sheet Surface Reflectance and Albedo Trends

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Casey, Kimberly A.; Polashenski, Chris M.; Chen, Justin; Tedesco, Marco

2017-01-01

We evaluate Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) surface reflectance and albedo trends using the newly released Collection 6 (C6) MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) products over the period 2001-2016. We find that the correction of MODIS sensor degradation provided in the new C6 data products reduces the magnitude of the surface reflectance and albedo decline trends obtained from previous MODIS data (i.e., Collection 5, C5). Collection 5 and 6 data product analysis over GrIS is characterized by surface (i.e., wet vs. dry) and elevation (i.e., 500-2000 m, 2000 m and greater) conditions over the summer season from 1 June to 31 August. Notably, the visible-wavelength declining reflectance trends identified in several bands of MODIS C5 data from previous studies are only slightly detected at reduced magnitude in the C6 versions over the dry snow area. Declining albedo in the wet snow and ice area remains over the MODIS record in the C6 product, albeit at a lower magnitude than obtained using C5 data. Further analyses of C6 spectral reflectance trends show both reflectance increases and decreases in select bands and regions, suggesting that several competing processes are contributing to Greenland Ice Sheet albedo change. Investigators using MODIS data for other ocean, atmosphere and/or land analyses are urged to consider similar re-examinations of trends previously established using C5 data.

Triple-glazed insulating unit with improved edge insulation

DOEpatents

Goodwin, George B.; Buchanan, Michael J.

2016-06-07

An insulating unit includes a first spacer frame between first and second sheets, e.g. glass sheets, and a second spacer frame between the second sheet and a third sheet. A first surface of the first spacer frame is adhered to inner surface of the first sheet, and an opposite second surface of the first spacer frame is adhered to a first surface of the second sheet, by a moisture impervious adhesive layer. A first outer surface of the second spacer frame is adhered to a second surface of the second sheet, and an opposite second outer surface of the second spacer frame is adhered to an inner surface of the third sheet, by the adhesive layer. The first spacer frame and the second spacer frame have an offset of greater than zero.

A Satellite-Derived Climate-Quality Data Record of the Clear-Sky Surface Temperature of the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, Dorothy K.; Comiso, Josefino C.; DiGirolamo, Nikolo E.; Shuman, Christopher A.; Key, Jeffrey R.; Koenig, Lora S.

2012-01-01

We have developed a climate-quality data record of the clear-sky surface temperature of the Greenland Ice Sheet using the Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) ice-surface temperature (1ST) algorithm. A climate-data record (CDR) is a time series of measurements of sufficient length, consistency, and continuity to determine climate variability and change. We present daily and monthly MODIS ISTs of the Greenland Ice Sheet beginning on 1 March 2000 and continuing through 31 December 2010 at 6.25-km spatial resolution on a polar stereographic grid. This record will be elevated in status to a CDR when at least nine more years of data become available either from MODIS Terra or Aqua, or from the Visible Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) to be launched in October 2011. Our ultimate goal is to develop a CDR that starts in 1981 with the Advanced Very High Resolution (AVHRR) Polar Pathfinder (APP) dataset and continues with MODIS data from 2000 to the present, and into the VIIRS era. Differences in the APP and MODIS cloud masks have so far precluded the current 1ST records from spanning both the APP and MODIS time series in a seamless manner though this will be revisited when the APP dataset has been reprocessed. The complete MODIS 1ST daily and monthly data record is available online.

On the causes of mid-Pliocene warmth and polar amplification

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lunt, Daniel J.; Haywood, Alan M.; Schmidt, Gavin A.; Salzmann, Ulrich; Valdes, Paul J.; Dowsett, Harry J.; Loptson, Claire A.

2012-01-01

The mid-Pliocene (~ 3 to 3.3 Ma ago), is a period of sustained global warmth in comparison to the late Quaternary (0 to ~ 1 Ma ago), and has potential to inform predictions of long-term future climate change. However, given that several processes potentially contributed, relatively little is understood about the reasons for the observed warmth, or the associated polar amplification. Here, using a modelling approach and a novel factorisation method, we assess the relative contributions to mid-Pliocene warmth from: elevated CO2, lowered orography, and vegetation and ice sheet changes. The results show that on a global scale, the largest contributor to mid-Pliocene warmth is elevated CO2. However, in terms of polar amplification, changes to ice sheets contribute significantly in the Southern Hemisphere, and orographic changes contribute significantly in the Northern Hemisphere. We also carry out an energy balance analysis which indicates that that on a global scale, surface albedo and atmospheric emmissivity changes dominate over cloud changes. We investigate the sensitivity of our results to uncertainties in the prescribed CO2 and orographic changes, to derive uncertainty ranges for the various contributing processes.

Assessment of NASA Airborne Laser Altimetry Data Using Ground-Based GPS Data near Summit Station, Greenland

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brunt, Kelly M.; Hawley, Robert L.; Lutz, Eric R.; Studinger, Michael; Sonntag, John G.; Hofton, Michelle A.; Andrews, Lauren C.; Neumann, Thomas A.

2017-01-01

A series of NASA airborne lidars have been used in support of satellite laser altimetry missions. These airbornelaser altimeters have been deployed for satellite instrument development, for spaceborne data validation, and to bridge the data gap between satellite missions. We used data from ground-based Global Positioning System (GPS) surveys of an 11 km long track near Summit Station, Greenland, to assess the surface elevation bias and measurement precision of three airborne laser altimeters including the Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM), the Land, Vegetation, and Ice Sensor (LVIS), and the Multiple Altimeter Beam Experimental Lidar (MABEL). Ground-based GPS data from the monthly ground-based traverses, which commenced in 2006, allowed for the assessment of nine airborne lidar surveys associated with ATM and LVIS between 2007 and 2016. Surface elevation biases for these altimeters over the flat, ice-sheet interior are less than 0.12 m, while assessments of measurement precision are 0.09 m or better. Ground-based GPS positions determined both with and without differential post-processing techniques provided internally consistent solutions. Results from the analyses of ground-based and airborne data provide validation strategy guidance for the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite 2 (ICESat-2) elevation and elevation-change data products.

Assessment of NASA airborne laser altimetry data using ground-based GPS data near Summit Station, Greenland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brunt, Kelly M.; Hawley, Robert L.; Lutz, Eric R.; Studinger, Michael; Sonntag, John G.; Hofton, Michelle A.; Andrews, Lauren C.; Neumann, Thomas A.

2017-03-01

A series of NASA airborne lidars have been used in support of satellite laser altimetry missions. These airborne laser altimeters have been deployed for satellite instrument development, for spaceborne data validation, and to bridge the data gap between satellite missions. We used data from ground-based Global Positioning System (GPS) surveys of an 11 km long track near Summit Station, Greenland, to assess the surface-elevation bias and measurement precision of three airborne laser altimeters including the Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM), the Land, Vegetation, and Ice Sensor (LVIS), and the Multiple Altimeter Beam Experimental Lidar (MABEL). Ground-based GPS data from the monthly ground-based traverses, which commenced in 2006, allowed for the assessment of nine airborne lidar surveys associated with ATM and LVIS between 2007 and 2016. Surface-elevation biases for these altimeters - over the flat, ice-sheet interior - are less than 0.12 m, while assessments of measurement precision are 0.09 m or better. Ground-based GPS positions determined both with and without differential post-processing techniques provided internally consistent solutions. Results from the analyses of ground-based and airborne data provide validation strategy guidance for the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite 2 (ICESat-2) elevation and elevation-change data products.

7. FLOOR PLAN, PLOT PLAN, ELEVATIONS, SHEET NO. 11044/1 OF ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

7. FLOOR PLAN, PLOT PLAN, ELEVATIONS, SHEET NO. 1-10-44/1 OF 11. (NOTE: BUILDINGS 821-823 WERE CONSTRUCTED FROM A SINGLE SET OF PLANS. SOME DRAWINGS ARE TYPICAL OF ALL 3 STRUCTURES, CERTAIN OTHER DRAWINGS IN THE SAME SET ARE BUILDING-SPECIFIC.) - Oakland Army Base, Storehouse Type, Ukraine & Maritime Streets, Oakland, Alameda County, CA

Albedo Drop on the Greenland Ice Sheet: Relative Impacts of Wet and Dry Snow Processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, J.; Polashenski, C.

2014-12-01

The energy balance of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GIS) is strongly impacted by changes in snow albedo. MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) observations indicate that the GIS albedo has dropped since the early part of this century. We analyze data from the MODIS products MOD10A1 for broadband snow albedo and MOD09A1 for surface spectral reflectance since 2001 to better explain the physical mechanisms driving these changes. The MODIS products are filtered, and the data is masked using microwave-derived surface melt maps to isolate albedo changes due to dry snow processes from those driven by melt impacts. Results show that the majority of recent changes in the GIS albedo - even at high elevations - are driven by snow wetting rather than dry snow processes such as grain metamorphosis and aerosol impurity deposition. The spectral signature of the smaller changes occurring within dry snow areas suggests that grain metamorphosis dominates the albedo decline in these regions.

The East Antarctic Ice Sheet and the Gamburtsev Subglacial Mountains (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bell, R. E.; Studinger, M.; Ferraccioli, F.; Damaske, D.; Finn, C.; Braaten, D. A.; Fahnestock, M. A.; Jordan, T. A.; Corr, H.; Elieff, S.; Frearson, N.; Block, A. E.; Rose, K.

2009-12-01

Models of the onset of glaciation in Antarctica routinely document the early growth of the ice sheet on the summit of the Gamburtsev Subglacial Mountains in the center of the East Antarctic Craton. While ice sheet models replicate the formation of the East Antarctic ice sheet 35 million years ago, the age, evolution and structure of the Gamburtsev Mountains remain completely unresolved. During the International Polar Year scientists from seven nations have launched a major collaborative program (AGAP) to explore the Gamburtsev Subglacial Mountains buried by the East Antarctic ice sheet and bounded by numerous subglacial lakes. The AGAP umbrella is a multi-national, multi-disciplinary effort and includes aerogeophysics, passive seismology, traverse programs and will be complimented by future ice core and bedrock drilling. A major new airborne data set including gravity; magnetics; ice thickness; SAR images of the ice-bed interface; near-surface and deep internal layers; and ice surface elevation is providing insights into a more dynamic East Antarctica. More than 120,000 km of aerogeophysical data have been acquired from two remote field camps during the 2008/09 field season. AGAP effort was designed to address several fundamental questions including: 1) What role does topography play in the nucleation of continental ice sheets? 2) How do tectonic processes control the formation, distribution, and stability of subglacial lakes? The preliminary analysis of this major new data set indicated these 3000m high mountains are deeply dissected by a dendritic system. The northern margin of the mountain range terminates against the inland extent of the Lambert Graben. Evidence of the onset of glaciation is preserved as cirques and U shaped valleys along the axis of the uplifted massifs. The geomorphology reflects the interaction between the ice sheet and the Gamburtsev Mountains. Bright reflectors in the radar data in the deep valleys indicate the presence of water that has the potential to influence ice sheet flow. Crevassing and disrupted internal layers are present in the deep ice found in the inland extent of the Lambert Graben. Preliminary analysis indicates both a more dynamic East Antarctic ice sheet and a more complex tectonic evolution for East Antarctica.

Obliquity-paced Pliocene West Antarctic ice sheet oscillations

USGS Publications Warehouse

Naish, T.; Powell, R.; Levy, R.; Wilson, G.; Scherer, R.; Talarico, F.; Krissek, L.; Niessen, F.; Pompilio, M.; Wilson, T.; Carter, L.; DeConto, R.; Huybers, P.; McKay, R.; Pollard, D.; Ross, J.; Winter, D.; Barrett, P.; Browne, G.; Cody, R.; Cowan, E.; Crampton, J.; Dunbar, G.; Dunbar, N.; Florindo, F.; Gebhardt, C.; Graham, I.; Hannah, M.; Hansaraj, D.; Harwood, D.; Helling, D.; Henrys, S.; Hinnov, L.; Kuhn, G.; Kyle, P.; Laufer, A.; Maffioli, P.; Magens, D.; Mandernack, K.; McIntosh, W.; Millan, C.; Morin, R.; Ohneiser, C.; Paulsen, T.; Persico, D.; Raine, I.; Reed, J.; Riesselman, C.; Sagnotti, L.; Schmitt, D.; Sjunneskog, C.; Strong, P.; Taviani, M.; Vogel, S.; Wilch, T.; Williams, T.

2009-01-01

Thirty years after oxygen isotope records from microfossils deposited in ocean sediments confirmed the hypothesis that variations in the Earth's orbital geometry control the ice ages1, fundamental questions remain over the response of the Antarctic ice sheets to orbital cycles2. Furthermore, an understanding of the behaviour of the marine-based West Antarctic ice sheet (WAIS) during the 'warmer-than-present' early-Pliocene epoch (5–3 Myr ago) is needed to better constrain the possible range of ice-sheet behaviour in the context of future global warming3. Here we present a marine glacial record from the upper 600 m of the AND-1B sediment core recovered from beneath the northwest part of the Ross ice shelf by the ANDRILL programme and demonstrate well-dated, 40-kyr cyclic variations in ice-sheet extent linked to cycles in insolation influenced by changes in the Earth's axial tilt (obliquity) during the Pliocene. Our data provide direct evidence for orbitally induced oscillations in the WAIS, which periodically collapsed, resulting in a switch from grounded ice, or ice shelves, to open waters in the Ross embayment when planetary temperatures were up to 3 °C warmer than today4 and atmospheric CO2 concentration was as high as 400 p.p.m.v. (refs 5, 6). The evidence is consistent with a new ice-sheet/ice-shelf model7 that simulates fluctuations in Antarctic ice volume of up to +7 m in equivalent sea level associated with the loss of the WAIS and up to +3 m in equivalent sea level from the East Antarctic ice sheet, in response to ocean-induced melting paced by obliquity. During interglacial times, diatomaceous sediments indicate high surface-water productivity, minimal summer sea ice and air temperatures above freezing, suggesting an additional influence of surface melt8 under conditions of elevated CO2.

Obliquity-paced Pliocene West Antarctic ice sheet oscillations.

PubMed

Naish, T; Powell, R; Levy, R; Wilson, G; Scherer, R; Talarico, F; Krissek, L; Niessen, F; Pompilio, M; Wilson, T; Carter, L; DeConto, R; Huybers, P; McKay, R; Pollard, D; Ross, J; Winter, D; Barrett, P; Browne, G; Cody, R; Cowan, E; Crampton, J; Dunbar, G; Dunbar, N; Florindo, F; Gebhardt, C; Graham, I; Hannah, M; Hansaraj, D; Harwood, D; Helling, D; Henrys, S; Hinnov, L; Kuhn, G; Kyle, P; Läufer, A; Maffioli, P; Magens, D; Mandernack, K; McIntosh, W; Millan, C; Morin, R; Ohneiser, C; Paulsen, T; Persico, D; Raine, I; Reed, J; Riesselman, C; Sagnotti, L; Schmitt, D; Sjunneskog, C; Strong, P; Taviani, M; Vogel, S; Wilch, T; Williams, T

2009-03-19

Thirty years after oxygen isotope records from microfossils deposited in ocean sediments confirmed the hypothesis that variations in the Earth's orbital geometry control the ice ages, fundamental questions remain over the response of the Antarctic ice sheets to orbital cycles. Furthermore, an understanding of the behaviour of the marine-based West Antarctic ice sheet (WAIS) during the 'warmer-than-present' early-Pliocene epoch ( approximately 5-3 Myr ago) is needed to better constrain the possible range of ice-sheet behaviour in the context of future global warming. Here we present a marine glacial record from the upper 600 m of the AND-1B sediment core recovered from beneath the northwest part of the Ross ice shelf by the ANDRILL programme and demonstrate well-dated, approximately 40-kyr cyclic variations in ice-sheet extent linked to cycles in insolation influenced by changes in the Earth's axial tilt (obliquity) during the Pliocene. Our data provide direct evidence for orbitally induced oscillations in the WAIS, which periodically collapsed, resulting in a switch from grounded ice, or ice shelves, to open waters in the Ross embayment when planetary temperatures were up to approximately 3 degrees C warmer than today and atmospheric CO(2) concentration was as high as approximately 400 p.p.m.v. (refs 5, 6). The evidence is consistent with a new ice-sheet/ice-shelf model that simulates fluctuations in Antarctic ice volume of up to +7 m in equivalent sea level associated with the loss of the WAIS and up to +3 m in equivalent sea level from the East Antarctic ice sheet, in response to ocean-induced melting paced by obliquity. During interglacial times, diatomaceous sediments indicate high surface-water productivity, minimal summer sea ice and air temperatures above freezing, suggesting an additional influence of surface melt under conditions of elevated CO(2).

Elevated waterproof access floor system and method of making the same

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cohen, Marc M. (Inventor)

1987-01-01

An elevated waterproof access floor system having subfloor channels or compartments for power lines, gas lines or the like is adapted such that it can be opened and subsequently resealed without destroying the waterproofing and without destroying its aesthetic appearance. A multiplicity of tiles are supported on a support grid, and a flooring sheet is supported on the tiles. Attachment means are provided to prevent lateral but not vertical movement of the flooring sheet with respect to the tiles so that the flooring sheet can be lifted off the tiles, but when the flooring sheet is supported on the tiles, no lateral slipping will occur. The flooring sheet is made of a heat resealable material, so that it can be cut away in sections, and the tiles therebelow lifted off, to provide access to subfloor compartments.

Process Simulation of Aluminium Sheet Metal Deep Drawing at Elevated Temperatures

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

Winklhofer, Johannes; Trattnig, Gernot; Lind, Christoph

Lightweight design is essential for an economic and environmentally friendly vehicle. Aluminium sheet metal is well known for its ability to improve the strength to weight ratio of lightweight structures. One disadvantage of aluminium is that it is less formable than steel. Therefore complex part geometries can only be realized by expensive multi-step production processes. One method for overcoming this disadvantage is deep drawing at elevated temperatures. In this way the formability of aluminium sheet metal can be improved significantly, and the number of necessary production steps can thereby be reduced. This paper introduces deep drawing of aluminium sheet metalmore » at elevated temperatures, a corresponding simulation method, a characteristic process and its optimization. The temperature and strain rate dependent material properties of a 5xxx series alloy and their modelling are discussed. A three dimensional thermomechanically coupled finite element deep drawing simulation model and its validation are presented. Based on the validated simulation model an optimised process strategy regarding formability, time and cost is introduced.« less

Changing surface-atmosphere energy exchange and refreezing capacity of the lower accumulation area, West Greenland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Charalampidis, C.; van As, D.; Box, J. E.; van den Broeke, M. R.; Colgan, W. T.; Doyle, S. H.; Hubbard, A. L.; MacFerrin, M.; Machguth, H.; Smeets, C. J. P. P.

2015-11-01

We present 5 years (2009-2013) of automatic weather station measurements from the lower accumulation area (1840 m a.s.l. - above sea level) of the Greenland ice sheet in the Kangerlussuaq region. Here, the summers of 2010 and 2012 were both exceptionally warm, but only 2012 resulted in a strongly negative surface mass budget (SMB) and surface meltwater run-off. The observed run-off was due to a large ice fraction in the upper 10 m of firn that prevented meltwater from percolating to available pore volume below. Analysis reveals an anomalously low 2012 summer-averaged albedo of 0.71 (typically ~ 0.78), as meltwater was present at the ice sheet surface. Consequently, during the 2012 melt season, the ice sheet surface absorbed 28 % (213 MJ m-2) more solar radiation than the average of all other years. A surface energy balance model is used to evaluate the seasonal and interannual variability of all surface energy fluxes. The model reproduces the observed melt rates as well as the SMB for each season. A sensitivity analysis reveals that 71 % of the additional solar radiation in 2012 was used for melt, corresponding to 36 % (0.64 m) of the 2012 surface lowering. The remaining 64 % (1.14 m) of surface lowering resulted from high atmospheric temperatures, up to a +2.6 °C daily average, indicating that 2012 would have been a negative SMB year at this site even without the melt-albedo feedback. Longer time series of SMB, regional temperature, and remotely sensed albedo (MODIS) show that 2012 was the first strongly negative SMB year, with the lowest albedo, at this elevation on record. The warm conditions of recent years have resulted in enhanced melt and reduction of the refreezing capacity in the lower accumulation area. If high temperatures continue, the current lower accumulation area will turn into a region with superimposed ice in coming years.

A downscaled 1 km dataset of daily Greenland ice sheet surface mass balance components (1958-2014)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Noel, B.; Van De Berg, W. J.; Fettweis, X.; Machguth, H.; Howat, I. M.; van den Broeke, M. R.

2015-12-01

The current spatial resolution in regional climate models (RCMs), typically around 5 to 20 km, remains too coarse to accurately reproduce the spatial variability in surface mass balance (SMB) components over the narrow ablation zones, marginal outlet glaciers and neighbouring ice caps of the Greenland ice sheet (GrIS). In these topographically rough terrains, the SMB components are highly dependent on local variations in topography. However, the relatively low-resolution elevation and ice mask prescribed in RCMs contribute to significantly underestimate melt and runoff in these regions due to unresolved valley glaciers and fjords. Therefore, near-km resolution topography is essential to better capture SMB variability in these spatially restricted regions. We present a 1 km resolution dataset of daily GrIS SMB covering the period 1958-2014, which is statistically downscaled from data of the polar regional climate model RACMO2.3 at 11 km, using an elevation dependence. The dataset includes all individual SMB components projected on the elevation and ice mask from the GIMP DEM, down-sampled to 1 km. Daily runoff and sublimation are interpolated to the 1 km topography using a local regression to elevation valid for each day specifically; daily precipitation is bi-linearly downscaled without elevation corrections. The daily SMB dataset is then reconstructed by summing downscaled precipitation, sublimation and runoff. High-resolution elevation and ice mask allow for properly resolving the narrow ablation zones and valley glaciers at the GrIS margins, leading to significant increase in runoff estimate. In these regions, and especially over narrow glaciers tongues, the downscaled products improve on the original RACMO2.3 outputs by better representing local SMB patterns through a gradual ablation increase towards the GrIS margins. We discuss the impact of downscaling on the SMB components in a case study for a spatially restricted region, where large elevation discrepancies are observed between both resolutions. Owing to generally enhanced runoff in the GrIS ablation zone, the evaluation of daily downscaled SMB against ablation measurements, collected at in-situ measuring sites derived from a newly compiled ablation dataset, shows a better agreement with observations relative to native RACMO2.3 SMB at 11 km.

Micro hot embossing for high-aspect-ratio structure with materials flow enhancement by polymer sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Murakoshi, Yoichi; Shan, Xue-Chuan; Sano, Toshio; Takahashi, Masaharu; Maeda, Ryutaro

2004-04-01

Nano imprinting or Nano embossing process have been introduced to fabricate semiconductor, optical device and Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) and the Nano Electro Mechanical Systems (NEMS) to reduce the fabrication cost. In our previous paper, micro hot embossing of Polycarbonate (PC) and Polyetheretherketone (PEEK) for optical switch with 8x8 mirrors was reported. The PC and PEEK sheets were embossed at elevated temperature with an embossing machine designed for the MEMS. In the application, the mirrors on the optical switch had some defects, such as slump, sticking and step at side of the mirror, due to embossing process and process conditions. These defects are attributed to the poor materials flow of plastics into the e Ni mold cavity of complicate shape with different aspect ratio. Therefore, the micro hot embossing is optimized in this paper with PTFE sheet to enhance the materials flow. In this paper, the PC and the PEEK sheets, thickness of 300um, are embossed at elevated temperature with the hot embossing machine with a Nickel mold. To control material flow of the PC or the PEEK sheets, Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) sheet, the thickness of 100um, is placed on the PC or the PEEK sheets at elevated temperature. Mirror shape was transferred with better fidelity on the PC and PEEK sheet, and the thickness of cantilever became thinner than previous embossed structure without the PTFE. Especially, the mirror height and the thickness of cantilever on the PC have been improved at lower embossing temperature.

Full-Stokes modeling of grounding line dynamics: some first interplay with measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Durand, G.; Gagliardini, O.; Zwinger, T.; Ritz, C.; Le Meur, E.; Rémy, F.

2009-12-01

Movement of the grounding line (i.e, the line between the grounded and the floating part of a marine ice-sheet) is one of the key processes that governs the mass balance of marine ice-sheets. So far, modeling of grounding line migration was inconsistent, leading to poorly reliable forecast of marine ice-sheet evolution. Important theoretical progress has been made these last years to describe the dynamics of the grounding line, and a recently developed full-Stokes model gives consistent results in comparison to this theory. Despite these important breakthroughs, theory as well as the model are restricted to two-dimensional flow line and therefore unable to be applied to a particular three-dimensional glaciological problem. Nevertheless, some first insights can be already drawn from 2D modeling results to improve the adequacy between future modeling and field measurements. We will particularly emphasize on two different aspects. (i) Modeling results have shown the major importance of high grid resolution in the vicinity of the grounding line, questioning strategies for future measurement campaigns of bedrock elevation of coastal glaciers. (ii) An approximately 10 m depression of the surface at the vertical position above the grounding line is a very stable feature produced by the model. Careful investigation of the surface curvature should help to locate grounding line position.

Anisotropy of mechanical and thermal properties of AZ31 sheets prepared using the ARB technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Halmešová, K.; Trojanová, Z.; Džugan, J.; Drozd, Z.; Minárik, P.; Knapek, M.

2017-07-01

In the accumulative roll bonding (ARB) technique, repeated stacking of material followed by conventional roll-bonding is carried out. For this process the surfaces are cleaned with ethanol and then joined together by rolling. The rolled material is then cut into two halves, again surface treated and roll-bonded. This process may be repeated several times. For the magnesium alloy AZ31 (Mg-3Al-1Zn) rolling at an elevated temperature of 400 °C is necessary for ARB because of the low plasticity of hexagonal magnesium alloys at lower temperatures. Samples for this study were prepared using 1 to 3 ARB passes through the rolling mill. It was found that the ARB substantially refined the grain size of sheets to the micrometer scale. The microstructure and texture of the deformed samples were studied by light and electron microscopy. The mechanical properties of the ARB samples were explored using tensile test-pieces cut from the sheets with the tensile axis taken either parallel or perpendicular to the rolling direction, where a significant anisotropy in both mechanical properties and Young’s modulus was found. Anisotropy is explained on the basis of the specific microstructure and texture formed during the ARB process.

Investigating the Impact of Aerosol Deposition on Snow Melt over the Greenland Ice Sheet Using a New Kernel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Y.; Flanner, M.

2017-12-01

Accelerating surface melt on the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) has led to a doubling of Greenland's contribution to global sea level rise during recent decades. The darkening effect due to black carbon (BC), dust, and other light absorbing impurities (LAI) enhances snow melt by boosting its absorption of solar energy. It is therefore important for coupled aerosol-climate and ice sheet models to include snow darkening effects from LAI, and yet most do not. In this study, we develop an aerosol deposition—snow melt kernel based on the Community Earth System Model (CESM) to investigate changes in melt flux due to variations in the amount and timing of aerosol deposition on the GrIS. The Community Land Model (CLM) component of CESM is driven with a large range of aerosol deposition fluxes to determine non-linear relationships between melt perturbation and deposition amount occurring in different months and location (thereby capturing variations in base state associated with elevation and latitude). The kernel product will include climatological-mean effects and standard deviations associated with interannual variability. Finally, the kernel will allow aerosol deposition fluxes from any global or regional aerosol model to be translated into surface melt perturbations of the GrIS, thus extending the utility of state-of-the-art aerosol models.

Numerical simulation of the paleohydrology of glacial Lake Oshkosh, eastern Wisconsin, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Clark, J.A.; Befus, K.M.; Hooyer, T.S.; Stewart, P.W.; Shipman, T.D.; Gregory, C.T.; Zylstra, D.J.

2008-01-01

Proglacial lakes, formed during retreat of the Laurentide ice sheet, evolved quickly as outlets became ice-free and the earth deformed through glacial isostatic adjustment. With high-resolution digital elevation models (DEMs) and GIS methods, it is possible to reconstruct the evolution of surface hydrology. When a DEM deforms through time as predicted by our model of viscoelastic earth relaxation, the entire surface hydrologic system with its lakes, outlets, shorelines and rivers also evolves without requiring assumptions of outlet position. The method is applied to proglacial Lake Oshkosh in Wisconsin (13,600 to 12,900??cal yr BP). Comparison of predicted to observed shoreline tilt indicates the ice sheet was about 400??m thick over the Great Lakes region. During ice sheet recession, each of the five outlets are predicted to uplift more than 100??m and then subside approximately 30??m. At its maximum extent, Lake Oshkosh covered 6600??km2 with a volume of 111??km3. Using the Hydrologic Engineering Center-River Analysis System model, flow velocities during glacial outburst floods up to 9??m/s and peak discharge of 140,000??m3/s are predicted, which could drain 33.5??km3 of lake water in 10??days and transport boulders up to 3??m in diameter. ?? 2007 University of Washington.

Assessing the Extent of Influence Subglacial Hydrology Has on Dynamic Ice Sheet Behavior

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Babonis, G. S.; Csatho, B. M.

2012-12-01

Numerous recent studies have done an excellent job capturing and quantifying the complex pattern of dynamic changes of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) over the past several decades. The timing of changes in ice velocities and mass balance indicate that the mechanisms controlling these behaviors, both external and internal, act over variable spatial and temporal regimes, can change in rapid and complex fashion, and have significant effect on ice sheet behavior as well as sea level rise. With roughly half of the estimated ice loss from the GrIS attributed to dynamic processes, these changes account for about 250 Gt/yr (2003-2008), equivalence to 0.6 mm/yr sea level rise. One of the primary influences of dynamic ice behavior is ice sheet hydrology, including the storage and transport of water from the supraglacial to subglacial environment, and the subsequent development of water transport pathways, thus demonstrating the need for further characterization of the subglacial environment. Enhanced dynamic flow of ice due to the influence of meltwater distribution on the subglacial environment has been reported, including In-SAR observations of large velocity increases over short periods of time, suggesting regions where dynamic changes are likely being caused by changes in hydrology. Additionally, building upon the 1993-2011 laser altimetry record, analyzed by our Surface Elevation Reconstruction And Change detection (SERAC) procedure, we have detected complex patterns of rapid thickening and thinning patterns over several outlet glaciers. This study presents a comprehensive investigation of hydrologic control on dynamic glacier behavior for several key sites in Greenland. We combine a high resolution surface digital elevation model (DEM) derived by fusing space- and airborne laser altimetry observations and SPIRIT SPOT DEMs, with a high resolution, hydrologically-corrected bedrock DEM derived from a combination of CResIS and Operation Icebridge ice penetrating radar data for generating potentiometric maps for each region of interest. Using these potentiometric maps, along with surficial DEMs, supra- and subglacial routing paths, as well as potential sites for discrete supraglacial hydrologic input sources are identified. Comparison of hydrologic drainage networks with the spatial distribution of recent rapid dynamic changes detected by altimetry allows for the assessment of the extent of influence that subglacial hydrology has on ice sheet behavior.

The South Circumpolar Dorsa Argentea Formation and the Noachian-Hesperian Climate of Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Head, J. W., III; Scanlon, K. E.; Fastook, J.; Wordsworth, R. D.

2017-12-01

The Dorsa Argentea Formation (DAF), a set of geomorphologic units covering 1.5 · 106 km2 in the south circumpolar region of Mars with lobes extending along the 0° and 90°W meridians, has been interpreted as the remnants of a large Noachian-Hesperian ice sheet. Determining the extent and thermal regime of the DAF ice sheet, and the controls on its development, can therefore provide insight into the ancient martian climate. We used the Laboratoire de Météorologie Dynamique early Mars global climate model (GCM) and the University of Maine Ice Sheet Model (UMISM) glacial flow model to constrain climates that would permit both development of a south polar ice sheet of DAF-like size and shape and melting consistent with observed eskers and channels. An asymmetric south polar cold trap is a robust feature of GCM simulations with spin-axis obliquity of 15° or 25° and a 600 - 1000 mb CO2 atmosphere. The shape results from the strong dependence of surface temperature on altitude in a thicker atmosphere. Of the scenarios considered here, the shape and extent of the modeled DAF ice sheet in UMISM simulations most closely match those of the DAF when the surface water ice inventory of Mars is 20 · 106 km3 and obliquity is 15°. In climates warmed only by CO2, basal melting does not occur except when the ice inventory is larger than most estimates for early Mars. In this case, the extent of the ice sheet is also much larger than that of the DAF, and melting is more widespread than observed landforms indicate. When an idealized greenhouse gas warms the surface by at least 20° near the poles relative to CO2 alone, the extent of the ice sheet is less than that of the DAF, but strong basal melting occurs, with maxima in the locations where eskers and channels are observed. We conclude that the glaciofluvial landforms in the DAF implicate warming by a gas other than CO2 alone. Previously published exposure ages of eskers in the DAF indicate that eskers were being exposed as activity was ceasing in the equatorial valley networks, suggesting that the warming that allowed basal melting of the DAF ice sheet was broadly contemporaneous with development of the valley networks. Elevated Tharsis topography is required to produce an ice sheet with the shape of the DAF. Thus, our results are not consistent with the DAF (and the valley networks) forming before Tharsis, as recently suggested.

6. (Photocopy of the second sheet of a threesheet set ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

6. (Photocopy of the second sheet of a three-sheet set entitled "Kongensgade 52-58") KING STREET (FRONT) ELEVATIONS OF KONGENSGADE 54 (see "Kongensgade 54," HABS No. VI-89) AND KONGENSGADE 55 - King Street Area Study, King Street, Christiansted, St. Croix, VI

Recent thinning of Bowdoin Glacier, a marine terminating outlet glacier in northwestern Greenland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tsutaki, S.; Sugiyama, S.; Sakakibara, D.; Sawagaki, T.; Maruyama, M.

2014-12-01

Ice discharge from calving glaciers has increased in the Greenland ice sheet (GrIS), and this increase plays important roles in the volume change of GrIS and its contribution to sea level rise. Thinning of GrIS calving glaciers has been studied by the differentiation of digital elevation models (DEMs) derived by satellite remote-sensing (RS). Such studies rely on the accuracy of DEMs, but calibration of RS data with ground based data is difficult. This is because field data on GrIS calving glaciers are few. In this study, we combined field and RS data to measure surface elevation change of Bowdoin Glacier, a marine terminating outlet glacier in northwestern Greenland (77°41'18″N, 68°29'47″W). The fast flowing part of the glacier is approximately 3 km wide and 10 km long. Ice surface elevation within 6 km from the glacier terminus was surveyed in the field in July 2013 and 2014, by using the global positioning system. We also measured the surface elevation over the glacier on August 20, 2007 and September 4, 2010, by analyzing Advanced Land Observing Satellite (ALOS), Panchromatic remote-sensing Instrument for Stereo Mapping (PRISM) images. We calibrated the satellite derived elevation data with our field measurements, and generated DEM for each year with a 25 m grid mesh. The field data and DEMs were compared to calculate recent glacier elevation change. Mean surface elevation change along the field survey profiles were -16.3±0.2 m (-5.3±0.1 m yr-1) in 2007-2010 and -10.8±0.2 m (-3.8±0.1 m yr-1) in 2010-2013. These rates are much greater than those observed on non-calving ice caps in the region, and similar to those reported for other calving glaciers in northwestern Greenland. Loss of ice was greater near the glacier terminus, suggesting the importance of ice dynamics and/or interaction with the ocean.

Time Series of Greenland Ice-Sheet Elevations and Mass Changes from ICESat 2003-2009

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zwally, H. J.; Li, J.; Medley, B.; Robbins, J. W.; Yi, D.

2015-12-01

We follow the repeat-track analysis (RTA) of ICESat surface-elevation data by a second stage that adjusts the measured elevations on repeat passes to the reference track taking into account the cross-track slope (αc), in order to construct elevation time series. αc are obtained from RTA simultaneous solutions for αc, dh/dt, and h0. The height measurements on repeat tracks are initially interpolated to uniform along-track reference points (every 172 m) and times (ti) giving the h(xi,ti) used in the RTA solutions. The xi are the cross-track spacings from the reference track and i is the laser campaign index. The adjusted elevation measurements at the along-track reference points are hr(ti) = h(xi,ti) - xi tan(αc) - h0. The hr(ti) time series are averaged over 50 km cells creating H(ti) series and further averaged (weighted by cell area) to H(t) time series over drainage systems (DS), elevation bands, regions, and the entire ice sheet. Temperature-driven changes in the rate of firn compaction, CT(t), are calculated for 50 km cells with our firn-compaction model giving I(t) = H(t) - CT(t) - B(t) where B(t) is the vertical motion of the bedrock. During 2003 to 2009, the average dCT(t)/dt in the accumulation zone is -5 cm/yr, which amounts to a -75 km3/yr correction to ice volume change estimates. The I(t) are especially useful for studying the seasonal cycle of mass gains and losses and interannual variations. The H(t) for the ablation zone are fitted with a multi-variate function with a linear component describing the upward component of ice flow plus winter accumulation (fall through spring) and a portion of a sine function describing the superimposed summer melting. During fall to spring the H(t) indicate that the upward motion of the ice flow is at a rate of 1 m/yr, giving an annual mass gain of 180 Gt/yr in the ablation zone. The summer loss from surface melting in the high-melt summer of 2005 is 350 Gt/yr, giving a net surface loss of 170 Gt/yr from the ablation zone for 2005. During 2003-2008, the H(t) for the ablation zone show accelerations of the mass losses in the northwest DS8 and in the west-central DS7 (including Jacobshavn glacier) and offsetting decelerations of the mass losses in the east-central DS3 and southeast DS4, much of which occurred in 2008 possibly due to an eastward shift in the surface mass balance.

EXTERIOR ELEVATIONS. United Engineering Company Ltd., Alameda Shipyard, Ship Repair ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

EXTERIOR ELEVATIONS. United Engineering Company Ltd., Alameda Shipyard, Ship Repair Facilities, Office Building. Includes lettering detail for front elevation. John Hudspeth, Architect, at foot of Main Street, Alameda, Calif. Sheet no. A3 of 8 sheets, Plan no. 10,007. Scale 1/8 inch to the foot. March 18, 1942, last revised 9/21/43. U.S. Navy, Bureau of Yards & Docks, Contract no. bs 76. Approved for construction October 9, 1943. blueprint - United Engineering Company Shipyard, Office Building No. 137, 2900 Main Street, Alameda, Alameda County, CA

Temporal Characteristics of Electron Flux Events at Geosynchronous Orbit

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olson, D. K.; Larsen, B.; Henderson, M. G.

2017-12-01

Geosynchronous satellites such as the LANL-GEO fleet are exposed to hazardous conditions when they encounter regions of hot, intense plasma such as that from the plasma sheet. These conditions can lead to the build-up of charge on the surface of a spacecraft, with undesired, and often dangerous, side effects. Observation of electron flux levels at geosynchronous orbit (GEO) with multiple satellites provides a unique view of plasma sheet access to that region. Flux "events", or periods when fluxes are elevated continuously above the LANL-GEO spacecraft charging threshold, can be characterized by duration in two dimensions: a spatial dimension of local time, describing the duration of an event from the perspective of a single spacecraft, and a temporal dimension describing the duration in time in which high energy plasma sheet particles have access to geosynchronous orbit. We examine the statistical properties of the temporal duration of 8 keV electron flux events at geosynchronous orbit over a twelve-year period. These results, coupled with the spatial duration characteristics, provide the key information needed to formulate a statistical model for forecasting the electron flux conditions at GEO that are correlated with LANL-GEO surface charging. Forecasting models are an essential component to understanding space weather and mitigating the dangers of surface charging on our satellites. We also examine the correlation of flux event durations with solar wind parameters and geomagnetic indices, identifying the data needed to improve upon a statistical forecasting model

4. (Photocopy of the third sheet of a threesheet set ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

4. (Photocopy of the third sheet of a three-sheet set entitled 'Kongensgade 45B-51') KING STREET (FRONT) ELEVATIONS OF KONGENSGADE 49-50 AND OF KONGENSGADE 51 (see 'Lutheran Parsonage,' HABS No. VI-26) - King Street Area Study, King Street, Christiansted, St. Croix, VI

Increased West Antarctic and unchanged East Antarctic ice discharge over the last 7 years

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gardner, Alex S.; Moholdt, Geir; Scambos, Ted; Fahnstock, Mark; Ligtenberg, Stefan; van den Broeke, Michiel; Nilsson, Johan

2018-02-01

Ice discharge from large ice sheets plays a direct role in determining rates of sea-level rise. We map present-day Antarctic-wide surface velocities using Landsat 7 and 8 imagery spanning 2013-2015 and compare to earlier estimates derived from synthetic aperture radar, revealing heterogeneous changes in ice flow since ˜ 2008. The new mapping provides complete coastal and inland coverage of ice velocity north of 82.4° S with a mean error of < 10 m yr-1, resulting from multiple overlapping image pairs acquired during the daylight period. Using an optimized flux gate, ice discharge from Antarctica is 1929 ± 40 Gigatons per year (Gt yr-1) in 2015, an increase of 36 ± 15 Gt yr-1 from the time of the radar mapping. Flow accelerations across the grounding lines of West Antarctica's Amundsen Sea Embayment, Getz Ice Shelf and Marguerite Bay on the western Antarctic Peninsula, account for 88 % of this increase. In contrast, glaciers draining the East Antarctic Ice Sheet have been remarkably constant over the period of observation. Including modeled rates of snow accumulation and basal melt, the Antarctic ice sheet lost ice at an average rate of 183 ± 94 Gt yr-1 between 2008 and 2015. The modest increase in ice discharge over the past 7 years is contrasted by high rates of ice sheet mass loss and distinct spatial patters of elevation lowering. The West Antarctic Ice Sheet is experiencing high rates of mass loss and displays distinct patterns of elevation lowering that point to a dynamic imbalance. We find modest increase in ice discharge over the past 7 years, which suggests that the recent pattern of mass loss in Antarctica is part of a longer-term phase of enhanced glacier flow initiated in the decades leading up to the first continent-wide radar mapping of ice flow.

The Effects of Plastic Anisotropy in Warm and Hot Forming of Magnesium Sheet Materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Taleff, Eric M.; Antoniswamy, Aravindha R.; Carpenter, Alexander J.; Yavuz, Emre

Mg alloy sheet materials often exhibit plastic anisotropy at room temperature as a result of the limited slip systems available in the HCP lattice combined with a commonly strong basal texture. Less well studied is plastic anisotropy developed at the elevated temperatures associated with warm and hot forming. At these elevated temperatures, particularly above 200°C, the activation of additional slip systems significantly increases ductility. However, plastic anisotropy is also induced at elevated temperatures by a strong crystallographic texture, and it can require an accounting in material constitutive models to achieve accurate forming simulations. The type and degree of anisotropy under these conditions depend on both texture and deformation mechanism. The current understanding of plastic anisotropy in Mg AZ31B and ZEK100 sheet materials at elevated temperatures is reviewed in this article. The recent construction of material forming cases is also reviewed with strategies to account for plastic anisotropy in forming simulations.

Method for achieving sustained anisotropic crystal growth on the surface of a silicon melt

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

Mackintosh, Brian H.; Kellerman, Peter L.; Sun, Dawei

An apparatus for growing a crystalline sheet from a melt includes a cold block assembly. The cold block assembly may include a cold block and a shield surrounding the cold block and being at an elevated temperature with respect to that of the cold block, the shield defining an opening disposed along a surface of the cold block proximate a melt surface that defines a cold area comprising a width along a first direction of the cold block, the cold area operable to provide localized cooling of a region of the melt surface proximate the cold block. The apparatus maymore » further include a crystal puller arranged to draw a crystalline seed in a direction perpendicular to the first direction when the cold block assembly is disposed proximate the melt surface.« less

Climate Variability, Melt-Flow Acceleration, and Ice Quakes at the Western Slope of the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Steffen, K.; Zwally, J. H.; Rial, J. A.; Behar, A.; Huff, R.

2006-12-01

The Greenland ice sheet experienced surface melt increase over the past 15 years with record melt years in 1987, 1991, 1998, 2002 and 2005. For the western part of the ice sheet the melt area increased by 30 percent (1979-2005). Monthly mean air temperatures increased in spring and fall by 0.23 deg. C per year since 1990, extending the length of melt and total ablation. Winter air temperatures increased by as much as 0.5 deg. C per year during the past 15 years. The equilibrium line altitude ranged between 400 and 1530 m above sea level at 70 deg. north along the western slope of the ice sheet for the past 15 years, equaling a horizontal distance of 100 km. The ELA has been below the Swiss Camp (1100 m elevation) in the nineties, and since 1997 moved above the Swiss Camp height. An increase in ELA leads to an increase in melt water run-off which has been verified by regional model studies (high-resolution re-analysis). Interannual variability of snow accumulation varies from 0.3 to 2.0 m, whereas snow and ice ablation ranges from 0 to 1.5 m water equivalent at Swiss Camp during 1990-2005. A GPS network (10 stations) monitors ice velocity, acceleration, and surface height change at high temporal resolution throughout the year. The network covers a range of 500 and 1500 m above sea level, close to the Ilulissat Icefjord World Heritage region. The ice sheet continued to accelerate during the height of the melt season with short-term velocity increases up to 100 percent, and vertical uplift rates of 0.5 m. There seems to be a good correlation between the change in ice velocity and total surface melt, suggesting that melt water penetrates to great depth through moulins and cracks, lubricating the bottom of the ice sheet. A new bore-hole video movie will be shown from a 110 m deep moulin close to Swiss Camp. A PASSCAL array of 10 portable, 3-component seismic stations deployed around Swiss Camp from May to August 2006 detected numerous microearthquakes within the ice sheet and possibly at its contact with the underlying bedrock some 60 km to the south of Swiss Camp. The seismic data collected will be discussed.

Antarctic Firn Compaction Rates from Repeat-Track Airborne Radar Data: I. Methods

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Medley, B.; Ligtenberg, S. R. M.; Joughin, I.; Van Den Broeke, M. R.; Gogineni, S.; Nowicki, S.

2015-01-01

While measurements of ice-sheet surface elevation change are increasingly used to assess mass change, the processes that control the elevation fluctuations not related to ice-flow dynamics (e.g. firn compaction and accumulation) remain difficult to measure. Here we use radar data from the Thwaites Glacier (West Antarctica) catchment to measure the rate of thickness change between horizons of constant age over different time intervals: 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2009-11. The average compaction rate to approximately 25m depth is 0.33ma(exp -1), with largest compaction rates near the surface. Our measurements indicate that the accumulation rate controls much of the spatio-temporal variations in the compaction rate while the role of temperature is unclear due to a lack of measurements. Based on a semi-empirical, steady-state densification model, we find that surveying older firn horizons minimizes the potential bias resulting from the variable depth of the constant age horizon. Our results suggest that the spatiotemporal variations in the firn compaction rate are an important consideration when converting surface elevation change to ice mass change. Compaction rates varied by up to 0.12ma(exp -1) over distances less than 6km and were on average greater than 20% larger during the 2010-11 interval than during 2009-10.

5. (Photocopy of the first sheet of a threesheet set ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

5. (Photocopy of the first sheet of a three-sheet set entitled "Kongensgade 52-58") KING STREET (FRONT) ELEVATIONS OF KONGENSGADE 52 (see "Kongensgade 52," HABS No. VI-114) AND KONGENSGADE 53 (see "Kongensgade 53," HABS No. VI-115) - King Street Area Study, King Street, Christiansted, St. Croix, VI

Extent of Low-accumulation 'Wind Glaze' Areas on the East Antarctic Plateau: Implications for Continental Ice Mass Balance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Scambos, Theodore A.; Frezzotti, Massimo; Haran, T.; Bohlander, J.; Lenaerts, J. T. M.; Van Den Broeke, M. R.; Jezek, K.; Long, D.; Urbini, S.; Farness, K.;

Optimization of Surface Roughness and Wall Thickness in Dieless Incremental Forming Of Aluminum Sheet Using Taguchi

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hamedon, Zamzuri; Kuang, Shea Cheng; Jaafar, Hasnulhadi; Azhari, Azmir

2018-03-01

Incremental sheet forming is a versatile sheet metal forming process where a sheet metal is formed into its final shape by a series of localized deformation without a specialised die. However, it still has many shortcomings that need to be overcome such as geometric accuracy, surface roughness, formability, forming speed, and so on. This project focus on minimising the surface roughness of aluminium sheet and improving its thickness uniformity in incremental sheet forming via optimisation of wall angle, feed rate, and step size. Besides, the effect of wall angle, feed rate, and step size to the surface roughness and thickness uniformity of aluminium sheet was investigated in this project. From the results, it was observed that surface roughness and thickness uniformity were inversely varied due to the formation of surface waviness. Increase in feed rate and decrease in step size will produce a lower surface roughness, while uniform thickness reduction was obtained by reducing the wall angle and step size. By using Taguchi analysis, the optimum parameters for minimum surface roughness and uniform thickness reduction of aluminium sheet were determined. The finding of this project helps to reduce the time in optimising the surface roughness and thickness uniformity in incremental sheet forming.

Unveiling the Antarctic subglacial landscape.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Warner, Roland; Roberts, Jason

2010-05-01

Better knowledge of the subglacial landscape of Antarctica is vital to reducing uncertainties regarding prediction of the evolution of the ice sheet. These uncertainties are associated with bedrock geometry for ice sheet dynamics, including possible marine ice sheet instabilities and subglacial hydrological pathways (e.g. Wright et al., 2008). Major collaborative aerogeophysics surveys motivated by the International Polar Year (e.g. ICECAP and AGAP), and continuing large scale radar echo sounding campaigns (ICECAP and NASA Ice Bridge) are significantly improving the coverage. However, the vast size of Antarctica and logistic difficulties mean that data gaps persist, and ice thickness data remains spatially inhomogeneous. The physics governing large scale ice sheet flow enables ice thickness, and hence bedrock topography, to be inferred from knowledge of ice sheet surface topography and considerations of ice sheet mass balance, even in areas with sparse ice thickness measurements (Warner and Budd, 2000). We have developed a robust physically motivated interpolation scheme, based on these methods, and used it to generate a comprehensive map of Antarctic bedrock topography, using along-track ice thickness data assembled for the BEDMAP project (Lythe et al., 2001). This approach reduces ice thickness biases, compared to traditional inverse distance interpolation schemes which ignore the information available from considerations of ice sheet flow. In addition, the use of improved balance fluxes, calculated using a Lagrangian scheme, eliminates the grid orientation biases in ice fluxes associated with finite difference methods (Budd and Warner, 1996, Le Brocq et al., 2006). The present map was generated using a recent surface DEM (Bamber et al., 2009, Griggs and Bamber, 2009) and accumulation distribution (van de Berg et al., 2006). Comparing our results with recent high resolution regional surveys gives confidence that all major subglacial topographic features are revealed by this approach, and we advocate its consideration in future ice thickness data syntheses. REFERENCES Budd, W.F., and R.C. Warner, 1996. A computer scheme for rapid calculations of balance-flux distributions. Annals of Glaciology 23, 21-27. Bamber, J.L., J.L. Gomez Dans and J.A. Griggs, 2009. A new 1 km digital elevation model of the Antarctic derived from combined satellite radar and laser data. Part I: Data and methods. The Cryosphere 3 (2), 101-111. Griggs, J.A., and J.L. Bamber, 2009. A new digital elevation model of Antarctica derived from combined radar and laser altimetry data. Part II: Validation and error estimates, The Cryosphere, 3(2), 113-123. Le Brocq, A.M., A.J. Payne and M.J. Siegert, 2006. West Antarctic balance calculations: Impact of flux-routing algorithm, smoothing algorithm and topography. Computers and Geosciences 23(10): 1780-1795. Lythe, M. B., D.G. Vaughan, and the BEDMAP Consortium 2001, BEDMAP: A new ice thickness and subglacial topographic model of Antarctica, J. of Geophys. Res., 106(B6),11,335-11,351. van de Berg, W.J., M.R. van den Broeke, C.H. Reijmer, and E. van Meijgaard, 2006. Reassessment of the Antarctic surface mass balance using calibrated output of a regional atmospheric climate model, J. Geophys. Res., 111, D11104,doi:10.1029/2005JD006495. Warner, R.C., and W.F. Budd, 2000. Derivation of ice thickness and bedrock topography in data-gap regions over Antarctica, Annals of Glaciology, 31, 191-197. Wright, A.P., M.J. Siegert, A.M. Le Brocq, and D.B. Gore, 2008. High sensitivity of subglacial hydrological pathways in Antarctica to small ice-sheet changes, Geophys. Res. Lett., 35, L17504, doi:10.1029/2008GL034937.

Quaternary history of the Kiseiba Oasis region, southern Egypt

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maxwell, Ted A.; Haynes, C. Vance; Nicoll, Kathleen; Johnston, Andrew K.; Grant, John A.; Kilani, Ali

2017-12-01

Kiseiba Oasis and depression are located in southern Egypt between the Selima Sand Sheet to the west and the Nile to the east, an important area that hosted Late Cenozoic drainage, Middle Pleistocene lakes, and numerous Paleolithic and Neolithic cultural sites. A synthesis of orbital data, field surveying and near-surface stratigraphy provides new insights into the Quaternary history of this region. Shuttle Imaging Radar data show a complex of fluvial channels that are due to stringers of surficial fluvial lag, subsurface fluvial deposits, and areas of deep alluvium. Three topographic surfaces are described: 1) the Atmur El-Kibeish, above 230 m elevation, which displays a linear pattern of light radar returns, possibly formed from northeast drainage; 2) the Acheulean Surface, at 200 m elevation, that has dark radar patterns resulting from thick alluvium bounded by pebble sand and calcrete strata, and 3) the Kiseiba Surface, below 190 m, that has a complex series of surface and subsurface fluvial and aeolian sediments. Initial drainage from the Early through Middle Pleistocene was to the northeast, which may have lasted through the Last Interglacial. Later reworking of sediments during the Last Glacial Maximum and the Holocene resulted in topographic inversion, with any subsequent local drainage on the Kiseiba Surface to the southwest, towards the Kiseiba Scarp.

The Multiple Altimeter Beam Experimental Lidar (MABEL), an Airborne Simulator for the ICESat-2 Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

McGill, Matthew; Markus, Thorsten; Scott, V. Stanley; Neumann, Thomas

2012-01-01

The Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) mission is currently under development by NASA. The primary mission of ICESat-2 will be to measure elevation changes of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, document changes in sea ice thickness distribution, and derive important information about the current state of the global ice coverage. To make this important measurement, NASA is implementing a new type of satellite-based surface altimetry based on sensing of laser pulses transmitted to, and reflected from, the surface. Because the ICESat-2 measurement approach is different from that used for previous altimeter missions, a high-fidelity aircraft instrument, the Multiple Altimeter Beam Experimental Lidar (MABEL), was developed to demonstrate the measurement concept and provide verification of the ICESat-2 methodology. The MABEL instrument will serve as a prototype for the ICESat-2 mission and also provides a science tool for studies of land surface topography. This paper outlines the science objectives for the ICESat-2 mission, the current measurement concept for ICESat-2, and the instrument concept and preliminary data from MABEL.

Magnetic thermal dissipations of FeCo hollow fibers filled in composite sheets under alternating magnetic field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Jinu; Lee, Sang Bok; Lee, Sang Kwan; Kim, Ki Hyeon

2017-09-01

To evaluate the heat elevation of FeCo hollow fibers filled in magnetic composite sheet, we synthesized the FeCo hollow fiber by using electroless plating method. The synthesized FeCo hollow fibers (50 wt.%) were mixed with thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU). FeCo hollow fiber in composite sheet exhibited the representative α-FeCo peak by XRD. The magnetization and coercivity of FeCo hollow fibers were 176.5 Am2/kg and 6.2 kA/m, respectively. In order to measure the heat elevation, the alternating magnetic field (AMF) was applied to magnetic composites sheets from 7.1 kA/m to 11.1 kA/m at 190 kHz and the frequency was applied from 190 kHz to 355 kHz at 8.3 kA/m, respectively. The elevated temperatures and the specific loss power (SLP) values exhibited about 76 °C from the initial temperature of 26 °C and about 25.3 W/g for the AMF of 8.3 kA/m and frequency of 355 kHz.

On the Causes of Mid-Pliocene Warmth and Polar Amplification

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lunt, Daniel J.; Haywood, Alan M.; Schmidt, Gavin A.; Salzmann, Ulrich; Valdes, Paul J.; Dowsett, Harry J.; Loptson, Claire A.

2012-01-01

The mid-Pliocene (approximately 3 to 3.3 Ma ago), is a period of sustained global warmth in comparison to the late Quaternary (0 to approximately 1 Ma ago), and has potential to inform predictions of long-term future climate change. However, given that several processes potentially contributed, relatively little is understood about the reasons for the observed warmth, or the associated polar amplification. Here, using a modelling approach and a novel factorisation method, we assess the relative contributions to mid-Pliocene warmth from: elevated CO2, lowered orography, and vegetation and ice sheet changes. The results show that on a global scale, the largest contributor to mid-Pliocene warmth is elevated CO2. However, in terms of polar amplification, changes to ice sheets contribute significantly in the Southern Hemisphere, and orographic changes contribute significantly in the Northern Hemisphere. We also carry out an energy balance analysis which indicates that that on a global scale, surface albedo and atmospheric emmissivity changes dominate over cloud changes. We investigate the sensitivity of our results to uncertainties in the prescribed CO2 and orographic changes, to derive uncertainty ranges for the various contributing processes.

A Modified Johnson-Cook Model for Sheet Metal Forming at Elevated Temperatures and Its Application for Cooled Stress-Strain Curve and Spring-Back Prediction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Duc-Toan, Nguyen; Tien-Long, Banh; Young-Suk, Kim; Dong-Won, Jung

2011-08-01

In this study, a modified Johnson-Cook (J-C) model and an innovated method to determine (J-C) material parameters are proposed to predict more correctly stress-strain curve for tensile tests in elevated temperatures. A MATLAB tool is used to determine material parameters by fitting a curve to follow Ludwick's hardening law at various elevated temperatures. Those hardening law parameters are then utilized to determine modified (J-C) model material parameters. The modified (J-C) model shows the better prediction compared to the conventional one. As the first verification, an FEM tensile test simulation based on the isotropic hardening model for boron sheet steel at elevated temperatures was carried out via a user-material subroutine, using an explicit finite element code, and compared with the measurements. The temperature decrease of all elements due to the air cooling process was then calculated when considering the modified (J-C) model and coded to VUMAT subroutine for tensile test simulation of cooling process. The modified (J-C) model showed the good agreement between the simulation results and the corresponding experiments. The second investigation was applied for V-bending spring-back prediction of magnesium alloy sheets at elevated temperatures. Here, the combination of proposed J-C model with modified hardening law considering the unusual plastic behaviour for magnesium alloy sheet was adopted for FEM simulation of V-bending spring-back prediction and shown the good comparability with corresponding experiments.

Characterizing supraglacial meltwater channel hydraulics on the Greenland Ice Sheet from in situ observations

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gleason, Colin J.; Smith, Laurence C.; Chu, Vena W.; Legleiter, Carl; Pitcher, Lincoln H.; Overstreet, Brandon T.; Rennermalm, Asa K.; Forster, Richard R.; Yang, Kang

2016-01-01

Supraglacial rivers on the Greenland ice sheet (GrIS) transport large volumes of surface meltwater toward the ocean, yet have received relatively little direct research. This study presents field observations of channel width, depth, velocity, and water surface slope for nine supraglacial channels on the southwestern GrIS collected between 23 July and 20 August, 2012. Field sites are located up to 74 km inland and span 494-1485 m elevation, and contain measured discharges larger than any previous in situ study: from 0.006 to 23.12 m3/s in channels 0.20 to 20.62 m wide. All channels were deeply incised with near vertical banks, and hydraulic geometry results indicate that supraglacial channels primarily accommodate greater discharges by increasing velocity. Smaller streams had steeper water surface slopes (0.74-8.83%) than typical in terrestrial settings, yielding correspondingly high velocities (0.40-2.60 m/s) and Froude numbers (0.45-3.11) with supercritical flow observed in 54% of measurements. Derived Manning's n values were larger and more variable than anticipated from channels of uniform substrate, ranging from 0.009 to 0.154 with a mean value of 0.035 +/- 0.027 despite the absence of sediment, debris, or other roughness elements. Ubiquitous micro-depressions in shallow sections of the channel bed may explain some of these roughness values. However, we find that other, unobserved sources of flow resistance likely contributed to these elevated n values: future work should explicitly consider additional sources of flow resistance beyond bed roughness in supraglacial channels. We conclude that hydraulic modelling for these channels must allow for both sub- and supercritical flow, and most importantly must refrain from assuming that all ice-substrate channels exhibit similar hydraulic behavior, especially for Froude numbers and Manning's n. Finally, this study highlights that further theoretical and empirical work on supraglacial channel hydraulics is necessary before broad scale understanding of ice sheet hydrology can be achieved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Process development of two high strength tantalum base alloys (ASTAR-1211C and ASTAR-1511C)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ammon, R. L.

1974-01-01

Two tantalum base alloys, Ta-12W-1.0Re-0.7Hf-0.025C(ASTAR-1211C) and Ta-15W-1.0Re-0.7Hf-0.025C(ASTAR-1511C), were cast as 12.5 cm (5 inch) diameter ingots and processed to swaged rod, sheet, forged plate, and tubing. Swaged rod was evaluated with respect to low temperature ductility, elevated temperature tensile properties, and elevated temperature creep behavior. A standard swaging process and final annealing schedule were determined. Elevated temperature tensile properties, low temperature impact properties, low temperature DBTT behavior, and extended elevated temperature creep properties were determined. A process for producing ASTAR-1211C and ASTAR-1511C sheet were developed. The DBTT properties of GTA and EB weld sheet given post-weld anneal and thermal aging treatments were determined using bend and tensile specimens. High and low temperature mechanical properties of forging ASTAR-1211C and ASTAR-1511C plate were determined as well as elevated temperature creep properties. Attempts to produce ASTAR-1211C tubing were partially successful while attempts to make ASTAR-1511C tubing were completely unsuccessful.

7. (Photocopy of the third sheet of a threesheet set ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

7. (Photocopy of the third sheet of a three-sheet set entitled "Kongensgade 52-58") KING STREET (FRONT) ELEVATIONS OF KONGENSGADE 56-57 (see "Kongensgade 56-57," HABS No. VI-92) AND KONGENSGADE 58 (see "Kongensgade 58," HABS No. VI-117) - King Street Area Study, King Street, Christiansted, St. Croix, VI

Evidence for glaciation in Elysium

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, Duwayne M.

1987-01-01

Evidence for the existence of permafrost and the surface modification due to frost effects and the presence of ice on Mars dates from early observations. Later analysis of the Viking Orbiter imagery produced evidence suggesting the former presence of ice sheets that could have played a part in shaping the surface of Mars. Similarities were pointed out between a number of streamlined Martian channel features and similar streamlined landforms created by Antarctic ice sheet movement. A study of Viking Orbiter imagery of Granicus Valles and the surrounding terrain in Elysium has produced further evidence of glaciation on Mars. Volcanism has played an important role in developing the landscapes of the Elysium region. A possible explanation is that subsidence occurred during formation of the Martian moberg ridges due to the melting of ground ice near the eruption area while at a distance most of the ground ice in the permafrost is still present and the original elevation was preserved. Meltwater during and following eruptions might be suddenly released during subglacial volcanism into Granicus Valles in one case and into Hrad Valles in the other. Fluvial erosion thus could have played a role in shaping both.

A Satellite-Derived Climate-Quality Data Record of the Clear-Sky Surface Temperature of the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, Dorothy K.; Comiso, Josefino C.; DiGirolamo, Nicolo E.; Shuman, Christopher A.; Key, Jeffrey R.; Koenig, Lora S.

2011-01-01

We have developed a climate-quality data record of the clear-sky surface temperature of the Greenland Ice Sheet using the Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Terra ice-surface temperature (1ST) algorithm. A climate-data record (CDR) is a time series of measurements of sufficient length, consistency, and continuity to determine climate variability and change. We present daily and monthly Terra MODIS ISTs of the Greenland Ice Sheet beginning on 1 March 2000 and continuing through 31 December 2010 at 6.25-km spatial resolution on a polar stereographic grid within +/-3 hours of 17:00Z or 2:00 PM Local Solar Time. Preliminary validation of the ISTs at Summit Camp, Greenland, during the 2008-09 winter, shows that there is a cold bias using the MODIS IST which underestimates the measured surface temperature by approximately 3 C when temperatures range from approximately -50 C to approximately -35 C. The ultimate goal is to develop a CDR that starts in 1981 with the Advanced Very High Resolution (AVHRR) Polar Pathfinder (APP) dataset and continues with MODIS data from 2000 to the present. Differences in the APP and MODIS cloud masks have so far precluded the current IST records from spanning both the APP and MODIS IST time series in a seamless manner though this will be revisited when the APP dataset has been reprocessed. The Greenland IST climate-quality data record is suitable for continuation using future Visible Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) data and will be elevated in status to a CDR when at least 9 more years of climate-quality data become available either from MODIS Terra or Aqua, or from the VIIRS. The complete MODIS IST data record will be available online in the summer of 2011.

Observations on the relationship of structure to the mechanical properties of thin TD-NiCr sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Whittenberger, J. D.

1976-01-01

A study of the relationship between structure and mechanical properties of thin TD-NiCr sheet indicated that the elevated temperature tensile, stress-rupture, and creep strength properties are dependent on grain aspect ratio and sheet thickness. In general, the strength properties increase with increasing grain aspect ratio and sheet thickness. Tensile testing revealed an absence of ductility at elevated temperatures (not less than 1144 K). Significant creep damage as determined by subsequent tensile testing at room temperature occurs after very small amounts (less than 0.1%) of prior creep deformation over the temperature range 1144-1477 K. A threshold stress for creep appears to exist. Creep exposure below the threshold stress at T not less than 1366 K results in almost full retention of room temperature tensile properties.

Topical Application of a Silicone Gel Sheet with Verapamil Microparticles in a Rabbit Model of Hypertrophic Scar.

PubMed

Rha, Eun Young; Kim, Yun Ho; Kim, Tae-Jung; Yoo, Gyeol; Rhie, Jong Won; Kim, Hyun-Jung; Park, Il-Kyu

2016-01-01

The authors developed a novel treatment based on the topical application of a silicone gel sheet containing verapamil microparticles. The ability of these silicone gel sheets to inhibit hypertrophic scar in a rabbit ear wound model was examined. Ten New Zealand White rabbits with a total of 80 wounds in both ears were used in this study. The rabbits were divided into five groups (control; silicone gel sheet; and silicone gel sheet plus 0.25, 2.5, and 25 mg of verapamil per gram). Histopathologic findings were quantified. The mean scar elevation index, fibroblast counts, and capillary counts differed significantly among the five groups (p < 0.05). The median scar elevation index was significantly lower in the silicone gel sheet plus 2.5 mg of verapamil per gram group than in the silicone gel sheet group (1.2 versus 2.2). The median number of fibroblasts was significantly lower in the silicone gel sheet plus 0.25 mg of verapamil per gram group than in the silicone gel sheet group (172.5 versus 243). In the median number of capillary lumina, there was no significant difference between the silicone gel sheet group and the silicone gel sheet plus 0.25, 2.5, and 25 mg of verapamil per gram groups (28.5, 18, 20, and 18, respectively). Topical application of a silicone gel sheet with verapamil microparticles may be a novel, effective treatment method for hypertrophic scar, but its safety and efficacy in humans must be tested in clinical trials.

Maps showing aeromagnetic survey and geologic interpretation of the Chignik and Sutwik Island quadrangles, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Case, J.E.; Cox, D.P.; Detra, D.E.; Detterman, R.L.; Wilson, Frederic H.

1981-01-01

An aeromagnetic survey over part of the Chignik and Sutwik Island quadrangles, on the southern Alaska Peninsula, was flown in 1977 as part of the Alaska mineral resource assessment program (AMRAP). Maps at scales 1:250,000 and 1:63,360 have been released on open-file (U.s. Geological Survey, 1978a, 1978b). This report includes the aeromagnetic map superimposed on the topographic base (sheet 1) and an interpretation map superimposed on the topographic and simplified geologic base (sheet 2). This discussion provides an interpretation of the aeromagnetic data with respect to regional geology, occurrence of ore deposits and prospects, and potential oil and gas resources. The survey was flown along northwest-southeast lines, spaced about 1.6 km apart, at a nominal elevation of about 300 m above the land surface. A proton-precession magnetometer was used for the survey, and the resulting digital data were computer contoured at intervals of 10 and 50 gammas (sheet 1). The International Geomagnetic Reference Field (IGRF) of 1965, updated to 1977, was removed from the total field data.

Laurentide Ice-Sheet Meltwater Sources to the Gulf of Mexico During the Last Deglaciation: Assessing Data Reconstructions Using Water Isotope Enabled Simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vetter, L.; LeGrande, A. N.; Ullman, D. J.; Carlson, A. E.

2017-12-01

Sediment cores from the Gulf of Mexico show evidence of meltwater derived from the Laurentide Ice Sheet during the last deglaciation. Recent studies using geochemical measurements of individual foraminifera suggest changes in the oxygen isotopic composition of the meltwater as deglaciation proceeded. Here we use the water isotope enabled climate model simulations (NASA GISS ModelE-R) to investigate potential sources of meltwater within the ice sheet. We find that initial melting of the ice sheet from the southern margin contributed an oxygen isotope value reflecting a low-elevation, local precipitation source. As deglacial melting proceeded, meltwater delivered to the Gulf of Mexico had a more negative oxygen isotopic value, which the climate model simulates as being sourced from the high-elevation, high-latitude interior of the ice sheet. This study demonstrates the utility of combining stable isotope analyses with climate model simulations to investigate past changes in the hydrologic cycle.

Particulate photocatalyst sheets for Z-scheme water splitting: advantages over powder suspension and photoelectrochemical systems and future challenges.

PubMed

Wang, Qian; Hisatomi, Takashi; Katayama, Masao; Takata, Tsuyoshi; Minegishi, Tsutomu; Kudo, Akihiko; Yamada, Taro; Domen, Kazunari

2017-04-28

Water splitting using semiconductor photocatalysts has been attracting growing interest as a means of solar energy based conversion of water to hydrogen, a clean and renewable fuel. Z-scheme photocatalytic water splitting based on the two-step excitation of an oxygen evolution photocatalyst (OEP) and a hydrogen evolution photocatalyst (HEP) is a promising approach toward the utilisation of visible light. In particular, a photocatalyst sheet system consisting of HEP and OEP particles embedded in a conductive layer has been recently proposed as a new means of obtaining efficient and scalable redox mediator-free Z-scheme solar water splitting. In this paper, we discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the photocatalyst sheet approach compared to conventional photocatalyst powder suspension and photoelectrochemical systems through an examination of the water splitting activity of Z-scheme systems based on SrTiO 3 :La,Rh as the HEP and BiVO 4 :Mo as the OEP. This photocatalyst sheet was found to split pure water much more efficiently than the powder suspension and photoelectrochemical systems, because the underlying metal layer efficiently transfers electrons from the OEP to the HEP. The photocatalyst sheet also outperformed a photoelectrochemical parallel cell during pure water splitting. The effects of H + /OH - concentration overpotentials and of the IR drop are reduced in the case of the photocatalyst sheet compared to photoelectrochemical systems, because the HEP and OEP are situated in close proximity to one another. Therefore, the photocatalyst sheet design is well-suited to efficient large-scale applications. Nevertheless, it is also noted that the photocatalytic activity of these sheets drops markedly with increasing background pressure because of reverse reactions involving molecular oxygen under illumination as well as delays in gas bubble desorption. It is shown that appropriate surface modifications allow the photocatalyst sheet to maintain its water splitting activity at elevated pressure. Accordingly, we conclude that the photocatalyst sheet system is a viable option for the realisation of efficient solar fuel production.

Insolation-driven 100,000-year glacial cycles and hysteresis of ice-sheet volume.

PubMed

Abe-Ouchi, Ayako; Saito, Fuyuki; Kawamura, Kenji; Raymo, Maureen E; Okuno, Jun'ichi; Takahashi, Kunio; Blatter, Heinz

2013-08-08

The growth and reduction of Northern Hemisphere ice sheets over the past million years is dominated by an approximately 100,000-year periodicity and a sawtooth pattern (gradual growth and fast termination). Milankovitch theory proposes that summer insolation at high northern latitudes drives the glacial cycles, and statistical tests have demonstrated that the glacial cycles are indeed linked to eccentricity, obliquity and precession cycles. Yet insolation alone cannot explain the strong 100,000-year cycle, suggesting that internal climatic feedbacks may also be at work. Earlier conceptual models, for example, showed that glacial terminations are associated with the build-up of Northern Hemisphere 'excess ice', but the physical mechanisms underpinning the 100,000-year cycle remain unclear. Here we show, using comprehensive climate and ice-sheet models, that insolation and internal feedbacks between the climate, the ice sheets and the lithosphere-asthenosphere system explain the 100,000-year periodicity. The responses of equilibrium states of ice sheets to summer insolation show hysteresis, with the shape and position of the hysteresis loop playing a key part in determining the periodicities of glacial cycles. The hysteresis loop of the North American ice sheet is such that after inception of the ice sheet, its mass balance remains mostly positive through several precession cycles, whose amplitudes decrease towards an eccentricity minimum. The larger the ice sheet grows and extends towards lower latitudes, the smaller is the insolation required to make the mass balance negative. Therefore, once a large ice sheet is established, a moderate increase in insolation is sufficient to trigger a negative mass balance, leading to an almost complete retreat of the ice sheet within several thousand years. This fast retreat is governed mainly by rapid ablation due to the lowered surface elevation resulting from delayed isostatic rebound, which is the lithosphere-asthenosphere response. Carbon dioxide is involved, but is not determinative, in the evolution of the 100,000-year glacial cycles.

Probing the Self-Assembly and the Accompanying Structural Changes of Hydrophobin SC3 on a Hydrophobic Surface by Mass Spectrometry

PubMed Central

Wang, X.; Permentier, H. P.; Rink, R.; Kruijtzer, J. A. W.; Liskamp, R. M. J.; Wösten, H. A. B.; Poolman, B.; Robillard, G. T.

2004-01-01

The fungal class I hydrophobin SC3 self-assembles into an amphipathic membrane at hydrophilic-hydrophobic interfaces such as the water-air and water-Teflon interface. During self-assembly, the water-soluble state of SC3 proceeds via the intermediate α-helical state to the stable end form called the β-sheet state. Self-assembly of the hydrophobin at the Teflon surface is arrested in the α-helical state. The β-sheet state can be induced at elevated temperature in the presence of detergent. The structural changes of SC3 were monitored by various mass spectrometry techniques. We show that the so-called second loop of SC3 (C39–S72) has a high affinity for Teflon. Binding of this part of SC3 to Teflon was accompanied by the formation of α-helical structure and resulted in low solvent accessibility. The solvent-protected region of the second loop extended upon conversion to the β-sheet state. In contrast, the C-terminal part of SC3 became more exposed to the solvent. The results indicate that the second loop of class I hydrophobins plays a pivotal role in self-assembly at the hydrophilic-hydrophobic interface. Of interest, this loop is much smaller in case of class II hydrophobins, which may explain the differences in their assembly. PMID:15345568

Mass Balance of the Greenland Ice Sheet at High Elevations.

PubMed

Thomas; Akins; Csatho; Fahnestock; Gogineni; Kim; Sonntag

2000-07-21

Comparison of ice discharge from higher elevation areas of the entire Greenland Ice Sheet with total snow accumulation gives estimates of ice thickening rates over the past few decades. On average, the region has been in balance, but with thickening of 21 centimeters per year in the southwest and thinning of 30 centimeters per year in the southeast. The north of the ice sheet shows less variability, with average thickening of 2 centimeters per year in the northeast and thinning of about 5 centimeters per year in the northwest. These results agree well with those from repeated altimeter surveys, except in the extreme south, where we find substantially higher rates of both thickening and thinning.

Tensile properties of AZ11A-0 magnesium-alloy sheet under rapid-heating and constant temperature

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kurg, Ivo M

1956-01-01

Specimens of AZ31A-0 magnesium alloy sheet were heated to rupture at nominal rates of 0.2 F to 100 F per second under constant tensile load conditions. The data are presented and compared with the results of conventional tensile stress-strain tests at elevated temperatures after 1.2-hour exposure. A temperature-rate parameter was used to construct master curves from which stresses and temperatures for yield and rupture can be predicted under rapid-heating conditions. A comparison of the elevated-temperature tensile properties of AZ31A-0 and HK31XA-H24 magnesium-alloy sheet under both constant-temperature and rapid-heating conditions is included.

Elevation and plan of east side entrance. San Bernardino Valley ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

Elevation and plan of east side entrance. San Bernardino Valley Union Junior College, Library Building. Also includes sections II and SS of entrance hall; and a stress diagram of steel truss. Howard E. Jones, Architect, San Bernardino, California. Sheet 7, job no. 315. Scale 1/2 inch to the foot. No date given on sheet (probably March or April, 1927). - San Bernardino Valley College, Library, 701 South Mount Vernon Avenue, San Bernardino, San Bernardino County, CA

Unmanned Aircraft Systems For CryoSat-2 Validation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crocker, Roger Ian; Maslanik, James A.

2011-02-01

A suite of sensors has been assembled to map surface elevation with fine-resolution from small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). The sensor package consists of a light detecting and ranging (LIDAR) instrument, an inertial measurement unit (IMU), a GPS module, and digital still and video cameras. It has been utilized to map ice sheet topography in Greenland and to measure sea ice freeboard and roughness in Fram Strait. Data collected during these campaigns illustrate its potential to compliment ongoing CryoSat-2 (CS-2) calibration and validation efforts.

Spatiotemporal Interpolation of Elevation Changes Derived from Satellite Altimetry for Jakobshavn Isbrae, Greenland

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hurkmans, R.T.W.L.; Bamber, J.L.; Sorensen, L. S.; Joughin, I. R.; Davis, C. H.; Krabill, W. B.

2012-01-01

Estimation of ice sheet mass balance from satellite altimetry requires interpolation of point-scale elevation change (dHdt) data over the area of interest. The largest dHdt values occur over narrow, fast-flowing outlet glaciers, where data coverage of current satellite altimetry is poorest. In those areas, straightforward interpolation of data is unlikely to reflect the true patterns of dHdt. Here, four interpolation methods are compared and evaluated over Jakobshavn Isbr, an outlet glacier for which widespread airborne validation data are available from NASAs Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM). The four methods are ordinary kriging (OK), kriging with external drift (KED), where the spatial pattern of surface velocity is used as a proxy for that of dHdt, and their spatiotemporal equivalents (ST-OK and ST-KED).

Surface elevation change over the Patagonia Ice Fields using CryoSat-2 swath altimetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Foresta, Luca; Gourmelen, Noel; José Escorihuela, MarÍa; Garcia Mondejar, Albert; Wuite, Jan; Shepherd, Andrew; Roca, Mònica; Nagler, Thomas; Brockley, David; Baker, Steven; Nienow, Pete

2017-04-01

Satellite altimetry has been traditionally used in the past few decades to infer elevation of land ice, quantify changes in ice topography and infer mass balance estimates over large and remote areas such as the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. Radar Altimetry (RA) is particularly well suited to this task due to its all-weather year-round capability of observing the ice surface. However, monitoring of ice caps (area < 104 km^2) as well as mountain glaciers has proven more challenging. The large footprint of a conventional radar altimeter and relatively coarse ground track coverage are less suited to monitoring comparatively small regions with complex topography, so that mass balance estimates from RA rely on extrapolation methods to regionalize elevation change. Since 2010, the European Space Agency's CryoSat-2 (CS-2) satellite has collected ice elevation measurements over ice caps with its novel radar altimeter. CS-2 provides higher density of observations w.r.t. previous satellite altimeters, reduces the along-track footprint using Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) processing and locates the across-track origin of a surface reflector in the presence of a slope with SAR Interferometry (SARIn). Here, we exploit CS-2 as a swath altimeter [Hawley et al., 2009; Gray et al., 2013; Christie et al., 2016; Ignéczi et al., 2016, Foresta et al., 2016] over the Southern and Northern Patagonian Ice Fields (SPI and NPI, respectively). The SPI and NPI are the two largest ice masses in the southern hemisphere outside of Antarctica and are thinning very rapidly in recent decades [e.g Rignot et al., 2003; Willis et al, 2012]. However, studies of surface, volume and mass change in the literature, covering the entire SPI and NPI, are limited in number due to their remoteness, extremely complex topography and wide range of slopes. In this work, we present rates of surface elevation change for five glaciological years between 2011-2016 using swath-processed CS-2 SARIn heights and discuss the spatial and temporal coverage of elevation and its rate of change over the two regions.

The ICESat-2 mission: design, status, applications and pre-launch performance assessments for monitoring cryopsheric changes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Neumann, T.; Markus, T.; Csatho, B. M.; Martino, A. J.

2013-12-01

NASA's Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) is the next-generation orbiting laser altimeter, following the ICESat mission, which operated between 2003 and 2009. Its primary aim is to monitor sea-ice thickness and ice sheet elevation change at scales from outlet glaciers to the entire ice sheet, and enable global assessment of vegetation canopy height as established by ICESat. ICESat-2 is now in Phase C (Design and Development). It is scheduled to launch in 2016 on a Delta II rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. ICESat-2 will carry the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System (ATLAS) and collect data to a latitudinal limit of 88 degrees. In contrast to Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) on ICESat, ATLAS employs a 6-beam micro-pulse laser photon-counting approach. It uses a high repetition rate (10 kHz; resulting in 70 cm footprint spacing on the ground along the direction of travel) low-power laser in conjunction with single-photon sensitive detectors to measure ranges using 532 nm (green) laser light. In the polar regions, the 91-day repeat orbit pattern with a roughly monthly sub-cycle is designed to monitor seasonal and interannual variations of Greenland and Antarctic ice sheet elevations and monthly sea ice thickness changes. Dense ground-tracks over the rest of the globe achieved through a systematic sequence of off-nadir pointing (resulting in < 2 km ground-track spacing at the equator after two years) will enable measurements of land topography and vegetation canopy heights, allowing estimates of biomass and carbon in above-ground vegetation. While the ICESat-2 mission was optimized for cryospheric science, elevation measurements will be collected over land and oceans as well as histograms of backscatter from the atmosphere. These observations will provide a wealth of opportunities in addition to the primary science objectives, ranging from the retrieval of cloud properties, to river stages, to snow cover, to land use changes and ocean surface topography and more. This presentation will provide an overview and status of the ICESat-2 mission, elaborate on its expected elevation precision and accuracy, and present simulated ICESat-2 data based on an airborne ICESat-2 simulator - the Multiple Altimeter Beam Experimental Lidar (MABEL).

The GLAS Algorithm Theoretical Basis Document for Precision Orbit Determination (POD)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rim, Hyung Jin; Yoon, S. P.; Schultz, Bob E.

2013-01-01

The Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) was the sole instrument for NASA's Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) laser altimetry mission. The primary purpose of the ICESat mission was to make ice sheet elevation measurements of the polar regions. Additional goals were to measure the global distribution of clouds and aerosols and to map sea ice, land topography and vegetation. ICESat was the benchmark Earth Observing System (EOS) mission to be used to determine the mass balance of the ice sheets, as well as for providing cloud property information, especially for stratospheric clouds common over polar areas. The GLAS instrument operated from 2003 to 2009 and provided multi-year elevation data needed to determine changes in sea ice freeboard, land topography and vegetation around the globe, in addition to elevation changes of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. This document describes the Precision Orbit Determination (POD) algorithm for the ICESat mission. The problem of determining an accurate ephemeris for an orbiting satellite involves estimating the position and velocity of the satellite from a sequence of observations. The ICESatGLAS elevation measurements must be very accurately geolocated, combining precise orbit information with precision pointing information. The ICESat mission POD requirement states that the position of the instrument should be determined with an accuracy of 5 and 20 cm (1-s) in radial and horizontal components, respectively, to meet the science requirements for determining elevation change.

33. Photocopy of drawing STANDARD PLAN L4, SHEET 6 OF ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

33. Photocopy of drawing STANDARD PLAN L-4, SHEET 6 OF 8; CROSS SECTION, FRONT ELEVATION WITH SHUTTERS, FIRE FINDER - Suntop Lookout, Forest Road 510, Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, Greenwater, Pierce County, WA

A model of the Greenland ice sheet deglaciation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lecavalier, Benoit

The goal of this thesis is to improve our understanding of the Greenland ice sheet (GrIS) and how it responds to climate change. This was achieved using ice core records to infer elevation changes of the GrIS during the Holocene (11.7 ka BP to Present). The inferred elevation changes show the response of the ice sheet interior to the Holocene Thermal Maximum (HTM; 9-5 ka BP) when temperatures across Greenland were warmer than present. These ice-core derived thinning curves act as a new set of key constraints on the deglacial history of the GrIS. Furthermore, a calibration was conducted on a three-dimensional thermomechanical ice sheet, glacial isostatic adjustment, and relative sea-level model of GrIS evolution during the most recent deglaciation (21 ka BP to present). The model was data-constrained to a variety of proxy records from paleoclimate archives and present-day observations of ice thickness and extent.

Radar backscattering from snow facies of the Greenland ice sheet: Results from the AIRSAR 1991 campaign

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rignot, Eric; Jezek, K.; Vanzyl, J. J.; Drinkwater, Mark R.; Lou, Y. L.

1993-01-01

In June 1991, the NASA/JPL airborne SAR (AIRSAR) acquired C- (lambda = 5.6cm), L- (lambda = 24cm), and P- (lambda = 68m) band polarimetric SAR data over the Greenland ice sheet. These data are processed using version 3.55 of the AIRSAR processor which provides radiometrically and polarimetrically calibrated images. The internal calibration of the AIRSAR data is cross-checked using the radar response from corner reflectors deployed prior to flight in one of the scenes. In addition, a quantitative assessment of the noise power level at various frequencies and polarizations is made in all the scenes. Synoptic SAR data corresponding to a swath width of about 12 by 50 km in length (compared to the standard 12 x 12 km size of high-resolution scenes) are also processed and calibrated to study transitions in radar backscatter as a function of snow facies at selected frequencies and polarizations. The snow facies on the Greenland ice sheet are traditionally categorized based on differences in melting regime during the summer months. The interior of Greenland corresponds to the dry snow zone where terrain elevation is the highest and no snow melt occurs. The lowest elevation boundary of the dry snow zone is known traditionally as the dry snow line. Beneath it is the percolation zone where melting occurs in the summer and water percolates through the snow freezing at depth to form massive ice lenses and ice pipes. At the downslope margin of this zone is the wet snow line. Below it, the wet snow zone corresponds to the lowest elevations where snow remains at the end of the summer. Ablation produces enough meltwater to create areas of snow saturated with water, together with ponds and lakes. The lowest altitude zone of ablation sees enough summer melt to remove all traces of seasonal snow accumulation, such that the surface comprises bare glacier ice.

Thinning History of the Weddell Sea Embayment Using in situ 14C Exposure Ages from the Lassiter Coast

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nichols, K. A.; Johnson, J.; Goehring, B. M.; Balco, G.

2017-12-01

We present a suite of in situ 14C cosmogenic nuclide exposure ages from nunataks at the Lassiter Coast in West Antarctica on the west side of the Weddell Sea Embayment (WSE) to constrain the thinning history of the Ronne-Filchner Ice Shelf. Constraints on past ice extents in the WSE remain relatively understudied, despite the WSE draining 22% of the Antarctic Ice Sheet (AIS). Information lacking includes unambiguous geological evidence for the maximum Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) ice thickness and the timing of subsequent ice retreat in key peripheral locations. Past studies using long-lived cosmogenic nuclides have shown that, due to the cold-based nature of the AIS, inheritance of nuclide concentrations from previous periods of exposure is a common problem. We utilised the cosmogenic nuclide 14C to circumvent the issue of inheritance. The short half-life of 14C means measured concentrations are largely insensitive to inheritance, as relatively short periods of ice cover (20-30 kyr) result in significant 14C decay. Furthermore, samples saturated in 14C will demonstrate that their location was above the maximum LGM thickness of the ice sheet and exposed for at least the past ca. 35 kyr. Preliminary results from four samples indicate elevations between 63 and 360 m above the present-day ice surface elevations were deglaciated between 7 and 6 ka. With little exposed rock above these elevations (ca. 70 m), this may indicate that the locality was entirely covered by ice during the LGM. Additional 14C measurements will form a full elevation transect of samples to decipher the post-LGM thinning history of ice at this location.

