Glacial geomorphology of the terrestrial margins of the tidewater glacier, Nordenskiöldbreen, Svalbard

Ewertowski, M.; Evans, D.J.A.; Roberts, D.H.; Tomczyk, A.M.

Abstract

A 1:4000 scale map of the terrestrial margins of the foreland of Nordenskiöldbreen depicts a polythermal glacial landsystem containing a record of the landform signatures of individual ice flow units that operate within the glacier snout. A 1:700 map provides a detailed overview of fluted terrain, based on unmanned aerial vehicle images captured in 2014. The pattern of landforms lying inside the Little Ice Age (LIA) latero-frontal moraine on the northern side of the fjord comprises a fluted till surface, which in turn grades into ice-moulded bedrock. This signature records the recession of a single, wide ice flow unit, which was characterised by limited incorporation of subglacial material and restricted delivery of supraglacial debris. Inside the latero-frontal moraine on the south side of the fjord, a fluted surface is subordinate to a pronounced and large ice-cored moraine complex related to the confluence of five narrower ice flow units, each of which transported significant quantities of englacial and supraglacial debris at their suture zones as a series of longitudinal debris stripes. The suite of foreland landforms is diagnostic of both temperate subglacial and frozen-snout conditions, indicating the operation of a warm polythermal glacier fed by multiple flow units during the LIA.

Citation

Ewertowski, M., Evans, D., Roberts, D., & Tomczyk, A. (2016). Glacial geomorphology of the terrestrial margins of the tidewater glacier, Nordenskiöldbreen, Svalbard. Journal of Maps, 12(sup1), 476-487. https://doi.org/10.1080/17445647.2016.1192329

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: May 4, 2016
• Online Publication Date: Jun 16, 2016
• Publication Date: Nov 4, 2016
• Deposit Date: Jun 17, 2016
• Publicly Available Date: Jun 16, 2017
• Journal: Journal of Maps
• Electronic ISSN: 1744-5647
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis Group
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 12
• Issue: sup1
• Pages: 476-487
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17445647.2016.1192329
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1379068