A simple law for ice-shelf calving.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 19039129.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1126/science.1162543.
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Abstract
A major problem for ice-sheet models is that no physically based law for the calving process has been established. Comparison across a diverse set of ice shelves demonstrates that iceberg calving increases with the along-flow spreading rate of a shelf. This relation suggests that frictional buttressing loss, which increases spreading, also leads to shelf retreat, a process known to accelerate ice-sheet flow and contribute to sea-level rise.