2. (Photocopy of the first sheet of a threesheet set ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

2. (Photocopy of the first sheet of a three-sheet set entitled 'Kongensgade 45B-51') KING STREET (FRONT) ELEVATIONS OF KONGENSGADE 45B-46A (see 'Kongensgade 45B-46A,' HABS No. VI-31) AND KONGENSGADE 46B-47 (see 'Kongensgade 46B-47,' HABS No. VI-165) - King Street Area Study, King Street, Christiansted, St. Croix, VI

9. (Second sheet of a twosheet set entitled "Kongensgade 5558") ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

9. (Second sheet of a two-sheet set entitled "Kongensgade 55-58") KONGENSGADE (FRONT) ELEVATIONS OF KONGENSGADE 57 & 58 (LEFT TO RIGHT) (see photograph VI-50-1 for plan of Kongensgade 57) - King Street Area Study, Kongensgade 5-18, 36, 37B, 51-58 (Houses), 5-18, 36-37B, 51-58 King Street, Frederiksted, St. Croix, VI

8. (First sheet of a twosheet set entitled "Kongensgade 5558") ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

8. (First sheet of a two-sheet set entitled "Kongensgade 55-58") KONGENSGADE (FRONT) ELEVATIONS OF KONGENSGADE 55 & 56 (LEFT TO RIGHT) (see photograph VI-50-1 for plan of Kongensgade 56) - King Street Area Study, Kongensgade 5-18, 36, 37B, 51-58 (Houses), 5-18, 36-37B, 51-58 King Street, Frederiksted, St. Croix, VI

The self-organization of snow surfaces and the growth of sastrugi

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kochanski, K.; Bertholet, C.; Anderson, R. S.; Tucker, G. E.

2017-12-01

Seasonal snow covers approximately 15% of the surface of the Earth. The majority of this snow is found on tundra, ice sheets, and sea ice. These windswept snow surfaces self-organize into depositional bedforms, such as ripples, barchan dunes, and transverse waves, and erosional bedforms, such as anvil-shaped sastrugi. Previous researchers have shown that these bedforms influence the reflectivity, thermal conductivity, and aerodynamic roughness of the surface. For the past two winters, we have observed the growth and movement of snow bedforms on Niwot Ridge, Colorado, at an elevation of 3500m. We have observed that (1) when wind speeds are below 3m/s, snow surfaces can be smooth, (2) when winds are higher than 3m/s during and immediately following a storm, the smooth surface is unstable and self-organizes into a field of dunes, (3) as snow begins to harden, it forms erosional bedforms that are characterized by vertical edges facing upwind (4) between 12 and 48 hours after each snowfall, alternating stripes of erosional and depositional bedforms occur, and (5) within 60 hours of each storm, the surface self-organizes into a field of sastrugi, which remains stable until it melts or becomes buried by the next snowfall. Polar researchers should therefore expect snow-covered surfaces to be characterized by fields of bedforms, which evolve in response to variations in snow delivery, windspeed, and periods of sintering. Smooth drifts may be found in sheltered and forested regions. On most ice sheets and sea ice where snowfall is frequent, the typical surface is likely to consist of an evolving mix of depositional and erosional bedforms. Where snowfall is infrequent, for example in Antarctica, the surface will be dominated by sastrugi fields.

97. JOB NO. 1347F, SHEET 5, 1927, ASSEMBLY BUILDING; FORD ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

97. JOB NO. 1347-F, SHEET 5, 1927, ASSEMBLY BUILDING; FORD MOTOR COMPANY; ELEVATIONS AND DOOR DETAILS - Ford Motor Company Long Beach Assembly Plant, Assembly Building, 700 Henry Ford Avenue, Long Beach, Los Angeles County, CA

Greenland Ice Sheet Surface Temperature, Melt, and Mass Loss: 2000-2006

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, Dorothy K.; Williams, Richard S., Jr.; Luthcke, Scott B.; DiGirolamo, Nocolo

2007-01-01

Extensive melt on the Greenland Ice Sheet has been documented by a variety of ground and satellite measurements in recent years. If the well-documented warming continues in the Arctic, melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet will likely accelerate, contributing to sea-level rise. Modeling studies indicate that an annual or summer temperature rise of 1 C on the ice sheet will increase melt by 20-50% therefore, surface temperature is one of the most important ice-sheet parameters to study for analysis of changes in the mass balance of the ice-sheet. The Greenland Ice Sheet contains enough water to produce a rise in eustatic sea level of up to 7.0 m if the ice were to melt completely. However, even small changes (centimeters) in sea level would cause important economic and societal consequences in the world's major coastal cities thus it is extremely important to monitor changes in the ice-sheet surface temperature and to ultimately quantify these changes in terms of amount of sea-level rise. We have compiled a high-resolution, daily time series of surface temperature of the Greenland Ice Sheet, using the I-km resolution, clear-sky land-surface temperature (LST) standard product from the Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), from 2000 - 2006. We also use Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) data, averaged over 10-day periods, to measure change in mass of the ice sheet as it melt and snow accumulates. Surface temperature can be used to determine frequency of surface melt, timing of the start and the end of the melt season, and duration of melt. In conjunction with GRACE data, it can also be used to analyze timing of ice-sheet mass loss and gain.

Determining Greenland Ice Sheet Accumulation Rates from Radar Remote Sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jezek, Kenneth C.

2002-01-01

An important component of NASA's Program for Arctic Regional Climate Assessment (PARCA) is a mass balance investigation of the Greenland Ice Sheet. The mass balance is calculated by taking the difference between the areally Integrated snow accumulation and the net ice discharge of the ice sheet. Uncertainties in this calculation Include the snow accumulation rate, which has traditionally been determined by interpolating data from ice core samples taken from isolated spots across the ice sheet. The sparse data associated with ice cores juxtaposed against the high spatial and temporal resolution provided by remote sensing , has motivated scientists to investigate relationships between accumulation rate and microwave observations as an option for obtaining spatially contiguous estimates. The objective of this PARCA continuation proposal was to complete an estimate of surface accumulation rate on the Greenland Ice Sheet derived from C-band radar backscatter data compiled in the ERS-1 SAR mosaic of data acquired during, September-November, 1992. An empirical equation, based on elevation and latitude, is used to determine the mean annual temperature. We examine the influence of accumulation rate, and mean annual temperature on C-band radar backscatter using a forward model, which incorporates snow metamorphosis and radar backscatter components. Our model is run over a range of accumulation and temperature conditions. Based on the model results, we generate a look-up table, which uniquely maps the measured radar backscatter, and mean annual temperature to accumulation rate. Our results compare favorably with in situ accumulation rate measurements falling within our study area.

Data assimilation problems in glaciology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shapero, Daniel

Rising sea levels due to mass loss from Greenland and Antarctica threaten to inundate coastal areas the world over. For the purposes of urban planning and hazard mitigation, policy makers would like to know how much sea-level rise can be anticipated in the next century. To make these predictions, glaciologists use mathematical models of ice sheet flow, together with remotely-sensed observations of the current state of the ice sheets. The quantities that are observable over large spatial scales are the ice surface elevation and speed, and the elevation of the underlying bedrock. There are other quantities, such as the viscosity within the ice and the friction coefficient for sliding over the bed, that are just as important in dictating how fast the glacier flows, but that are not observable at large scales using current methods. These quantities can be inferred from observations by using data assimilation methods, applied to a model of glacier flow. In this dissertation, I will describe my work on data assimilation problems in glaciology. My main contributions so far have been: computing the bed stress underneath the three biggest Greenland outlet glaciers; developing additional tools for glacier modeling and data assimilation in the form of the open-source library icepack ; and improving the statistical methodology through the user of total variation priors.

3. JOB NO. 1347G, SHEET 1, 1930, OIL HOUSE; FORD ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

3. JOB NO. 1347-G, SHEET 1, 1930, OIL HOUSE; FORD MOTOR COMPANY; FLOOR PLAN, ELEVATION, AND MISCELLANEOUS DETAIL - Ford Motor Company Long Beach Assembly Plant, Oil House, 700 Henry Ford Avenue, Long Beach, Los Angeles County, CA

123. JOB NO. 1347A, SHEET 4, 1927, POWER HOUSE; FORD ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

123. JOB NO. 1347-A, SHEET 4, 1927, POWER HOUSE; FORD MOTOR COMPANY; NORTH, SOUTH, EAST, AND WEST ELEVATIONS - Ford Motor Company Long Beach Assembly Plant, Assembly Building, 700 Henry Ford Avenue, Long Beach, Los Angeles County, CA

4. JOB NO. 1347B, SHEET 1, 1927, OIL HOUSE; FORD ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

4. JOB NO. 1347-B, SHEET 1, 1927, OIL HOUSE; FORD MOTOR COMPANY; FLOOR PLAN, ELEVATIONS AND SECTIONS - Ford Motor Company Long Beach Assembly Plant, Oil House, 700 Henry Ford Avenue, Long Beach, Los Angeles County, CA

112. JOB NO. 1347F, SHEET 16, 1929/1930, ASSEMBLY BUILDING; FORD ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

112. JOB NO. 1347-F, SHEET 16, 1929/1930, ASSEMBLY BUILDING; FORD MOTOR COMPANY; FREIGHT ELEVATOR DETAILS - Ford Motor Company Long Beach Assembly Plant, Assembly Building, 700 Henry Ford Avenue, Long Beach, Los Angeles County, CA

Assessing backscatter change due to backscatter gradient over the Greenland ice sheet using Envisat and SARAL altimetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Su, Xiaoli; Luo, Zhicai; Zhou, Zebing

2018-06-01

Knowledge of backscatter change is important to accurately retrieve elevation change time series from satellite radar altimetry over continental ice sheets. Previously, backscatter coefficients generated in two cases, namely with and without accounting for backscatter gradient (BG), are used. However, the difference between backscatter time series obtained separately in these two cases and its impact on retrieving elevation change are not well known. Here we first compare the mean profiles of the Ku and Ka band backscatter over the Greenland ice sheet (GrIS), with results illustrating that the Ku-band backscatter is 3 ∼ 5 dB larger than that of the Ka band. We then conduct statistic analysis about time series of backscatter formed separately in the above two cases for both Ku and Ka bands over two regions in the GrIS. It is found that the standard deviation of backscatter time series becomes slightly smaller after removing the BG effect, which suggests that the method for the BG correction is effective. Furthermore, the impact on elevation change from backscatter change due to the BG effect is separately assessed for both Ku and Ka bands over the GrIS. We conclude that Ka band altimetry would benefit from a BG induced backscatter analysis (∼10% over region 2). This study may provide a reference to form backscatter time series towards refining elevation change time series from satellite radar altimetry over ice sheets using repeat-track analysis.

Early and abrupt retreat of the Laurentide Ice Sheet margin from the Mackenzie River valley, southern Northwest Territories

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Margold, Martin; Froese, Duane G.; Gosse, John C.; Yang, Guang; McKenna, Jillian; Hidy, Alan J.

2017-04-01

The detachment of the Laurentide Ice Sheet margin from the Canadian Cordillera opened the present-day drainage route of the Mackenzie River to the Arctic Ocean and an ice-free corridor that allowed for migration of species between Beringia and the mid-latitudes of North America. The existing ice-margin chronology depicts the southern reach of the Mackenzie River between 61 and 63° N as glaciated until about 13 ka, representing the last portion of the Laurentide Ice Sheet margin abutting the eastern foot of the Cordillera. A substantial retreat of the ice sheet margin in this region has been suggested to have occurred during the subsequent Younger Dryas cold period, despite the fact that in many other regions ice masses stabilised or even re-grew at this time. However, until now, deglacial chronometry for this region and the western LIS margin is sparse and consists mostly of minimum-limiting macrofossil and bulk C-14 ages from organics materials overlying glacial sediment. With the aim to bring new data on the deglaciation history of the Mackenzie River valley, we collected samples for Be-10 exposure dating from glacial erratic boulders in the southern Franklin Mountains that bound the Mackenzie River valley from the east. The sampling elevations ranged between 1480 and 800 m a.s.l., however, the measured ages show only a weak correlation with elevation. Instead, 10 out of 12 measured samples cluster tightly around 15 ka, with the remaining two samples likely containing Be-10 inherited from previous periods of exposure. Our results thus indicate a pre-Younger Dryas rapid down-wasting of the ice sheet surface, which we infer was accompanied by an ice margin retreat to the southeast. The southern reach of the Mackenzie River valley at the eastern foot of the Cordillera was, according to our results, ice free shortly after 15 ka, with the prospect that the ice-free corridor might have opened significantly earlier than hitherto anticipated. Further research is required in the region south of our study area to establish a firm chronological control on the separation of the Cordilleran and Laurentide ice sheets and the opening of the ice free corridor.

Fine Ice Sheet margins topography from swath processing of CryoSat SARIn mode data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gourmelen, N.; Escorihuela, M. J.; Shepherd, A.; Foresta, L.; Muir, A.; Briggs, K.; Hogg, A. E.; Roca, M.; Baker, S.; Drinkwater, M. R.

2014-12-01

Reference and repeat-observations of Glacier and Ice Sheet Margin (GISM) topography are critical to identify changes in ice thickness, provide estimates of mass gain or loss and thus quantify the contribution of the cryosphere to sea level change. The lack of such sustained observations was identified in the Integrated Global Observing Strategy (IGOS) Cryosphere Theme Report as a major shortcoming. Conventional altimetry measurements over GISMs exist, but coverage has been sparse and characterized by coarse ground resolution. Additionally, and more importantly, they proved ineffective in the presence of steep slopes, a typical feature of GISM areas. Since the majority of Antarctic and Greenland ice sheet mass loss is estimated to lie within 100 km from the coast, but only about 10% is surveyed, there is the need for more robust and dense observations of GISMs, in both time and space. The ESA Altimetry mission CryoSat aims at gaining better insight into the evolution of the Cryosphere. CryoSat's revolutionary design features a Synthetic Interferometric Radar Altimeter (SIRAL), with two antennas for interferometry. The corresponding SAR Interferometer (SARIn) mode of operation increases spatial resolution while resolving the angular origin of off-nadir echoes occurring over sloping terrain. The SARIn mode is activated over GISMs and the elevation for the Point Of Closest Approach (POCA) is a standard product of the CryoSat mission. Here we present an approach for more comprehensively exploiting the SARIn mode of CryoSat and produce an ice elevation product with enhanced spatial resolution compared to standard CryoSat-2 height products. In this so called L2-swath processing approach, the full CryoSat waveform is exploited under specific conditions of signal and surface characteristics. We will present the rationale, validation exercises and preliminary results from the Eurpean Space Agency's STSE CryoTop study over selected test regions of the margins of the Greenland and Antarctic Ice Sheets.

Function of Platelet-Induced Epithelial Attachment at Titanium Surfaces Inhibits Microbial Colonization.

PubMed

Maeno, M; Lee, C; Kim, D M; Da Silva, J; Nagai, S; Sugawara, S; Nara, Y; Kihara, H; Nagai, M

2017-06-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate the barrier function of platelet-induced epithelial sheets on titanium surfaces. The lack of functional peri-implant epithelial sealing with basal lamina (BL) attachment at the interface of the implant and the adjacent epithelium allows for bacterial invasion, which may lead to peri-implantitis. Although various approaches have been reported to combat bacterial infection by surface modifications to titanium, none of these have been successful in a clinical application. In our previous study, surface modification with protease-activated receptor 4-activating peptide (PAR4-AP), which induced platelet activation and aggregation, was successful in demonstrating epithelial attachment via BL and epithelial sheet formation on the titanium surface. We hypothesized that the platelet-induced epithelial sheet on PAR4-AP-modified titanium surfaces would reduce bacterial attachment, penetration, and invasion. Titanium surface was modified with PAR4-AP and incubated with platelet-rich plasma (PRP). The aggregated platelets released collagen IV, a critical BL component, onto the PAR4-AP-modified titanium surface. Then, human gingival epithelial cells were seeded on the modified titanium surface and formed epithelial sheets. Green fluorescent protein (GFP)-expressing Escherichia coli was cultured onto PAR4-AP-modified titanium with and without epithelial sheet formation. While Escherichia coli accumulated densely onto the PAR4-AP titanium lacking epithelial sheet, few Escherichia coli were observed on the epithelial sheet on the PAR4-AP surface. No bacterial invasion into the interface of the epithelial sheet and the titanium surface was observed. These in vitro results indicate the efficacy of a platelet-induced epithelial barrier that functions to prevent bacterial attachment, penetration, and invasion on PAR4-AP-modified titanium.

Analysis of ArcticDEM orthorectification for polar navigational traverses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Menio, E. C.; Deeb, E. J.; Weale, J.; Courville, Z.; Tracy, B.; Cloutier, M. D.; Cothren, J. D.; Liu, J.

2017-12-01

The availability and accessibility of high-resolution satellite imagery allows operational support teams to visually assess physical risks along traverse routes before and during the field season. In support of operations along the Greenland Inland Traverse (GrIT), DigitalGlobe's WorldView 0.5m resolution panchromatic imagery is analyzed to identify and digitize crevasse features along the route from Thule Air Force Base to Summit Station, Greenland. In the spring of 2016, field teams reported up to 150 meters of offset between the location of crevasse features on the ground and the location of the same feature on the imagery provided. Investigation into this issue identified the need to orthorectify imagery—use digital elevation models (DEMs) to correct viewing geometry distortions—to improve navigational accuracy in the field. It was previously thought that orthorectification was not necessary for applications in relatively flat terrain such as ice sheets. However, the surface elevations on the margins of the Greenland Ice Sheet vary enough to cause distortions in imagery, if taken obliquely. As is standard for requests, the Polar Geospatial Center (PGC) provides orthorectified imagery using the MEaSUREs Greenland Ice Mapping Project (GIMP) 30m digital elevation model. Current, higher-resolution elevation datasets, such as the ArcticDEM (2-5m resolution) and WorldView stereopair DEMs (2-3m resolution), are available for use in orthorectification. This study examines three heavily crevassed areas along the GrIT traverse, as identified in 2015 and 2016 imagery. We extracted elevation profiles along the GrIT route from each of the three DEMs: GIMP, ArcticDEM, and WorldView stereopair mosaic. Results show the courser GIMP data deviating significantly from the ArcticDEM and WorldView data, at points by up to 80m, which is seen as offset of features in plan view. In-situ Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) surveys of crevasse crossings allow for evaluation of geopositional accuracy of each resulting orthorectified photo and a quantitative analysis of plan view offset.

117. JOB NO. 1347M, SHEET 5, 1930, ADDITION FOR PRESSED ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

117. JOB NO. 1347-M, SHEET 5, 1930, ADDITION FOR PRESSED STEEL DEPARTMENT FOR FORD MOTOR COMPANY; NORTH ELEVATIONS DETAILS - Ford Motor Company Long Beach Assembly Plant, Assembly Building, 700 Henry Ford Avenue, Long Beach, Los Angeles County, CA

116. JOB NO. 1347M, SHEET 4, 1930, ADDITION FOR PRESSED ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

116. JOB NO. 1347-M, SHEET 4, 1930, ADDITION FOR PRESSED STEEL DEPARTMENT FOR THE FORD MOTOR COMPANY; ELEVATIONS, DETAILS - Ford Motor Company Long Beach Assembly Plant, Assembly Building, 700 Henry Ford Avenue, Long Beach, Los Angeles County, CA

96. JOB NO. 1347F, SHEET 6, 1927/1929, ASSEMBLY BUILDING; FORD ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

96. JOB NO. 1347-F, SHEET 6, 1927/1929, ASSEMBLY BUILDING; FORD MOTOR COMPANY; NORTH, EAST, AND SOUTH ELEVATIONS - Ford Motor Company Long Beach Assembly Plant, Assembly Building, 700 Henry Ford Avenue, Long Beach, Los Angeles County, CA

10. Photocopy of Drawing, Barnstead Bridge, Pittsfield, New Hampshire, Sheet ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

10. Photocopy of Drawing, Barnstead Bridge, Pittsfield, New Hampshire, Sheet 2, Upstream Elevation, Sections, Details and Quantities. Original located at the New Hampshire Department of Transportation, Concord, New Hampshire. - Barnstead Bridge, Spanning Suncook River at Barnstead Road, Pittsfield, Merrimack County, NH

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

Zhamu, Aruna; Shi, Jinjun; Guo, Jiusheng

An electrically conductive laminate composition for fuel cell flow field plate or bipolar plate applications. The laminate composition comprises at least a thin metal sheet having two opposed exterior surfaces and a first exfoliated graphite composite sheet bonded to the first of the two exterior surfaces of the metal sheet wherein the exfoliated graphite composite sheet comprises: (a) expanded or exfoliated graphite and (b) a binder or matrix material to bond the expanded graphite for forming a cohered sheet, wherein the binder or matrix material is between 3% and 60% by weight based on the total weight of the firstmore » exfoliated graphite composite sheet. Preferably, the first exfoliated graphite composite sheet further comprises particles of non-expandable graphite or carbon in the amount of between 3% and 60% by weight based on the total weight of the non-expandable particles and the expanded graphite. Further preferably, the laminate comprises a second exfoliated graphite composite sheet bonded to the second surface of the metal sheet to form a three-layer laminate. Surface flow channels and other desired geometric features can be built onto the exterior surfaces of the laminate to form a flow field plate or bipolar plate. The resulting laminate has an exceptionally high thickness-direction conductivity and excellent resistance to gas permeation.« less

Effect of elevated temperature on the tensile strength of Napier/glass-epoxy hybrid reinforced composites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ridzuan, M. J. M.; Majid, M. S. Abdul; Afendi, M.; Firdaus, A. Z. Ahmad; Azduwin, K.

2017-11-01

The effects of elevated temperature on the tensile strength of Napier/glass-epoxy hybrid reinforced composites and its morphology of fractured surfaces are discussed. Napier/glass-epoxy hybrid reinforced composites were fabricated by using vacuum infusion method by arranging Napier fibres in between sheets of woven glass fibres. Napier and glass fibres were laminated with estimated volume ratios were 24 and 6 vol. %, respectively. The epoxy resin was used as matrix estimated to 70 vol. %. Specimens were tested to failure under tension at a cross-head speed of 1 mm/min using Universal Testing Machine (Instron) with a load cell 100 kN at four different temperatures of RT, 40°C, 60°C and 80°C. The morphology of fractured surface of hybrid composites was investigated by field emission scanning electron microscopy. The result shows reduction in tensile strength at elevated temperatures. The increase in the temperature activates the process of diffusion, and generates critical stresses which cause the damage at first-ply or at the centre of the hybrid plate, as a result lower the tensile strength. The observation of FESEM images indicates that the fracture mode is of evolution of localized damage, from fibre/matrix debonding, matric cracking, delamination and fibre breakage.

Thermo-electric modular structure and method of making same

DOEpatents

Freedman, N.S.; Horsting, C.W.; Lawrence, W.F.; Carrona, J.J.

1974-01-29

A method is presented for making a thermoelectric module wtth the aid of an insulating wafer having opposite metallized surfaces, a pair of similar equalizing sheets of metal, a hot-junction strap of metal, a thermoelectric element having hot- and cold-junction surfaces, and a radiator sheet of metal. The method comprises the following steps: brazing said equalizer sheets to said opposite metallized surfaces, respectively, of said insulating wafer with pure copper in a non-oxidizing ambient; brazing one surface of said hot-junction strap to one of the surfaces of said equalizing sheet with a nickel-gold alloy in a non- oxidizing ambient; and diffusion bonding said hot-junction surface of said thermoelectric element to the other surface of said hot-junction strap and said radiator sheet to said cold-junction surface of said thermoelectric element, said diffusion bonding being carried out in a non-oxidizing ambient, under compressive loading, at a temperature of about 550 deg C., and for about one-half hour. (Official Gazette)

119. JOB NO. 1347M, SHEET 6, 1930, ADDITION FOR PRESSED ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

119. JOB NO. 1347-M, SHEET 6, 1930, ADDITION FOR PRESSED STEEL DEPARTMENT FOR FORD MOTOR COMPANY; ONE-FOURTH INCH ELEVATIONS, TRANSFORMER, DETAILS - Ford Motor Company Long Beach Assembly Plant, Assembly Building, 700 Henry Ford Avenue, Long Beach, Los Angeles County, CA

11. Photocopy of Sheet 4 of Building Plan R453 (USDA, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

11. Photocopy of Sheet 4 of Building Plan R4-53 (USDA, Forest Service, Intermountain Region, Ogden. File 7300, 'Buildings'.) SIDE ELEVATION AND FRAMING - Buffalo Guard Station, Residence, U.S. Highway 20/191 at Buffalo River, Island Park, Fremont County, ID

Mass balance of the Antarctic ice sheet.

PubMed

Wingham, D J; Shepherd, A; Muir, A; Marshall, G J

2006-07-15

The Antarctic contribution to sea-level rise has long been uncertain. While regional variability in ice dynamics has been revealed, a picture of mass changes throughout the continental ice sheet is lacking. Here, we use satellite radar altimetry to measure the elevation change of 72% of the grounded ice sheet during the period 1992-2003. Depending on the density of the snow giving rise to the observed elevation fluctuations, the ice sheet mass trend falls in the range -5-+85Gtyr-1. We find that data from climate model reanalyses are not able to characterise the contemporary snowfall fluctuation with useful accuracy and our best estimate of the overall mass trend-growth of 27+/-29Gtyr-1-is based on an assessment of the expected snowfall variability. Mass gains from accumulating snow, particularly on the Antarctic Peninsula and within East Antarctica, exceed the ice dynamic mass loss from West Antarctica. The result exacerbates the difficulty of explaining twentieth century sea-level rise.

Development of a highly transparent superamphiphobic plastic sheet by nanoparticle and chemical coating.

PubMed

Wong, Ten It; Wang, Hao; Wang, Fuke; Sin, Sau Leng; Quan, Cheng Gen; Wang, Shi Jie; Zhou, Xiaodong

2016-04-01

A highly transparent superamphiphobic plastic sheet was developed. The plastic sheet polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) was spin-coated on a glass substrate. Synthesized silica nanoparticles were sprayed on PMMA, followed by fluorosilane drop-coating. The results of contact angle measurements show that the developed PMMA sheet has superamphiphobic properties with high advancing contact angles for water (154°), toluene (139°), and silicone oil (132.9°). The amphiphobicity of the plastic sheet can be tuned by the surface coverage of the silica nanoparticles distributed on the PMMA surface. The surface coverage of the nanoparticles on our PMMA sheet is about 20%, and it agrees with our contact angle calculations for the sheet with and without nanoparticles. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Determining and Interpreting Detailed Ice Surface Elevation Changes of the Glaciers in Upernavik Isstrom, Northwest Greenland, 1985-2016

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wendler, Lindsay

The several distinct glaciers of Upernavik Isstrom, which drain a portion of the northwest margin of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS), exhibit variable thinning, retreat, and velocity behaviors, despite being in such close proximity, draining into the same fjord, and experiencing similar climatic conditions. The goal of this study was to reconstruct, in as much detail as possible, a 1985-2016 surface elevation change history for each Upernavik glacier. Surface elevation datasets used in these reconstructions included laser altimetry data collected by several NASA systems (ATM, LVIS, ICESat) and digital elevation models (DEMs) derived from various sources (1985 aerial photographs; ASTER, SPOT, and Worldview-1 and 2 satellite stereo imagery). The Surface Elevation Reconstruction and Change detection (SERAC) program was used to combine the data and correct the DEMs for use in final reconstructions. The spatiotemporal pattern of ice surface change was analyzed and compared with other data sets, such as bed elevation, SMB anomalies, runoff, as well as marginal retreat derived from satellite imagery corresponding to the ASTER DEMs, to investigate possible forcings that may have influenced the variable behavior of the glaciers. We detected rapid thinning on glaciers 1, 2, and 5 and determined the timing of these thinning events. Major findings included detection of rapid dynamic thinning of glacier 1 between 2005 and 2006, during a period of a stable calving front position. Continued thinning and speed-up led to a loss of contact with a pinning point causing a major retreat between 2007 and 2008. This sequence of events contradicts previously held hypotheses that major thinning was caused by reduced backstress when a long-lived floating tongue disintegrated. Also, our results show a period of large thinning on glacier 2 between 2010 and 2011, after the retreat of the front resulted in a loss of contact between the glacier and one of its flanking outcrops, suggesting that reduction of lateral drag might have contributed to the thinning. While this study reinforces that bed topography is a major factor in controlling outlet glacier dynamic thinning, it also highlights the importance of other factors, such as variations in calving rates and lateral drag. My study produced improved surface elevation change histories of the Upernavik glaciers that are the most detailed and accurate to date and will be important for future numerical modeling studies of outlet glacier dynamic processes.

Preparation of Caco-2 cell sheets using plasma polymerised acrylic acid as a weak boundary layer.

PubMed

Majani, Ruby; Zelzer, Mischa; Gadegaard, Nikolaj; Rose, Felicity R; Alexander, Morgan R

2010-09-01

The use of cell sheets for tissue engineering applications has considerable advantages over single cell seeding techniques. So far, only thermoresponsive surfaces have been used to manufacture cell sheets without chemically disrupting the cell-surface interactions. Here, we present a new and facile technique to prepare sheets of epithelial cells using plasma polymerised acrylic acid films. The cell sheets are harvested by gentle agitation of the media without the need of any additional external stimulus. We demonstrate that the plasma polymer deposition conditions affect the viability and metabolic activity of the cells in the sheet and relate these effects to the different surface properties of the plasma polymerised acrylic acid films. Based on surface analysis data, a first attempt is made to explain the mechanism behind the cell sheet formation. The advantage of the epithelial cell sheets generated here over single cell suspensions to seed a PLGA scaffold is presented. The scaffold itself, prepared using a mould fabricated via photolithography, exhibits a unique architecture that mimics closely the dimensions of the native tissue (mouse intestine). Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

7. SHEET 1, CONTROL HOUSE FOR DRY DOCK. United Engineering ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

7. SHEET 1, CONTROL HOUSE FOR DRY DOCK. United Engineering Company Ltd., Alameda Shipyard, Ship Repair Facilities, Office Building. Plans, elevations, sections, details. John Hudspeth, Architect, at foot of Main Street, Alameda, Calif. Sheet no. 1 of 2 sheets, Plan no. 10,507. Various scales. January 4, 1943, last revised 1/28/43. U.S. Navy, Bureau of Yards & Docks, Contract no. bs 76. Approved for construction October 9, 1943. blueprint - United Engineering Company Shipyard, Control House for Dry Dock, 2900 Main Street, Alameda, Alameda County, CA

Using an extreme bony prominence anatomical model to examine the influence of bed sheet materials and bed making methods on the distribution of pressure on the support surface.

PubMed

Iuchi, Terumi; Nakajima, Yukari; Fukuda, Moriyoshi; Matsuo, Junko; Okamoto, Hiroyuki; Sanada, Hiromi; Sugama, Junko

2014-05-01

Bed sheets generate high surface tension across the support surface and increase pressure to the body through a process known as the hammock effect. Using an anatomical model and a loading device characterized by extreme bony prominences, the present study compared pressure distributions on support surfaces across different bed making methods and bed sheet materials to determine the factors that influence pressure distribution. The model was placed on a pressure mapping system (CONFORMat; NITTA Corp., Osaka, Japan), and interface pressure was measured. Bed sheet elasticity and friction between the support surface and the bed sheets were also measured. For maximum interface pressure, the relative values of the following methods were higher than those of the control method, which did not use any bed sheets: cotton sheets with hospital corners (1.28, p = 0.02), polyester with no corners (1.29, p = 0.01), cotton with no corners (1.31, p = 0.003), and fitted polyester sheets (1.35, p = 0.002). Stepwise multiple regression analysis indicated that maximum interface pressure was negatively correlated with bed sheet elasticity (R(2) = 0.74). A statistically significant negative correlation was observed between maximum interface pressure and immersion depth, which was measured using the loading device (r = -0.40 and p = 0.04). We found that several combinations of bed making methods and bed sheet materials induced maximum interface pressures greater than those observed for the control method. Bed sheet materials influenced maximum interface pressure, and bed sheet elasticity was particularly important in reducing maximum interface pressure. Copyright © 2014 Tissue Viability Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Dorsa Argentea Formation and the Noachian-Hesperian climate transition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scanlon, K. E.; Head, J. W.; Fastook, J. L.; Wordsworth, R. D.

2018-01-01

The Dorsa Argentea Formation (DAF), a set of geomorphologic units covering ∼1.5 million square kilometers in the south circumpolar region of Mars, has been interpreted as the remnants of a large south polar ice sheet that formed near the Noachian-Hesperian boundary and receded in the early Hesperian. Determining the extent and thermal regime of the DAF ice sheet, as well as the mechanism and timing of its recession, can therefore provide insight into the ancient martian climate and the timing of the transition from a presumably thicker CO2 atmosphere to the present climate. We used the Laboratoire de Météorologie Dynamique (LMD) early Mars global climate model (GCM) and the University of Maine Ice Sheet Model (UMISM) glacial flow model to constrain climates allowing development of a south polar ice sheet of DAF-like size and shape. In addition, we modeled basal melting of this ice sheet in amounts and locations consistent with observed glaciofluvial landforms. A large, asymmetric region of ice stability surrounding the south pole is a robust feature of GCM simulations with spin-axis obliquity of 15° or 25° and a 600-1000 mb CO2 atmosphere. The shape results from the large-scale south polar topography of Mars and the strong dependence of surface temperature on altitude under a thicker atmosphere. Of the scenarios considered in this study, the extent of the modeled DAF ice sheet in UMISM simulations most closely matches that of the DAF when the surface water ice inventory of Mars is a ∼137 m global equivalent layer (GEL) and spin-axis obliquity is 15°. In climates warmed only by CO2, significant basal melting does not occur except when the ice inventory is larger than plausible estimates for early Mars. In this case, the extent of the south polar ice sheet is also much larger than that of the DAF, and basal melting is more widespread than observed landforms indicate. When an idealized greenhouse gas warms the surface by at least 20°C near the poles relative to CO2 alone, the stable extent of the ice sheet is less than that of the DAF units, but widespread basal melting occurs, with maxima in the locations where eskers are currently observed. We therefore conclude that warming by a gas other than CO2 alone was necessary to enable the construction of glaciofluvial landforms in the DAF. Previously published crater exposure ages of eskers in the DAF indicate that eskers were being exposed as activity was ceasing in the equatorial valley networks, suggesting that the warming that allowed basal melting at the edges of the DAF ice sheet were broadly contemporaneous with those in which the valley networks were carved. Finally, elevated Tharsis topography is required to produce an ice sheet with the shape of the DAF. Thus, our results are not consistent with the DAF (and the valley networks) forming before the emplacement of Tharsis, as recently suggested.

49 CFR 1245.6 - Cross reference to standard occupational classification manual.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

.... Assist. Chemist 1845. X-ray Technician 365. Supv. Estimating 149. Junior Engineer 1639. Engineer Trainee...) 8319. Grain Elevator Operator (electrical) 8319. 414Machinists: Machinist 6813. 415Sheet Metal Workers: Sheet Metal Worker 6824. 416Skilled Trades, Helpers, Maintenance of Equipment and Stores: Helper 861...

15. Photocopy of Sheet 1 of Building Plan R41A, (USDA, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

15. Photocopy of Sheet 1 of Building Plan R4-1A, (USDA, Forest Service, Intermountain Region, Ogden. File 7300, 'Buildings'.) FRONT ELEVATION AND FLOOR PLAN - Buffalo Guard Station, Residence, U.S. Highway 20/191 at Buffalo River, Island Park, Fremont County, ID

10. Photocopy of Sheet 1 of Building Plan R453 (USDA, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

10. Photocopy of Sheet 1 of Building Plan R4-53 (USDA, Forest Service, Intermountain Region, Ogden. File 7300, 'Buildings'.) FRONT AND SIDE ELEVATIONS AND FLOOR PLAN - Buffalo Guard Station, Residence, U.S. Highway 20/191 at Buffalo River, Island Park, Fremont County, ID

5. Photocopy of Sheet 2 of Building Plan R421, (USDA, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

5. Photocopy of Sheet 2 of Building Plan R4-21, (USDA, Forest Service, Intermountain Region, Ogden. File 7300, 'Buildings') BACK SIDE ELEVATIONS AND CONSTRUCTION DETAILS - Buffalo Guard Station, Garage, U.S. Highway 20/191 at Buffalo River, Island Park, Fremont County, ID

3. Photocopy of Sheet 1 of Building Plan R495D, (USDA, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

3. Photocopy of Sheet 1 of Building Plan R4-95D, (USDA, Forest Service, Intermountain Region, Ogden. File 7300, 'Buildings'.) ELEVATION, FRAMING AND CONSTRUCTION DETAILS - Buffalo Guard Station, Pumphouse, U.S. Highway 20/191 at Buffalo River, Island Park, Fremont County, ID

Investigation of the formability of aluminium alloys at elevated temperatures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tisza, M.; Budai, D.; Kovács, P. Z.; Lukács, Zs

2016-11-01

Aluminium alloys are more and more widely applied in car body manufacturing. Increasing the formability of aluminium alloys are one of the most relevant tasks in todays’ research topics. In this paper, the focus will be on the investigation of the formability of aluminium alloys concerning those material grades that are more widely applied in the automotive industry including the 5xxx and 6xxx aluminium alloy series. Recently, besides the cold forming of aluminium sheets the forming of aluminium alloys at elevated temperatures became a hot research topic, too. In our experimental investigations, we mostly examined the EN AW 5754 and EN AW 6082 aluminium alloys at elevated temperatures. We analysed the effect of various material and process parameters (e.g. temperature, sheet thickness) on the formability of aluminium alloys with particular emphasis on the Forming Limit Diagrams at elevated temperatures in order to find the optimum forming conditions for these alloys.

Surface-atmosphere decoupling limits accumulation at Summit, Greenland.

PubMed

Berkelhammer, Max; Noone, David C; Steen-Larsen, Hans Christian; Bailey, Adriana; Cox, Christopher J; O'Neill, Michael S; Schneider, David; Steffen, Konrad; White, James W C

2016-04-01

Despite rapid melting in the coastal regions of the Greenland Ice Sheet, a significant area (~40%) of the ice sheet rarely experiences surface melting. In these regions, the controls on annual accumulation are poorly constrained owing to surface conditions (for example, surface clouds, blowing snow, and surface inversions), which render moisture flux estimates from myriad approaches (that is, eddy covariance, remote sensing, and direct observations) highly uncertain. Accumulation is partially determined by the temperature dependence of saturation vapor pressure, which influences the maximum humidity of air parcels reaching the ice sheet interior. However, independent proxies for surface temperature and accumulation from ice cores show that the response of accumulation to temperature is variable and not generally consistent with a purely thermodynamic control. Using three years of stable water vapor isotope profiles from a high altitude site on the Greenland Ice Sheet, we show that as the boundary layer becomes increasingly stable, a decoupling between the ice sheet and atmosphere occurs. The limited interaction between the ice sheet surface and free tropospheric air reduces the capacity for surface condensation to achieve the rate set by the humidity of the air parcels reaching interior Greenland. The isolation of the surface also acts to recycle sublimated moisture by recondensing it onto fog particles, which returns the moisture back to the surface through gravitational settling. The observations highlight a unique mechanism by which ice sheet mass is conserved, which has implications for understanding both past and future changes in accumulation rate and the isotopic signal in ice cores from Greenland.

Surface-atmosphere decoupling limits accumulation at Summit, Greenland

PubMed Central

Berkelhammer, Max; Noone, David C.; Steen-Larsen, Hans Christian; Bailey, Adriana; Cox, Christopher J.; O’Neill, Michael S.; Schneider, David; Steffen, Konrad; White, James W. C.

2016-01-01

Despite rapid melting in the coastal regions of the Greenland Ice Sheet, a significant area (~40%) of the ice sheet rarely experiences surface melting. In these regions, the controls on annual accumulation are poorly constrained owing to surface conditions (for example, surface clouds, blowing snow, and surface inversions), which render moisture flux estimates from myriad approaches (that is, eddy covariance, remote sensing, and direct observations) highly uncertain. Accumulation is partially determined by the temperature dependence of saturation vapor pressure, which influences the maximum humidity of air parcels reaching the ice sheet interior. However, independent proxies for surface temperature and accumulation from ice cores show that the response of accumulation to temperature is variable and not generally consistent with a purely thermodynamic control. Using three years of stable water vapor isotope profiles from a high altitude site on the Greenland Ice Sheet, we show that as the boundary layer becomes increasingly stable, a decoupling between the ice sheet and atmosphere occurs. The limited interaction between the ice sheet surface and free tropospheric air reduces the capacity for surface condensation to achieve the rate set by the humidity of the air parcels reaching interior Greenland. The isolation of the surface also acts to recycle sublimated moisture by recondensing it onto fog particles, which returns the moisture back to the surface through gravitational settling. The observations highlight a unique mechanism by which ice sheet mass is conserved, which has implications for understanding both past and future changes in accumulation rate and the isotopic signal in ice cores from Greenland. PMID:27386509

Overview of Ice-Sheet Mass Balance and Dynamics from ICESat Measurements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zwally, H. Jay

2010-01-01

The primary purpose of the ICESat mission was to determine the present-day mass balance of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, identify changes that may be occurring in the surface-mass flux and ice dynamics, and estimate their contributions to global sea-level rise. Although ICESat's three lasers were planned to make continuous measurements for 3 to 5 years, the mission was re-planned to operate in 33-day campaigns 2 to 3 times each year following failure of the first laser after 36 days. Seventeen campaigns were conducted with the last one in the Fall of 2009. Mass balance maps derived from measured ice-sheet elevation changes show that the mass loss from Greenland has increased significantly to about 170 Gt/yr for 2003 to 2007 from a state of near balance in the 1990's. Increased losses (189 Gt/yr) from melting and dynamic thinning are over seven times larger'than increased gains (25 gt/yr) from precipitation. Parts of the West Antarctic ice sheet and the Antarctic Peninsula are losing mass at an increasing rate, but other parts of West Antarctica and the East Antarctic ice sheet are gaining mass at an increasing rate. Increased losses of 35 Gt/yr in Pine Island, Thwaites-Smith, and Marie-Bryd.Coast are more than balanced by gains in base of Peninsula and ice stream C, D, & E systems. From the 1992-2002 to 2003-2007 period, the overall mass balance for Antarctica changed from a loss of about 60 Gt/yr to near balance or slightly positive.

Heteroatom Polymer-Derived 3D High-Surface-Area and Mesoporous Graphene Sheet-Like Carbon for Supercapacitors.

PubMed

Sheng, Haiyang; Wei, Min; D'Aloia, Alyssa; Wu, Gang

2016-11-09

Current supercapacitors suffer from low energy density mainly due to the high degree of microporosity and insufficient hydrophilicity of their carbon electrodes. Development of a supercapacitor capable of simultaneously storing as much energy as a battery, along with providing sufficient power and long cycle stability would be valued for energy storage applications and innovations. Differing from commonly studied reduced graphene oxides, in this work we identified an inexpensive heteroatom polymer (polyaniline-PANI) as a carbon/nitrogen precursor, and applied a controlled thermal treatment at elevated temperature to convert PANI into 3D high-surface-area graphene-sheet-like carbon materials. During the carbonization process, various transition metals including Fe, Co, and Ni were added, which play critical roles in both catalyzing the graphitization and serving as pore forming agents. Factors including post-treatments, heating temperatures, and types of metal were found crucial for achieving enhanced capacitance performance on resulting carbon materials. Using FeCl 3 as precursor along with optimal heating temperature 1000 °C and mixed acid treatment (HCl+HNO 3 ), the highest Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area of 1645 m 2 g -1 was achieved on the mesopore dominant graphene-sheet-like carbon materials. The unique morphologies featured with high-surface areas, dominant mesopores, proper nitrogen doping, and 3D graphene-like structures correspond to remarkably enhanced electrochemical specific capacitance up to 478 Fg -1 in 1.0 M KOH at a scan rate of 5 mV s -1 . Furthermore, in a real two-electrode system of a symmetric supercapacitor, a specific capacitance of 235 Fg -1 using Nafion binder is obtained under a current density of 1 Ag -1 by galvanostatic charge-discharge tests in 6.0 M KOH. Long-term cycle stability up to 5000 cycles by using PVDF binder in electrode was systematically evaluated as a function of types of metals and current densities.

