Stratigraphic and morphologic data previously collected from the forefield of Múlajökull, Iceland, suggest that its recent surge cycles are responsible for the formation of drumlins there and that their relief reflects both deposition on drumlins and erosion between them. We have tested these ideas and aspects of leading models of drumlin formation by studying past patterns of bed deformation and effective stress in basal tills of the glacier's forefield.Patterns of till strain indicated by the anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) of ~2300 intact till samples indicate that till was deposited during shear deformation, with shearing azimuths and planes that conform to the drumlin morphology. Thus, till deposition occurred as drumlins grew, in agreement with LiDAR data indicating that the degree of aggradation of the glacier forefield is largest in areas subjected to the most surges. Previously described unconformities on the drumlin flanks, however, indicate that drumlin relief at Múlajökull has resulted, in part, from erosion. Given that the last surge deposited a till layer both on and between drumlins, a reasonable hypothesis is that erosion between drumlins occurred during normal (quiescent) flow of the glacier between surges. Densities of till samples, analyzed in conjunction with laboratory consolidation tests, indicate that effective stresses on the bed during such periods were on the order of 100 kPa larger between drumlins than within them, an observation consistent with subglacial channels at low water pressure occupying interdrumlin areas. Transport of sediment by turbulent flow in these channels or high effective stress adjacent to them causing enhanced till entrainment in ice or increased depths of bed deformation would promote the sediment flux divergence necessary to erode areas between drumlins. The observation that effective stresses were higher between drumlins than within them is the opposite of that presumed in leading models of drumlin formation. Moreover, the lack of AMS-fabric McCracken et al. 2 evidence of longitudinal compression in drumlin tills does not support some models of drumlin formation that invoke negative till-flux gradients in a deforming bed.

The drumlin field at the surge‐type glacier, Múlajökull, provides an unusual opportunity to build a model of drumlin formation based on field observations in a modern drumlin‐forming environment. These observations indicate that surges deposit till layers that drape the glacier forefield, conform to drumlin surfaces, and are deposited in shear. Observations also indicate that erosion helps create drumlin relief, effective stresses in subglacial till are highest between drumlins, and during quiescent flow, crevasses on the glacier surface overlie drumlins while subglacial channels occupy intervening swales. In the model, we consider gentle undulations on the bed bounded by subglacial channels at low water pressure. During quiescent flow, slip of temperate ice across these undulations and basal water flow toward bounding channels create an effective stress distribution that maximizes till entrainment in ice on the heads and flanks of drumlins. Crevasses amplify this effect but are not necessary for it. During surges, effective stresses are uniformly low, and the bed shears pervasively. Vigorous basal melting during surges releases debris from ice and deposits it on the bed, with deposition augmented by transport in the deforming bed. As surge cycles progress, drumlins migrate downglacier and grow at increasing rates, due to positive feedbacks that depend on drumlin height. Drumlin growth can be accompanied by either net aggradation or erosion of the bed, and drumlin heights and stratigraphy generally correspond with observations. This model highlights that drumlin growth can reflect instabilities other than those of bed shear instability models, which require heuristic till transport assumptions.

250 ± 50 MPa) and on glass SiO 2 (255-275 MPa). Amphibole geothermobarometry gives much wider pressure ranges (temperature-independent: ~65-300 MPa; temperature-dependent: ~75-295 MPa; amphibole-only: ~80-950 MPa); average Anderson and Smith (Am Mineral 80:549-559, 1995) + Blundy and Holland (Contrib Miner Petrol 104:208-224, 1990) or Holland and Blundy (Contrib Miner Petrol 116:433-447, 1994-Thermometer A, B) pressures are most similar to phase-equilibria results (~220, 210, 190 MPa, respectively). Crystallization temperatures determined previously with rhyolite-MELTS (742 °C), Zr-in-sphene (769 ± 20 °C), and zircon saturation (770-780 °C) geothermometry are similar, but temperatures from amphibole geothermometry (~450-955 °C) are notably different; the average Anderson and Smith + Holland and Blundy (1994-Thermometer B; ~710 °C) temperature is most consistent with previous estimates. The rhyolite-MELTS geobarometer effectively culls glass compositions affected by alteration or analytical issues; Peach Spring glass compositions that yield pressure estimates reveal a tight range of plausible Na 2 O and K 2 O contents, suggesting that low Na 2 O and high K 2 O contents of many Peach Spring samples are due to alteration. Use of altered whole-pumice compositions in rhyolite-MELTS simulations is likely the cause of the incorrect crystallization sequence reported previously for Peach Spring compositions. Using the rhyolite-MELTS geobarometer, we estimate a more realistic composition for Peach Spring Tuff high-silica rhyolite, and the calculated composition finds close matches with some analyzed rocks and results in the expected sequence of crystallization.Abstract Establishing the depths of magma accumulation is critical to understanding how magmas evolve and erupt, but developing methods to constrain these pressures is challenging. We apply the new rhyolite-MELTS phase-equilibria geobarometer-based on the equilibrium between melt, quartz, and two feldspars-to matrix glass compositions from Peach Spring Tuff (Arizona-California-Nevada, USA) high-silica rhyolite. We compare the results to those from amphibole geothermobarometry, projection of glass compositions onto the haplogranitic ternary, and glass SiO 2 geobarometry. Quartz + 2 feldspar rhyolite-MELTS pressures span a relatively small range (185-230 MPa), consistent with nearly homogeneous crystal compositions, and are similar to estimates based on projection onto the haplogranitic ternary Communicated by Gordon Moore. Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (