Abstract
Purpose of the review: This review discusses the role that meltwater plays within the Greenland
ice sheet system. The ice sheet’s hydrology is important because it
affects mass balance through its impact on meltwater runoff processes
and ice dynamics. The review considers recent advances in our
understanding of the storage and routing of water through the
supraglacial, englacial, and subglacial components of the system and
their implications for the ice sheet
Recent findings: There have been dramatic increases in surface meltwater generation and runoff since the early 1990s, both due to increased air temperatures and decreasing surface albedo. Processes in the subglacial drainage system have similarities to valley glaciers and in a warming climate, the efficiency of meltwater routing to the ice sheet margin is likely to increase. The behaviour of the subglacial drainage system appears to limit the impact of increased surface melt on annual rates of ice motion, in sections of the ice sheet that terminate on land, while the large volumes of meltwater routed subglacially deliver significant volumes of sediment and nutrients to downstream ecosystems.
Summary: Considerable advances have been made recently in our understanding of Greenland ice sheet hydrology and its wider influences. Nevertheless, critical gaps persist both in our understanding of hydrology-dynamics coupling, notably at tidewater glaciers, and in runoff processes which ensure that projecting Greenland’s future mass balance remains challenging.
Recent findings: There have been dramatic increases in surface meltwater generation and runoff since the early 1990s, both due to increased air temperatures and decreasing surface albedo. Processes in the subglacial drainage system have similarities to valley glaciers and in a warming climate, the efficiency of meltwater routing to the ice sheet margin is likely to increase. The behaviour of the subglacial drainage system appears to limit the impact of increased surface melt on annual rates of ice motion, in sections of the ice sheet that terminate on land, while the large volumes of meltwater routed subglacially deliver significant volumes of sediment and nutrients to downstream ecosystems.
Summary: Considerable advances have been made recently in our understanding of Greenland ice sheet hydrology and its wider influences. Nevertheless, critical gaps persist both in our understanding of hydrology-dynamics coupling, notably at tidewater glaciers, and in runoff processes which ensure that projecting Greenland’s future mass balance remains challenging.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 330-344 |
| Journal | Current Climate Change Reports |
| Volume | 3 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| Early online date | 7 Nov 2017 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Dec 2017 |
Keywords
- Greenland ice sheet
- Ice sheet hydrology
- Ice dynamics
- Tidewater glaciers
- Sediment and solute fluxes
- Ice sheet erosion
Access to Document
- Cowton_2017_CCCR_Meltwater_CC
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