Common-midpoint radar surveys of ice sheets: a tool for better ice and bed property inversions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holschuh, N.; Christianson, K.; Anandakrishnan, S.; Alley, R. B.; Jacobel, R. W.

2016-12-01

In response to the demand for observationally derived boundary conditions in ice-sheet models, geophysicists are striving to more quantitatively interpret the reflection amplitudes of ice penetrating radar data. Inversions for ice-flow parameters and basal properties typically use common-offset radar data, which contain a single observation of bed reflection amplitude at each location in the survey; however, the radar equation has more than one unknown - ice temperature, subglacial water content, and bedrock roughness cannot be uniquely determined without additional constraints. In this study, we adapt traditional seismic property inversion techniques to radar data, using additional information collected with a common-midpoint (CMP) radar survey geometry (which varies the source-receiver offset for each subsurface target). Using two of the first common-midpoint ice-penetrating radar data sets collected over thick ice in Antarctica and Greenland, we test the hypothesis that these data can be used to disentangle the contributions of ice conductivity and bed permittivity to the received reflection amplitudes. We focus specifically on the corrections for the angular dependence of antenna gain and surface reflectivity, refractive focusing effects, and surface scattering losses. Inferred temperature profiles, derived from the constrained ice conductivities at Kamb Ice Stream and the North East Greenland Ice Stream, suggest higher than expected depth-integrated temperatures, as well as non-physical depth trends (with elevated temperatures near the surface). We hypothesize that this is driven in part by offset-dependent interferences between the sub-wavelength layers that make up a single nadir reflection, and present a convolutional model that describes how this interference might systematically reduce reflection power with offset (thereby elevating the inferred attenuation rate). If these additional offset-dependent power losses can be isolated and removed, common-midpoint profiles could provide a promising new way to calibrate property inversions that use the more laterally extensive, airborne, common-offset radar surveys.

A new bed elevation model for the Weddell Sea sector of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jeofry, Hafeez; Ross, Neil; Corr, Hugh F. J.; Li, Jilu; Morlighem, Mathieu; Gogineni, Prasad; Siegert, Martin J.

2018-04-01

We present a new digital elevation model (DEM) of the bed, with a 1 km gridding, of the Weddell Sea (WS) sector of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS). The DEM has a total area of ˜ 125 000 km2 covering the Institute, Möller and Foundation ice streams, as well as the Bungenstock ice rise. In comparison with the Bedmap2 product, our DEM includes new aerogeophysical datasets acquired by the Center for Remote Sensing of Ice Sheets (CReSIS) through the NASA Operation IceBridge (OIB) program in 2012, 2014 and 2016. We also improve bed elevation information from the single largest existing dataset in the region, collected by the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) Polarimetric radar Airborne Science Instrument (PASIN) in 2010-2011, from the relatively crude measurements determined in the field for quality control purposes used in Bedmap2. While the gross form of the new DEM is similar to Bedmap2, there are some notable differences. For example, the position and size of a deep subglacial trough (˜ 2 km below sea level) between the ice-sheet interior and the grounding line of the Foundation Ice Stream have been redefined. From the revised DEM, we are able to better derive the expected routing of basal water and, by comparison with that calculated using Bedmap2, we are able to assess regions where hydraulic flow is sensitive to change. Given the potential vulnerability of this sector to ocean-induced melting at the grounding line, especially in light of the improved definition of the Foundation Ice Stream trough, our revised DEM will be of value to ice-sheet modelling in efforts to quantify future glaciological changes in the region and, from this, the potential impact on global sea level. The new 1 km bed elevation product of the WS sector can be found at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1035488.

Investigating Long-term Behavior of Outlet Glaciers in Greenland

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Csatho, Beata; vanderVeen, Kees; Schenk, Toni

2005-01-01

Repeat surveys by airborne laser altimetry in the 1990s have revealed significant thinning of outlet glaciers draining the interior of the Greenland Ice Sheet, with thinning rates up to several meters per year. To fully appreciate the significance of these recent glacier changes, the magnitude of retreat and surface lowering must be placed within the broader context of the retreat since the Last Glacial Maximum and, more significantly, of the retreat following the temporary glacier advance during the Little Ice Age (LIA). The LIA maximum stand is marked by trimlines, sharp boundaries between recently deglacifated unvegetated rocks, and vegetated surfaces at higher elevations. The objective of this project was to demonstrate the use of remote sensing data to map these trimlines and other glacial geomorphologic features.

The present-day climate of Greenland : a study with a regional climate model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ettema, J.

2010-04-01

Present-day climate of Greenland Over the past 20 years, the Greenland ice sheet (GrIS) has warmed. This temperature increase can be explained by an increase in downwelling longwave radiation due to a warmer overlying atmosphere. These temperature changes are strongly correlated to changes in the large scale circulation over the ice sheet. Since 1990, the melt has also strongly increased along the ice margins, inducing significant increase in runoff. With no significant change found in the total precipitation, the GrIS surface mass balance (SMB) decreased by 12 Gt yr-1 or 7 kg m-2 yr-1 since 1990. Locally, the SMB trend reaches -90 kg m-2 yr-1 at the western and eastern ice margins. These conclusions are drawn from a modelling study by Janneke Ettema, which discusses the present-day climate and surface mass balance of the GrIS. The emphasis of this research is on understanding the underlying physical processes. Using the regional atmospheric climate model RACMO2/GR at high horizontal resolution (11km) has resulted in unprecedented detail in the ice sheet climatology and SMB. By incorporating processes such as percolation, retention and refreezing of meltwater in the surface parameterisation, the model explicitly calculates how these processes affect snow pack temperature, density and surface albedo. RACMO2/GR shows that the GrIS climate is spatially very variable. Characteristic for the ice sheet climate are the persistent katabatic winds and a quasi-permanent surface temperature deficit. Due to strong radiative cooling and turbulent heat transport towards the surface, the atmospheric boundary layer cools, providing optimal conditions for strong katabatic winds to occur. The strongest temperature deficit and wind speeds are found in the northeastern part of the ice sheet, whereas in the lower ablation zone the temperatures are more moderate due to surface melt and warm air advection. The high-resolution climate model revealed that the surface mass balance of the GrIS is 469 Gt yr-1, much higher than previously thought. Mass gain is dominated by snowfall (697 Gt yr-1) over rain (46 Gt yr-1), whereas mass loss is mainly controlled by runoff (248 Gt yr-1) and to a smaller extent by evaporation/sublimation (26 Gt yr-1). The largest accumulation rates are found at elevations below 2000 m in southeast Greenland, where local peaks occur of over 4000 kg m-2 yr-1. The ablation zone locally exhibits very strong SMB gradients with local mass loss of over 3000 kg m-2 yr-1 along the western ice margins. The results of RACMO2 for the Greenland ice sheet as presented in this thesis have greatly furthered our understanding of the coupling between atmospheric processes and the SMB of the GrIS. By using a high horizontal resolution of 11 km, RACMO2/GR displayed numerous interesting features that have not yet been addressed in this study, but which are definitely worth looking into. Examples are the regional momentum and heat budgets and the effect of the snow-free tundra on the ablation zone. If the horizontal model resolution could be downscaled to e.g. 5.5 km, it would open doors to apply RACMO2/GR to smaller ice caps, e.g. on Svalbard, Canada and Patagonia.

Floods in the Wapsipinicon River Basin, Iowa

USGS Publications Warehouse

Schwob, Harlan H.

1971-01-01

Flood-profile sheets show profiles of actual flood occurrences and computed profiles of the 25- and 50-year floods at most locations. These sheets also contain tabulations of the flood discharges profiled. A low-water profile and tabulated discharge indicate the range in elevation and discharge along the streams.

13. Photographic copy of photocopy of bridge drawing, plans and ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

13. Photographic copy of photocopy of bridge drawing, plans and elevations (June 12, 1937, original drawing on file in Structures Section, Utah Department of Transportation, Salt Lake City, Utah). SHEET NO. 5 OF 6 SHEETS. - Gould Wash Bridge, Spanning Gould Wash at State Route 9, Hurricane, Washington County, UT

16. Photocopy of Sheet 4 of Building Plan R41A, (USDA, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

16. Photocopy of Sheet 4 of Building Plan R4-1A, (USDA, Forest Service, Intermountain Region, Ogden. File 7300, 'Buildings'.) SIDE ELEVATION AND DINING ALCOVE PLAN - Buffalo Guard Station, Residence, U.S. Highway 20/191 at Buffalo River, Island Park, Fremont County, ID

9. Photocopy of Sheet 1 of Building Plan R451, (USDA, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

9. Photocopy of Sheet 1 of Building Plan R4-51, (USDA, Forest Service, Intermountain Region, Ogden. File 7300, 'Buildings'.) Front, Rear, and Side Elevations and Floor Plan. - Buffalo Guard Station, Office, U.S. Highway 20/191 at Buffalo River, Island Park, Fremont County, ID

4. Photocopy of Sheet 1 of Building Plan R421, (USDA, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

4. Photocopy of Sheet 1 of Building Plan R4-21, (USDA, Forest Service, Intermountain Region, Ogden. File 7300, 'Buildings') FRONT AND SIDE ELEVATIONS, FLOOR AND FOUNDATION PLANS. - Buffalo Guard Station, Garage, U.S. Highway 20/191 at Buffalo River, Island Park, Fremont County, ID

Cooling arrangement for a superconducting coil

DOEpatents

Herd, K.G.; Laskaris, E.T.

1998-06-30

A superconducting device is disclosed, such as a superconducting rotor for a generator or motor. A vacuum enclosure has an interior wall surrounding a cavity containing a vacuum. A superconductive coil is placed in the cavity. A generally-annularly-arranged, thermally-conductive sheet has an inward-facing surface contacting generally the entire outward-facing surface of the superconductive coil. A generally-annularly-arranged coolant tube contains a cryogenic fluid and contacts a generally-circumferential portion of the outward-facing surface of the sheet. A generally-annularly-arranged, thermally-insulative coil overwrap generally circumferentially surrounds the sheet. The coolant tube and the inward-facing surface of the coil overwrap together contact generally the entire outward-facing surface of the sheet. 3 figs.

42. OUTLET WORKS: CONTROL TOWER ELEVATIONS AND SECTIONS NO. ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

42. OUTLET WORKS: CONTROL TOWER - ELEVATIONS AND SECTIONS NO. 2. Sheet 36, August 20, 1938. File no. SA 121/79. - Prado Dam, Outlet Works, Santa Ana River near junction of State Highways 71 & 91, Corona, Riverside County, CA

41. OUTLET WORKS: CONTROL TOWER ELEVATIONS AND SECTIONS NO. ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

41. OUTLET WORKS: CONTROL TOWER - ELEVATIONS AND SECTIONS NO. 1. Sheet 35, August 20, 1938. File no. SA 121/74. - Prado Dam, Outlet Works, Santa Ana River near junction of State Highways 71 & 91, Corona, Riverside County, CA

Misfolded opsin mutants display elevated β -sheet structure

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

Miller, Lisa M.; Gragg, Megan; Kim, Tae Gyun

Mutations in rhodopsin can cause misfolding and aggregation of the receptor, which leads to retinitis pigmentosa, a progressive retinal degenerative disease. The structure adopted by misfolded opsin mutants and the associated cell toxicity is poorly understood. Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) microspectroscopy were utilized to probe within cells the structures formed by G188R and P23H opsins, which are misfolding mutants that cause autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa. Also, both mutants formed aggregates in the endoplasmic reticulum and exhibited altered secondary structure with elevated β-sheet and reduced α-helical content. The newly formed β-sheet structure may facilitate themore » aggregation of misfolded opsin mutants. In conclusion, the effects observed for the mutants were unrelated to retention of opsin molecules in the endoplasmic reticulum itself.« less

Misfolded opsin mutants display elevated β -sheet structure

DOE PAGES

Miller, Lisa M.; Gragg, Megan; Kim, Tae Gyun; ...

2015-09-07

Mutations in rhodopsin can cause misfolding and aggregation of the receptor, which leads to retinitis pigmentosa, a progressive retinal degenerative disease. The structure adopted by misfolded opsin mutants and the associated cell toxicity is poorly understood. Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) microspectroscopy were utilized to probe within cells the structures formed by G188R and P23H opsins, which are misfolding mutants that cause autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa. Also, both mutants formed aggregates in the endoplasmic reticulum and exhibited altered secondary structure with elevated β-sheet and reduced α-helical content. The newly formed β-sheet structure may facilitate themore » aggregation of misfolded opsin mutants. In conclusion, the effects observed for the mutants were unrelated to retention of opsin molecules in the endoplasmic reticulum itself.« less

Surface water hydrology and the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, L. C.; Yang, K.; Pitcher, L. H.; Overstreet, B. T.; Chu, V. W.; Rennermalm, A. K.; Cooper, M. G.; Gleason, C. J.; Ryan, J.; Hubbard, A.; Tedesco, M.; Behar, A.

2016-12-01

Mass loss from the Greenland Ice Sheet now exceeds 260 Gt/year, raising global sea level by >0.7 mm annually. Approximately two-thirds of this total mass loss is now driven by negative ice sheet surface mass balance (SMB), attributed mainly to production and runoff of meltwater from the ice sheet surface. This new dominance of runoff as a driver of GrIS total mass loss will likely persist owing to anticipated further increases in surface melting, reduced meltwater storage in firn, and the waning importance of dynamical mass losses (ice calving) as the ice sheets retreat from their marine-terminating margins. It also creates the need and opportunity for integrative research pairing traditional surface water hydrology approaches with glaciology. As one example, we present a way to measure supraglacial "runoff" (i.e. specific discharge) at the supraglacial catchment scale ( 101-102 km2), using in situ measurements of supraglacial river discharge and high-resolution satellite/drone mapping of upstream catchment area. This approach, which is standard in terrestrial hydrology but novel for ice sheet science, enables independent verification and improvement of modeled SMB runoff estimates used to project sea level rise. Furthermore, because current SMB models do not consider the role of fluvial watershed processes operating on the ice surface, inclusion of even a simple surface routing model materially improves simulations of runoff delivered to moulins, the critical pathways for meltwater entry into the ice sheet. Incorporating principles of surface water hydrology and fluvial geomorphology and into glaciological models will thus aid estimates of Greenland meltwater runoff to the global ocean as well as connections to subglacial hydrology and ice sheet dynamics.

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 footprint returns to estimate glacier ice elevations and surface characteristics. To obtain the optimal ICESat results, we are reprocessing the ICESat data from Alaska to provide a well-calibrated regional ICESat solution. We anticipate that our ICESat results combined with earlier data will provide new constraints on the temporal and spatial variations in ice volume of individual Alaskan mountain ranges. These results allow us to address how recent melting of the southern Alaska glaciers contribute to short-term sea-level rise. Our results will also enable us to quantify crustal stress changes due to ice mass fluctuations and to assess the influence of ice mass changes on the seismically active southern Alaskan plate boundary zone.

A flexible tactile sensitive sheet using a hetero-core fiber optic sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fujino, S.; Yamazaki, H.; Hosoki, A.; Watanabe, K.

2014-05-01

In this report, we have designed a tactile sensitive sheet based on a hetero-core fiber-optic sensor, which realize an areal sensing by using single sensor potion in one optical fiber line. Recently, flexible and wide-area tactile sensing technology is expected to applied to acquired biological information in living space and robot achieve long-term care services such as welfare and nursing-care and humanoid technology. A hetero-core fiber-optic sensor has several advantages such as thin and flexible transmission line, immunity to EMI. Additionally this sensor is sensitive to moderate bending actions with optical loss changes and is independent of temperature fluctuation. Thus, the hetero-core fiber-optic sensor can be suitable for areal tactile sensing. We measure pressure characteristic of the proposed sensitive sheet by changing the pressure position and pinching characteristic on the surface. The proposed tactile sensitive sheet shows monotonic responses on the whole sensitive sheet surface although different sensitivity by the position is observed at the sensitive sheet surface. Moreover, the tactile sensitive sheet could sufficiently detect the pinching motion. In addition, in order to realize the discrimination between pressure and pinch, we fabricated a doubled-over sensor using a set of tactile sensitive sheets, which has different kinds of silicon robbers as a sensitive sheet surface. In conclusion, the flexible material could be given to the tactile sensation which is attached under proposed sensitive sheet.

The GLAS Algorithm Theoretical Basis Document for Precision Attitude Determination (PAD)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bae, Sungkoo; Smith, Noah; Schutz, Bob E.

2013-01-01

The Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) was the sole instrument for NASAs Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) laser altimetry mission. The primary purpose of the ICESat mission was to make ice sheet elevation measurements of the polar regions. Additional goals were to measure the global distribution of clouds and aerosols and to map sea ice, land topography and vegetation. ICESat was the benchmark Earth Observing System (EOS) mission to be used to determine the mass balance of the ice sheets, as well as for providing cloud property information, especially for stratospheric clouds common over polar areas.

Did the Laurentide ice sheet survive through Marine Isotope Stage 9?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carlson, A. E.; Tarasov, L.; Ullman, D. J.

2016-12-01

Looking at the global benthic oxygen isotope stack, only marine oxygen isotope stage (MIS) 7 stands out as an anomalous interglaciation with a higher oxygen isotope value than other interglaciations of the last half million years. However, benthic oxygen isotopes are an integrator of global ice volume plus temperature, and records of local ice-sheet change are needed to partition the sources of the global signal. Here we use the Laurentide ice-sheet (LIS) proximal record of IODP Site U1302/1303 off of Orphan Knoll to test LIS presence/absence on the eastern Canadian shield. Ice-sheet model calibrated Si relative to Sr is low in most interglaciations of the last 500 ka reflecting the removal of the LIS and its erosive power from the Canadian Shield. However, like MIS 7, MIS 9 has continued elevated inputs of Si. Furthermore, planktic oxygen isotopes do not decrease to full interglacial levels like in MIS 1, 5e and 11. MIS 9 had a similar orbital forcing as MIS 5e, but a much shorter period of elevated interglacial carbon dioxide concentration. Based on climate model simulations of LIS stability, we suggest that the reduced period of elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide allowed the LIS to survive through MIS 9 (like MIS 7), providing important constraints for the climatic thresholds necessary for a full interglaciation.

Ceramic substrate including thin film multilayer surface conductor

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

Wolf, Joseph Ambrose; Peterson, Kenneth A.

2017-05-09

A ceramic substrate comprises a plurality of ceramic sheets, a plurality of inner conductive layers, a plurality of vias, and an upper conductive layer. The ceramic sheets are stacked one on top of another and include a top ceramic sheet. The inner conductive layers include electrically conductive material that forms electrically conductive features on an upper surface of each ceramic sheet excluding the top ceramic sheet. The vias are formed in each of the ceramic sheets with each via being filled with electrically conductive material. The upper conductive layer includes electrically conductive material that forms electrically conductive features on anmore » upper surface of the top ceramic sheet. The upper conductive layer is constructed from a stack of four sublayers. A first sublayer is formed from titanium. A second sublayer is formed from copper. A third sublayer is formed from platinum. A fourth sublayer is formed from gold.« less

Surface Energy and Mass Balance Model for Greenland Ice Sheet and Future Projections

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Xiaojian

The Greenland Ice Sheet contains nearly 3 million cubic kilometers of glacial ice. If the entire ice sheet completely melted, sea level would raise by nearly 7 meters. There is thus considerable interest in monitoring the mass balance of the Greenland Ice Sheet. Each year, the ice sheet gains ice from snowfall and loses ice through iceberg calving and surface melting. In this thesis, we develop, validate and apply a physics based numerical model to estimate current and future surface mass balance of the Greenland Ice Sheet. The numerical model consists of a coupled surface energy balance and englacial model that is simple enough that it can be used for long time scale model runs, but unlike previous empirical parameterizations, has a physical basis. The surface energy balance model predicts ice sheet surface temperature and melt production. The englacial model predicts the evolution of temperature and meltwater within the ice sheet. These two models can be combined with estimates of precipitation (snowfall) to estimate the mass balance over the Greenland Ice Sheet. We first compare model performance with in-situ observations to demonstrate that the model works well. We next evaluate how predictions are degraded when we statistically downscale global climate data. We find that a simple, nearest neighbor interpolation scheme with a lapse rate correction is able to adequately reproduce melt patterns on the Greenland Ice Sheet. These results are comparable to those obtained using empirical Positive Degree Day (PDD) methods. Having validated the model, we next drove the ice sheet model using the suite of atmospheric model runs available through the CMIP5 atmospheric model inter-comparison, which in turn built upon the RCP 8.5 (business as usual) scenarios. From this exercise we predict how much surface melt production will increase in the coming century. This results in 4-10 cm sea level equivalent, depending on the CMIP5 models. Finally, we try to bound melt water production from CMIP5 data with the model by assuming that the Greenland Ice Sheet is covered in black carbon (lowering the albedo) and perpetually covered by optically thick clouds (increasing long wave radiation). This upper bound roughly triples surface meltwater production, resulting in 30 cm of sea level rise by 2100. These model estimates, combined with prior research suggesting an additional 40-100 cm of sea level rise associated with dynamical discharge, suggest that the Greenland Ice Sheet is poised to contribute significantly to sea level rise in the coming century.

1. Photographic copy of engineering drawing showing elevations and sections ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

1. Photographic copy of engineering drawing showing elevations and sections of Test Stand 'E' (Building 4259/E-60). California Institute of Technology, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Plant Engineering 'Solid Propellant Test Stand E-60 - Elevations & Sections,' sheet E60/10, no date. - Jet Propulsion Laboratory Edwards Facility, Test Stand E, Edwards Air Force Base, Boron, Kern County, CA

49. Photograph of an original construction drawing, dated August 1927, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

49. Photograph of an original construction drawing, dated August 1927, in the possession of Facilities Planning Office, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa. ELEVATIONS & DETAILS CROSS SECTION THROUGH COURTYARD SHOWING WEST ELEVATION OF ARCADE AT EAST SIDE, REAR (EAST) ELEVATION OF BUILDING; SHEET NO. 7 OF 10 - Dairy Industry Building, Iowa State University campus, Ames, Story County, IA

GATE HOUSE FOR UNITED ENGINEERING CO., Alameda, California. Four elevations ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

GATE HOUSE FOR UNITED ENGINEERING CO., Alameda, California. Four elevations and three sections. Alben Froberg, Architect, Oakland, California. Sheet no. 1. Scale 1/4 inch to the foot, elevations. Scale ~ inch to the foot, sections. July 31, 1941. pencil on tracing paper - United Engineering Company Shipyard, Gate House, 2900 Main Street, Alameda, Alameda County, CA

Cork-resin ablative insulation for complex surfaces and method for applying the same

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Walker, H. M.; Sharpe, M. H.; Simpson, W. G. (Inventor)

1980-01-01

A method of applying cork-resin ablative insulation material to complex curved surfaces is disclosed. The material is prepared by mixing finely divided cork with a B-stage curable thermosetting resin, forming the resulting mixture into a block, B-stage curing the resin-containing block, and slicing the block into sheets. The B-stage cured sheet is shaped to conform to the surface being insulated, and further curing is then performed. Curing of the resins only to B-stage before shaping enables application of sheet material to complex curved surfaces and avoids limitations and disadvantages presented in handling of fully cured sheet material.

Evidence for a substantial West Antarctic ice sheet contribution to meltwater pulses and abrupt global sea level rise

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fogwill, C. J.; Turney, C. S.; Golledge, N. R.; Etheridge, D. M.; Rubino, M.; Thornton, D.; Woodward, J.; Winter, K.; van Ommen, T. D.; Moy, A. D.; Curran, M. A.; Rootes, C.; Rivera, A.; Millman, H.

2015-12-01

During the last deglaciation (21,000 to 7,000years ago) global sea level rise was punctuated by several abrupt meltwater spikes triggered by the retreat of ice sheets and glaciers world-wide. However, the debate regarding the relative timing, geographical source and the physical mechanisms driving these rapid increases in sea level has catalyzed debate critical to predicting future sea level rise and climate. Here we present a unique record of West Antarctic Ice Sheet elevation change derived from the Patriot Hills blue ice area, located close to the modern day grounding line of the Institute Ice Stream in the Weddell Sea Embayment. Combined isotopic signatures and gas volume analysis from the ice allows us to develop a record of local ice sheet palaeo-altitude that is assessed against independent regional high-resolution ice sheet modeling studies, allowing us to demonstrate that past ice sheet elevations across this sector of the WSE were considerably higher than those suggested by current terrestrial reconstructions. We argue that ice in the WSE had a significant influence on both pre and post LGM sea level rise including MWP-1A (~14.6 ka) and during MWP-1B (11.7-11.6 ka), reconciling past sea level rise and demonstrating for the first time that this sector of the WAIS made a significant and direct contribution to post LGM sea level rise.

37. OUTLET WORKS: CONTROL WORKS ELEVATIONS AND INDEX TO ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

37. OUTLET WORKS: CONTROL WORKS - ELEVATIONS AND INDEX TO REFERENCE DRAWINGS. Sheet 31, August 20, 1938. File no. SA 121/70. - Prado Dam, Outlet Works, Santa Ana River near junction of State Highways 71 & 91, Corona, Riverside County, CA

48. Photograph of an original construction drawing, dated August 1927, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

48. Photograph of an original construction drawing, dated August 1927, in the possession of Facilities Planning Office, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa. ELEVATIONS CROSS SECTIONS THROUGH COURTYARD SHOWING EAST ELEVATION OF FRONT (WEST) PORTION OF BUILDING, SOUTH ELEVATION OF NORTH WING, NORTH ELEVATION OF SOUTH WING, PLOT PLAN, AND DETAILS; SHEET NO. 6 OF 10 - Dairy Industry Building, Iowa State University campus, Ames, Story County, IA

Direct measurements of meltwater runoff on the Greenland ice sheet surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, Laurence C.; Yang, Kang; Pitcher, Lincoln H.; Overstreet, Brandon T.; Chu, Vena W.; Rennermalm, Åsa K.; Ryan, Jonathan C.; Cooper, Matthew G.; Gleason, Colin J.; Tedesco, Marco; Jeyaratnam, Jeyavinoth; van As, Dirk; van den Broeke, Michiel R.; van de Berg, Willem Jan; Noël, Brice; Langen, Peter L.; Cullather, Richard I.; Zhao, Bin; Willis, Michael J.; Hubbard, Alun; Box, Jason E.; Jenner, Brittany A.; Behar, Alberto E.

2017-12-01

Meltwater runoff from the Greenland ice sheet surface influences surface mass balance (SMB), ice dynamics, and global sea level rise, but is estimated with climate models and thus difficult to validate. We present a way to measure ice surface runoff directly, from hourly in situ supraglacial river discharge measurements and simultaneous high-resolution satellite/drone remote sensing of upstream fluvial catchment area. A first 72-h trial for a 63.1-km2 moulin-terminating internally drained catchment (IDC) on Greenland's midelevation (1,207–1,381 m above sea level) ablation zone is compared with melt and runoff simulations from HIRHAM5, MAR3.6, RACMO2.3, MERRA-2, and SEB climate/SMB models. Current models cannot reproduce peak discharges or timing of runoff entering moulins but are improved using synthetic unit hydrograph (SUH) theory. Retroactive SUH applications to two older field studies reproduce their findings, signifying that remotely sensed IDC area, shape, and supraglacial river length are useful for predicting delays in peak runoff delivery to moulins. Applying SUH to HIRHAM5, MAR3.6, and RACMO2.3 gridded melt products for 799 surrounding IDCs suggests their terminal moulins receive lower peak discharges, less diurnal variability, and asynchronous runoff timing relative to climate/SMB model output alone. Conversely, large IDCs produce high moulin discharges, even at high elevations where melt rates are low. During this particular field experiment, models overestimated runoff by +21 to +58%, linked to overestimated surface ablation and possible meltwater retention in bare, porous, low-density ice. Direct measurements of ice surface runoff will improve climate/SMB models, and incorporating remotely sensed IDCs will aid coupling of SMB with ice dynamics and subglacial systems.

Direct measurements of meltwater runoff on the Greenland ice sheet surface.

PubMed

Smith, Laurence C; Yang, Kang; Pitcher, Lincoln H; Overstreet, Brandon T; Chu, Vena W; Rennermalm, Åsa K; Ryan, Jonathan C; Cooper, Matthew G; Gleason, Colin J; Tedesco, Marco; Jeyaratnam, Jeyavinoth; van As, Dirk; van den Broeke, Michiel R; van de Berg, Willem Jan; Noël, Brice; Langen, Peter L; Cullather, Richard I; Zhao, Bin; Willis, Michael J; Hubbard, Alun; Box, Jason E; Jenner, Brittany A; Behar, Alberto E

2017-12-12

Meltwater runoff from the Greenland ice sheet surface influences surface mass balance (SMB), ice dynamics, and global sea level rise, but is estimated with climate models and thus difficult to validate. We present a way to measure ice surface runoff directly, from hourly in situ supraglacial river discharge measurements and simultaneous high-resolution satellite/drone remote sensing of upstream fluvial catchment area. A first 72-h trial for a 63.1-km 2 moulin-terminating internally drained catchment (IDC) on Greenland's midelevation (1,207-1,381 m above sea level) ablation zone is compared with melt and runoff simulations from HIRHAM5, MAR3.6, RACMO2.3, MERRA-2, and SEB climate/SMB models. Current models cannot reproduce peak discharges or timing of runoff entering moulins but are improved using synthetic unit hydrograph (SUH) theory. Retroactive SUH applications to two older field studies reproduce their findings, signifying that remotely sensed IDC area, shape, and supraglacial river length are useful for predicting delays in peak runoff delivery to moulins. Applying SUH to HIRHAM5, MAR3.6, and RACMO2.3 gridded melt products for 799 surrounding IDCs suggests their terminal moulins receive lower peak discharges, less diurnal variability, and asynchronous runoff timing relative to climate/SMB model output alone. Conversely, large IDCs produce high moulin discharges, even at high elevations where melt rates are low. During this particular field experiment, models overestimated runoff by +21 to +58%, linked to overestimated surface ablation and possible meltwater retention in bare, porous, low-density ice. Direct measurements of ice surface runoff will improve climate/SMB models, and incorporating remotely sensed IDCs will aid coupling of SMB with ice dynamics and subglacial systems. Copyright © 2017 the Author(s). Published by PNAS.

Direct measurements of meltwater runoff on the Greenland ice sheet surface

PubMed Central

Smith, Laurence C.; Yang, Kang; Pitcher, Lincoln H; Overstreet, Brandon T.; Chu, Vena W.; Rennermalm, Åsa K.; Ryan, Jonathan C.; Cooper, Matthew G.; Gleason, Colin J.; Tedesco, Marco; Jeyaratnam, Jeyavinoth; van As, Dirk; van den Broeke, Michiel R.; van de Berg, Willem Jan; Noël, Brice; Langen, Peter L.; Cullather, Richard I.; Zhao, Bin; Hubbard, Alun; Box, Jason E.; Jenner, Brittany A.; Behar, Alberto E.

2017-01-01

Meltwater runoff from the Greenland ice sheet surface influences surface mass balance (SMB), ice dynamics, and global sea level rise, but is estimated with climate models and thus difficult to validate. We present a way to measure ice surface runoff directly, from hourly in situ supraglacial river discharge measurements and simultaneous high-resolution satellite/drone remote sensing of upstream fluvial catchment area. A first 72-h trial for a 63.1-km2 moulin-terminating internally drained catchment (IDC) on Greenland’s midelevation (1,207–1,381 m above sea level) ablation zone is compared with melt and runoff simulations from HIRHAM5, MAR3.6, RACMO2.3, MERRA-2, and SEB climate/SMB models. Current models cannot reproduce peak discharges or timing of runoff entering moulins but are improved using synthetic unit hydrograph (SUH) theory. Retroactive SUH applications to two older field studies reproduce their findings, signifying that remotely sensed IDC area, shape, and supraglacial river length are useful for predicting delays in peak runoff delivery to moulins. Applying SUH to HIRHAM5, MAR3.6, and RACMO2.3 gridded melt products for 799 surrounding IDCs suggests their terminal moulins receive lower peak discharges, less diurnal variability, and asynchronous runoff timing relative to climate/SMB model output alone. Conversely, large IDCs produce high moulin discharges, even at high elevations where melt rates are low. During this particular field experiment, models overestimated runoff by +21 to +58%, linked to overestimated surface ablation and possible meltwater retention in bare, porous, low-density ice. Direct measurements of ice surface runoff will improve climate/SMB models, and incorporating remotely sensed IDCs will aid coupling of SMB with ice dynamics and subglacial systems. PMID:29208716

Analysis of surface wave propagation in a grounded dielectric slab covered by a resistive sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shively, David G.

1992-01-01

Both parallel and perpendicular polarized surface waves are known to propagate on lossless and lossy grounded dielectric slabs. Surface wave propagation on a grounded dielectric slab covered with a resistive sheet is considered. Both parallel and perpendicular polarizations are examined. Transcendental equations are derived for each polarization and are solved using iterative techniques. Attenuation and phase velocity are shown for representative geometries. The results are applicable to both a grounded slab with a resistive sheet and an ungrounded slab covered on each side with a resistive sheet.

A calving law for ice sheet models; Investigating the role of surface melt on dynamics of Greenland outlet glaciers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nick, F. M.; van der Veen, C. J.; Vieli, A.

2008-12-01

alving of icebergs accounts for perhaps as much as half the ice transferred from the Greenland Ice Sheet into the surrounding ocean, and virtually all of the ice loss from the Antarctic Ice Sheet. We have formulated a calving model that can be readily incorporated into time-evolving numerical ice-flow models. Our model is based on downward penetration of water-filled surface crevasses and upward propagation of basal crevasses. A calving event occurs when the depth of the surface crevasse (which increases as melting progresses through the summer) reaches the height of the basal crevasse. Our numerical ice sheet model is able to reproduce observed seasonal changes of Greenland outlet glaciers, such as fluctuations in flow speed and terminus positions. We have applied the model to Helheim Glacier on the east coast, and Petermann Glacier in the northwest. Our model suggests that rapid retreat of the claving front is highly affected by the amplified calving rate due to increasing water level in surface crevasses during warmer summers. Our results show little response to seasonally enhanced basal lubrication from surface melt. This modeling study provides insights into the role of surface and basal hydrology to ice sheet dynamics and on how to incorporate calving in ice sheet models and therefore advances our ability to predict future ice sheet change.

Constraining Future Sea Level Rise Estimates from the Amundsen Sea Embayment, West Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nias, I.; Cornford, S. L.; Edwards, T.; Gourmelen, N.; Payne, A. J.

2016-12-01

The Amundsen Sea Embayment (ASE) is the primary source of mass loss from the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. The catchment is particularly susceptible to grounding line retreat, because the ice sheet is grounded on bedrock that is below sea level and deepening towards its interior. Mass loss from the ASE ice streams, which include Pine Island, Thwaites and Smith glaciers, is a major uncertainty on future sea level rise, and understanding the dynamics of these ice streams is essential to constraining this uncertainty. The aim of this study is to construct a distribution of future ASE sea level contributions from an ensemble of ice sheet model simulations and observations of surface elevation change. A 284 member ensemble was performed using BISICLES, a vertically-integrated ice flow model with adaptive mesh refinement. Within the ensemble parameters associated with basal traction, ice rheology and sub-shelf melt rate were perturbed, and the effect of bed topography and sliding law were also investigated. Initially each configuration was run to 50 model years. Satellite observations of surface height change were then used within a Bayesian framework to assign likelihoods to each ensemble member. Simulations that better reproduced the current thinning patterns across the catchment were given a higher score. The resulting posterior distribution of sea level contributions is narrower than the prior distribution, although the central estimates of sea level rise are similar between the prior and posterior. The most extreme simulations were eliminated and the remaining ensemble members were extended to 200 years, using a simple melt rate forcing.

First Assessments of Predicted ICESat-2 Performance Using Aircraft Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Neumann, Thomas; Markus, Thorsten; Cook, William; Hancock, David; Brenner, Anita; Kelly, Brunt; DeMarco, Eugenia; Reed, Daniel; Walsh, Kaitlin

2012-01-01

The Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) is a next-generation laser altimeter designed to continue key observations of ice sheet elevation change, sea ice freeboard, vegetation canopy height, earth surface elevation, and sea surface height. Scheduled for launch in mid-2016, ICESat-2 will use a high repetition rate (10 kHz), small footprint (10 m nominal ground diameter) laser, and a single-photon-sensitive detection strategy (photon counting) to measure precise range to the earth's surface. Using green light (532 nm), the six beams of ICESat-2 will provide improved spatial coverage compared with the single beam of ICESat, while the differences in transmit energy among the beams provide a large dynamic range. The six beams are arranged into three pairs of beams which allow slopes to measured on an orbit-by-orbit basis. In order to evaluate models of predicted ICESat-2 performance and provide ICESat-2-like data for algorithm development, an airborne ICESat-2 simulator was developed and first flown in 2010. This simulator, the Multiple Altimeter Beam Experimental Lidar (MABEL) was most recently deployed to Iceland in April 2012 and collected approx 85 hours of science data over land ice, sea ice, and calibration targets. MABEL uses a similar photon-counting measurement strategy to what will be used on ICESat-2. MABEL collects data in 16 green channels and an additional 8 channels in the infrared aligned across the direction of flight. By using NASA's ER-2 aircraft flying at 20km altitude, MABEL flies as close to space as is practical, and collects data through approx 95% of the atmosphere. We present background on the MABEL instrument, and data from the April 2012 deployment to Iceland. Among the 13 MABEL flights, we collected data over the Greenland ice sheet interior and outlet glaciers in the southwest and western Greenland, sea ice data over the Nares Strait and Greenland Sea, and a number of small glaciers and ice caps in Iceland and Svalbard. Several of the flights were coincident in time and space with NASA's Operation IceBridge, which provides an independent data set for validation. MABEL also collected data along CryoSat track 10482 in north central Greenland approximately one month after CryoSat passed overhead.

Fact Sheets: Final Rules to Reduce Toxic Air Pollutants from Surface Coating of Metal Cans

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

This page contains the August 2003 final rule fact sheet and the December 2005 final rule fact sheet that contain information on the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) for Surface Coating of Metal Cans.

10. Photographic copy of photocopy of bridge drawing, half plans ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

10. Photographic copy of photocopy of bridge drawing, half plans and elevation (June 12, 1937, original drawing on file in Structures Section, Utah Department of Transportation, Salt Lake City, Utah). SHEET NO. 2 OF 6 SHEETS. - Gould Wash Bridge, Spanning Gould Wash at State Route 9, Hurricane, Washington County, UT

12. Photographic copy of photocopy of bridge drawing, half plans ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

12. Photographic copy of photocopy of bridge drawing, half plans and abutment elevation (June 12, 1937, original drawing on file in Structures Section, Utah Department of Transportation, Salt Lake City, Utah). SHEET NO. 4 OF 6 SHEETS. - Gould Wash Bridge, Spanning Gould Wash at State Route 9, Hurricane, Washington County, UT

Modeled Seasonal Variations of Firn Density Induced by Steady State Surface Air Temperature Cycle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jun, Li; Zwally, H. Jay; Koblinsky, Chester J. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

Seasonal variations of firn density in ice-sheet firn layers have been attributed to variations in deposition processes or other processes within the upper firn. A recent high-resolution (mm scale) density profile, measured along a 181 m core from Antarctica, showed small-scale density variations with a clear seasonal cycle that apparently was not-related to seasonal variations in deposition or known near-surface processes (Gerland and others 1999). A recent model of surface elevation changes (Zwally and Li, submitted) produced a seasonal variation in firn densification, and explained the seasonal surface elevation changes observed by satellite radar altimeters. In this study, we apply our 1-D time-dependent numerical model of firn densification that includes a temperature-dependent formulation of firn densification based on laboratory measurements of grain growth. The model is driven by a steady-state seasonal surface temperature and a constant accumulation rate appropriate for the measured Antarctic ice core. The modeled seasonal variations in firn density show that the layers of snow deposited during spring to mid-summer with the highest temperature history compress to the highest density, and the layers deposited during later summer to autumn with the lowest temperature history compress to the lowest density. The initial amplitude of the seasonal difference of about 0.13 reduces to about 0.09 in five years and asymptotically to 0.92 at depth, which is consistent with the core measurements.

Greenland ice sheet motion insensitive to exceptional meltwater forcing.

PubMed

Tedstone, Andrew J; Nienow, Peter W; Sole, Andrew J; Mair, Douglas W F; Cowton, Thomas R; Bartholomew, Ian D; King, Matt A

2013-12-03

Changes to the dynamics of the Greenland ice sheet can be forced by various mechanisms including surface-melt-induced ice acceleration and oceanic forcing of marine-terminating glaciers. We use observations of ice motion to examine the surface melt-induced dynamic response of a land-terminating outlet glacier in southwest Greenland to the exceptional melting observed in 2012. During summer, meltwater generated on the Greenland ice sheet surface accesses the ice sheet bed, lubricating basal motion and resulting in periods of faster ice flow. However, the net impact of varying meltwater volumes upon seasonal and annual ice flow, and thus sea level rise, remains unclear. We show that two extreme melt events (98.6% of the Greenland ice sheet surface experienced melting on July 12, the most significant melt event since 1889, and 79.2% on July 29) and summer ice sheet runoff ~3.9 σ above the 1958-2011 mean resulted in enhanced summer ice motion relative to the average melt year of 2009. However, despite record summer melting, subsequent reduced winter ice motion resulted in 6% less net annual ice motion in 2012 than in 2009. Our findings suggest that surface melt-induced acceleration of land-terminating regions of the ice sheet will remain insignificant even under extreme melting scenarios.

Detection and Analysis of Complex Patterns of Ice Dynamics in Antarctica from ICESat Laser Altimetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Babonis, Gregory Scott

There remains much uncertainty in estimating the amount of Antarctic ice mass change, its dynamic component, and its spatial and temporal patterns. This work remedies the limitations of previous studies by generating the first detailed reconstruction of total and dynamic ice thickness and mass changes across Antarctica, from ICESat satellite altimetry observations in 2003-2009 using the Surface Elevation Reconstruction and Change Detection (SERAC) method. Ice sheet thickness changes are calculated with quantified error estimates for each time when ICESat flew over a ground-track crossover region, at approximately 110,000 locations across the Antarctic Ice Sheet. The time series are partitioned into changes due to surficial processes and ice dynamics. The new results markedly improve the spatial and temporal resolution of surface elevation, volume, and mass change rates for the AIS, and can be sampled at annual temporal resolutions. The results indicate a complex spatiotemporal pattern of dynamic mass loss in Antarctica, especially along individual outlet glaciers, and allow for the quantification of the annual contribution of Antarctic ice loss to sea level rise. Over 5000 individual locations exhibit either strong dynamic ice thickness change patterns, accounting for approximately 500 unique spatial clusters that identify regions likely influenced by subglacial hydrology. The spatial distribution and temporal behavior of these regions reveal the complexity and short-time scale variability in the subglacial hydrological system. From the 500 unique spatial clusters, over 370 represent newly identified, and not previously published, potential subglacial water bodies indicating an active subglacial hydrological system over a much larger region than previously observed. These numerous new observations of dynamic changes provide more than simply a larger set of data. Examination of both regional and local scale dynamic change patterns across Antarctica shows newly discovered connections between the geology and ice sheet dynamics of Antarctica, particularly along the boundary between East and West Antarctica in the Pagano Shear Zone. Additionally, increased dynamic activity is shown to concentrate in regions of Antarctica most likely to experience catastrophic failure and collapse in the future. Further quantification of mass and volume changes demonstrates that the methods described within allow for a true reconciliation between different satellite methods of measuring ice sheet mass and volume balance, and show that Antarctica is losing enough mass between 2003 and 2009 to raise global sea levels 0.1 mm/yr during that time. Additionally, analysis of local patterns of dynamic ice thickness changes shows that there is continued or increased ice loss, since before the ICESat mission period, in many of the coastal sectors of Antarctica.

FLYING CADET MESS HALL, FOR 250 MEN, ELEVATIONS, SECTION, & ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

FLYING CADET MESS HALL, FOR 250 MEN, ELEVATIONS, SECTION, & DETAILS. Sheet No. 2 of 6, dated March 30, 1942. U.S. Engineer Office, San Francisco, California - Hamilton Field, Airmen's Open Mess, First cul-de-sac on F Street, Novato, Marin County, CA

7. Photocopy of Elevations drawing (from the BPA Engineering Vault, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

7. Photocopy of Elevations drawing (from the BPA Engineering Vault, Drawing C13-J2-342-D1, Sheet 3, 13 March 1939) - Bonneville Power Administration South Bank Substation, I-84, South of Bonneville Dam Powerhouse, Bonneville, Multnomah County, OR

Sheet production apparatus for removing a crystalline sheet from the surface of a melt using gas jets located above and below the crystalline sheet

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

Kellerman, Peter L.; Thronson, Gregory D.

In one embodiment, a sheet production apparatus comprises a vessel configured to hold a melt of a material. A cooling plate is disposed proximate the melt and is configured to form a sheet of the material on the melt. A first gas jet is configured to direct a gas toward an edge of the vessel. A sheet of a material is translated horizontally on a surface of the melt and the sheet is removed from the melt. The first gas jet may be directed at the meniscus and may stabilize this meniscus or increase local pressure within the meniscus.

CryoSat swath altimetry to measure ice cap and glacier surface elevation change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tepes, P.; Gourmelen, N.; Escorihuela, M. J.; Wuite, J.; Nagler, T.; Foresta, L.; Brockley, D.; Baker, S.; Roca, M.; Shepherd, A.; Plummer, S.

2016-12-01

Satellite altimetry has been used extensively in the past few decades to observe changes affecting large and remote regions covered by land ice such as the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. Glaciers and ice caps have been studied less extensively due to limitation of altimetry over complex topography. However their role in current sea-level budgets is significant and is expected to continue over the next century and beyond (Gardner et al., 2011), particularly in the Arctic where mean annual surface temperatures have recently been increasing twice as fast as the global average (Screen and Simmonds, 2010). Radar altimetry is well suited to monitor elevation changes over land ice due to its all-weather year-round capability of observing ice surfaces. Since 2010, the Synthetic Interferometric Radar Altimeter (SIRAL) on board the European Space Agency (ESA) radar altimetry CryoSat (CS) mission has been collecting ice elevation measurements over glaciers and ice caps. Its Synthetic Aperture Radar Interferometric (SARIn) processing feature reduces the size of the footprint along-track and locates the across-track origin of a surface reflector in the presence of a slope. This offers new perspectives for the measurement of regions marked by complex topography. More recently, data from the CS-SARIn mode have been used to infer elevation beyond the point of closest approach (POCA) with a novel approach known as "swath processing" (Hawley et al., 2009; Gray et al., 2013; Christie et al., 2016; Smith et al., 2016). Together with a denser ground track interspacing of the CS mission, the swath processing technique provides unprecedented spatial coverage and resolution for space borne altimetry, enabling the study of key processes that underlie current changes of ice caps and glaciers. In this study, we use CS swath observations to generate maps of ice elevation change for selected ice caps and glaciers. We present a validation exercise and discuss the benefit of swath processing for assessing glaciers and ice caps changes and their contribution to changes in sea level.

Operation IceBridge Turns Five

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

In May 2014, two new studies concluded that a section of the land-based West Antarctic ice sheet had reached a point of inevitable collapse. Meanwhile, fresh observations from September 2014 showed sea ice around Antarctica had reached its greatest extent since the late 1970s. To better understand such dynamic and dramatic differences in the region's land and sea ice, researchers are travelling south to Antarctica this month for the sixth campaign of NASA’s Operation IceBridge. The airborne campaign, which also flies each year over Greenland, makes annual surveys of the ice with instrumented research aircraft. Instruments range from lasers that map the elevation of the ice surface, radars that "see" below it, and downward looking cameras to provide a natural-color perspective. The Digital Mapping System (DMS) camera acquired the above photo during the mission’s first science flight on October 16, 2009. At the time of the image, the DC-8 aircraft was flying at an altitude of 515 meters (1,700 feet) over heavily compacted first-year sea ice along the edge of the Amundsen Sea. Since that first flight, much has been gleaned from IceBridge data. For example, images from an IceBridge flight in October 2011 revealed a massive crack running about 29 kilometers (18 miles) across the floating tongue of Antarctica's Pine Island Glacier. The crack ultimately led to a 725-square-kilometer (280-square-mile) iceberg. In 2012, IceBridge data was a key part of a new map of Antarctica called Bedmap2. By combining surface elevation, ice thickness, and bedrock topography, Bedmap2 gives a clearer picture of Antarctica from the ice surface down to the land surface. Discoveries have been made in Greenland, too, including the identification of a 740-kilometer-long (460-mile-long) mega canyon below the ice sheet. Repeated measurements of land and sea ice from aircraft extend the record of observations once made by NASA’s Ice, Cloud, and Land Elevation Satellite, or ICESat, which stopped functioning in 2009. In addition to extending the ICESat record, IceBridge also sets the stage for ICESat-2, which is scheduled for launch in 2017. Credit: IceBridge DMS L0 Raw Imagery courtesy of the Digital Mapping System (DMS) team/NASA DAAC at the National Snow and Ice Data Center More info: earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=84549 earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=84549

Changes in Bedform Shape at the Transition Between Upper Plane-Bed and Sheet-Flow Bedload Transport Regimes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hernandez Moreira, R. R.; Huffman, B.; Vautin, D.; Viparelli, E.

2015-12-01

The interactions between flow hydrodynamics and bedform characteristics at the transition between upper plane-bed bedload transport regime and sheet-flow have not yet been thoroughly described and still remain poorly understood. The present study focuses on the experimental study of this transition in open channel mode. The experiments were performed in the hydraulic laboratory of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering of the University of South Carolina in a sediment-feed flume, 9-m long by 19-cm wide with uniform material sediment of geometric mean grain size diameter of 1.11 mm. Sediment feed rates ranged between 0.5 kg/min and 20 kg/min with two different flow rates of 20 l/s and 30 l/s. We recorded periodic measurements of water surface and bed elevation to estimate the global flow parameters, e.g. mean flow velocity and bed shear stress, and to determine when the flow and the sediment transport reached conditions of mobile bed equilibrium. We define mobile bed equilibrium as a condition in which the mean bed elevation does not change in time. At equilibrium, measurements of bed elevation fluctuations were taken with an ultrasonic transducer system at six discrete locations. In the runs with low and medium feed rates, i.e. smaller than ~12 kg/min, the long wavelength and small amplitude bedforms typical of the upper plane bed regime, which were observed in previous experimental work, formed and migrated downstream. In particular, with increasing feed rates, the amplitude of the bedforms decreases and their geometry changes, from well-defined triangular shapes, to rounded shapes to flat bed with very small amplitude, long wavelength undulations. The decrease in amplitude corresponds to a decrease in form drag and an increase in the thickness of the bedload layer. The ultrasonic measurements are analyzed to statistically describe the observed transition in terms of probability distribution functions of the bed elevation fluctuations.

Cell Sheet Stiffness Sensing without taking out from culture liquid.

PubMed

Uchida, Ryohei; Tanaka, Nobuyuki; Higashimori, Mitsuru; Tadakuma, Kenjiro; Kaneko, Makoto; Kondo, Makoto; Yamato, Masayuki

2010-01-01

Stiffness could be an important index for evaluating the vitality of cell sheet. This paper challenges the measurement of stiffness of transparent cell sheet in culture liquid without taking it out from petri dish. The system is composed of a micro air nozzle for supplying an air jet and a regular reflective type laser sensor for measuring the the deformation of transparent cell sheet. This system is called as Cell Sheet Stiffness Sensing system (CS(3) system). When an air jet is given to a cell sheet in culture liquid, it pushes away the liquid toward the outer direction at initial phase and reaches the surface of cell sheet. Without any switching motion, the air jet continuously imparts a force to the surface of cell sheet so that the sensor can measure the stiffness of the cell sheet.

Thermomechanical responses of concrete members strengthened with cfrp sheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alqurashi, Abdulaziz

Strengthening structural members means to be able to carry additional loads. Since, 1990s, a lot of materials and techniques have been established to not only increasing the capacity of member but also facing deterioration. Deterioration has become one of the worst highly maintenance cost. According to The ASCE, 27.1% of all bridges in the United States are not effectual. This is because the high traffic reflects negatively to structural members and cause deterioration of these members. This problem has been cost a lot of money. In addition, FRP has approved that it can increase the capacity of member and overcome some disadvantages such as deterioration. Therefore, CFRP sheet has become widely used. However, high temperatures affect the performance of externally bonded CFRP sheet negatively. Investigation should be carried out on relaxation and flexural performance of members under different temperatures. Therefore, this thesis focus on analyzing and investigating the performance of strengthened members exposed to elevated temperatures (25 to 175 °C). The experimental program was divided to two main parts. First, 144 strengthen concrete blocks 100mm X 150mm X 75mm has been exposed to elevated temperatures. These blocks have two main categories, which are different CFRP sheet width, and different CFRP sheet length. Different CFRP width has three types, which are type 0.25B (25mm x 100mm), type 0.5B (50mm x 100mm) and type 0.75B (75mm x 100mm). Also, Different CFRP length has three types, which are type L e (bonded area of 50 mm by 90mm), 1.25 Le (area of 50mm by 125mm) and type 1.5Le (50mm by 137 mm). Second, studying the performance of RC beams exposed to elevated temperatures.

Interface between hospital and fire authorities--a concept for management of incidents in hospitals.

PubMed

Gretenkort, Peter; Harke, Henning; Blazejak, Jan; Pache, Bernd; Leledakis, Georgios

2002-01-01

Although every hospital needs a security plan for the support of immobile patients who do not possess autonomous escape capabilities, little information exists to assist in the development of practical patient evacuation methods. 1) In hospitals during disasters, incident leadership of the fire authorities can be supported effectively by hospital executives experienced in the management of mass casualties; and 2) As an alternative for canvas carry sheets, rescue drag sheets can be employed for emergency, elevator-independent, patient evacuation. A hospital evacuation exercise was planned and performed to obtain experiences in incident command and to permit calculation of elevator-independent patient transport times. Performance of incident leadership was observed by means of pre-defined checklists. The effectiveness and efficiency of carrying teams with five persons each were compared to those with a rescue drag sheet employed by a single person. Incident command for hospitals during a disaster is enhanced considerably by pre-defined and trained executives who are placed at the immediate disposal of the fire authorities. For elevator-independent patient transport, the rescue drag sheet was superior to conventional carrying measures because of a reduced number of transport personnel required to move each patient. With this method, patient transport times averaged 54 m/min. flat and 18 seconds for one floor descent. Experiences from a hospital during an evacuation exercise provided decision criteria for changes in the disaster preparedness plan. Hospital incident leadership was assigned to executives-in-charge in close co-operation with the fire authorities. All beds were equipped with a rescue drag sheet. Both concepts may help to cope with an emergency evacuation of a hospital.

Deformation and annealing response of TD-nickel chromium sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kane, R. D.; Ebert, L. J.

1973-01-01

The deformation and annealing response of TD-nickel chromium (TD-NiCr) 0.1 inch thick sheet was examined using various cold-rolling and annealing treatments. Upon annealing (above 816 C (1500 F), the as-received material was converted from an initially ultra-fine grain size (average grain dimension 0.51 micron) to a large grain structure. Increases in grain size by a factor of 100 to 200 were observed for this transformation. However, in those material states where the large grain transformation was absent, a fine grain recrystallized structure formed upon annealing (above 732 C (1350 F)). The deformation and annealing response of TD-NiCr sheet was evaluated with respect to the processing related variables as mode and severity of deformation and annealing temperature. Results indicate that the large grain transformation, classical primary recrystallization occurs. Using selected materials produced during the deformation and annealing study, the elevated temperature tensile properties of TD-NiCr sheet were examined in the temperature range 593 C (1100 F) to 1093 C (2000 F). It was observed that the elevated temperature tensile properties of TD-NiCr sheet could be optimized by the stabilization of a large grain size in this material using the cold working and/or annealing treatments developed during the present investigation.

East and west elevations. San Berardino Valley Union Junior College, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

East and west elevations. San Berardino Valley Union Junior College, Science Building. Also includes elevations and sections of chemistry department shelving. Howard E. Jones, Architect, San Bernardino, California. Sheet 4, Job no. 311. Scales 1/8 inch to the foot (elevations) and 1/2 inch t other foot (shelving). February 15, 1927. - San Bernardino Valley College, Life Science Building, 701 South Mount Vernon Avenue, San Bernardino, San Bernardino County, CA

Evaluation of Surface and Near-Surface Melt Characteristics on the Greenland Ice Sheet using MODIS and QuikSCAT Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, Dorothy K.; Nghiem, Son V.; Schaaf, Crystal B.; DiGirolamo, Nicolo E.

2009-01-01

The Greenland Ice Sheet has been the focus of much attention recently because of increasing melt in response to regional climate warming. To improve our ability to measure surface melt, we use remote-sensing data products to study surface and near-surface melt characteristics of the Greenland Ice Sheet for the 2007 melt season when record melt extent and runoff occurred. Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) daily land-surface temperature (LST), MODIS daily snow albedo, and a special diurnal melt product derived from QuikSCAT (QS) scatterometer data, are all effective in measuring the evolution of melt on the ice sheet. These daily products, produced from different parts of the electromagnetic spectrum, are sensitive to different geophysical features, though QS- and MODIS-derived melt generally show excellent correspondence when surface melt is present on the ice sheet. Values derived from the daily MODIS snow albedo product drop in response to melt, and change with apparent grain-size changes. For the 2007 melt season, the QS and MODIS LST products detect 862,769 square kilometers and 766,184 square kilometers of melt, respectively. The QS product detects about 11% greater melt extent than is detected by the MODIS LST product probably because QS is more sensitive to surface melt, and can detect subsurface melt. The consistency of the response of the different products demonstrates unequivocally that physically-meaningful melt/freeze boundaries can be detected. We have demonstrated that these products, used together, can improve the precision in mapping surface and near-surface melt extent on the Greenland Ice Sheet.

20. West Elevation and Section, Ward 'K', Letterman General Hospital, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

20. West Elevation and Section, Ward 'K', Letterman General Hospital, Presidio of San Francisco, Cal. Sheet No. 2. May 1917. BUILDING 1049. - Presidio of San Francisco, Letterman General Hospital, Building No. 12, Letterman Hospital Complex, Edie Road, San Francisco, San Francisco County, CA

16. WEST ELEVATION. MONOMOY POINT LT. STATION, MASS., SHOWING PROPOSED ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

16. WEST ELEVATION. MONOMOY POINT LT. STATION, MASS., SHOWING PROPOSED ALTERATION AND IMPROVEMENT OF DWELLING. No. 1343. SHEET 3 of 5. July 1899. - Monomoy Point Light Station, Approximately 3500 feet Northeast Powder Hole Pond, Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge, Chatham, Barnstable County, MA

17. WEST ELEVATION. MONOMOY POINT LT. STATION, MASS., SHOWING PROPOSED ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

17. WEST ELEVATION. MONOMOY POINT LT. STATION, MASS., SHOWING PROPOSED ALTERATION AND IMPROVEMENT OF DWELLING. No. 1343. Sheet 4 of 5. July 1899. - Monomoy Point Light Station, Approximately 3500 feet Northeast Powder Hole Pond, Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge, Chatham, Barnstable County, MA

Tensile properties of HK31XA-H24 magnesium-alloy sheet under rapid-heating conditions and constant elevated temperatures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gibbs, Thomas W

1956-01-01

Specimens of HK31XA-H24 magnesium-alloy sheet from an experimental batch were heated to failure at nominal temperature rates from 0.2 F to 100 F per second under constant-load conditions. Rapid-heating yield and rupture stresses are presented and compared with the yield and ultimate stresses from elevated-temperature tensile stress-strain tests for 1/2-hour exposure. Linear temperature-rate parameters were used to correlate rapid-heating results by constructing master curves which can be used for predicting yield stresses and temperatures and for estimating rupture stresses and temperatures.

Algae Drive Enhanced Darkening of Bare Ice on the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stibal, Marek; Box, Jason E.; Cameron, Karen A.; Langen, Peter L.; Yallop, Marian L.; Mottram, Ruth H.; Khan, Alia L.; Molotch, Noah P.; Chrismas, Nathan A. M.; Calı Quaglia, Filippo; Remias, Daniel; Smeets, C. J. P. Paul; van den Broeke, Michiel R.; Ryan, Jonathan C.; Hubbard, Alun; Tranter, Martyn; van As, Dirk; Ahlstrøm, Andreas P.

2017-11-01

Surface ablation of the Greenland ice sheet is amplified by surface darkening caused by light-absorbing impurities such as mineral dust, black carbon, and pigmented microbial cells. We present the first quantitative assessment of the microbial contribution to the ice sheet surface darkening, based on field measurements of surface reflectance and concentrations of light-absorbing impurities, including pigmented algae, during the 2014 melt season in the southwestern part of the ice sheet. The impact of algae on bare ice darkening in the study area was greater than that of nonalgal impurities and yielded a net albedo reduction of 0.038 ± 0.0035 for each algal population doubling. We argue that algal growth is a crucial control of bare ice darkening, and incorporating the algal darkening effect will improve mass balance and sea level projections of the Greenland ice sheet and ice masses elsewhere.

A flexible thermoresponsive cell culture substrate for direct transfer of keratinocyte cell sheets.

PubMed

Praveen, Wulligundam; Madathil, Bernadette K; Sajin Raj, R S; Kumary, T V; Anil Kumar, P R

2017-10-25

Most cell sheet engineering systems require a support or carrier to handle the harvested cell sheets. In this study, polyethylene terephthalate-based overhead projection transparency sheets (OHPS) were subjected to surface hydrolysis by alkali treatment to increase pliability and hydrophilicity and enable poly(N-isopropylacrylamide-co-glycidylmethacrylate) copolymer (NGMA) coating to impart thermoresponsiveness. NGMA was applied on the modified OHPS by the technique of spin coating using an indigenously designed spin coater. The spin coating had the advantage of using low volumes of the polymer and a reduced coating time. The surface chemistry and thermoresponsive coating was analyzed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and water contact angle. Human keratinocyte cells were cultured on the spin coated surface and scaffold-free cell sheets were successfully harvested by simple variation of temperature. These cell sheets were found to be viable, exhibited epithelial characteristic and cell-cell contact as confirmed by positive immunostaining for ZO-1. The integrity and morphology of the cell sheet was confirmed by stereomicroscopy and E-SEM. These results highlight the potential of the NGMA spin coated modified OHPS to serve as a thermoresponsive culture surface-cum-flexible transfer tool.

Theoretical modeling of the plasma-assisted catalytic growth and field emission properties of graphene sheet

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

Sharma, Suresh C.; Gupta, Neha

2015-12-15

A theoretical modeling for the catalyst-assisted growth of graphene sheet in the presence of plasma has been investigated. It is observed that the plasma parameters can strongly affect the growth and field emission properties of graphene sheet. The model developed accounts for the charging rate of the graphene sheet; number density of electrons, ions, and neutral atoms; various elementary processes on the surface of the catalyst nanoparticle; surface diffusion and accretion of ions; and formation of carbon-clusters and large graphene islands. In our investigation, it is found that the thickness of the graphene sheet decreases with the plasma parameters, numbermore » density of hydrogen ions and RF power, and consequently, the field emission of electrons from the graphene sheet surface increases. The time evolution of the height of graphene sheet with ion density and sticking coefficient of carbon species has also been examined. Some of our theoretical results are in compliance with the experimental observations.« less

Widespread Refreezing of Both Surface and Basal Melt Water Beneath the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bell, R. E.; Tinto, K. J.; Das, I.; Wolovick, M.; Chu, W.; Creyts, T. T.; Frearson, N.

2013-12-01

The isotopically and chemically distinct, bubble-free ice observed along the Greenland Ice Sheet margin both in the Russell Glacier and north of Jacobshavn must have formed when water froze from subglacial networks. Where this refreezing occurs and what impact it has on ice sheet processes remain unclear. We use airborne radar data to demonstrate that freeze-on to the ice sheet base and associated deformation produce large ice units up to 700 m thick throughout northern Greenland. Along the ice sheet margin, in the ablation zone, surface meltwater, delivered via moulins, refreezes to the ice sheet base over rugged topography. In the interior, water melted from the ice sheet base is refrozen and surrounded by folded ice. A significant fraction of the ice sheet is modified by basal freeze-on and associated deformation. For the Eqip and Petermann catchments, representing the ice sheet margin and interior respectively, extensive airborne radar datasets show that 10%-13% of the base of the ice sheet and up to a third of the catchment width is modified by basal freeze-on. The interior units develop over relatively subdued topography with modest water flux from basal melt where conductive cooling likely dominates. Steps in the bed topography associated with subglacial valley networks may foster glaciohydraulic supercooling. The ablation zone units develop where both surface melt and crevassing are widespread and large volumes of surface meltwater will reach the base of the ice sheet. The relatively steep topography at the upslope edge of the ablation zone units combined with the larger water flux suggests that supercooling plays a greater role in their formation. The ice qualities of the ablation zone units should reflect the relatively fresh surface melt whereas the chemistry of the interior units should reflect solute-rich basal melt. Changes in basal conditions such as the presence of till patches may contribute to the formation of the large basal units near the Northeast Ice Stream. The contrasting rheology of glacial and interglacial ice may also enhance the deformation associated with freeze-on beneath large ice sheets. The occurrence of basal units both in the ice sheet interior and in the thermally very different ablation zone indicates refreezing is widespread and can occur in many environments beneath an ice sheet. This process appears to influence the morphology and behavior of the ice sheet from top to bottom.

Late Oligocene to Late Miocene Antarctic Climate Reconstructions Using Molecular and Isotopic Biomarker Proxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Duncan, B.; Mckay, R. M.; Bendle, J. A.; Naish, T.; Levy, R. H.; Ventura, G. T.; Moossen, H. M.; Krishnan, S.; Pagani, M.

2015-12-01

Major climate and environmental changes occurred during late Oligocene to the late Miocene when atmospheric CO2 ranged between 500 and 300ppm, indicating threshold response of Antarctic ice sheets and climate to relatively modest CO2 variations. This implies that the southern high latitudes are highly sensitive to feedbacks associated with changes in global ice sheet and sea-ice extent, as well as terrestrial and marine ecosystems. This study focuses on two key intervals during the evolution of the Antarctic Ice Sheet: (1) The Late Oligocene and the Oligocene/Miocene boundary, when the East Antarctic Ice Sheet expanded close to present day volume following an extended period of inferred warmth. (2) The Mid-Miocene Climate Optimum (MMCO ~17-15 Ma), a period of global warmth and moderately elevated CO2 (350->500 ppm) which was subsequently followed by rapid cooling at 14-13.5 Ma. Reconstructions of climate and ice sheet variability, and thus an understanding of the various feedbacks that occurred during these intervals, are hampered by a lack of temperature and hydroclimate proxy data from the southern high latitudes. We present proxy climate reconstructions using terrestrial and marine organic biomarkers that provide new insights into Antarctica's climate evolution, using Antarctic drill cores and outcrop samples from a range of depositional settings. Bacterial ether-lipids have been analysed to determine terrestrial mean annual temperatures and soil pH (via the methylation and cyclisation indexes of branched tetraethers - MBT and CBT, respectively). Tetraether-lipids of crenarchaeota found in marine sediments sampled from continental shelves around Antarctica have been used to derive sea surface temperatures using the TEX86 index. Compound specific stable isotopes on n-alkanes sourced from terrestrial plants have been analysed to investigate changes in the hydrological and carbon cycles.

PRISM4: Pliocene Research, Interpretation and Synoptic Mapping mid Piacenzian paleoenvironmental reconstruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dowsett, H. J.; Dolan, A. M.; Rowley, D. B.; Moucha, R.; Forte, A. M.; Mitrovica, J. X.; Pound, M. J.; Salzmann, U.; Robinson, M. M.; Chandler, M. A.; Foley, K.; Haywood, A.

2016-12-01

Past Intervals in Earth history provide unique windows into conditions much different than those observed today. We investigated the paleoenvironments of a past warm interval in the mid Piacenzian ( 3 million years ago). The PRISM4 reconstruction contains twelve internally consistent and integrated data sets representing our best synoptic understanding of surface temperature, vegetation, soils, lakes, ice sheets, topography, and bathymetry. Starting points in the generation of our Piacenzian reconstruction are basic geochemical, faunal, floral, soil, cryospheric, topographic, bathymetric, sedimentologic, and stratigraphic data. Marine and terrestral temperature estimates are based upon multiple proxies (including faunal, floral, geochemical, and biomarker analyses). The reconstruction of Piacenzian global vegetation is based on the integration of paleobotanical data and BIOME4 model outputs. Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets are derived from the previous PRISM3 and PLISMIP (Pliocene Ice Sheet Model Intercomparison Project) results, respectively. Paleogeography is based upon an initial ETOPO1 digital elevation model incorporating PRISM4 ice sheets, GIA, and adjustments due to mantle convection. Soils are determined through comparison of sedimentological and stratigraphic data with the BIOME reconstruction. Lakes are determined from stratigraphic and sedimentological data. Sea-level equivalent (+20 m) is estimated from the reduced volume of the PRISM4 ice sheets and is consistent with our PRISM4 paleogeography. While not an analog for future conditions, the PRISM4 conceptual reconstruction provides insights into processes that occurred in the past and can inform us about the future. We will discuss the use of these data as boundary conditions and verification for global climate model simulations of the Pliocene, aimed at improving our understanding of the climate system as we prepare for future changes.

Fabricating Large-Area Sheets of Single-Layer Graphene by CVD

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bronikowski, Michael; Manohara, Harish

2008-01-01

This innovation consists of a set of methodologies for preparing large area (greater than 1 cm(exp 2)) domains of single-atomic-layer graphite, also called graphene, in single (two-dimensional) crystal form. To fabricate a single graphene layer using chemical vapor deposition (CVD), the process begins with an atomically flat surface of an appropriate substrate and an appropriate precursor molecule containing carbon atoms attached to substituent atoms or groups. These molecules will be brought into contact with the substrate surface by being flowed over, or sprayed onto, the substrate, under CVD conditions of low pressure and elevated temperature. Upon contact with the surface, the precursor molecules will decompose. The substituent groups detach from the carbon atoms and form gas-phase species, leaving the unfunctionalized carbon atoms attached to the substrate surface. These carbon atoms will diffuse upon this surface and encounter and bond to other carbon atoms. If conditions are chosen carefully, the surface carbon atoms will arrange to form the lowest energy single-layer structure available, which is the graphene lattice that is sought. Another method for creating the graphene lattice includes metal-catalyzed CVD, in which the decomposition of the precursor molecules is initiated by the catalytic action of a catalytic metal upon the substrate surface. Another type of metal-catalyzed CVD has the entire substrate composed of catalytic metal, or other material, either as a bulk crystal or as a think layer of catalyst deposited upon another surface. In this case, the precursor molecules decompose directly upon contact with the substrate, releasing their atoms and forming the graphene sheet. Atomic layer deposition (ALD) can also be used. In this method, a substrate surface at low temperature is covered with exactly one monolayer of precursor molecules (which may be of more than one type). This is heated up so that the precursor molecules decompose and form one monolayer of the target material.

Investigation of the magnetic properties of Si-gradient steel sheet by comparison with 6.5%Si steel sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hiratani, T.; Zaizen, Y.; Oda, Y.; Yoshizaki, S.; Senda, K.

2018-05-01

In this study, we investigated the magnetic properties of Si-gradient steel sheet produced by CVD (chemical vapor deposition) siliconizing process, comparing with 6.5% Si steel sheet. The Si-gradient steel sheet having silicon concentration gradient in the thickness direction, has larger hysteresis loss and smaller eddy current loss than the 6.5% Si steel sheet. In such a loss configuration, the iron loss of the Si-gradient steel sheet becomes lower than that of the 6.5% Si steel sheet at high frequencies. The experiment suggests that tensile stress is formed at the surface layer and compressive stress is formed at the inner layer in the Si gradient steel sheet. The magnetic anisotropy is induced by the internal stress and it is considered to affect the magnetization behavior of the Si-gradient steel sheet. The small eddy current loss of Si-gradient steel sheet can be explained as an effect of magnetic flux concentration on the surface layer.

A Climate-Data Record (CDR) of the "Clear-Sky" Surface Temperature of the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, Dorothy K.; Comiso, Josefino C.; DiGirolamo, Nocolo E.; Shuman, Christopher A.

2011-01-01

We have developed a climate-data record (CDR) of "clear-sky" ice-surface temperature (IST) of the Greenland Ice Sheet using Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data. The CDR provides daily and monthly-mean IST from March 2000 through December 2010 on a polar stereographic projection at a resolution of 6.25 km. The CDR is amenable to extension into the future using Visible/Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) data. Regional "clear-sky" surface temperature increases since the early 1980s in the Arctic, measured using Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) infrared data, range from 0.57 +/- 0.02 to 0.72 +/- 0.1 c per decade. Arctic warming has important implications for ice-sheet mass balance because much of the periphery of the Greenland Ice Sheet is already near O C during the melt season, and is thus vulnerable to rapid melting if temperatures continue to increase. An increase in melting of the ice sheet would accelerate sea-level rise, an issue affecting potentially billions of people worldwide. The IST CDR will provide a convenient data set for modelers and for climatologists to track changes of the surface temperature of the ice sheet as a whole and of the individual drainage basins on the ice sheet. The daily and monthly maps will provide information on surface melt as well as "clear-sky" temperature. The CDR will be further validated by comparing results with automatic-weather station data and with satellite-derived surface-temperature products.

Polymer based nanocomposites with nanofibers and exfoliated clay

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Meador, Michael A.; Reneker, Darrell H.

2005-01-01

Polymer solutions, containing clay sheets, were electrospun into nanofibers and microfibers that contained clay sheets inside. Controllable removal of polymer by plasma etching from the surface of fibers revealed the arrangement of clay. The shape, flexibility, size distribution and arrangement of clay sheets were observed by transmission and scanning electron microscopy. The clay sheets were partially aligned in big fibers with normal direction of clay sheets perpendicular to fiber axis. Crumpling of clay sheets inside fibers was observed when the fiber diameter was comparable to the lateral size of clay sheets. Single sheets of clay were observed both by catching clay sheets dispersed in water with electrospun nanofiber mats and by the deliberate removal of most of the polymer in the fibers. Thin, flexible gas barrier films, that are reasonably strong, were assembled from clay sheets and polymer nanofibers. Structure of composite films was characterized with scanning electron microscopy. Continuous film of clay sheets were physically attached to the surface of fiber mats. Spincoating film of polymer and clay sheets was reinforced by electrospun fiber scaffold. Certain alignment of clay sheets was observed in the vicinity of fibers.

Magneto-hydrodynamics of coupled fluid-sheet interface with mass suction and blowing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ahmad, R.

2016-01-01

There are large number of studies which prescribe the kinematics of the sheet and ignore the sheet's mechanics. However, the current boundary layer analysis investigates the mechanics of both the electrically conducting fluid and a permeable sheet, which makes it distinct from the other studies in the literature. One of the objectives of the current study is to (i) examine the behaviour of magnetic field effect for both the surface and the electrically conducting fluid (ii) investigate the heat and mass transfer between a permeable sheet and the surrounding electrically conducting fluid across the hydro, thermal and mass boundary layers. Self-similar solutions are obtained by considering the RK45 technique. Analytical solution is also found for the stretching sheet case. The skin friction dual solutions are presented for various types of sheet. The influence of pertinent parameters on the dimensionless velocity, shear stress, temperature, mass concentration, heat and mass transfer rates on the fluid-sheet interface is presented graphically as well as numerically. The obtained results are of potential benefit for studying the electrically conducting flow over various soft surfaces such as synthetic plastics, soft silicone sheet and soft synthetic rubber sheet. These surfaces are easily deformed by thermal fluctuations or thermal stresses.

Silicene-terminated surface of calcium and strontium disilicides: properties and comparison with bulk structures by computational methods

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brázda, Petr; Mutombo, Pingo; Ondráček, Martin; Corrêa, Cinthia Antunes; Kopeček, Jaromír; Palatinus, Lukáš

2018-05-01

The bulk and surface structures of calcium and strontium disilicides are investigated by computational methods using density functional theory. The investigated structures are R6, R3 and P1-CaSi2 and P1-SrSi2. The investigated properties are the cleavage energy at the silicene sheet, buckling of the bulk and surface silicene layers, charge transfer from calcium to silicon, band structure of bulk and surface-terminated structures and adsorption energies on H atoms and H2 molecules on the silicene-terminated surface of the R3 phase. The cleavage energy at the silicene surface is low in all cases. Structures P1-CaSi2 and R3-CaSi2 contain silicene sheets with different coordination to Ca, while R6-CaSi2 contains both types of the sheets. It is shown that the properties of the two types of silicene-like sheets in R6-CaSi2 are similar to those of the corresponding sheets in P1-CaSi2 and R3-CaSi2, and the thermodynamically stable R6 phase is a good candidate for experimental investigation of silicene-terminated surface in calcium disilicide.

Ice elevation change from Swath Processing of CryoSat SARIn Mode Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Foresta, Luca; Gourmelen, Noel; Shepherd, Andrew; Muir, Alan; Nienow, Pete

2015-04-01

Reference and repeat-observations of Glacier and Ice Sheet Margin (GISM) topography are critical to identify changes in ice elevation, provide estimates of mass gain or loss and thus quantify the contribution of the cryosphere to sea level rise (e.g. McMillan et al., 2014). The Synthetic Interferometric Radar Altimeter (SIRAL) onboard the ESA radar altimetry CryoSat (CS) mission has collected ice elevation measurements since 2010. The corresponding SARIn mode of operation, activated over GISM areas, provides high spatial resolution in the along-track direction while resolving the angular origin of echoes (i.e. across-track). The current ESA SARIn processor calculates the elevation of the Point Of Closest Approach (POCA) within each waveform and maps of elevation change in Antarctica and Greenland have been produced using the regular CS height product (McMillan et al., 2014; Helm et al., 2014). Data from the CS-SARIn mode has also been used to produce measurements of ice elevation beyond the POCA, also known as swath elevation (Hawley et al. 2009; Gray et al., 2013; ESA-STSE CryoTop project). Here we use the swath processing approach to generate maps of ice elevation change from selected regions around the margins of the Greenland and Antarctic Ice Sheets. We discuss the impact of the swath processing on the spatial resolution and precision of the resulting ice elevation field and compare our results to current dh/dt estimates. References: ESA STSE CryoTop project - http://www.stse-cryotop.org/ Gray L., Burgess D., Copland L., Cullen R., Galin N., Hawley R. and Helm V. Interferometric swath processing of Cryosat data for glacial ice topography. The Cryosphere, 7(6):1857-1867, December 2013. Hawley R.L., Shepherd A., Cullen R., Helm V. and WIngham D.J. Ice-sheet elevations from across-track processing of airborne interferometric radar altimetry. Geophysical Research Letters, 36(22):L22501, November 2009. Helm V., Humbert A. and Miller H. Elevation and elevation change of Greenland and Antarctica derived from CryoSat-2. The Cryosphere, 8(4):1539-1559, August 2014. McMillan M., Shepherd A., Sundal A., Briggs K., Muir A., Ridout A., Hogg A. and Wingham D. Increased ice losses from Antarctica detected by CryoSat-2. Geophysical Research Letters, pages 3899-3905, 2014.

The GLAS Standard Data Products Specification--Level 2, Version 9. Volume 14

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lee, Jeffrey E.

2013-01-01

The Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) is the primary instrument for the ICESat (Ice, Cloud and Land Elevation Satellite) laser altimetry mission. ICESat was the benchmark Earth Observing System (EOS) mission for measuring ice sheet mass balance, cloud and aerosol heights, as well as land topography and vegetation characteristics. From 2003 to 2009, the ICESat mission provided multi-year elevation data needed to determine ice sheet mass balance as well as cloud property information, especially for stratospheric clouds common over polar areas. It also provided topography and vegetation data around the globe, in addition to the polar-specific coverage over the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets.This document defines the Level-2 GLAS standard data products. This document addresses the data flow, interfaces, record and data formats associated with the GLAS Level 2 standard data products. The term standard data products refers to those EOS instrument data that are routinely generated for public distribution. The National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSDIC) distribute these products. Each data product has a unique Product Identification code assigned by the Senior Project Scientist. The Level 2 Standard Data Products specifically include those derived geophysical data values (i.e., ice sheet elevation, cloud height, vegetation height, etc.). Additionally, the appropriate correction elements used to transform the Level 1A and Level 1B Data Products into Level 2 Data Products are included. The data are packaged with time tags, precision orbit location coordinates, and data quality and usage flags.

Stacked endoplasmic reticulum sheets are connected by helicoidal membrane motifs

PubMed Central

Terasaki, Mark; Shemesh, Tom; Kasthuri, Narayanan; Klemm, Robin W.; Schalek, Richard; Hayworth, Kenneth J.; Hand, Arthur R.; Yankova, Maya; Huber, Greg; Lichtman, Jeff W.; Rapoport, Tom A.; Kozlov, Michael M.

2013-01-01

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) often forms stacked membrane sheets, an arrangement that is likely required to accommodate a maximum of membrane-bound polysomes for secretory protein synthesis. How sheets are stacked is unknown. Here, we used novel staining and automated ultra-thin sectioning electron microscopy methods to analyze stacked ER sheets in neuronal cells and secretory salivary gland cells of mice. Our results show that stacked ER sheets form a continuous membrane system in which the sheets are connected by twisted membrane surfaces with helical edges of left- or right-handedness. The three-dimensional structure of tightly stacked ER sheets resembles a parking garage, in which the different levels are connected by helicoidal ramps. A theoretical model explains the experimental observations and indicates that the structure corresponds to a minimum of elastic energy of sheet edges and surfaces. The structure allows the dense packing of ER sheets in the restricted space of a cell. PMID:23870120

Sheet, ligament and droplet formation in swirling primary atomization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shao, Changxiao; Luo, Kun; Chai, Min; Fan, Jianren

2018-04-01

We report direct numerical simulations of swirling liquid atomization to understand the physical mechanism underlying the sheet breakup of a non-turbulent liquid swirling jet which lacks in-depth investigation. The volume-of-fluid (VOF) method coupled with adapted mesh refinement (AMR) technique in GERRIS code is employed in the present simulation. The mechanisms of sheet, ligament and droplet formation are investigated. It is observed that the olive-shape sheet structure is similar to the experimental result qualitatively. The numerical results show that surface tension, pressure difference and swirling effect contribute to the contraction and extension of liquid sheet. The ligament formation is partially at the sheet rim or attributed to the extension of liquid hole. Especially, the movement of hairpin vortex exerts by an anti-radial direction force to the sheet surface and leads to the sheet thinness. In addition, droplet formation is attributed to breakup of ligament and central sheet.

How much can Greenland melt? An upper bound on mass loss from the Greenland Ice Sheet through surface melting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, X.; Bassis, J. N.

2015-12-01

With observations showing accelerated mass loss from the Greenland Ice Sheet due to surface melt, the Greenland Ice Sheet is becoming one of the most significant contributors to sea level rise. The contribution of the Greenland Ice Sheet o sea level rise is likely to accelerate in the coming decade and centuries as atmospheric temperatures continue to rise, potentially triggering ever larger surface melt rates. However, at present considerable uncertainty remains in projecting the contribution to sea level of the Greenland Ice Sheet both due to uncertainty in atmospheric forcing and the ice sheet response to climate forcing. Here we seek an upper bound on the contribution of surface melt from the Greenland to sea level rise in the coming century using a surface energy balance model coupled to an englacial model. We use IPCC Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP8.5, RCP6, RCP4.5, RCP2.6) climate scenarios from an ensemble of global climate models in our simulations to project the maximum rate of ice volume loss and related sea-level rise associated with surface melting. To estimate the upper bound, we assume the Greenland Ice Sheet is perpetually covered in thick clouds, which maximize longwave radiation to the ice sheet. We further assume that deposition of black carbon darkens the ice substantially turning it nearly black, substantially reducing its albedo. Although assuming that all melt water not stored in the snow/firn is instantaneously transported off the ice sheet increases mass loss in the short term, refreezing of retained water warms the ice and may lead to more melt in the long term. Hence we examine both assumptions and use the scenario that leads to the most surface melt by 2100. Preliminary models results suggest that under the most aggressive climate forcing, surface melt from the Greenland Ice Sheet contributes ~1 m to sea level by the year 2100. This is a significant contribution and ignores dynamic effects. We also examined a lower bound, assuming negligible longwave radiation and albedo near the maximum observed for freshly fallen snow. Even under this scenarios preliminary estimates suggest tens of centimeters of sea level rise by 2100.

Generation of a precise DEM by interactive synthesis of multi-temporal elevation datasets: a case study of Schirmacher Oasis, East Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jawak, Shridhar D.; Luis, Alvarinho J.

2016-05-01

Digital elevation model (DEM) is indispensable for analysis such as topographic feature extraction, ice sheet melting, slope stability analysis, landscape analysis and so on. Such analysis requires a highly accurate DEM. Available DEMs of Antarctic region compiled by using radar altimetry and the Antarctic digital database indicate elevation variations of up to hundreds of meters, which necessitates the generation of local improved DEM. An improved DEM of the Schirmacher Oasis, East Antarctica has been generated by synergistically fusing satellite-derived laser altimetry data from Geoscience Laser Altimetry System (GLAS), Radarsat Antarctic Mapping Project (RAMP) elevation data and Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) global elevation data (GDEM). This is a characteristic attempt to generate a DEM of any part of Antarctica by fusing multiple elevation datasets, which is essential to model the ice elevation change and address the ice mass balance. We analyzed a suite of interpolation techniques for constructing a DEM from GLAS, RAMP and ASTER DEM-based point elevation datasets, in order to determine the level of confidence with which the interpolation techniques can generate a better interpolated continuous surface, and eventually improve the elevation accuracy of DEM from synergistically fused RAMP, GLAS and ASTER point elevation datasets. The DEM presented in this work has a vertical accuracy (≈ 23 m) better than RAMP DEM (≈ 57 m) and ASTER DEM (≈ 64 m) individually. The RAMP DEM and ASTER DEM elevations were corrected using differential GPS elevations as ground reference data, and the accuracy obtained after fusing multitemporal datasets is found to be improved than that of existing DEMs constructed by using RAMP or ASTER alone. This is our second attempt of fusing multitemporal, multisensory and multisource elevation data to generate a DEM of Antarctica, in order to address the ice elevation change and address the ice mass balance. Our approach focuses on the strengths of each elevation data source to produce an accurate elevation model.

Very high resolution surface mass balance over Greenland modeled by the regional climate model MAR with a downscaling technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kittel, Christoph; Lang, Charlotte; Agosta, Cécile; Prignon, Maxime; Fettweis, Xavier; Erpicum, Michel

2016-04-01

This study presents surface mass balance (SMB) results at 5 km resolution with the regional climate MAR model over the Greenland ice sheet. Here, we use the last MAR version (v3.6) where the land-ice module (SISVAT) using a high resolution grid (5km) for surface variables is fully coupled while the MAR atmospheric module running at a lower resolution of 10km. This online downscaling technique enables to correct near-surface temperature and humidity from MAR by a gradient based on elevation before forcing SISVAT. The 10 km precipitation is not corrected. Corrections are stronger over the ablation zone where topography presents more variations. The model has been force by ERA-Interim between 1979 and 2014. We will show the advantages of using an online SMB downscaling technique in respect to an offline downscaling extrapolation based on local SMB vertical gradients. Results at 5 km show a better agreement with the PROMICE surface mass balance data base than the extrapolated 10 km MAR SMB results.

35. WEST END ELEVATION, PROPOSED EXTENSION OF COAL HOUSE, EXTENSIONS ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

35. WEST END ELEVATION, PROPOSED EXTENSION OF COAL HOUSE, EXTENSIONS OF ENGINE AND COAL HOUSES, DEER ISLAND PUMPING STATION, METROPOLITAN WATER AND SEWERAGE BOARD, METROPOLITAN SEWERAGE WORKS, JANUARY 1908, SHEET NO. 7. Aperture card 6498-7. - Deer Island Pumping Station, Boston, Suffolk County, MA

Numerical experiments of dynamical processes during the 2011-2013 surge of the Bering-Bagley Glacier System, using a full-Stokes finite element model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Trantow, Thomas

The Bering-Bagley Glacial System (BBGS) is the largest glacier system outside of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, and is the Earth's largest surge-type glacier. Surging is one of three types of glacial acceleration and the least understood one. Understanding glacial acceleration is paramount when trying to explain ice discharge to the oceans and the glacial contribution to sea-level rise, yet there are currently no numerical glacial models that account for surging. The recent 2011-2013 surge of the BBGS provides a rare opportunity to study the surge process through observations and the subsequent data analysis and numerical modeling. Using radar, altimeter, and image data collected from airborne and satellite missions, various descriptions of ice geometry are created at different times throughout the surge. Using geostatistical estimation techniques including variography and ordinary kriging, surface and bedrock Digital Elevation Maps (DEMs) are derived. A time series analysis of elevation change during the current surge is then conducted and validated using a complete error analysis along with airborne observations. The derived DEMs are then used as inputs to a computer simulated model of glacier dynamics in the BBGS. Using the Finite Element software Elmer/Ice, a full-Stokes simulation, with Glen's flow law for temperate ice, is created for numerical experiments. With consideration of free surface evolution, glacial hydrology and surface mass balance, the model is able to predict a variety of field variables including velocity, stress, strain-rate, pressure and surface elevation change at any point forward in time. These outputs are compared and validated using observational data such as CryoSat-2 altimetry, airborne field data, imagery and previous detailed analysis of the BBGS. Preliminary results reveal that certain surge phenomena such as surface elevation changes, surge progression and locations at which the surge starts, can be recreated using the current model. Documentation of the effects that altering glaciological parameters and boundary conditions have on ice rheology in a large complex glacial system comes as secondary result. Simulations have yet to reveal any quasi-cyclic behavior or natural surge initiation.

Molding cork sheets to complex shapes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sharpe, M. H.; Simpson, W. G.; Walker, H. M.

1977-01-01

Partially cured cork sheet is easily formed to complex shapes and then final-cured. Temperature and pressure levels required for process depend upon resin system used and final density and strength desired. Sheet can be bonded to surface during final cure, or can be first-formed in mold and bonded to surface in separate step.

Design and development of LED-based irregular leather area measuring machine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adil, Rehan; Khan, Sarah Jamal

2012-01-01

Using optical sensor array, a precision motion control system in a conveyer follows the irregular shaped leather sheet to measure its surface area. In operation, irregular shaped leather sheet passes on conveyer belt and optical sensor array detects the leather sheet edge. In this way outside curvature of the leather sheet is detected and is then feed to the controller to measure its approximate area. Such system can measure irregular shapes, by neglecting rounded corners, ellipses etc. To minimize the error in calculating surface area of irregular curve to the above mentioned system, the motion control system only requires the footprint of the optical sensor to be small and the distance between the sensors is to be minimized. In the proposed technique surface area measurement of irregular shaped leather sheet is done by defining velocity and detecting position of the move. The motion controller takes the information and creates the necessary edge profile on point-to-point bases. As a result irregular shape of leather sheet is mapped and is then feed to the controller to calculate surface area.

Craterlike structures on the laser cut surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shulyatyev, V. B.; Orishich, A. M.

2017-10-01

Analysis of the laser cut surface morphology remain topical. It is related with the fact that the surface roughness is the main index of the cut quality. The present paper deals with the experimental study of the relatively unstudied type of defects on the laser cut surface, dimples, or craters. According to the measurement results, amount of craters per unit of the laser cut surface area rises as the sheet thickness rises. The crater diameter rises together with the sheet thickness and distance from the upper sheet edge. The obtained data permit concluding that the defects like craters are observed predominantly in the case of thick sheets. The results agree with the hypothesis of crater formation as impact structures resulting from the melt drops getting on the cut channel walls upon separation from the cut front by the gas flow.

Band alignments in Fe/graphene/Si(001) junctions studied by x-ray photoemission spectroscopy

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

Le Breton, J.-C., E-mail: jean-christophe.lebreton@univ-rennes1.fr; Tricot, S.; Delhaye, G.

2016-08-01

The control of tunnel contact resistance is of primary importance for semiconductor-based spintronic devices. This control is hardly achieved with conventional oxide-based tunnel barriers due to deposition-induced interface states. Manipulation of single 2D atomic crystals (such as graphene sheets) weakly interacting with their substrate might represent an alternative and efficient way to design new heterostructures for a variety of different purposes including spin injection into semiconductors. In the present paper, we study by x-ray photoemission spectroscopy the band alignments and interface chemistry of iron–graphene-hydrogenated passivated silicon (001) surfaces for a low and a high n-doping concentration. We find that themore » hydrogen passivation of the Si(001) surface remains efficient even with a graphene sheet on the Si(001) surface. For both doping concentrations, the semiconductor is close to flat-band conditions which indicates that the Fermi level is unpinned on the semiconductor side of the Graphene/Si(001):H interface. When iron is deposited on the graphene/Si(001):H structures, the Schottky barrier height remains mainly unaffected by the metallic overlayer with a very low barrier height for electrons, a sought-after property in semiconductor based spintronic devices. Finally, we demonstrate that the graphene layer intercalated between the metal and semiconductor also serves as a protection against iron-silicide formation even at elevated temperatures preventing from the formation of a Si-based magnetic dead layer.« less

Band alignments in Fe/graphene/Si(001) junctions studied by x-ray photoemission spectroscopy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Le Breton, J.-C.; Tricot, S.; Delhaye, G.; Lépine, B.; Turban, P.; Schieffer, P.

2016-08-01

The control of tunnel contact resistance is of primary importance for semiconductor-based spintronic devices. This control is hardly achieved with conventional oxide-based tunnel barriers due to deposition-induced interface states. Manipulation of single 2D atomic crystals (such as graphene sheets) weakly interacting with their substrate might represent an alternative and efficient way to design new heterostructures for a variety of different purposes including spin injection into semiconductors. In the present paper, we study by x-ray photoemission spectroscopy the band alignments and interface chemistry of iron-graphene-hydrogenated passivated silicon (001) surfaces for a low and a high n-doping concentration. We find that the hydrogen passivation of the Si(001) surface remains efficient even with a graphene sheet on the Si(001) surface. For both doping concentrations, the semiconductor is close to flat-band conditions which indicates that the Fermi level is unpinned on the semiconductor side of the Graphene/Si(001):H interface. When iron is deposited on the graphene/Si(001):H structures, the Schottky barrier height remains mainly unaffected by the metallic overlayer with a very low barrier height for electrons, a sought-after property in semiconductor based spintronic devices. Finally, we demonstrate that the graphene layer intercalated between the metal and semiconductor also serves as a protection against iron-silicide formation even at elevated temperatures preventing from the formation of a Si-based magnetic dead layer.

The Effects of Grain Size and Texture on Dynamic Abnormal Grain Growth in Mo

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Noell, Philip J.; Taleff, Eric M.

2016-10-01

This is the first report of abnormal grain morphologies specific to a Mo sheet material produced from a commercial-purity arc-melted ingot. Abnormal grains initiated and grew during plastic deformation of this material at temperatures of 1793 K and 1813 K (1520 °C and 1540 °C). This abnormal grain growth during high-temperature plastic deformation is termed dynamic abnormal grain growth, DAGG. DAGG in this material readily consumes nearly all grains near the sheet center while leaving many grains near the sheet surface unconsumed. Crystallographic texture, grain size, and other microstructural features are characterized. After recrystallization, a significant through-thickness variation in crystallographic texture exists in this material but does not appear to directly influence DAGG propagation. Instead, dynamic normal grain growth, which may be influenced by texture, preferentially occurs near the sheet surface prior to DAGG. The large grains thus produced near the sheet surface inhibit the subsequent growth of the abnormal grains produced by DAGG, which preferentially consume the finer grains near the sheet center. This produces abnormal grains that span the sheet center but leave unconsumed polycrystalline microstructure near the sheet surface. Abnormal grains are preferentially oriented with the < 110rangle approximately along the tensile axis. These results provide additional new evidence that boundary curvature is the primary driving force for DAGG in Mo.

On the instability of a liquid sheet moving in vacuum

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sisoev, G. M.; Osiptsov, A. N.; Koroteev, A. A.

2018-03-01

A linear stability analysis of a non-isothermal liquid sheet moving in vacuum is studied taking into account the temperature dependencies of the liquid viscosity, thermal conductivity, and surface tension coefficients. It is found that there are two mechanisms of instability. The short-wave instability is caused by viscosity stratification across the sheet due to nonuniform temperature profiles developed downstream in the cooling sheet. The long-wave thermocapillary instability is caused by the temperature gradient along the sheet surfaces. Computed examples of steady flows and their instabilities demonstrated that the unstable short waves have much larger amplification factors.

The Cryosphere Model Comparison Tool (CmCt): Ice Sheet Model Validation and Comparison Tool for Greenland and Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simon, E.; Nowicki, S.; Neumann, T.; Tyahla, L.; Saba, J. L.; Guerber, J. R.; Bonin, J. A.; DiMarzio, J. P.

2017-12-01

The Cryosphere model Comparison tool (CmCt) is a web based ice sheet model validation tool that is being developed by NASA to facilitate direct comparison between observational data and various ice sheet models. The CmCt allows the user to take advantage of several decades worth of observations from Greenland and Antarctica. Currently, the CmCt can be used to compare ice sheet models provided by the user with remotely sensed satellite data from ICESat (Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite) laser altimetry, GRACE (Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment) satellite, and radar altimetry (ERS-1, ERS-2, and Envisat). One or more models can be uploaded through the CmCt website and compared with observational data, or compared to each other or other models. The CmCt calculates statistics on the differences between the model and observations, and other quantitative and qualitative metrics, which can be used to evaluate the different model simulations against the observations. The qualitative metrics consist of a range of visual outputs and the quantitative metrics consist of several whole-ice-sheet scalar values that can be used to assign an overall score to a particular simulation. The comparison results from CmCt are useful in quantifying improvements within a specific model (or within a class of models) as a result of differences in model dynamics (e.g., shallow vs. higher-order dynamics approximations), model physics (e.g., representations of ice sheet rheological or basal processes), or model resolution (mesh resolution and/or changes in the spatial resolution of input datasets). The framework and metrics could also be used for use as a model-to-model intercomparison tool, simply by swapping outputs from another model as the observational datasets. Future versions of the tool will include comparisons with other datasets that are of interest to the modeling community, such as ice velocity, ice thickness, and surface mass balance.

Optical Benson: Following the Impact of Melt Season Progression Using Landsat and Sentinel 2 - Snow Zone Formation Imaged

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fahnestock, M. A.; Shuman, C. A.; Alley, K. E.

2017-12-01

Snow pit observations on a glaciologically-focussed surface traverse in Greenland allowed Benson [1962, SIPRE (now CRREL) Research Report 70] to define a series of snow zones based on the extent of post-depositional diagenesis of the snowpack. At high elevations, Benson found fine-grained "dry snow" where melt (at that time) was absent year-round, followed down-elevation by a "percolation zone" where surface melt penetrated the snowpack, then a "wet snow zone" where firn became saturated during the peak of the melt season, and finally "superimposed ice" and "bare ice" zones where refrozen surface melt and glacier ice were exposed in the melt season. These snow zones can be discriminated in winter synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery of the ice sheet (e.g. Fahnestock et al. 2001), but summer melt reduces radar backscatter and makes it difficult to follow the progression of diagenesis beyond the initial indications of surface melting. While some of the impacts of surface melt (especially bands of blue water-saturated firn) are observed from time to time in optical satellite imagery, it has only become possible to map effects of melt over the course of a summer season with the advent of large-data analysis tools such as Google Earth Engine and the inclusion of Landsat and Sentinel-2 data streams in these tools. A map of the maximum extent of this blue saturated zone through the 2016 melt season is shown in the figure. This image is a true color (RGB) composite, but each pixel in the image shows the color of the surface when the "blueness" of the pixel was at a maximum. This means each pixel can be from a different satellite image acquisition than adjacent pixels - but it also means that the maximum extent of the saturated firn (Benson's wet snow zone) is visible. Also visible are percolation, superimposed and bare ice zones. This analysis, using Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager data, was performed using Google Earth Engine to access and analyze the entire melt season's data. Similar spatial analyses for other years in the record, combined with pixel-by-pixel analysis of each time series through the year, can be used to track the progression and overall effect of the melt season in each year. This view of the progression of a melt season provides a new set of tools to help understand changing surface conditions for ice sheets and glaciers globally.

Interhemispheric ice-sheet synchronicity during the last glacial maximum

USGS Publications Warehouse

Weber, Michael E.; Clark, Peter U.; Ricken, Werner; Mitrovica, Jerry X.; Hostetler, Steven W.; Kuhn, Gerhard

2011-01-01

The timing of the last maximum extent of the Antarctic ice sheets relative to those in the Northern Hemisphere remains poorly understood. We develop a chronology for the Weddell Sea sector of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet that, combined with ages from other Antarctic ice-sheet sectors, indicates that the advance to and retreat from their maximum extent was within dating uncertainties synchronous with most sectors of Northern Hemisphere ice sheets. Surface climate forcing of Antarctic mass balance would probably cause an opposite response, whereby a warming climate would increase accumulation but not surface melting. Our new data support teleconnections involving sea-level forcing from Northern Hemisphere ice sheets and changes in North Atlantic deep-water formation and attendant heat flux to Antarctic grounding lines to synchronize the hemispheric ice sheets.

Interhemispheric ice-sheet synchronicity during the Last Glacial Maximum.

PubMed

Weber, Michael E; Clark, Peter U; Ricken, Werner; Mitrovica, Jerry X; Hostetler, Steven W; Kuhn, Gerhard

2011-12-02

The timing of the last maximum extent of the Antarctic ice sheets relative to those in the Northern Hemisphere remains poorly understood. We develop a chronology for the Weddell Sea sector of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet that, combined with ages from other Antarctic ice-sheet sectors, indicates that the advance to and retreat from their maximum extent was within dating uncertainties synchronous with most sectors of Northern Hemisphere ice sheets. Surface climate forcing of Antarctic mass balance would probably cause an opposite response, whereby a warming climate would increase accumulation but not surface melting. Our new data support teleconnections involving sea-level forcing from Northern Hemisphere ice sheets and changes in North Atlantic deep-water formation and attendant heat flux to Antarctic grounding lines to synchronize the hemispheric ice sheets.

Simultaneous glacier surface elevation and flow velocity mapping from cross-track pushbroom satellite Imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Noh, M. J.; Howat, I. M.

2017-12-01

Glaciers and ice sheets are changing rapidly. Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) and Velocity Maps (VMs) obtained from repeat satellite imagery provide critical measurements of changes in glacier dynamics and mass balance over large, remote areas. DEMs created from stereopairs obtained during the same satellite pass through sensor re-pointing (i.e. "in-track stereo") have been most commonly used. In-track stereo has the advantage of minimizing the time separation and, thus, surface motion between image acquisitions, so that the ice surface can be assumed motionless in when collocating pixels between image pairs. Since the DEM extraction process assumes that all motion between collocated pixels is due to parallax or sensor model error, significant ice motion results in DEM quality loss or failure. In-track stereo, however, puts a greater demand on satellite tasking resources and, therefore, is much less abundant than single-scan imagery. Thus, if ice surface motion can be mitigated, the ability to extract surface elevation measurements from pairs of repeat single-scan "cross-track" imagery would greatly increase the extent and temporal resolution of ice surface change. Additionally, the ice motion measured by the DEM extraction process would itself provide a useful velocity measurement. We develop a novel algorithm for generating high-quality DEMs and VMs from cross-track image pairs without any prior information using the Surface Extraction from TIN-based Searchspace Minimization (SETSM) algorithm and its sensor model bias correction capabilities. Using a test suite of repeat, single-scan imagery from WorldView and QuickBird sensors collected over fast-moving outlet glaciers, we develop a method by which RPC biases between images are first calculated and removed over ice-free surfaces. Subpixel displacements over the ice are then constrained and used to correct the parallax estimate. Initial tests yield DEM results with the same quality as in-track stereo for cases where snowfall has not occurred between the two images and when the images have similar ground sample distances. The resulting velocity map also closely matches independent measurements.

Outlet Glacier and Margin Elevation Changes: Near - Coastal Thinning of The Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abdalati, W.; Krabill, W.; Frederick, E.; Manizade, S.; Martin, C.; Sonntag, J.; Swift, R.; Thomas, R.; Wright, W.; Yungel, J.;

State-of-technology for joining TD-NiCr sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Holko, K. H.; Moore, T. J.; Gyorgak, C. A.

1972-01-01

At the current state-of-technology there are many joining processes that can be used to make sound welds in TD-NiCr sheet. Some of these that are described in this report are electron beam welding, gas-tungsten arc welding, diffusion welding, resistance spot welding, resistance seam welding, and brazing. The strengths of the welds made by the various processes show considerable variation, especially at elevated temperatures. Most of the fusion welding processes tend to give weak welds at elevated temperatures (with the exception of fusion-type resistance spotwelds). However, solid-state welds have been made with parent metal properties. The process used for a specific application will be dictated by the specific joint requirements. In highly stressed joints at elevated temperatures, one of the solid-state processes, such as DFW, RSW (solid-state or fusion), and RSEW, offer the most promise.

Easily disassembled electrical connector for high voltage, high frequency connections

DOEpatents

Milner, Joseph R.

1994-01-01

An easily accessible electrical connector capable of rapid assembly and disassembly wherein a wide metal conductor sheet may be evenly contacted over the entire width of the conductor sheet by opposing surfaces on the connector which provide an even clamping pressure against opposite surfaces of the metal conductor sheet using a single threaded actuating screw.

Separable fastening device

DOEpatents

Harvey, Andrew C.; Ribich, William A.; Marinaccio, Paul J.; Sawaf, Bernard E.

1987-12-01

A separable fastener system has a first separable member that includes a series of metal hook sheets disposed in stacked relation that defines an array of hook elements on its broad surface. Each hook sheet is a planar metal member of uniform thickness and has a body portion with a series of hook elements formed along one edge of the body. Each hook element includes a stem portion, a deflecting surface portion, and a latch portion. Metal spacer sheets are disposed between the hook sheets and may be varied in thickness and in number to control the density of the hook elements on the broad surface of the first fastener member. The hook and spacer sheets are secured together in stacked relation. A second fastener member has a surface of complementary engaging elements extending along its broad surface which are releasably interengageable with the hook elements of the first fastener member, the deflecting surfaces of the hook elements of the first fastener member tending to deflect hook engaging portions of the second fastener member and the latch portions of the hook elements of the first fastener member engaging portions of the second fastener member in fastening relation.

5. Photographic copy of construction drawing, dated February 6, 1942, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

5. Photographic copy of construction drawing, dated February 6, 1942, War Department Office of the Chief of Engineers, Construction Division in possession of Selfridge Base Museum, Mt. Clemens, Michigan. PLAN, ELEVATION, SECTION, SHEET 203 SHEETS, DRAWING NO. 148/4-2, SF 1/141. - Selfridge Field, Building No. 3899, East of Taxiway A, west of Ammo Road, Mount Clemens, Macomb County, MI

Boosting protein stability with the computational design of β-sheet surfaces.

PubMed

Kim, Doo Nam; Jacobs, Timothy M; Kuhlman, Brian

2016-03-01

β-sheets often have one face packed against the core of the protein and the other facing solvent. Mutational studies have indicated that the solvent-facing residues can contribute significantly to protein stability, and that the preferred amino acid at each sequence position is dependent on the precise structure of the protein backbone and the identity of the neighboring amino acids. This suggests that the most advantageous methods for designing β-sheet surfaces will be approaches that take into account the multiple energetic factors at play including side chain rotamer preferences, van der Waals forces, electrostatics, and desolvation effects. Here, we show that the protein design software Rosetta, which models these energetic factors, can be used to dramatically increase protein stability by optimizing interactions on the surfaces of small β-sheet proteins. Two design variants of the β-sandwich protein from tenascin were made with 7 and 14 mutations respectively on its β-sheet surfaces. These changes raised the thermal midpoint for unfolding from 45°C to 64°C and 74°C. Additionally, we tested an empirical approach based on increasing the number of potential salt bridges on the surfaces of the β-sheets. This was not a robust strategy for increasing stability, as three of the four variants tested were unfolded. © 2016 The Protein Society.

Method of high-density foil fabrication

DOEpatents

Blue, Craig A.; Sikka, Vinod K.; Ohriner, Evan K.

2003-12-16

A method for preparing flat foils having a high density includes the steps of mixing a powdered material with a binder to form a green sheet. The green sheet is exposed to a high intensity radiative source adapted to emit radiation of wavelengths corresponding to an absorption spectrum of the powdered material. The surface of the green sheet is heated while a lower sub-surface temperature is maintained. An apparatus for preparing a foil from a green sheet using a radiation source is also disclosed.

Geohydrology of the glacial-outwash aquifer in the Baldwinsville area, Seneca River, Onondaga County, New York

USGS Publications Warehouse

Pagano, Timothy S.; Terry, David B.; Ingram, Arlynn W.

1986-01-01

Seven sheets of map data comprise this geohydrologic report. Sheet 1, surficial geology, illustrates the distribution of: open water areas; artificial fill; made land; urban land; alluvial silt and sand; alluvial sand and gravel; peat, marl, muck and clay; lake silt and/or clay; delta sand and gravel; beach sand and gravel; outwash sand and gravel; ice contact sand and ground; thick till cover bedrock; and thin till over bedrock over the Baldwinsville Area. Sheet 2, geologic sections, shows the layering of the aforementioned components below the surface layer. Sheet 3 illustrates the water infiltration of soil zone. Sheet 4 depicts the aquifer thickness. Sheet 5 illustrates the potentiometric surface, and Sheet 6 the well yield. Finally, Sheet 7 shows the land use in the region, specifically: industrial and extractive; commercial and services; transportation; farmland; forestland; residential; open public land; and water and wetlands. (Lantz-PTT)

Multilayer radiation shield

DOEpatents

Urbahn, John Arthur; Laskaris, Evangelos Trifon

2009-06-16

A power generation system including: a generator including a rotor including a superconductive rotor coil coupled to a rotatable shaft; a first prime mover drivingly coupled to the rotatable shaft; and a thermal radiation shield, partially surrounding the rotor coil, including at least a first sheet and a second sheet spaced apart from the first sheet by centripetal force produced by the rotatable shaft. A thermal radiation shield for a generator including a rotor including a super-conductive rotor coil including: a first sheet having at least one surface formed from a low emissivity material; and at least one additional sheet having at least one surface formed from a low emissivity material spaced apart from the first sheet by centripetal force produced by the rotatable shaft, wherein each successive sheet is an incrementally greater circumferential arc length and wherein the centripetal force shapes the sheets into a substantially catenary shape.

Spaceborne estimated long-term trends (1980s - 2013) of albedo and melting season length over the Greenland ice sheet and linkages to climate drivers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tedesco, M.; Stroeve, J. C.

2014-12-01

The length of the melting season and surface albedo modulate the amount of meltwater produced over the Greenland ice sheet. The two quantities are intimately connected through a suite of non-linear processes: for example, early melting can reduce the surface albedo (through constructive grain size metamorphism), hence affecting the surface energy balance and further increasing melting. Over the past years, several studies have highlighted increased melting concurring, with a decrease of mean surface albedo over Greenland. However, few studies have examined the duration of the melting season, its implication for surface processes and linkages to climate drivers. Moreover, the majority (if not all) of the studies assessing albedo trends from spaceborne data over Greenland have focused on the last decade or so (2000 - 2013) because they use data collected over the same period by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS). Here, we evaluate and synthesize long-term trends in the length of the melting season (1979 - 2013) derived from spaceborne microwave observations together with surface albedo trends for the period 1982 - 2013 using data from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR). To our knowledge, this is the first time that trends in Greenland albedo and melt season length are discussed for the periods considered in this study. Our results point to a lengthening of the melting season as a consequence of earlier melt onset and later refreeze and to a decrease of mean albedo (1982 - 2013) over the Greenland ice sheet, with trends being spatially variable. To account for this spatial variability, the results of an analysis at regional scales over 12 different regions (defined by elevation and drainage systems) are also reported. The robustness of the results is evaluated by means of a comparative analysis of the results obtained from both AVHRR and MODIS when overlapping data are available (2000 - 2013). Lastly, because large-scale circulation patterns and climate drivers can impact the amount of meltwater produced over Greenland (hence impacting albedo), we discuss the observed trends in the context of North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and Greenland Blocking Index (GBI) using a combination of regional climate model outputs and re-analysis data.

Color Shaded-Relief and Surface-Classification Maps of the Fish Creek Area, Harrison Bay Quadrangle, Northern Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mars, John L.; Garrity, Christopher P.; Houseknecht, David W.; Amoroso, Lee; Meares, Donald C.

2007-01-01

Introduction The northeastern part of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPRA) has become an area of active petroleum exploration during the past five years. Recent leasing and exploration drilling in the NPRA requires the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to manage and monitor a variety of surface activities that include seismic surveying, exploration drilling, oil-field development drilling, construction of oil-production facilities, and construction of pipelines and access roads. BLM evaluates a variety of permit applications, environmental impact studies, and other documents that require rapid compilation and analysis of data pertaining to surface and subsurface geology, hydrology, and biology. In addition, BLM must monitor these activities and assess their impacts on the natural environment. Timely and accurate completion of these land-management tasks requires elevation, hydrologic, geologic, petroleum-activity, and cadastral data, all integrated in digital formats at a higher resolution than is currently available in nondigital (paper) formats. To support these land-management tasks, a series of maps was generated from remotely sensed data in an area of high petroleum-industry activity (fig. 1). The maps cover an area from approximately latitude 70?00' N. to 70?30' N. and from longitude 151?00' W. to 153?10' W. The area includes the Alpine oil field in the east, the Husky Inigok exploration well (site of a landing strip) in the west, many of the exploration wells drilled in NPRA since 2000, and the route of a proposed pipeline to carry oil from discovery wells in NPRA to the Alpine oil field. This map area is referred to as the 'Fish Creek area' after a creek that flows through the region. The map series includes (1) a color shaded-relief map based on 5-m-resolution data (sheet 1), (2) a surface-classification map based on 30-m-resolution data (sheet 2), and (3) a 5-m-resolution shaded relief-surface classification map that combines the shaded-relief and surface-classification data (sheet 3). Remote sensing datasets that were used to compile the maps include Landsat 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper+ (ETM+), and interferometric synthetic aperture radar (IFSAR) data. In addition, a 1:250,000-scale geologic map of the Harrison Bay quadrangle, Alaska (Carter and Galloway, 1985, 2005) was used in conjunction with ETM+ and IFSAR data.

Experimental Characterization and Material Modelling of an AZ31 Magnesium Sheet Alloy at Elevated Temperatures under Consideration of the Tension-Compression Asymmetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Behrens, B.-A.; Bouguecha, A.; Bonk, C.; Dykiert, M.

2017-09-01

Magnesium sheet alloys have a great potential as a construction material in the aerospace and automotive industry. However, the current state of research regarding temperature dependent material parameters for the description of the plastic behaviour of magnesium sheet alloys is scarce in literature and accurate statements concerning yield criteria and appropriate characterization tests to describe the plastic behaviour of a magnesium sheet alloy at elevated temperatures in deep drawing processes are to define. Hence, in this paper the plastic behaviour of the well-established magnesium sheet alloy AZ31 has been characterized by means of convenient mechanical tests (e. g. tension, compression and biaxial tests) at temperatures between 180 and 230 °C. In this manner, anisotropic and hardening behaviour as well as differences between the tension-compression asymmetry of the yield locus have been estimated. Furthermore, using the evaluated data from the above mentioned tests, two different yield criteria have been parametrized; the commonly used Hill’48 and an orthotropic yield criterion, CPB2006, which was developed especially for materials with hexagonal close packed lattice structure and is able to describe an asymmetrical yielding behaviour regarding tensile and compressive stress states. Numerical simulations have been finally carried out with both yield functions in order to assess the accuracy of the material models.

Stamping of Thin-Walled Structural Components with Magnesium Alloy AZ31 Sheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Fuh-Kuo; Chang, Chih-Kun

2005-08-01

In the present study, the stamping process for manufacturing cell phone cases with magnesium alloy AZ31 sheets was studied using both the experimental approach and the finite element analysis. In order to determine the proper forming temperature and set up a fracture criterion, tensile tests and forming limit tests were first conducted to obtain the mechanical behaviors of AZ31 sheets at various elevated temperatures. The mechanical properties of Z31 sheets obtained from the experiments were then adopted in the finite element analysis to investigate the effects of the process parameters on the formability of the stamping process of cell phone cases. The finite element simulation results revealed that both the fracture and wrinkle defects could not be eliminated at the same time by adjusting blank-holder force or blank size. A drawbead design was then performed using the finite element simulations to determine the size and the location of drawbead required to suppress the wrinkle defect. An optimum stamping process, including die geometry, forming temperature, and blank dimension, was then determined for manufacturing the cell phone cases. The finite element analysis was validated by the good agreement between the simulation results and the experimental data. It confirms that the cell phone cases can be produced with magnesium alloy AZ31 sheet by the stamping process at elevated temperatures.

Culture-expanded mesenchymal stem cell sheets enhance extraction-site alveolar bone growth: An animal study.

PubMed

Mu, S; Tee, B C; Emam, H; Zhou, Y; Sun, Z

2018-04-06

Impaired bone formation of the buccal alveolar plate after tooth extraction during adolescence increases the difficulty of future implant restoration. This study was undertaken to assess the feasibility and efficacy of transplanting autogenous scaffold-free culture-expanded mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) sheets to the buccal alveolar bone surface to stimulate local bone growth. Mandibular bone marrow was aspirated from 3-month-old pigs (n = 5), from which MSCs were isolated and culture expanded. Triple-layer MSC sheets were then fabricated using temperature-responsive tissue culture plates. One month after bone marrow aspirations, the same pigs underwent bilateral extraction of mandibular primary molars, immediately followed by transplantation of 3 autogenous triple-layer MSC sheets on to the subperiosteal buccal alveolar surface of 1 randomly chosen side. The contralateral side (control) underwent the same periosteal reflection surgery without receiving MSC sheet transplantation. Six weeks later, the animals were killed and specimens from both sides were immediately harvested for radiographic and histological analysis. Buccal alveolar bone thickness, tissue mineral density (TMD), mineral apposition and bone volume fraction (BV/TV) were quantified and compared between the MSC sheet and control sides using paired t-tests. Triple-layer MSC sheets were reliably fabricated and the majority of cells remained vital before transplantation. The thickness of buccal bone tended to increase with MSC sheet transplantation (P = .18), with 4 of 5 animals showing an average of 1.82 ± 0.73 mm thicker bone on the MSC sheet side than the control side. After being normalized by the TMD of intracortical bone, the TMD of surface cortical bone was 0.5-fold higher on the MSC sheet side than the control side (P < .05). Likewise, the BV/TV measurements of the buccal surface region were also 0.4-fold higher on the MSC sheet side than the control side (P < .05) after being normalized by measurements from the intracortical region. Mineral apposition measurements were not different between the 2 sides. Mandibular marrow-derived MSCs can be fabricated into cell sheets and autogenous transplantation of MSC sheets onto the subperiosteal buccal alveolar bone surface at the tooth-extraction site may increase local bone density. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Modelling the Climate - Greenland Ice Sheet Interaction in the Coupled Ice-sheet/Climate Model EC-EARTH - PISM

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, S.; Madsen, M. S.; Rodehacke, C. B.; Svendsen, S. H.; Adalgeirsdottir, G.

2014-12-01

Recent observations show that the Greenland ice sheet (GrIS) has been losing mass with an increasing speed during the past decades. Predicting the GrIS changes and their climate consequences relies on the understanding of the interaction of the GrIS with the climate system on both global and local scales, and requires climate model systems with an explicit and physically consistent ice sheet module. A fully coupled global climate model with a dynamical ice sheet model for the GrIS has recently been developed. The model system, EC-EARTH - PISM, consists of the EC-EARTH, an atmosphere, ocean and sea ice model system, and the Parallel Ice Sheet Model (PISM). The coupling of PISM includes a modified surface physical parameterization in EC-EARTH adapted to the land ice surface over glaciated regions in Greenland. The PISM ice sheet model is forced with the surface mass balance (SMB) directly computed inside the EC-EARTH atmospheric module and accounting for the precipitation, the surface evaporation, and the melting of snow and ice over land ice. PISM returns the simulated basal melt, ice discharge and ice cover (extent and thickness) as boundary conditions to EC-EARTH. This coupled system is mass and energy conserving without being constrained by any anomaly correction or flux adjustment, and hence is suitable for investigation of ice sheet - climate feedbacks. Three multi-century experiments for warm climate scenarios under (1) the RCP85 climate forcing, (2) an abrupt 4xCO2 and (3) an idealized 1% per year CO2 increase are performed using the coupled model system. The experiments are compared with their counterparts of the standard CMIP5 simulations (without the interactive ice sheet) to evaluate the performance of the coupled system and to quantify the GrIS feedbacks. In particular, the evolution of the Greenland ice sheet under the warm climate and its impacts on the climate system are investigated. Freshwater fluxes from the Greenland ice sheet melt to the Arctic and North Atlantic basin and their influence on the ocean stratification and ocean circulation are analysed. The changes in the surface climate and the atmospheric circulation associated with the impact of the Greenland ice sheet changes are quantified. The interaction between the Greenland ice sheet and Arctic sea ice is also examined.

3. ELEVATIONS, ADDITION TO POWER HOUSE. United Engineering Company Ltd., ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

3. ELEVATIONS, ADDITION TO POWER HOUSE. United Engineering Company Ltd., Alameda Shipyard. John Hudspeth, architect, foot of Main Street, Alameda, California. Sheet 4. Plan no. 10,548. Scale 1/4 inch to the foot, elevations, and one inch to the foot, sections and details. April 30, 1945, last revised 6/19/45. pencil on vellum - United Engineering Company Shipyard, Boiler House, 2900 Main Street, Alameda, Alameda County, CA

The Distribution of Antarctic Subglacial Lake Environments With Implications for Their Origin and Evolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blankenship, D. D.; Young, D. A.; Carter, S. P.

2006-12-01

Ice-penetrating radar records across the Antarctic Ice Sheet show regions with strong flat mirror-like reflections from the subglacial interface that are interpreted to be from subglacial lakes. The majority of subglacial lakes are found in East Antarctica, primarily in topographically low areas of basins beneath the thick ice divides. Occasionally lakes are observed "perched" at higher elevations within local depressions of rough morphological regions. In addition, a correlation between the "onset" of enhanced glacial flow and subglacial lakes was identified. The greatest concentration of known lakes was found in the vicinity of Dome C. A second grouping of lakes lying near Ridge B includes Lake Vostok and several smaller lakes. Subglacial lakes were also discovered near the South Pole, within eastern Wilkes Land, west of the Transantarctic Mountains, and within West Antarctica's Whitmore Mountains. Aside from Lake Vostok, typical lengths of subglacial lakes were found to range from a few to about 20 kilometers. A recent inventory includes 145 subglacial lakes. Approximately 81% of detected lakes lie at elevations less than a few hundred meters above sea level while the majority of the remaining lakes are "perched" at higher elevations. We present the locations from the subglacial lake inventory on local "ice divides" calculated from the satellite derived surface elevations with and find the distance of each lake from these divides. Most significantly, we found that 66% of the lakes identified lie within 50 km of a local ice divide and 88% lie within 100 km of a local divide. In particular, note that lakes located far from the Dome C/Ridge B cluster and even those associated with very narrow catchments lie either on or within a few tens of kilometers of the local divide marked by the catchment boundary. The distance correlation of subglacial lakes with local ice divides leads to a fundamental question for the evolution of subglacial lake environments: Does the evolving ice sheet control the location of subglacial lakes or does the fixed lithospheric character necessary for lake formation constrain the evolution of ice sheet catchments? To begin to answer these questions, we assess the distributions of classes of lakes defined by their reflection character. These classes include bright specular ("definite") lakes, dim specular lakes and bright non-specular ("fuzzy") lakes. Interestingly, it is the fuzzy lakes that do not strongly correlate with ice divides. We show specific examples of off-divide lake system hydrology from the Byrd Glacier catchment in East Antarctica and Kamb Ice Stream in West Antarctica.

Surface Mass Balance of the Greenland Ice Sheet Derived from Paleoclimate Reanalysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Badgeley, J.; Steig, E. J.; Hakim, G. J.; Anderson, J.; Tardif, R.

2017-12-01

Modeling past ice-sheet behavior requires independent knowledge of past surface mass balance. Though models provide useful insight into ice-sheet response to climate forcing, if past climate is unknown, then ascertaining the rate and extent of past ice-sheet change is limited to geological and geophysical constraints. We use a novel data-assimilation framework developed under the Last Millennium Reanalysis Project (Hakim et al., 2016) to reconstruct past climate over ice sheets with the intent of creating an independent surface mass balance record for paleo ice-sheet modeling. Paleoclimate data assimilation combines the physics of climate models and the time series evidence of proxy records in an offline, ensemble-based approach. This framework allows for the assimilation of numerous proxy records and archive types while maintaining spatial consistency with known climate dynamics and physics captured by the models. In our reconstruction, we use the Community Climate System Model version 4, CMIP5 last millennium simulation (Taylor et al., 2012; Landrum et al., 2013) and a nearly complete database of ice core oxygen isotope records to reconstruct Holocene surface temperature and precipitation over the Greenland Ice Sheet on a decadal timescale. By applying a seasonality to this reconstruction (from the TraCE-21ka simulation; Liu et al., 2009), our reanalysis can be used in seasonally-based surface mass balance models. Here we discuss the methods behind our reanalysis and the performance of our reconstruction through prediction of unassimilated proxy records and comparison to paleoclimate reconstructions and reanalysis products.

Extending airborne electromagnetic surveys for regional active layer and permafrost mapping with remote sensing and ancillary data, Yukon Flats ecoregion, central Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Pastick, Neal J.; Jorgenson, M. Torre; Wylie, Bruce K.; Minsley, Burke J.; Ji, Lei; Walvoord, Michelle Ann; Smith, Bruce D.; Abraham, Jared D.; Rose, Joshua R.

2013-01-01

Machine-learning regression tree models were used to extrapolate airborne electromagnetic resistivity data collected along flight lines in the Yukon Flats Ecoregion, central Alaska, for regional mapping of permafrost. This method of extrapolation (r = 0.86) used subsurface resistivity, Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) at-sensor reflectance, thermal, TM-derived spectral indices, digital elevation models and other relevant spatial data to estimate near-surface (0–2.6-m depth) resistivity at 30-m resolution. A piecewise regression model (r = 0.82) and a presence/absence decision tree classification (accuracy of 87%) were used to estimate active-layer thickness (ALT) (< 101 cm) and the probability of near-surface (up to 123-cm depth) permafrost occurrence from field data, modelled near-surface (0–2.6 m) resistivity, and other relevant remote sensing and map data. At site scale, the predicted ALTs were similar to those previously observed for different vegetation types. At the landscape scale, the predicted ALTs tended to be thinner on higher-elevation loess deposits than on low-lying alluvial and sand sheet deposits of the Yukon Flats. The ALT and permafrost maps provide a baseline for future permafrost monitoring, serve as inputs for modelling hydrological and carbon cycles at local to regional scales, and offer insight into the ALT response to fire and thaw processes.

Modeling the nucleus and jets of comet 81P/Wild 2 based on the Stardust encounter data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sekanina, Zdenek; Brownlee, Donald E.; Economou, Thanasis E.; Tuzzolino, Anthony J.; Green, Simon F.

2004-01-01

We interpret the nucleus properties and jet activity from the Stardust spacecraft imaging and the onboard dust monitoring system data. Triangulation of 20 jets shows that 2 emanate from the nucleus dark side and 16 emanate from sources that are on slopes where the Sun's elevation is greater than predicted from the fitted triaxial ellipsoid. Seven sources, including five in the Mayo depression, coincide with relatively bright surface spots. Fitting the imaged jets, the spikelike temporal distribution of dust impacts indicates that the spacecraft crossed thin, densely populated sheets of particulate ejecta extending from small sources on the rotating nucleus, consistent with an emission cone model.

Stacked endoplasmic reticulum sheets are connected by helicoidal membrane motifs.

PubMed

Terasaki, Mark; Shemesh, Tom; Kasthuri, Narayanan; Klemm, Robin W; Schalek, Richard; Hayworth, Kenneth J; Hand, Arthur R; Yankova, Maya; Huber, Greg; Lichtman, Jeff W; Rapoport, Tom A; Kozlov, Michael M

2013-07-18

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) often forms stacked membrane sheets, an arrangement that is likely required to accommodate a maximum of membrane-bound polysomes for secretory protein synthesis. How sheets are stacked is unknown. Here, we used improved staining and automated ultrathin sectioning electron microscopy methods to analyze stacked ER sheets in neuronal cells and secretory salivary gland cells of mice. Our results show that stacked ER sheets form a continuous membrane system in which the sheets are connected by twisted membrane surfaces with helical edges of left- or right-handedness. The three-dimensional structure of tightly stacked ER sheets resembles a parking garage, in which the different levels are connected by helicoidal ramps. A theoretical model explains the experimental observations and indicates that the structure corresponds to a minimum of elastic energy of sheet edges and surfaces. The structure allows the dense packing of ER sheets in the restricted space of a cell. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Wrapping a liquid drop with a thin elastic sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paulsen, Joseph; Démery, Vincent; Davidovitch, Benny; Santangelo, Chris; Russell, Thomas; Menon, Narayanan

2014-11-01

We study the wrapping of a liquid drop by an initially-planar ultrathin (~ 100 nm) circular sheet. These elastic sheets can completely relax compressive stresses by forming wrinkles. In the experiment, we find that when a small fraction of the drop is covered, the overall shape of the sheet (i.e. averaging over the wrinkles) is axisymmetric. As we shrink the drop further, the sheet develops radial folds that break the axisymmetry of the sheet and the drop. Our data are consistent with a model where the sheet selects the shape that minimizes the exposed liquid surface area. We thus identify a ``geometric wrapping'' regime, where the partially-wrapped shape depends only on the relative radii of the sheet and the drop; the global breaking of axisymmetry is independent of the elastic energy of the deformed sheet. This regime requires that bending energy is negligible compared to surface energy, in contrast to the ``capillary origami'' regime where the static shape of the drop comes from a balance of bending and capillary forces.

Vitamin C treatment promotes mesenchymal stem cell sheet formation and tissue regeneration by elevating telomerase activity.

PubMed

Wei, Fulan; Qu, Cunye; Song, Tieli; Ding, Gang; Fan, Zhipeng; Liu, Dayong; Liu, Yi; Zhang, Chunmei; Shi, Songtao; Wang, Songlin

2012-09-01

Cell sheet engineering has been developed as an alternative approach to improve mesenchymal stem cell-mediated tissue regeneration. In this study, we found that vitamin C (Vc) was capable of inducing telomerase activity in periodontal ligament stem cells (PDLSCs), leading to the up-regulated expression of extracellular matrix type I collagen, fibronectin, and integrin β1, stem cell markers Oct4, Sox2, and Nanog as well as osteogenic markers RUNX2, ALP, OCN. Under Vc treatment, PDLSCs can form cell sheet structures because of increased cell matrix production. Interestingly, PDLSC sheets demonstrated a significant improvement in tissue regeneration compared with untreated control dissociated PDLSCs and offered an effective treatment for periodontal defects in a swine model. In addition, bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell sheets and umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cell sheets were also well constructed using this method. The development of Vc-mediated mesenchymal stem cell sheets may provide an easy and practical approach for cell-based tissue regeneration. Copyright © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Anatomy of an amyloidogenic intermediate: conversion of beta-sheet to alpha-sheet structure in transthyretin at acidic pH.

PubMed

Armen, Roger S; Alonso, Darwin O V; Daggett, Valerie

2004-10-01

The homotetramer of transthyretin (TTR) dissociates into a monomeric amyloidogenic intermediate that self-assembles into amyloid fibrils at low pH. We have performed molecular dynamics simulations of monomeric TTR at neutral and low pH at physiological (310 K) and very elevated temperature (498 K). In the low-pH simulations at both temperatures, one of the two beta-sheets (strands CBEF) becomes disrupted, and alpha-sheet structure forms in the other sheet (strands DAGH). alpha-sheet is formed by alternating alphaL and alphaR residues, and it was first proposed by Pauling and Corey. Overall, the simulations are in agreement with the available experimental observations, including solid-state NMR results for a TTR-peptide amyloid. In addition, they provide a unique explanation for the results of hydrogen exchange experiments of the amyloidogenic intermediate-results that are difficult to explain with beta-structure. We propose that alpha-sheet may represent a key pathological conformation during amyloidogenesis. Copyright 2004 Elsevier Ltd.

Method for heating and forming a glass sheet

DOEpatents

Boaz, Premakaran Tucker

1997-01-01

A method for heating and forming a glass sheet includes the steps of heating a glass sheet to at least a first predetermined temperature, applying microwave energy to the glass sheet to heat the glass sheet to at least a second predetermined temperature, cooling an outer surface of the glass sheet to at least a third predetermined temperature and forming the glass sheet using forming rollers to a predetermined configuration.

Northeast sector of the Greenland Ice Sheet to undergo the greatest inland expansion of supraglacial lakes during the 21st century

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ignéczi, Ádám.; Sole, Andrew J.; Livingstone, Stephen J.; Leeson, Amber A.; Fettweis, Xavier; Selmes, Nick; Gourmelen, Noel; Briggs, Kate

2016-09-01

The formation and rapid drainage of supraglacial lakes (SGL) influences the mass balance and dynamics of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS). Although SGLs are expected to spread inland during the 21st century due to atmospheric warming, less is known about their future spatial distribution and volume. We use GrIS surface elevation model and regional climate model outputs to show that at the end of the 21st century (2070-2099) approximately 9.8 ± 3.9 km3 (+113% compared to 1980-2009) and 12.6 ± 5 km3 (+174%) of meltwater could be stored in SGLs under moderate and high representative concentration pathways (RCP 4.5 and 8.5), respectively. The largest increase is expected in the northeastern sector of the GrIS (191% in RCP 4.5 and 320% in RCP 8.5), whereas in west Greenland, where the most SGLs are currently observed, the future increase will be relatively moderate (55% in RCP 4.5 and 68% in RCP 8.5).

Bottom-up formation of robust gold carbide

PubMed Central

Westenfelder, Benedikt; Biskupek, Johannes; Meyer, Jannik C.; Kurasch, Simon; Lin, Xiaohang; Scholz, Ferdinand; Gross, Axel; Kaiser, Ute

2015-01-01

A new phenomenon of structural reorganization is discovered and characterized for a gold-carbon system by in-situ atomic-resolution imaging at temperatures up to 1300 K. Here, a graphene sheet serves in three ways, as a quasi transparent substrate for aberration-corrected high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, as an in-situ heater, and as carbon supplier. The sheet has been decorated with gold nanoislands beforehand. During electron irradiation at 80 kV and at elevated temperatures, the accumulation of gold atoms has been observed on defective graphene sites or edges as well as at the facets of gold nanocrystals. Both resulted in clustering, forming unusual crystalline structures. Their lattice parameters and surface termination differ significantly from standard gold nanocrystals. The experimental data, supported by electron energy loss spectroscopy and density-functional theory calculations, suggests that isolated gold and carbon atoms form – under conditions of heat and electron irradiation – a novel type of compound crystal, Au-C in zincblende structure. The novel material is metastable, but surprisingly robust, even under annealing condition. PMID:25772348

Synthesis of Diamond-Like Carbon Films on Planar and Non-Planar Geometries by the Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Chemical Vapor Deposition Method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Noborisaka, Mayui; Hirako, Tomoaki; Shirakura, Akira; Watanabe, Toshiyuki; Morikawa, Masashi; Seki, Masaki; Suzuki, Tetsuya

2012-09-01

Diamond-like carbon (DLC) films were synthesized by the dielectric barrier discharge-based plasma deposition at atmospheric pressure and their hardness and gas barrier properties were measured. A decrease in size of grains and heating substrate temperature improved nano-hardness up to 3.3 GPa. The gas barrier properties of DLC-coated poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) sheets were obtained by 3-5 times of non-coated PET with approximately 0.5 µm in film thickness. The high-gas-barrier DLC films deposited on PET sheets are expected to wrap elevated bridge of the super express and prevent them from neutralization of concrete. We also deposited DLC films inside PET bottles by the microwave surface-wave plasma chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method at near-atmospheric pressure. Under atmospheric pressure, the films were coated uniformly inside the PET bottles, but did not show high gas barrier properties. In this paper, we summarize recent progress of DLC films synthesized at atmospheric pressure with the aimed of food packaging and concrete pillar.

Easily disassembled electrical connector for high voltage, high frequency connections

DOEpatents

Milner, J.R.

1994-05-10

An easily accessible electrical connector capable of rapid assembly and disassembly is described wherein a wide metal conductor sheet may be evenly contacted over the entire width of the conductor sheet by opposing surfaces on the connector which provide an even clamping pressure against opposite surfaces of the metal conductor sheet using a single threaded actuating screw. 13 figures.

Development of the apparatus for measuring magnetic properties of electrical steel sheets in arbitrary directions under compressive stress normal to their surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maeda, Yoshitaka; Urata, Shinya; Nakai, Hideo; Takeuchi, Yuuya; Yun, Kyyoul; Yanase, Shunji; Okazaki, Yasuo

2017-05-01

In designing motors, one must grasp the magnetic properties of electrical steel sheets considering actual conditions in motors. Especially important is grasping the stress dependence of magnetic power loss. This paper describes a newly developed apparatus to measure two-dimensional (2-D) magnetic properties (properties under the arbitrary alternating and the rotating flux conditions) of electrical steel sheets under compressive stress normal to the sheet surface. The apparatus has a 2-D magnetic excitation circuit to generate magnetic fields in arbitrary directions in the evaluation area. It also has a pressing unit to apply compressive stress normal to the sheet surface. During measurement, it is important to apply uniform stress throughout the evaluation area. Therefore, we have developed a new flux density sensor using needle probe method. It is composed of thin copper foils sputtered on electrical steel sheets. By using this sensor, the stress can be applied to the surface of the specimen without influence of this sensor. This paper described the details of newly developed apparatus with this sensor, and measurement results of iron loss by using are shown.

Method for heating, forming and tempering a glass sheet

DOEpatents

Boaz, Premakaran Tucker; Sitzman, Gary W.

1998-01-01

A method for heating, forming and tempering a glass sheet including the steps of heating at least one glass sheet to at least a first predetermined temperature, applying microwave energy to the glass sheet to heat the glass sheet to at least a second predetermined temperature, forming the glass sheet to a predetermined configuration, and cooling an outer surface of the glass sheet to at least a third predetermined temperature to temper the glass sheet.

A transient fully coupled climate-ice-sheet simulation of the last glacial inception

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lofverstrom, M.; Otto-Bliesner, B. L.; Lipscomb, W. H.; Fyke, J. G.; Marshall, S.; Sacks, B.; Brady, E. C.

2017-12-01

The last glacial inception occurred around 115 ka, following a relative minimum in the Northern Hemisphere summer insolation. It is believed that small and spatially separated ice caps initially formed in the high elevation regions of northern Canada, Scandinavia, and along the Siberian Arctic coast. These ice caps subsequently migrated down in the valleys where they coalesced and formed the initial seeds of the large coherent ice masses that covered the northern parts of the North American and Eurasian continents over most of the last glacial cycle. Sea level records show that the initial growth period lasted for about 10 kyrs, and the resulting ice sheets may have lowered the global sea level by as much as 30 to 50 meters. Here we examine the transient climate system evolution over the period between 118 and 110 ka, using the fully coupled Community Earth System Model, version 2 (CESM2). This model features a two-way coupled high-resolution (4x4 km) ice-sheet component (Community Ice Sheet model, version 2; CISM2) that simulates ice sheets as an interactive component of the climate system. We impose a transient forcing protocol where the greenhouse gas concentrations and the orbital parameters follow the nominal year in the simulation; the model topography is also dynamically evolving in order to reflect changes in ice elevation throughout the simulation. The analysis focuses on how the climate system evolves over this time interval, with a special focus on glacial inception in the high-latitude continents. Results will highlight how the evolving ice sheets compare to data and previous model based reconstructions.

Modeling of Ice Flow and Internal Layers Along a Flow Line Through Swiss Camp in West Greenland

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wang, W. L.; Zwally, H. Jay; Abdalati, W.; Luo, S.; Koblinsky, Chester J. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

An anisotropic ice flow line model is applied to a flow line through Swiss Camp (69.57 N, 49.28 W) in West Greenland to estimate the dates of internal layers detected by Radio-Echo Sounding measurements. The effect of an anisotropic ice fabric on ice flow is incorporated into the steady state flow line model. The stress-strain rate relationship for anisotropic ice is characterized by an enhancement factor based on the laboratory observations of ice deformation under combined compression and shear stresses. By using present-day data of accumulation rate, surface temperature, surface elevation and ice thickness along the flow line as model inputs, a very close agreement is found between the isochrones generated from the model and the observed internal layers with confirmed dates. The results indicate that this part of Greenland ice sheet is primarily in steady state.

Coupled Gravity and Elevation Measurement of Ice Sheet Mass Change

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jezek, K. C.; Baumgartner, F.

2005-01-01

During June 2003, we measured surface gravity at six locations about a glaciological measurement site located on the South-central Greenland Ice. We operated a GPS unit for 90 minutes at each site -the unit was operated simultaneously with a base station unit in Sondrestrom Fjord so as to enable differential, post-processing of the data. We installed an aluminum, accumulation-rate-pole at each site. The base section of the pole also served as the mount for the GPS antenna. Two gravimeters were used simultaneously at each site. Measurements were repeated at each site with at time lapse of at least 50 minutes. We measured snow physical properties in two shallow pits The same measurement sites were occupied in 1981 and all were part of a hexagonal network of geodetic and glaciological measurements established by The Ohio State University in 1980. Additional gravity observations were acquired at three of the sites in 1993 and 1995. Gravity data were collected in conjunction with Doppler satellite measurements of position and elevation in 1981 and global positioning system measurements subsequently. The use of satellite navigation techniques permitted reoccupation of the same sites in each year to within a few 10 s of meters or better. After detrending the gravity data, making adjustments for tides and removing the residual effects of local spatial gradients in gravity, we observe an average secular decrease in gravity of about 0.01 milligal/year, but with tenths of milligal variations about the mean trend. The trend is consistent with a nearly linear increase in surface elevation of between 7 to 10 c d y r (depending on location) as measured by repeated airborne laser altimeter, surface Doppler satellite and GPS elevation measurements. Differences between the residual gravity anomalies after free air correction may be attributable to local mass changes. This project is a collaboration between the Byrd Polar Research Center of the Ohio State University and the Arctic Technology Center of the Danish Technical University.

Characterizing the Frequency and Elevation of Rapid Drainage Events in West Greenland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cooley, S.; Christoffersen, P.

2016-12-01

Rapid drainage of supraglacial lakes on the Greenland Ice Sheet is critical for the establishment of surface-to-bed hydrologic connections and the subsequent transfer of water from surface to bed. Yet, estimates of the number and spatial distribution of rapidly draining lakes vary widely due to limitations in the temporal frequency of image collection and obscureness by cloud. So far, no study has assessed the impact of these observation biases. In this study, we examine the frequency and elevation of rapidly draining lakes in central West Greenland, from 68°N to 72.6°N, and we make a robust statistical analysis to estimate more accurately the likelihood of lakes draining rapidly. Using MODIS imagery and a fully automated lake detection method, we map more than 500 supraglacial lakes per year over a 63000 km2 study area from 2000-2015. Through testing four different definitions of rapidly draining lakes from previously published studies, we find that the number of rapidly draining lakes varies from 3% to 38%. Logistic regression between rapid drainage events and image sampling frequency demonstrates that the number of rapid drainage events is strongly dependent on cloud-free observation percentage. We then develop three new drainage criteria and apply an observation bias correction that suggests a true rapid drainage probability between 36% and 45%, considerably higher than previous studies without bias assessment have reported. We find rapid-draining lakes are on average larger and disappear earlier than slow-draining lakes, and we also observe no elevation differences for the lakes detected as rapidly draining. We conclude a) that methodological problems in rapid drainage research caused by observation bias and varying detection methods have obscured large-scale rapid drainage characteristics and b) that the lack of evidence for an elevation limit on rapid drainage suggests surface-to-bed hydrologic connections may continue to propagate inland as climate warms.

Plastic covering on airfoil structure provides smooth uninterrupted surface

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kinzler, J. A.; Fehrenkamp, L. G.; Heffernam, J. T.; Lee, W. S.

1975-01-01

Primed surface is covered with adhesive. Sheet of plastic film is stretched over adhesive and mechanical holder is used to apply tension to ends of sheet to make it conform to surface of airfoil. After adhesive cures, plastic can be trimmed with sharp cutting tool.

13. Photographic copy of the original construction plans, dated July ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

13. Photographic copy of the original construction plans, dated July 20, 1923, from the blueprints in possession of DuPage County, Division of Transportation, Wheaton, Illinois. GENERAL ELEVATION AND HALF ELEVATION OF PIER (sheet 1 of 3). - Fullersburg Bridge, Spanning Salt Creek at York Road, Oak Brook, Du Page County, IL

Shelving plans, elevations, and sections. San Bernardino Valley Union Junior ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

Shelving plans, elevations, and sections. San Bernardino Valley Union Junior College, Science Building. Howard E. Jones, Architect, San Bernardino, California. Sheet 9, job no. 311. Scale 1.2 inch to the foot. February 15, 1927. - San Bernardino Valley College, Life Science Building, 701 South Mount Vernon Avenue, San Bernardino, San Bernardino County, CA

A new digital elevation model of Antarctica derived from CryoSat-2 altimetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Slater, Thomas; Shepherd, Andrew; McMillan, Malcolm; Muir, Alan; Gilbert, Lin; Hogg, Anna E.; Konrad, Hannes; Parrinello, Tommaso

2018-05-01

We present a new digital elevation model (DEM) of the Antarctic ice sheet and ice shelves based on 2.5 × 108 observations recorded by the CryoSat-2 satellite radar altimeter between July 2010 and July 2016. The DEM is formed from spatio-temporal fits to elevation measurements accumulated within 1, 2, and 5 km grid cells, and is posted at the modal resolution of 1 km. Altogether, 94 % of the grounded ice sheet and 98 % of the floating ice shelves are observed, and the remaining grid cells north of 88° S are interpolated using ordinary kriging. The median and root mean square difference between the DEM and 2.3 × 107 airborne laser altimeter measurements acquired during NASA Operation IceBridge campaigns are -0.30 and 13.50 m, respectively. The DEM uncertainty rises in regions of high slope, especially where elevation measurements were acquired in low-resolution mode; taking this into account, we estimate the average accuracy to be 9.5 m - a value that is comparable to or better than that of other models derived from satellite radar and laser altimetry.

Measuring the Surface Temperature of the Cryosphere using Remote Sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, Dorothy K.

2012-01-01

A general description of the remote sensing of cryosphere surface temperatures from satellites will be provided. This will give historical information on surface-temperature measurements from space. There will also be a detailed description of measuring the surface temperature of the Greenland Ice Sheet using Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data which will be the focus of the presentation. Enhanced melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet has been documented in recent literature along with surface-temperature increases measured using infrared satellite data since 1981. Using a recently-developed climate data record, trends in the clear-sky ice-surface temperature (IST) of the Greenland Ice Sheet have been studied using the MODIS IST product. Daily and monthly MODIS ISTs of the Greenland Ice Sheet beginning on 1 March 2000 and continuing through 31 December 2010 are now freely available to download at 6.25-km spatial resolution on a polar stereographic grid. Maps showing the maximum extent of melt for the entire ice sheet and for the six major drainage basins have been developed from the MODIS IST dataset. Twelve-year trends of the duration of the melt season on the ice sheet vary in different drainage basins with some basins melting progressively earlier over the course of the study period. Some (but not all) of the basins also show a progressively-longer duration of melt. The consistency of this IST record, with temperature and melt records from other sources will be discussed.

The ICESat-2 Mission: Concept, pre-launch activities, and opportunities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Markus, T.; Neumann, T.; Csatho, B. M.

2011-12-01

Ice sheet and sea level changes have been explicitly identified as a priority in the President's Climate Change Science Program, the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment, the 4th Assessment Report of the IPCC and other national and international policy documents. Following recommendations from the National Research Council for an ICESat follow-on mission, the ICESat-2 mission is now under development for launch in early 2016. The primary aims of the ICESat-2 mission are to continue measurements of sea-ice thickness change, and ice sheet elevation changes at scales from outlet glaciers to the entire ice sheet as established by ICESat. In contrast to ICESat, ICESat-2 will employ a 6-beam micro-pulse laser photon-counting approach. The current concept uses a high repetition rate (10 kHz; equivalent to 70 cm on the ground) low-power laser in conjunction with single-photon sensitive detectors to measure range using ~532nm (green) light. The concept will enable the generation of seasonal maps of ice sheet elevation of Greenland and Antarctica, monthly maps of sea ice thickness of the polar ocean, a dense map of land elevation (2 km track spacing at the equator after two years) enabling the determination of canopy height, as well as ocean heights. While the mission has been optimized for cryospheric science and vast amount of high precision elevation measurements taken over land and over the ocean as well as of the atmosphere will provide scientists with a wealth of opportunities to explore the utility of ICESat-2. Those will range from the retrieval of cloud properties, to river stages, to snow cover, to land use changes and more. The presentation will review the measurement concept and physical principles of ICESat-2, current and planned activities to assess instrument performance and develop geophysical algorithms, as well as potential opportunities outside the main objectives of ICESat-2.

The ICESat-2 Mission: Concept, Pre-Launch Activities, and Opportunities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Markus, Thorsten; Neumann, Tom; Csatho, Beata M.

2011-01-01

Ice sheet and sea level changes have been explicitly identified as a priority in the President's Climate Change Science Program, the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment, the 4th Assessment Report of the IPee and other national and international policy documents. Following recommendations from the National Research Council for an ICESat follow-on mission, the ICESat-2 mission is now under development for launch in early 2016. The primary aims of the ICESat-2 mission are to continue measurements of sea-ice thickness change, and ice sheet elevation changes at scales from outlet glaciers to the entire ice sheet as established by ICES at. In contrast to ICES at, ICESat-2 will employ a 6-beam micro-pulse laser photon-counting approach. The current concept uses a high repetition rate (10 kHz; equivalent to 70 cm on the ground) low-power laser in conjunction with single-photon sensitive detectors to measure range using approximately 532nm (green) light. The concept will enable the generation of seasonal maps of ice sheet elevation of Greenland and Antarctica, monthly maps of sea ice thickness of the polar ocean, a dense map of land elevation (2 km track spacing at the equator after two years) enabling the determination of canopy height, as well as ocean heights. While the mission has been optimized for cryospheric science and vast amount of high precision elevation measurements taken over land and over the ocean as well as of the atmosphere will provide scientists with a wealth of opportunities to explore the utility of ICESat-2. Those will range from the retrieval of cloud properties, to river stages, to snow cover, to land use changes and more. The presentation will review the measurement concept and physical principles of ICESat-2, current and planned activities to assess instrument performance and develop geophysical algorithms, as well as potential opportunities outside the main objectives of ICESat-2.

Soil temperature investigations using satellite acquired thermal-infrared data in semi-arid regions. Thesis. Final Report; [Utah

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Day, R. L.; Petersen, G. W.

1983-01-01

Thermal-infrared data from the Heat Capacity Mapping Mission satellite were used to map the spatial distribution of diurnal surface temperatures and to estimate mean annual soil temperatures (MAST) and annual surface temperature amplitudes (AMP) in semi-arid east central Utah. Diurnal data with minimal snow and cloud cover were selected for five dates throughout a yearly period and geometrically co-registered. Rubber-sheet stretching was aided by the WARP program which allowed preview of image transformations. Daytime maximum and nighttime minimum temperatures were averaged to generation average daily temperature (ADT) data set for each of the five dates. Five ADT values for each pixel were used to fit a sine curve describing the theoretical annual surface temperature response as defined by a solution of a one-dimensinal heat flow equation. Linearization of the equation produced estimates of MAST and AMP plus associated confidence statistics. MAST values were grouped into classes and displayed on a color video screen. Diurnal surface temperatures and MAST were primarily correlated with elevation.

ICESat-2 bathymetry: an empirical feasibility assessment using MABEL

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Forfinski, Nick; Parrish, Christopher

2016-10-01

The feasibility of deriving bathymetry from data acquired with ATLAS, the photon-counting lidar on NASA's upcoming ICESat-2 satellite, is assessed empirically by examining data from NASA's airborne ICESat-2 simulator, MABEL. The primary objectives of ICESat-2 will be to measure ice-sheet elevations, sea-ice thickness, and global biomass. However, the 6-beam, green-wavelength photon-counting lidar, combined with the 91-day repeat period and near-polar orbit, may provide unique opportunities to measure coastal bathymetry in remote, poorly-mapped areas of the globe. The study focuses on high-probability bottom returns in Keweenaw Bay, Lake Superior, acquired during the "Transit to KPMD" MABEL mission in August, 2012 at an AGL altitude of 20,000 m. Water-surface and bottom returns were identified and manually classified using MABEL Viewer, an in-house prototype data-explorer web application. Water-surface returns were observed in 12 green channels, and bottom returns were observed in 10 channels. Comparing each channel's mean water-surface elevation to a regional NOAA Nowcast water-level estimate revealed channel-specific elevation biases that were corrected for in our bathymetry estimation procedure. Additionally, a first-order refraction correction was applied to each bottom return. Agreement between the refraction-corrected depth profile and NOAA data acquired two years earlier by Fugro LADS with the LADS Mk II airborne system indicates that MABEL reliably detected bathymetry in depths up to 8 m, with an RMS difference of 0.7 m. In addition to feeding coastal bathymetry models, MABEL (and potentially ICESat-2 ATLAS) has the potential to seed algorithms for bathymetry retrieval from passive, multispectral satellite imagery by providing reference depths.

Satellite-derived, melt-season surface temperature of the Greenland Ice Sheet (2000-2005) and its relationship to mass balance

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hall, D.K.; Williams, R.S.; Casey, K.A.; DiGirolamo, N.E.; Wan, Z.

2006-01-01

Mean, clear-sky surface temperature of the Greenland Ice Sheet was measured for each melt season from 2000 to 2005 using Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS)–derived land-surface temperature (LST) data-product maps. During the period of most-active melt, the mean, clear-sky surface temperature of the ice sheet was highest in 2002 (−8.29 ± 5.29°C) and 2005 (−8.29 ± 5.43°C), compared to a 6-year mean of −9.04 ± 5.59°C, in agreement with recent work by other investigators showing unusually extensive melt in 2002 and 2005. Surface-temperature variability shows a correspondence with the dry-snow facies of the ice sheet; a reduction in area of the dry-snow facies would indicate a more-negative mass balance. Surface-temperature variability generally increased during the study period and is most pronounced in the 2005 melt season; this is consistent with surface instability caused by air-temperature fluctuations.

Widespread surface meltwater drainage in Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kingslake, J.; Ely, J.; Das, I.; Bell, R. E.

2016-12-01

Surface meltwater is thought to cause ice-shelf disintegration, which accelerates the contribution of ice sheets to sea-level rise. Antarctic surface melting is predicted to increase and trigger further ice-shelf disintegration during this century. These climate-change impacts could be modulated by an active hydrological network analogous to the one in operation in Greenland. Despite some observations of Antarctic surface and sub-surface hydrological systems, large-scale active surface drainage in Antarctica has rarely been studied. We use satellite imagery and aerial photography to reveal widespread active hydrology on the surface of the Antarctic Ice Sheet as far south as 85o and as high as 1800 m a.s.l., often near mountain peaks that protrude through the ice (nunataks) and relatively low-albedo `blue-ice areas'. Despite predominantly sub-zero regional air temperatures, as simulated by a regional climate model, Antarctic active drainage has persisted for decades, transporting water through surface streams and feeding vast melt ponds up to 80 km long. Drainage networks (the largest are over 100 km in length) form on flat ice shelves, steep outlet glaciers and ice-sheet flanks across the West and East Antarctica Ice Sheets. Motivated by the proximity of many drainage systems to low-albedo rock and blue-ice areas, we hypothesize a positive feedback between exposed-rock extent, BIA formation, melting and ice-sheet thinning. This feedback relies on drainage moving water long distances from areas near exposed rock, across the grounding line onto and across ice shelves - a process we observe, but had previously thought to be unlikely in Antarctica. This work highlights previously-overlooked processes, not captured by current regional-scale models, which may accelerate the retreat of the Antarctic Ice Sheet.

Queen Maud Land Traverses: Surface Glaciology (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cameron, R. L.

2009-12-01

One of the main tasks of a glaciologist is to determine the mass budget of a glacier; and snow accumulation is the first part of the equation. To do this, a great number of snow pits must be dug to analyze the stratigraphy. A. P. Crary once said “to be a glaciologist one should first of all love to dig snow pits.” Seventy-five snow pits were dug on the SPQMLT traverses. Several experienced glaciologists had difficulty in interpreting the stratigraphic sequences in these pits. Irregular layering, caused by uneven deposition and subsequent erosion, suggested that some of the layers could be missing. However, the fallout of artificial radioactive nuclides released by the first large thermonuclear bomb test, on March 1, 1954, at Castle Bravo on Bikini Atoll, Marshall Islands, produced a datum horizon over the Antarctic ice sheet. This horizon is the summer of 1954-55 and provides the basis for measuring the average accumulation since 1955. Accumulation varied from 6.7 ± 0.2 g cm-2 yr-1 at South Pole Station to a low of 0.6 ± 0.2 g cm-2 yr-1 in a pit on the second leg of SPQMLT 2. The average accumulation along the entire traverse route was 3.7 g cm-2 yr-1. Temperatures at ten meters (considered an approximate mean annual air temperature) varied from -58.4 degrees Centigrade at Plateau Station (elevation 3620 meters) to -38 degrees Centigrade at the terminus of SPQMLT 3 (elevation 2310 meters). The condition of the ice sheet surface varied considerably. Some surface was quite hard and easy to traverse; while other areas that were smooth and soft were troublesome enough to bog down vehicles and sleds. Sastrugi were sporadic with some as high as a meter. A large crevasse field forced a slight change in course toward the end of the first leg of SPQMLT 2. There the ice thickness changed dramatically from 3060 meters to 1852 meters. At the time the geophysicist said, “The ‘bottom’ came up so fast I thought we would hit a nunatak.”

Method of manufacturing metallic products such as sheet by cold working and flash anealing

DOEpatents

Hajaligol, Mohammad R.; Sikka, Vinod K.

2001-01-01

A metallic alloy composition is manufactured into products such as press formed or stamped products or rolled products such as sheet, strip, rod, wire or band by one or more cold working steps with intermediate or final flash annealing. The method can include cold rolling an iron, nickel or titanium aluminide alloy and annealing the cold worked product in a furnace by infrared heating. The flash annealing is preferably carried out by rapidly heating the cold worked product to an elevated temperature for less than one minute. The flash annealing is effective to reduce surface hardness of the cold worked product sufficiently to allow further cold working. The product to be cold worked can be prepared by casting the alloy or by a powder metallurgical technique such as tape casting a mixture of metal powder and a binder, roll compacting a mixture of the powder and a binder or plasma spraying the powder onto a substrate. In the case of tape casting or roll compaction, the initial powder product can be heated to a temperature sufficient to remove volatile components. The method can be used to form a cold rolled sheet which is formed into an electrical resistance heating element capable of heating to 900.degree. C. in less than 1 second when a voltage up to 10 volts and up to 6 amps is passed through the heating element.

Method of manufacturing metallic products such as sheet by cold working and flash annealing

DOEpatents

Hajaligol, Mohammad R.; Sikka, Vinod K.

2000-01-01

A metallic alloy composition is manufactured into products such as press formed or stamped products or rolled products such as sheet, strip, rod, wire or band by one or more cold working steps with intermediate or final flash annealing. The method can include cold rolling an iron, nickel or titanium aluminide alloy and annealing the cold worked product in a furnace by infrared heating. The flash annealing is preferably carried out by rapidly heating the cold worked product to an elevated temperature for less than one minute. The flash annealing is effective to reduce surface hardness of the cold worked product sufficiently to allow further cold working. The product to be cold worked can be prepared by casting the alloy or by a powder metallurgical technique such as tape casting a mixture of metal powder and a binder, roll compacting a mixture of the powder and a binder or plasma spraying the powder onto a substrate. In the case of tape casting or roll compaction, the initial powder product can be heated to a temperature sufficient to remove volatile components. The method can be used to form a cold rolled sheet which is formed into an electrical resistance heating element capable of heating to 900.degree. C. in less than 1 second when a voltage up to 10 volts and up to 6 amps is passed through the heating element.

Method for heating and forming a glass sheet

DOEpatents

Boaz, P.T.

1997-08-12

A method for heating and forming a glass sheet includes the steps of heating a glass sheet to at least a first predetermined temperature, applying microwave energy to the glass sheet to heat the glass sheet to at least a second predetermined temperature, cooling an outer surface of the glass sheet to at least a third predetermined temperature and forming the glass sheet using forming rollers to a predetermined configuration. 5 figs.

Last Interglacial climate and sea-level evolution from a coupled ice sheet-climate model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goelzer, Heiko; Huybrechts, Philippe; Loutre, Marie-France; Fichefet, Thierry

2016-12-01

As the most recent warm period in Earth's history with a sea-level stand higher than present, the Last Interglacial (LIG, ˜ 130 to 115 kyr BP) is often considered a prime example to study the impact of a warmer climate on the two polar ice sheets remaining today. Here we simulate the Last Interglacial climate, ice sheet, and sea-level evolution with the Earth system model of intermediate complexity LOVECLIM v.1.3, which includes dynamic and fully coupled components representing the atmosphere, the ocean and sea ice, the terrestrial biosphere, and the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. In this setup, sea-level evolution and climate-ice sheet interactions are modelled in a consistent framework.Surface mass balance change governed by changes in surface meltwater runoff is the dominant forcing for the Greenland ice sheet, which shows a peak sea-level contribution of 1.4 m at 123 kyr BP in the reference experiment. Our results indicate that ice sheet-climate feedbacks play an important role to amplify climate and sea-level changes in the Northern Hemisphere. The sensitivity of the Greenland ice sheet to surface temperature changes considerably increases when interactive albedo changes are considered. Southern Hemisphere polar and sub-polar ocean warming is limited throughout the Last Interglacial, and surface and sub-shelf melting exerts only a minor control on the Antarctic sea-level contribution with a peak of 4.4 m at 125 kyr BP. Retreat of the Antarctic ice sheet at the onset of the LIG is mainly forced by rising sea level and to a lesser extent by reduced ice shelf viscosity as the surface temperature increases. Global sea level shows a peak of 5.3 m at 124.5 kyr BP, which includes a minor contribution of 0.35 m from oceanic thermal expansion. Neither the individual contributions nor the total modelled sea-level stand show fast multi-millennial timescale variations as indicated by some reconstructions.

Parameter optimization and stretch enhancement of AISI 316 sheet using rapid prototyping technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moayedfar, M.; Rani, A. M.; Hanaei, H.; Ahmad, A.; Tale, A.

2017-10-01

Incremental sheet forming is a flexible manufacturing process which uses the indenter point-to-point force to shape the sheet metal workpiece into manufactured parts in batch production series. However, the problem sometimes arising from this process is the low plastic point in the stress-strain diagram of the material which leads the low stretching amount before ultra-tensile strain point. Hence, a set of experiments is designed to find the optimum forming parameters in this process for optimum sheet thickness distribution while both sides of the sheet are considered for the surface quality improvement. A five-axis high-speed CNC milling machine is employed to deliver the proper motion based on the programming system while the clamping system for holding the sheet metal was a blank mould. Finally, an electron microscope and roughness machine are utilized to evaluate the surface structure of final parts, illustrate any defect may cause during the forming process and examine the roughness of the final part surface accordingly. The best interaction between parameters is obtained with the optimum values which lead the maximum sheet thickness distribution of 4.211e-01 logarithmic elongation when the depth was 24mm with respect to the design. This study demonstrates that this rapid forming method offers an alternative solution for surface quality improvement of 65% avoiding the low probability of cracks and low probability of crystal structure changes.

Silk Film Topography Directs Collective Epithelial Cell Migration

PubMed Central

Rosenblatt, Mark I.

2012-01-01

The following study provides new insight into how surface topography dictates directed collective epithelial cell sheet growth through the guidance of individual cell movement. Collective cell behavior of migrating human corneal limbal-epithelial cell sheets were studied on highly biocompatible flat and micro-patterned silk film surfaces. The silk film edge topography guided the migratory direction of individual cells making up the collective epithelial sheet, which resulted in a 75% increase in total culture elongation. This was due to a 3-fold decrease in cell sheet migration rate efficiency for movement perpendicular to the topography edge. Individual cell migration direction is preferred in the parallel approach to the edge topography where localization of cytoskeletal proteins to the topography’s edge region is reduced, which results in the directed growth of the collective epithelial sheet. Findings indicate customized biomaterial surfaces may be created to direct both the migration rate and direction of tissue epithelialization. PMID:23185573

Method for heating, forming and tempering a glass sheet

DOEpatents

Boaz, P.T.; Sitzman, G.W.

1998-10-27

A method for heating, forming and tempering a glass sheet is disclosed including the steps of heating at least one glass sheet to at least a first predetermined temperature, applying microwave energy to the glass sheet to heat the glass sheet to at least a second predetermined temperature, forming the glass sheet to a predetermined configuration, and cooling an outer surface of the glass sheet to at least a third predetermined temperature to temper the glass sheet. 2 figs.

Numerical analysis of the bucket surface roughness effects in Pelton turbine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xiao, Y. X.; Zeng, C. J.; Zhang, J.; Yan, Z. G.; Wang, Z. W.

2013-12-01

The internal flow of a Pelton turbine is quite complex. It is difficult to analyse the unsteady free water sheet flow in the rotating bucket owing to the lack of a sound theory. Affected by manufacturing technique and silt abrasion during the operation, the bucket surface roughness of Pelton turbine may be too great, and thereby influence unit performance. To investigate the effect of bucket roughness on Pelton turbine performance, this paper presents the numerical simulation of the interaction between the jet and the bucket in a Pelton turbine. The unsteady three-dimensional numerical simulations were performed with CFX code by using the SST turbulence model coupling the two-phase flow volume of fluid method. Different magnitude orders of bucket surface roughness were analysed and compared. Unsteady numerical results of the free water sheet flow patterns on bucket surface, torque and unit performance for each bucket surface roughness were generated. The total pressure distribution on bucket surface is used to show the free water sheet flow pattern on bucket surface. By comparing the variation of water sheet flow patterns on bucket surface with different roughness, this paper qualitatively analyses how the bucket surface roughness magnitude influences the impeding effect on free water sheet flow. Comparison of the torque variation of different bucket surface roughness highlighted the effect of the bucket surface roughness on the Pelton turbine output capacity. To further investigate the effect of bucket surface roughness on Pelton turbine performance, the relation between the relative efficiency loss rate and bucket surface roughness magnitude is quantitatively analysed. The result can be used to predict and evaluate the Pelton turbine performance.

North elevation and second floor plan. San Bernardino Valley Union ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

North elevation and second floor plan. San Bernardino Valley Union Junior College, Science Building. Includes physics, geology, and zoology departments shelving. Howard E. Jones, Architect, San Bernardino, California. Sheet 4, job no. 311. Scales 1/8 inch to the foot (elevations) and 1/2 inch to the foot (shelving). February 15, 1927. - San Bernardino Valley College, Life Science Building, 701 South Mount Vernon Avenue, San Bernardino, San Bernardino County, CA

Incorporation of ice sheet models into an Earth system model: Focus on methodology of coupling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rybak, Oleg; Volodin, Evgeny; Morozova, Polina; Nevecherja, Artiom

2018-03-01

Elaboration of a modern Earth system model (ESM) requires incorporation of ice sheet dynamics. Coupling of an ice sheet model (ICM) to an AOGCM is complicated by essential differences in spatial and temporal scales of cryospheric, atmospheric and oceanic components. To overcome this difficulty, we apply two different approaches for the incorporation of ice sheets into an ESM. Coupling of the Antarctic ice sheet model (AISM) to the AOGCM is accomplished via using procedures of resampling, interpolation and assigning to the AISM grid points annually averaged meanings of air surface temperature and precipitation fields generated by the AOGCM. Surface melting, which takes place mainly on the margins of the Antarctic peninsula and on ice shelves fringing the continent, is currently ignored. AISM returns anomalies of surface topography back to the AOGCM. To couple the Greenland ice sheet model (GrISM) to the AOGCM, we use a simple buffer energy- and water-balance model (EWBM-G) to account for orographically-driven precipitation and other sub-grid AOGCM-generated quantities. The output of the EWBM-G consists of surface mass balance and air surface temperature to force the GrISM, and freshwater run-off to force thermohaline circulation in the oceanic block of the AOGCM. Because of a rather complex coupling procedure of GrIS compared to AIS, the paper mostly focuses on Greenland.

Laurentide ice-sheet instability during the last deglaciation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ullman, David J.; Carlson, Anders E.; Anslow, Faron S.; Legrande, Allegra N.; Licciardi, Joseph M.

2015-07-01

Changes in the amount of summer incoming solar radiation (insolation) reaching the Northern Hemisphere are the underlying pacemaker of glacial cycles. However, not all rises in boreal summer insolation over the past 800,000 years resulted in deglaciation to present-day ice volumes, suggesting that there may be a climatic threshold for the disappearance of land-based ice. Here we assess the surface mass balance stability of the Laurentide ice sheet--the largest glacial ice mass in the Northern Hemisphere--during the last deglaciation (24,000 to 9,000 years ago). We run a surface energy balance model with climate data from simulations with a fully coupled atmosphere-ocean general circulation model for key time slices during the last deglaciation. We find that the surface mass balance of the Laurentide ice sheet was positive throughout much of the deglaciation, and suggest that dynamic discharge was mainly responsible for mass loss during this time. Total surface mass balance became negative only in the early Holocene, indicating the transition to a new state where ice loss occurred primarily by surface ablation. We conclude that the Laurentide ice sheet remained a viable ice sheet before the Holocene and began to fully deglaciate only once summer temperatures and radiative forcing over the ice sheet increased by 6-7 °C and 16-20 W m-2, respectively, relative to full glacial conditions.

Ice core age dating and paleothermometer calibration based on isotope and temperature profiles from deep boreholes at Vostok Station (East Antarctica)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Salamatin, Andrey N.; Lipenkov, Vladimir Y.; Barkov, Nartsiss I.; Jouzel, Jean; Petit, Jean Robert; Raynaud, Dominique

1998-04-01

An interpretation of the deuterium profile measured along the Vostok (East Antarctica) ice core down to 2755 m has been attempted on the basis of the borehole temperature analysis. An inverse problem is solved to infer a local "geophysical metronome," the orbital signal in the surface temperature oscillations expressed as a sum of harmonics of Milankovich periods. By correlating the smoothed isotopic temperature record to the metronome, a chronostratigraphy of the Vostok ice core is derived with an accuracy of ±3.0-4.5 kyr. The developed timescale predicts an age of 241 kyr at a depth of 2760 m. The ratio δD/δTi between deuterium content and cloud temperature fluctuations (at the top of the inversion layer) is examined by fitting simulated and measured borehole temperature profiles. The conventional estimate of the deuterium-temperature slope corresponding to the present-day spatial ratio (9 per mil/°C) is confirmed in general. However, the mismatch between modeled and measured borehole temperatures decreases noticeably if we allow surface temperature, responsible for the thermal state of the ice sheet, to undergo more intensive precession oscillations than those of the inversion temperature traced by isotope record. With this assumption, we obtain the long-term temporal deuterium-temperature slope to be 5.8-6.5 per mil/°C which implies that the glacial-interglacial temperature increase over central Antarctica was about 15°C in the surface temperature and 10°C in the inversion temperature. Past variations of the accumulation rate and the corresponding changes in the ice-sheet surface elevation are simultaneously simulated.

Local Variability in Firn Layering and Compaction Rates Using GPR Data, Depth-Density Profiles, and In-Situ Reflectors in the Dry Snow Zone Near Summit Station, Greenland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lines, A.; Elliott, J.; Ray, L.; Albert, M. R.

2017-12-01

Understanding the surface mass balance (SMB) of the Greenland ice sheet is critical to evaluating its response to a changing climate. A key factor in translating satellite and airborne elevation measurements of the ice sheet to SMB is understanding natural variability of firn layer depth and the relative compaction rate of these layers. A site near Summit Station, Greenland was chosen to investigate the variation in layering across a 100m by 100m grid using a 900 MHz and a 2.6 GHz ground penetrating radar (GPR) antenna. These radargrams were ground truthed by taking depth density profiles of five 2m snow pits and five 5m firn cores within the 100m by 100m grid. Combining these measurements with the accumulation data from the nearby ICECAPS weekly bamboo forest measurements, it's possible to see how the snow deposition from individual storm events can vary over a small area. Five metal reflectors were also placed on the surface of the snow in the bounds of the grid to serve as reference reflectors for similar measurements that will be taken in the 2018 field season at Summit Station. This will assist in understanding how one year of accumulation in the dry snow zone impacts compaction and how this rate can vary over a small area.

Ice sheet climate modeling: past achievements, ongoing challenges, and future endeavors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lenaerts, J.

2017-12-01

Fluctuations in surface mass balance (SMB) mask out a substantial portion of contemporary Greenland and Antarctic ice sheet mass loss. That implies that we need accurate, consistent, and long-term SMB time series to isolate the mass loss signal. This in turn requires understanding of the processes driving SMB, and how they interplay. The primary controls on present-day ice sheet SMB are snowfall, which is regulated by large-scale atmospheric variability, and surface meltwater production at the ice sheet's edges, which is a complex result of atmosphere-surface interactions. Additionally, wind-driven snow redistribution and sublimation are large SMB contributors on the downslope areas of the ice sheets. Climate models provide an integrated framework to simulate all these individual ice sheet components. Recent developments in RACMO2, a regional climate model bound by atmospheric reanalyses, have focused on enhancing horizontal resolution, including blowing snow, snow albedo, and meltwater processes. Including these physics not only enhanced our understanding of the ice sheet climate system, but also enabled to obtain increasingly accurate estimates of ice sheet SMB. However, regional models are not suitable to capture the mutual interactions between ice sheet and the remainder of the global climate system in transient climates. To take that next step, global climate models are essential. In this talk, I will highlight our present work on improving ice sheet climate in the Community Earth System Model (CESM). In particular, we focus on an improved representation of polar firn, ice sheet clouds, and precipitation. For this exercise, we extensively use field observations, remote sensing data, as well as RACMO2. Next, I will highlight how CESM is used to enhance our understanding of ice sheet SMB, its drivers, and past and present changes.

Infused polymers for cell sheet release

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Juthani, Nidhi; Howell, Caitlin; Ledoux, Haylea; Sotiri, Irini; Kelso, Susan; Kovalenko, Yevgen; Tajik, Amanda; Vu, Thy L.; Lin, Jennifer J.; Sutton, Amy; Aizenberg, Joanna

2016-05-01

Tissue engineering using whole, intact cell sheets has shown promise in many cell-based therapies. However, current systems for the growth and release of these sheets can be expensive to purchase or difficult to fabricate, hindering their widespread use. Here, we describe a new approach to cell sheet release surfaces based on silicone oil-infused polydimethylsiloxane. By coating the surfaces with a layer of fibronectin (FN), we were able to grow mesenchymal stem cells to densities comparable to those of tissue culture polystyrene controls (TCPS). Simple introduction of oil underneath an edge of the sheet caused it to separate from the substrate. Characterization of sheets post-transfer showed that they retain their FN layer and morphology, remain highly viable, and are able to grow and proliferate normally after transfer. We expect that this method of cell sheet growth and detachment may be useful for low-cost, flexible, and customizable production of cellular layers for tissue engineering.

Infused polymers for cell sheet release

PubMed Central

Juthani, Nidhi; Howell, Caitlin; Ledoux, Haylea; Sotiri, Irini; Kelso, Susan; Kovalenko, Yevgen; Tajik, Amanda; Vu, Thy L.; Lin, Jennifer J.; Sutton, Amy; Aizenberg, Joanna

2016-01-01

Tissue engineering using whole, intact cell sheets has shown promise in many cell-based therapies. However, current systems for the growth and release of these sheets can be expensive to purchase or difficult to fabricate, hindering their widespread use. Here, we describe a new approach to cell sheet release surfaces based on silicone oil-infused polydimethylsiloxane. By coating the surfaces with a layer of fibronectin (FN), we were able to grow mesenchymal stem cells to densities comparable to those of tissue culture polystyrene controls (TCPS). Simple introduction of oil underneath an edge of the sheet caused it to separate from the substrate. Characterization of sheets post-transfer showed that they retain their FN layer and morphology, remain highly viable, and are able to grow and proliferate normally after transfer. We expect that this method of cell sheet growth and detachment may be useful for low-cost, flexible, and customizable production of cellular layers for tissue engineering. PMID:27189419

Infused polymers for cell sheet release.

PubMed

Juthani, Nidhi; Howell, Caitlin; Ledoux, Haylea; Sotiri, Irini; Kelso, Susan; Kovalenko, Yevgen; Tajik, Amanda; Vu, Thy L; Lin, Jennifer J; Sutton, Amy; Aizenberg, Joanna

2016-05-18

Tissue engineering using whole, intact cell sheets has shown promise in many cell-based therapies. However, current systems for the growth and release of these sheets can be expensive to purchase or difficult to fabricate, hindering their widespread use. Here, we describe a new approach to cell sheet release surfaces based on silicone oil-infused polydimethylsiloxane. By coating the surfaces with a layer of fibronectin (FN), we were able to grow mesenchymal stem cells to densities comparable to those of tissue culture polystyrene controls (TCPS). Simple introduction of oil underneath an edge of the sheet caused it to separate from the substrate. Characterization of sheets post-transfer showed that they retain their FN layer and morphology, remain highly viable, and are able to grow and proliferate normally after transfer. We expect that this method of cell sheet growth and detachment may be useful for low-cost, flexible, and customizable production of cellular layers for tissue engineering.

Method for shaping sheet thermoplastic and the like

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Akilian, Mireille K. (Inventor); Schattenburg, Mark L. (Inventor)

2011-01-01

Processes and apparati for shaping sheet glass or thermoplastic materials use force from a layer of a flowing fluid, such as air, between the sheet and a mandrel at close to the softening temperature of the thermoplastic. The shape is preserved by cooling. The shape of the air bearing mandrel and the pressure distribution of the fluid contribute to the final shape. A process can be conducted on one or two surfaces such that the force from the air layer is on one or two surfaces of the sheet. The gap size between the sheet and mandrel determines the pressure profile in the gap, which also determines the final sheet shape. In general, smaller gaps lead to larger viscous forces. The pressure profile depends on the shape of the mandrel, the size of the fluid gap and the sheet and the fluid supply pressure.

Thin sheets achieve optimal wrapping of liquids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paulsen, Joseph; Démery, Vincent; Davidovitch, Benny; Santangelo, Christian; Russell, Thomas; Menon, Narayanan

2015-03-01

A liquid drop can wrap itself in a sheet using capillary forces [Py et al., PRL 98, 2007]. However, the efficiency of ``capillary origami'' at covering the surface of a drop is hampered by the mechanical cost of bending the sheet. Thinner sheets deform more readily by forming small-scale wrinkles and stress-focussing patterns, but it is unclear how coverage efficiency competes with mechanical cost as thickness is decreased, and what wrapping shapes will emerge. We place a thin (~ 100 nm) polymer film on a drop whose volume is gradually decreased so that the sheet covers an increasing fraction of its surface. The sheet exhibits a complex sequence of axisymmetric and polygonal partially- and fully- wrapped shapes. Remarkably, the progression appears independent of mechanical properties. The gross shape, which neglects small-scale features, is correctly predicted by a simple geometric approach wherein the exposed area is minimized. Thus, simply using a thin enough sheet results in maximal coverage.

Overview of the ICESat Mission and Results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zwally, H.

2004-12-01

NASA's Ice, Cloud, and Land Elevation Satellite (ICESat), launched in January, 2003, has been measuring surface elevations of ice and land, vertical distributions of clouds and aerosols, vegetation-canopy heights, and other features with unprecedented accuracy and sensitivity. The ICESat mission, which was designed to operate continuously for 3 to 5 years, has so far acquired science data during five periods of laser operation ranging from 33 to 54 days each. The primary purpose of ICESat has been to acquire time-series of ice-sheet elevation changes for determination of the present-day mass balance of the ice sheets, study of associations between observed ice changes and polar climate, and improve estimates of the present and future contributions to global sea level rise. ICEsat's atmospheric measurements are providing fundamentally new information on the precise vertical structure of clouds and aerosols. In particular, cloud heights are important for understanding radiation balance and their effects on climate change. Other applications include mapping of polar sea-ice freeboard and thickness, high-resolution mapping of ocean eddies, glacier topography, and lake and river levels. ICESat has a 1064 nm laser channel for near-surface altimetry with a designed range precision of 10 cm that is actually 2 cm on-orbit. Vertical distributions of clouds and aerosols are obtained with 75 m resolution from both the 1064 nm channel and the more sensitive 532 nm channel. The laser footprints are about 70 m spaced at 170 m along-track. The accuracy of the satellite-orbital heights is about 3 cm. The star-tracking attitude-determination system should enable footprints to be located to 6 m horizontally when attitude calibration is completed. The spacecraft attitude is controlled to point the laser beam to within 100 m (35 m goal) of reference surface tracks at high latitudes and to point off-nadir up to 5 degrees to targets of interest. The remaining laser lifetime will be used for approximately 33-day periods at 3 to 6 month-intervals to optimize the science return. The first ICESat was intended to be followed by successive missions to measure changes over 15 years, and has clearly proven the unique capability of laser measurements to meet multi-disciplinary science objectives. An example of continuing requirements is: "Continued observations with satellite altimeters, including . the laser altimeter on ICESat . should be continued for at least 15 years . to establish the climate sensitivities of the ice mass balance and decadal-scale trends" (Climate Change 2001, IPCC, 2001).

Assessing spatio-temporal variability and trends in modelled and measured Greenland Ice Sheet albedo (2000-2013)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alexander, P. M.; Tedesco, M.; Fettweis, X.; van de Wal, R. S. W.; Smeets, C. J. P. P.; van den Broeke, M. R.

2014-12-01

Accurate measurements and simulations of Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) surface albedo are essential, given the role of surface albedo in modulating the amount of absorbed solar radiation and meltwater production. In this study, we assess the spatio-temporal variability of GrIS albedo during June, July, and August (JJA) for the period 2000-2013. We use two remote sensing products derived from data collected by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), as well as outputs from the Modèle Atmosphérique Régionale (MAR) regional climate model (RCM) and data from in situ automatic weather stations. Our results point to an overall consistency in spatio-temporal variability between remote sensing and RCM albedo, but reveal a difference in mean albedo of up to ~0.08 between the two remote sensing products north of 70° N. At low elevations, albedo values simulated by the RCM are positively biased with respect to remote sensing products by up to ~0.1 and exhibit low variability compared with observations. We infer that these differences are the result of a positive bias in simulated bare ice albedo. MODIS albedo, RCM outputs, and in situ observations consistently indicate a decrease in albedo of -0.03 to -0.06 per decade over the period 2003-2013 for the GrIS ablation area. Nevertheless, satellite products show a decline in JJA albedo of -0.03 to -0.04 per decade for regions within the accumulation area that is not confirmed by either the model or in situ observations. These findings appear to contradict a previous study that found an agreement between in situ and MODIS trends for individual months. The results indicate a need for further evaluation of high elevation albedo trends, a reconciliation of MODIS mean albedo at high latitudes, and the importance of accurately simulating bare ice albedo in RCMs.

Influence of Surface Tension and Surface Shear on Final Coat Thickness in Jet-Stripped Continuous Coating of Sheet Materials.

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-11-01

galvanising industry, this pressure distribution is created by blowing a thin high-speed air jet onto the coated steel sheet, just after it emerges from the...if that free surface possesses curvature and non-zero surface tension, the internal pressure will differ from that in the jet. In the galvanising

New type of nonglossy image-receiving sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aono, Toshiaki; Shibata, Takeshi; Nakamura, Yoshisada

1990-07-01

We have developed a new type of non-glossy surface of an image receiving sheet for a photothermographic color hardcopy system. There is a basic conflict in realizing uniform dye transfer with use of a receiving sheet having a matted surface, because when the degree of roughness exceeds a certain extent, uneven dye transfer readily takes place. It: has been solved by use of "microscopic" phase separation of a certain water-soluble polymer blend which constitutes the surface layer of the image receiving sheet. One of the preferable polymer blends for our purpose proved to be a ternary system, consisting of sodium salt of polymethacrylic acid (PMAA-Na), ammonium salt of polyacrylic acid (PAA-NH4) and water. Phase separation, which proceeded during the evaporation of water from the coated mixture, turned out to be of a spinodal decomposition type and thus capable of stably providing a desirable non-glossy surface.

Seismicity on the western Greenland Ice Sheet: Surface fracture in the vicinity of active moulins

DOE PAGES

Carmichael, Joshua D.; Joughin, Ian; Behn, Mark D.; ...

2015-06-25

We analyzed geophone and GPS measurements collected within the ablation zone of the western Greenland Ice Sheet during a ~35 day period of the 2011 melt season to study changes in ice deformation before, during, and after a supraglacial lake drainage event. During rapid lake drainage, ice flow speeds increased to ~400% of winter values, and icequake activity peaked. At times >7 days after drainage, this seismicity developed variability over both diurnal and longer periods (~10 days), while coincident ice speeds fell to ~150% of winter values and showed nightly peaks in spatial variability. Approximately 95% of all detected seismicitymore » in the lake basin and its immediate vicinity was triggered by fracture propagation within near-surface ice (<330 m deep) that generated Rayleigh waves. Icequakes occurring before and during drainage frequently were collocated with the down flow (west) end of the primary hydrofracture through which the lake drained but shifted farther west and outside the lake basin after the drainage. We interpret these results to reveal vertical hydrofracture opening and local uplift during the drainage, followed by enhanced seismicity and ice flow on the downstream side of the lake basin. This region collocates with interferometric synthetic aperture radar-measured speedup in previous years and could reflect the migration path of the meltwater supplied to the bed by the lake. The diurnal seismic signal can be associated with nightly reductions in surface melt input that increase effective basal pressure and traction, thereby promoting elevated strain in the surficial ice.« less

Evaporation and combustion of LOX under supercritical and subcritical conditions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yang, A. S.; Hsieh, W. H.; Kuo, K. K.

1993-01-01

The objective is to study the evaporation and combustion of LOX under supercritical and subcritical conditions both experimentally and theoretically. In the evaporation studies, evaporation rate and surface temperature were measured when LOX vaporizing in helium environments at pressures ranging from 5 to 68 atm. A Varian 3700 gas chromatograph was employed to measure the oxygen concentration above the LOX surface. For the combustion tests, high-magnification video photography was used to record direct images of the flame shape of a LOX/H2/He laminar diffusion flame. The gas composition in the post-flame region is also being measured with the gas sampling and chromatography analysis. These data are being used to validate the theoretical model. A comprehensive theoretical model with the consideration of the solubility of ambient gases as well as variable thermophysical properties was formulated and solved numerically to study the gasification and burning of LOX at elevated pressures. The calculated flame shape agreed reasonably well with the edge of the observed luminous flame surface. The effect of gravity on the flame structure of laminar diffusion flames was found to be significant. In addition, the predicted results using the flame-sheet model were compared with those based upon full equilibrium calculations (which considered the formation of intermediate species) at supercritical pressures. Except at the flame front where temperature exceeded 2,800 K, the flame-sheet and equilibrium solutions in terms of temperature distributions were in very close agreement. The temperature deviation in the neighborhood of the flame front is caused by the effect of high-temperature dissociation.

Rapid Holocene thinning of outlet glaciers followed by readvance in the western Ross Embayment, Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jones, R. S.; Whitmore, R.; Mackintosh, A.; Norton, K. P.; Eaves, S.; Stutz, J.

2017-12-01

Investigating Antarctic deglaciation following the LGM provides an opportunity to better understand patterns, mechanisms and drivers of ice sheet retreat. In the Ross Sea sector, geomorphic features preserved on the seafloor indicate that streaming East Antarctic outlet glaciers once extended >100 km offshore of South Victoria Land prior to back-stepping towards their modern configurations. In order to adequately interpret the style and causes of this retreat, the timing and magnitude of corresponding ice thickness change is required. We present new constraints on ice surface lowering from Mawson Glacier, an outlet of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet that flows into the western Ross Sea. Surface-exposure (10Be) ages from samples collected in elevation transects above the modern ice surface reveal that rapid thinning occurred at 5-8 ka, broadly coeval with new ages of grounding-line retreat at 6 ka and rapid thinning recorded at nearby Mackay Glacier at 7 ka. Our data also show that a moraine formed near to the modern ice margin of Mawson Glacier at 0.8 ka, which, together with historical observations, indicates that glaciers in this region readvanced during the last thousand years. We argue that 1) the accelerated thinning of outlet glaciers was driven by local grounding-line retreat through overdeepened basins during the early-mid Holocene, and 2) the glaciers subsequently readvanced, possibly linked to late Holocene sea-ice expansion, before retreating to their current positions. Our work demonstrates that these outlet glaciers were closely coupled to environmental and topography-induced perturbations near their termini throughout the Holocene.

Unusual radar echoes from the Greenland ice sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rignot, E. J.; Vanzyl, J. J.; Ostro, S. J.; Jezek, K. C.

1993-01-01

In June 1991, the NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratory airborne synthetic-aperture radar (AIRSAR) instrument collected the first calibrated data set of multifrequency, polarimetric, radar observations of the Greenland ice sheet. At the time of the AIRSAR overflight, ground teams recorded the snow and firn (old snow) stratigraphy, grain size, density, and temperature at ice camps in three of the four snow zones identified by glaciologists to characterize four different degrees of summer melting of the Greenland ice sheet. The four snow zones are: (1) the dry-snow zone, at high elevation, where melting rarely occurs; (2) the percolation zone, where summer melting generates water that percolates down through the cold, porous, dry snow and then refreezes in place to form massive layers and pipes of solid ice; (3) the soaked-snow zone where melting saturates the snow with liquid water and forms standing lakes; and (4) the ablation zone, at the lowest elevations, where melting is vigorous enough to remove the seasonal snow cover and ablate the glacier ice. There is interest in mapping the spatial extent and temporal variability of these different snow zones repeatedly by using remote sensing techniques. The objectives of the 1991 experiment were to study changes in radar scattering properties across the different melting zones of the Greenland ice sheet, and relate the radar properties of the ice sheet to the snow and firn physical properties via relevant scattering mechanisms. Here, we present an analysis of the unusual radar echoes measured from the percolation zone.

The Potsdam Parallel Ice Sheet Model (PISM-PIK) - Part 2: Dynamic equilibrium simulation of the Antarctic ice sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martin, M. A.; Winkelmann, R.; Haseloff, M.; Albrecht, T.; Bueler, E.; Khroulev, C.; Levermann, A.

2010-08-01

We present a dynamic equilibrium simulation of the ice sheet-shelf system on Antarctica with the Potsdam Parallel Ice Sheet Model (PISM-PIK). The simulation is initialized with present-day conditions for topography and ice thickness and then run to steady state with constant present-day surface mass balance. Surface temperature and basal melt distribution are parameterized. Grounding lines and calving fronts are free to evolve, and their modeled equilibrium state is compared to observational data. A physically-motivated dynamic calving law based on horizontal spreading rates allows for realistic calving fronts for various types of shelves. Steady-state dynamics including surface velocity and ice flux are analyzed for whole Antarctica and the Ronne-Filchner and Ross ice shelf areas in particular. The results show that the different flow regimes in sheet and shelves, and the transition zone between them, are captured reasonably well, supporting the approach of superposition of SIA and SSA for the representation of fast motion of grounded ice. This approach also leads to a natural emergence of streams in this new 3-D marine ice sheet model.

Substorm-related plasma sheet motions as determined from differential timing of plasma changes at the ISEE satellites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Forbes, T. G.; Hones, E. W., Jr.; Bame, S. J.; Asbridge, J. R.; Paschmann, G.; Sckopke, N.; Russell, C. T.

1981-01-01

From an ISEE survey of substorm dropouts and recoveries during the period February 5 to May 25, 1978, 66 timing events observed by the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory/Max-Planck-Institut Fast Plasma Experiments were studied in detail. Near substorm onset, both the average timing velocity and the bulk flow velocity at the edge of the plasma sheet are inward, toward the center. Measured normal to the surface of the plasma sheet, the timing velocity is 23 + or - 18 km/s and the proton flow velocity is 20 + or - 8 km/s. During substorm recovery, the plasma sheet reappears moving outward with an average timing velocity of 133 + or - 31 km/s; however, the corresponding proton flow velocity is only 3 + or - 7 km/s in the same direction. It is suggested that the difference between the average timing velocity for the expansion of the plasma sheet and the plasma bulk flow perpendicular to the surface of the sheet during substorm recovery is most likely the result of surface waves moving past the position of the satellites.

Spray From a Rolling Tire: Mechanics of Droplet Formation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plocher, Dennis; Browand, Fred

2010-11-01

The spray pattern immediately behind a single-groove tire rolling on a wet surface is produced in the laboratory using a specially designed tire spray simulator. The spray development is examined using high speed video. Water from the groove forms a liquid sheet as the tire-tread lifts away from the surface. The sheet is not of uniform thickness, but it remains attached to the tread. The thinner portions of the sheet become even thinner as the tire rotates, and eventually break to produce holes near the tire surface. The holes grow as the sheet margins surrounding the holes retract into the thicker portions of the sheet which become roughly cylindrical "ligaments" aligned at right angles to the direction of spray motion. The ligaments break into large droplets via a Rayleigh instability. The smallest droplets form when the margins of two holes collide. As Weber number, We = ρU^2w/2σ , based on tire groove half width, w/2, varies by a factor of 25, the sheet-ligament structure persists, but ligaments become less organized, and more small droplets appear in the pattern.

Programme for Monitoring of the Greenland Ice Sheet - Ice Surface Velocities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andersen, S. B.; Ahlstrom, A. P.; Boncori, J. M.; Dall, J.

2011-12-01

In 2007, the Danish Ministry of Climate and Energy launched the Programme for Monitoring of the Greenland Ice Sheet (PROMICE) as an ongoing effort to assess changes in the mass budget of the Greenland Ice Sheet. Iceberg calving from the outlet glaciers of the Greenland Ice Sheet, often termed the ice-dynamic mass loss, is responsible for an important part of the mass loss during the last decade. To quantify this part of the mass loss, we combine airborne surveys yielding ice-sheet thickness along the entire margin, with surface velocities derived from satellite synthetic-aperture radar (SAR). In order to derive ice sheet surface velocities from SAR a processing chain has been developed for GEUS by DTU Space based on a commercial software package distributed by GAMMA Remote Sensing. The processor, named SUSIE (Scripts and Utilities for SAR Ice-motion Estimation), can use both differential SAR interferometry and offset-tracking techniques to measure the horizontal velocity components, providing also an estimate of the corresponding measurement error. So far surface velocities have been derived for a number of sites including Nioghalvfjerdsfjord Glacier, the Kangerlussuaq region, the Nuuk region, Helheim Glacier and Daugaard-Jensen Glacier using data from ERS-1/ERS-2, ENVISAT ASAR and ALOS Palsar. Here we will present these first results.

Meltwater flux and runoff modeling in the abalation area of jakobshavn Isbrae, West Greenland

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

Mernild, Sebastian Haugard; Chylek, Petr; Liston, Glen

2009-01-01

The temporal variability in surface snow and glacier melt flux and runoff were investigated for the ablation area of lakobshavn Isbrae, West Greenland. High-resolution meteorological observations both on and outside the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) were used as model input. Realistic descriptions of snow accumulation, snow and glacier-ice melt, and runoff are essential to understand trends in ice sheet surface properties and processes. SnowModel, a physically based, spatially distributed meteorological and snow-evolution modeling system was used to simulate the temporal variability of lakobshavn Isbrre accumulation and ablation processes for 2000/01-2006/07. Winter snow-depth observations and MODIS satellite-derived summer melt observations weremore » used for model validation of accumulation and ablation. Simulations agreed well with observed values. Simulated annual surface melt varied from as low as 3.83 x 10{sup 9} m{sup 3} (2001/02) to as high as 8.64 x 10{sup 9} m{sup 3} (2004/05). Modeled surface melt occurred at elevations reaching 1,870 m a.s.l. for 2004/05, while the equilibrium line altitude (ELA) fluctuated from 990 to 1,210 m a.s.l. during the simulation period. The SnowModel meltwater retention and refreezing routines considerably reduce the amount of meltwater available as ice sheet runoff; without these routines the lakobshavn surface runoff would be overestimated by an average of 80%. From September/October through May/June no runoff events were simulated. The modeled interannual runoff variability varied from 1.81 x 10{sup 9} m{sup 3} (2001/02) to 5.21 x 10{sup 9} m{sup 3} (2004/05), yielding a cumulative runoff at the Jakobshavn glacier terminus of {approx}2.25 m w.eq. to {approx}4.5 m w.eq., respectively. The average modeled lakobshavn runoff of {approx}3.4 km{sup 3} y{sup -1} was merged with previous estimates of Jakobshavn ice discharge to quantify the freshwater flux to Illulissat Icefiord. For both runoff and ice discharge the average trends are similar, indicating increasing (insignificant) influx of freshwater to the Illulissat Icefiord for the period 2000/01-2006/07. This study suggests that surface runoff forms a minor part of the overall Jakobshavn freshwater flux to the fiord: around 7% ({approx}3.4 km{sup 3} y{sup -1}) of the average annual freshwater flux of {approx}51.0 km{sup 3} y{sup -1} originates from the surface runoff.« less

Development of a Climate-Data Record (CDR) of the Surface Temperature of the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, Dorthy K.; Comiso, Josefino C.; Shuman, Christopher A.; DiGirolamo, Nicolo E.; Stock, Larry V.

2010-01-01

Regional "clear sky" surface temperature increases since the early 1980s in the Arctic, measured using Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) infrared data, range from 0.57+/-0.02 deg C to 72+/-0.10 deg C per decade. Arctic warming has important implications for ice-sheet mass balance because much of the periphery of the Greenland Ice Sheet is already near 0 deg C during the melt season, and is thus vulnerable to rapid melting if temperatures continue to increase. An increase in melting of the ice sheet would accelerate sea-level rise, an issue affecting potentially billions of people worldwide. To quantify the ice-surface temperature (IST) of the Greenland Ice Sheet, and to provide an IST dataset of Greenland for modelers that provides uncertainties, we are developing a climate-data record (CDR) of daily "clear-sky" IST of the Greenland Ice Sheet, from 1982 to the present using AVHRR (1982 - present) and Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data (2000 - present) at a resolution of approximately 5 km. Known issues being addressed in the production of the CDR are: time-series bias caused by cloud cover (surface temperatures can be different under clouds vs. clear areas) and cross-calibration in the overlap period between AVHRR instruments, and between AVHRR and MODIS instruments. Because of uncertainties, mainly due to clouds, time-series of satellite IST do not necessarily correspond with actual surface temperatures. The CDR will be validated by comparing results with automatic-weather station data and with satellite-derived surface-temperature products and biases will be calculated.

Wave-induced drift of large floating sheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Christensen, K. H.; Weber, J. E.

In this article we study the wave-induced drift of large, flexible shallow floating objects, referred to as sheets. When surface waves propagate through a sheet, they provide a mean stress on the sheet, resulting in a mean drift. In response, the sheet generates an Ekman current. The drift velocity of the sheet is determined by (i) the wave-induced stress, (ii) the viscous stress due to the Ekman current, and (iii) the Coriolis force. The sheet velocity and the current beneath the sheet are determined for constant and depth-varying eddy viscosities.

Microstructure evolution of a dissimilar junction interface between an Al sheet and a Ni-coated Cu sheet joined by magnetic pulse welding

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

Itoi, Takaomi, E-mail: itoi@faculty.chiba-u.jp

An Al sheet and a Ni-coated Cu sheet were lap joined by using magnetic pulse welding (MPW). Tensile tests were performed on the joined sheets, and a good lap joint was achieved at a discharge energy of > 0.9 kJ. The weld interface exhibited a wavy morphology and an intermediate layer along the weld interface. Microstructure observations of the intermediate layer revealed that the Ni coating region consisted of a Ni–Al binary amorphous alloy and that the Al sheet region contained very fine Al nanograins. Ni fragments indicative of unmelted residual Ni from the coating were also observed in partsmore » of the intermediate layer. Formation of these features can be attributed to localize melting and a subsequent high rate cooling of molten Al and Ni confined to the interface during the MPW process. In the absence of an oxide film, atomic-scale bonding was also achieved between the intermediate layer and the sheet surfaces after the collision. MPW utilises impact energy, which affects the sheet surfaces. From the obtained results, good lap joint is attributed to an increased contact area, the anchor effect, work hardening, the absence of an oxide film, and suppressed formation of intermetallic compounds at the interface. - Highlights: •Good lap joint of an Al sheet and a Ni-coated Cu sheet was achieved by using magnetic pulse welding. •A Ni–Al binary amorphous alloy was formed as an intermediate layer at weld interface. •Atomic-scale bonding was achieved between the intermediate layer and the sheet surfaces.« less

Observed use of voluntary controls to reduce physical exposures among sheet metal workers of the mechanical trade

PubMed Central

Dale, Ann Marie; Miller, Kim; Gardner, Bethany T.; Hwang, Ching-Ting; Evanoff, Bradley; Welch, Laura

2015-01-01

Introduction Little is known about the transfer into the workplace of interventions designed to reduce the physical demands of sheet metal workers. Methods We reviewed videos from a case series of 15 sheet metal worksite assessments performed in 2007–2009 to score postures and physical loads, and to observe the use of recommended interventions to reduce physical exposures in sheet metal activities made by a NIOSH stakeholder meeting in 2002. Results Workers showed consistent use of material handling devices, but we observed few uses of recommended interventions to reduce exposures during overhead work. Workers spent large proportions of time in awkward shoulder elevation and low back rotation postures. Conclusions In addition to the development of new technologies and system designs, increased adoption of existing tools and practices could reduce time spent in awkward postures and other risks for musculoskeletal disorders in sheet metal work. PMID:26360196

Process development for Ni-Cr-ThO2 and Ni-Cr-Al-ThO2 sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cook, R. C.; Norris, L. F.

1973-01-01

A process was developed for the production of thin gauge Ni-Cr-ThO2 sheet. The process was based on the elevated temperature deposition of chromium onto a wrought Ni-2%ThO2 sheet and subsequent high temperature diffusion heat treatments to minimize chromium concentration gradients within the sheet. The mechanical properties of the alloy were found to be critically dependent on those of the Ni-2%ThO2 sheet. A similar process for the production of a Ni-Cr-Al-ThO2 alloy having improved oxidation resistance was investigated but the non-reproducible deposition of aluminum from duplex Cr/Al packs precluded successful scale-up. The mechanical properties of the Ni-Cr-Al-ThO2 alloys were generally equivalent to the best Ni-Cr-ThO2 alloy produced in the programme.

A coronal magnetic field model with horizontal volume and sheet currents

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zhao, Xuepu; Hoeksema, J. Todd

1994-01-01

When globally mapping the observed photospheric magnetic field into the corona, the interaction of the solar wind and magnetic field has been treated either by imposing source surface boundary conditions that tacitly require volume currents outside the source surface or by limiting the interaction to thin current sheets between oppositely directed field regions. Yet observations and numerical Magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) calculations suggest the presence of non-force-free volume currents throughout the corona as well as thin current sheets in the neighborhoods of the interfaces between closed and open field lines or between oppositely directed open field lines surrounding coronal helmet-streamer structures. This work presents a model including both horizontal volume currents and streamer sheet currents. The present model builds on the magnetostatic equilibria developed by Bogdan and Low and the current-sheet modeling technique developed by Schatten. The calculation uses synoptic charts of the line-of-sight component of the photospheric magnetic field measured at the Wilcox Solar Observatory. Comparison of an MHD model with the calculated model results for the case of a dipole field and comparison of eclipse observations with calculations for CR 1647 (near solar minimum) show that this horizontal current-current-sheet model reproduces polar plumes and axes of corona streamers better than the source-surface model and reproduces polar plumes and axes of corona streamers better than the source-surface model and reproduces coro nal helmet structures better than the current-sheet model.

Non-Evolutionarity of a Reconnecting Current Sheet as a Cause of Its Splitting into MHD Shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Markovsky, S. A.; Somov, B. V.

1995-04-01

Numerical simulations of the magnetic reconnection process in a current sheet show that, in some cases, MHD shocks appear to be attached to edges of the sheet. The appearance of the shocks may be considered to be a result of splitting of the sheet. In the present paper we suppose that this splitting takes place in consequence of non-evolutionarity of the reconnecting current sheet as a discontinuity. The problem of time evolution of small perturbations does not have a unique solution for a non-evolutionary discontinuity, and it splits into other (evolutionary) discontinuities. Such an approach allows us to determine conditions under which the splitting of the-sheet occurs. The main difficulty of this approach is that a current sheet is not reduced to a classified 1D discontinuity, because inhomogeneity of flow velocity inside the sheet is two-dimensional. To formulate the non-evolutionarity problem, we solve the linear MHD equations inside and outside the sheet and deduce linearized 1D boundary conditions at its surface. We show that for large enough conductivity, small perturbations exist which interact with the sheet as with a discontinuity. Then we obtain a non-evolutionarity criterion, with respect to these perturbations, in the form of a restriction on the flow velocity across the surface of the sheet.

Spin-density wave state in simple hexagonal graphite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mosoyan, K. S.; Rozhkov, A. V.; Sboychakov, A. O.; Rakhmanov, A. L.

2018-02-01

Simple hexagonal graphite, also known as AA graphite, is a metastable configuration of graphite. Using tight-binding approximation, it is easy to show that AA graphite is a metal with well-defined Fermi surface. The Fermi surface consists of two sheets, each shaped like a rugby ball. One sheet corresponds to electron states, another corresponds to hole states. The Fermi surface demonstrates good nesting: a suitable translation in the reciprocal space superposes one sheet onto another. In the presence of the electron-electron repulsion, a nested Fermi surface is unstable with respect to spin-density-wave ordering. This instability is studied using the mean-field theory at zero temperature, and the spin-density-wave order parameter is evaluated.

Challenges in Understanding and Predicting Greenland Lake Drainage Events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Poinar, K.; Andrews, L. C.; Moon, T. A.; Nowicki, S.

2017-12-01

To accurately predict ice flow, an ice-sheet model must resolve the complex spatio-temporal variability of the ice-sheet hydrologic system. For Greenland, this requires understanding rapid lake drainage events, by which moulins deliver water from supraglacial lakes to the ice-sheet base. Critical metrics include the drainage event location and its timing during the melt season. Here, we use multiple remote sensing datasets to investigate whether local principal strain rates control the dates of rapid supraglacial lake drainage events. We identify 359 rapid lake drainage events through a semi-automated analysis of MODIS and Landsat imagery, which we apply to Pâkitsoq, western Greenland, over nine summers (2006-2010 and 2013-2016). We compare these drainage dates to principal strain rates derived from InSAR (MEaSUREs and other products) and Landsat (GoLIVE and other products) satellite data over the same years. The InSAR-derived strain rates have lower uncertainties ( 0.01 yr-1) but capture only a wintertime average; the Landsat-derived strain rates have larger uncertainties ( 0.1 yr-1) but feature higher temporal resolution (≥16 days) and span the entire year, including the melt season. We find that locations with more-tensile wintertime strain rates are associated with earlier draining of supraglacial lakes in the subsequent summer. This is consistent with observations of lake drainage "clusters" or "cascades", where the perturbation from an initial lake drainage event is thought to trigger other lake drainages in the area. Our relation is not statistically significant, however, and any causality is complicated by a stronger correlation with more traditional metrics such as surface elevation and cumulative melt days. We also find that the Landsat-derived summertime strain rates, despite their higher temporal resolution, do not resolve the transient extensional strain rates known from GPS observations to accompany and/or incite rapid lake drainages. Our results highlight the current challenges in observing, at the regional scale, the causes of rapid lake drainage events, which must be better understood in order to parameterize surface-to-bed hydrological connections in ice-sheet models.

Carbonate deposition, Pyramid Lake subbasin, Nevada: 1. Sequence of formation and elevational distribution of carbonate deposits (Tufas)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Benson, L.

1994-01-01

During the late Quarternary, the elevation of terrace cutting and carbonate deposition in the Pyramid Lake subbasin were controlled by constancy of lake level imposed by spill to adjoining subbasins. Sill elevations are 1177-1183 m (Mud Lake Slough Sill), 1207 m (Emerson Pass Sill), and 1265 m (Darwin Pass Sill). Carbonate deposition was favored by: (1) hydrologic closure, (2) proximity to a source of calcium, (3) elevated water temperature, and (4) a solid substrate. The thickness and aspect of tufa are a function oflake-level dynamics. Relatively thin sheets and pendant sheets were deposited during a rising or falling lake. The upper parts of thick reef-form tufas have a horizontal aspect and were deposited in a lake which was stabilized by spill to the Carson Desert subbasin. The lower parts of the reef-form tufas are thinner and their outer surface has a vertical aspect, indicating that the lower part formed in a receding lake. The thickest and most complete sequences of tufa are mounds that border the Pyramid Lake shore. The tops of the tallest mounds reach the elevation of the Darwin Pass Sill and many mounds have been eroded to the elevations of the Mud Lake Slough Sill of the Emerson Pass Sill. The sequence of tufa formation (from oldest to youngest) displayed in these mounds is: (1) a beachrock containing carbonate-cemented volcanic cobbles, (2) broken and eroded old spheroids that contain thinolitic tufa and an outer rind of dense laminated tufa, (3) large cylindrical (tubular) tufas capped by (4) coatings of old dense tufas, and (5) several generations of old branching tufa commonly associated with thin, platy tufas and coatings of thinolitic tufa, (6) young spheroids that contain poorly oriented young thinolitic tufa in the center and several generations of radially oriented young thinolitic tufas near the outer edge, (7) a transitional thinolite-to-branching tufa, (8) two or more layers of young branching tufa, (9) a 0.5-cm-thick layer of fine-grained dolomite, (10) a 2-cm-thick layer of young dense laminated tufa, (11) a 0.1-cm-thick layer of encrusting tufa that was covered by a beach deposit and (12) a 1.0-cm-thick layer of porous encrusting tufa that coated the beach deposit and the sides of tufa mounds. The elevational ranges of the principal varieties of tufa are not related to terrace or spill elevations. It seems likely that the distribution of tufa varieties is related to variation in the thermal structure or chemistry of Lake Lahontan. It is hypothesized that the thinolitic tufa (ikaite) formed in the near freezing hypolimnion and the braching tufa (calcite) formed in the seasonally warmer epiliminion of the lake. ?? 1994.

High-speed non-contact measuring apparatus for gauging the thickness of moving sheet material

DOEpatents

Grann, Eric B.; Holcomb, David E.

2000-01-01

An optical measurement apparatus is provided for measuring the thickness of a moving sheet material (18). The apparatus has a pair of optical measurement systems (21, 31) attached to opposing surfaces (14, 16) of a rigid support structure (10). A pair of high-power laser diodes (20,30) and a pair of photodetector arrays (22,32) are attached to the opposing surfaces. Light emitted from the laser diodes is reflected off of the sheet material surfaces (17, 19) and received by the respective photodetector arrays. An associated method for implementing the apparatus is also provided.

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

Gupta, Preeti; Deep, Shashank, E-mail: sdeep@chemistry.iitd.ac.in

Highlights: • HCAII forms amyloid-like aggregates at moderate concentration of trifluoroethanol. • Protein adopts a state between β-sheet and α-helix at moderate % of TFE. • Hydrophobic surface(s) of partially structured conformation forms amyloid. • High % of TFE induces stable α-helical state preventing aggregation. - Abstract: In the present work, we examined the correlation between 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol (TFE)-induced conformational transitions of human carbonic anhydrase II (HCAII) and its aggregation propensity. Circular dichroism data indicates that protein undergoes a transition from β-sheet to α-helix on addition of TFE. The protein was found to aggregate maximally at moderate concentration of TFE atmore » which it exists somewhere between β-sheet and α-helix, probably in extended non-native β-sheet conformation. Thioflavin-T (ThT) and Congo-Red (CR) assays along with fluorescence microscopy and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) data suggest that the protein aggregates induced by TFE possess amyloid-like features. Anilino-8-naphthalene sulfonate (ANS) binding studies reveal that the exposure of hydrophobic surface(s) was maximum in intermediate conformation. Our study suggests that the exposed hydrophobic surface and/or the disruption of the structural features protecting a β-sheet protein might be the major reason(s) for the high aggregation propensity of non-native intermediate conformation of HCAII.« less

Forming-Limit Diagrams for Magnesium AZ31B and ZEK100 Alloy Sheets at Elevated Temperatures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Antoniswamy, Aravindha R.; Carpenter, Alexander J.; Carter, Jon T.; Hector, Louis G.; Taleff, Eric M.

2013-11-01

Modern design and manufacturing methodologies for magnesium (Mg) sheet panels require formability data for use in computer-aided design and computer-aided engineering tools. To meet this need, forming-limit diagrams (FLDs) for AZ31B and ZEK100 wrought Mg alloy sheets were developed at elevated temperatures for strain rates of 10-3 and 10-2 s-1. The elevated temperatures investigated range from 250 to 450 °C for AZ31B and 300 to 450 °C for ZEK100. The FLDs were generated using data from uniaxial tension, biaxial bulge, and plane-strain bulge tests, all carried out until specimen rupture. The unique aspect of this study is that data from materials with consistent processing histories were produced using consistent testing techniques across all test conditions. The ZEK100 alloy reaches greater major true strains at rupture, by up to 60%, than the AZ31B alloy for all strain paths at all temperatures and strain rates examined. Formability limits decrease only slightly with a decrease in temperature, less than 30% decrease for AZ31B and less than 35% decrease for ZEK100 as the temperature decreases from 450 to 300 °C. This suggests that forming processes at 250-300 °C are potentially viable for manufacturing complex Mg components.

Volumetrical Characterization of Sheet Molding Compounds

PubMed Central

Calvimontes, Alfredo; Grundke, Karina; Müller, Anett

2010-01-01

For a comprehensive study of Sheet Molding Compound (SMC) surfaces, topographical data obtained by chromatic confocal imaging were submitted systematically for the development of a profile model to understand the formation of cavities on the surface. In order to qualify SMC surfaces and to predict their coatability, a characterization of cavities is applied. To quantify the effect of surface modification treatments, a new parameter (Surface Relative Smooth) is presented, applied and probed. The parameter proposed can be used for any surface modification of any solid material. PMID:28883370

Characterization of Platinum Nanoparticles Deposited on Functionalized Graphene Sheets

PubMed Central

Chiang, Yu-Chun; Liang, Chia-Chun; Chung, Chun-Ping

2015-01-01

Due to its special electronic and ballistic transport properties, graphene has attracted much interest from researchers. In this study, platinum (Pt) nanoparticles were deposited on oxidized graphene sheets (cG). The graphene sheets were applied to overcome the corrosion problems of carbon black at operating conditions of proton exchange membrane fuel cells. To enhance the interfacial interactions between the graphene sheets and the Pt nanoparticles, the oxygen-containing functional groups were introduced onto the surface of graphene sheets. The results showed the Pt nanoparticles were uniformly dispersed on the surface of graphene sheets with a mean Pt particle size of 2.08 nm. The Pt nanoparticles deposited on graphene sheets exhibited better crystallinity and higher oxygen resistance. The metal Pt was the predominant Pt chemical state on Pt/cG (60.4%). The results from the cyclic voltammetry analysis showed the value of the electrochemical surface area (ECSA) was 88 m2/g (Pt/cG), much higher than that of Pt/C (46 m2/g). The long-term test illustrated the degradation in ECSA exhibited the order of Pt/C (33%) > Pt/cG (7%). The values of the utilization efficiency were calculated to be 64% for Pt/cG and 32% for Pt/C. PMID:28793577

Dynamic behaviour of ice streams: the North East Greenland Ice Stream

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bons, Paul D.; Jansen, Daniela; Schaufler, Svenja; de Riese, Tamara; Sachau, Till; Weikusat, Ilka

2017-04-01

The flow of ice towards the margins of ice sheets is far from homogeneous. Ice streams show much higher flow velocities than their surroundings and may extend, for example the North East Greenland Ice Stream (NEGIS), towards the centre of the sheet. The elevated flow velocity inside an ice stream causes marginal shearing and convergent flow, which in turn leads to folding of ice layers. Such folding was documented in the Petermann Glacier in northern Greenland (Bons et al., 2016). 3-dimensional structural modelling using radargrams shows that folding is more intense adjacent to NEGIS than inside it, despite the strong flow perturbation at NEGIS. Analysis of fold amplitude as a function of stratigraphic level indicates that folding adjacent to NEGIS ceased in the early Holocene, while it is currently active inside NEGIS. The presence of folds adjacent of NEGIS, but also at other sites far in the interior of the Greenland Ice Sheet with no direct connection to the present-day surface velocity field, indicates that ice flow is not only heterogeneous in space (as the present-day flow velocity field shows), but also in time. The observations suggest that ice streams are dynamic, ephemeral structures that emerge and die out, and may possibly shift during their existence, but leave traces within the stratigraphic layering of the ice. The dynamic nature of ice streams such as NEGIS speaks against deterministic models for their accelerated flow rates, such as bedrock topography or thermal perturbations at their base. Instead, we suggest that ice streams can also result from strain localisation induced inside the ice sheet by the complex coupling of rheology, anisotropy, grain-size changes and possibly shear heating. Bons, P.D., Jansen, D., Mundel, F., Bauer, C.C., Binder, T., Eisen, O., Jessell, M.W., Llorens, M.-G, Steinbach, F., Steinhage, D. & Weikusat, I. 2016. Converging flow and anisotropy cause large-scale folding in Greenland's ice sheet. Nature Communications 7:11427, DOI: 10.1038/ncomms11427.

Comparison of Retracking Algorithms Using Airborne Radar and Laser Altimeter Measurements of the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ferraro, Ellen J.; Swift, Calvin T.

1995-01-01

This paper compares four continental ice sheet radar altimeter retracking algorithms using airborne radar and laser altimeter data taken over the Greenland ice sheet in 1991. The refurbished Advanced Application Flight Experiment (AAFE) airborne radar altimeter has a large range window and stores the entire return waveform during flight. Once the return waveforms are retracked, or post-processed to obtain the most accurate altitude measurement possible, they are compared with the high-precision Airborne Oceanographic Lidar (AOL) altimeter measurements. The AAFE waveforms show evidence of varying degrees of both surface and volume scattering from different regions of the Greenland ice sheet. The AOL laser altimeter, however, obtains a return only from the surface of the ice sheet. Retracking altimeter waveforms with a surface scattering model results in a good correlation with the laser measurements in the wet and dry-snow zones, but in the percolation region of the ice sheet, the deviation between the two data sets is large due to the effects of subsurface and volume scattering. The Martin et al model results in a lower bias than the surface scattering model, but still shows an increase in the noise level in the percolation zone. Using an Offset Center of Gravity algorithm to retrack altimeter waveforms results in measurements that are only slightly affected by subsurface and volume scattering and, despite a higher bias, this algorithm works well in all regions of the ice sheet. A cubic spline provides retracked altitudes that agree with AOL measurements over all regions of Greenland. This method is not sensitive to changes in the scattering mechanisms of the ice sheet and it has the lowest noise level and bias of all the retracking methods presented.

Greenland Ice Sheet Mass Balance: Distribution of Increased Mass Loss with Climate Warming; 2003-07 Versus 1992-2002

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zwally, H. Jay; Li, Jun; Benner, Anita C.; Beckley, Matthew; Cornejo, Helen G.; DiMarzio, John; Giovinetto, Mario B.; Neumann, Thomas A.; Robbins, John; Saba, Jack L.;