Risk Analysis and Hazards of Ice Islands

Fuglem, Mark; Jordaan, Ian

doi:10.1007/978-94-024-1101-0_15

Cited by 13 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 10 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Research concerning ice islands and the many ice island fragments produced during their deterioration has predominantly been dedicated to two subjects: their potential as hazards to shipping and offshore industrial operations (Fuglem & Jordaan, ; Haas, ; McGonigal et al, ; Mueller et al, ; Peterson, ) and the dispersal of fresh meltwater as they deteriorate during drift (Gladstone et al, ; Merino et al, ; Silva et al, ; Smith, ). Arctic research has historically focused on the former, as ice islands fracture and generate numerous smaller ice islands, and icebergs, as well as bergy bits (100–300 m 2 ) and growlers (20 m 2 ), which represent hazards to regional industrial interests (Canadian Ice Service [CIS], ; Newell, ; Peterson, ; Peterson et al, ; Sackinger et al, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Aftermath of Petermann Glacier Calving Events (2008–2012): Ice Island Size Distributions and Meltwater Dispersal

et al. 2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Three large calving events occurred at Petermann Glacier in northwest Greenland between 2008 and 2012 that generated ice islands (large tabular icebergs) that ranged from ~30 to 300 km2 in areal extent. Ice islands are known to deteriorate, via fracture and melt, during their drift through regional water bodies where they pose a potential risk to offshore resource extraction operations and disperse freshwater from the Greenland Ice Sheet. This study presents the first analysis of the deterioration occurring across the flux of ice islands that travel between Nares Strait and the North Atlantic after Petermann Glacier calving events. The evolution of Petermann ice island size distributions was evaluated, and the spatial dispersal of meltwater was quantified, through analyses that utilized the newly developed Canadian Ice Island Drift, Deterioration and Detection Database. Size‐frequency distributions remained relatively consistent, both spatially and temporally, and were well fit by power law models with slopes of approximately −1.7. This suggested that fracture was an important process by which the Petermann ice islands deteriorated, regardless of elapsed time or distance from the glacier. Ice island meltwater fluxes into the Baffin Island and Labrador currents were not large enough to slow down the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation by weakening deep‐water convection in the Labrador Sea. However, augmented meltwater input was calculated within Petermann Fjord (2.0 mSv) and in the vicinity of grounding locations (0.4 mSv). Further research is necessary to better understand how this freshwater alters fjord circulation and influences the composition of local ocean waters.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Aftermath of Petermann Glacier Calving Events (2008–2012): Ice Island Size Distributions and Meltwater Dispersal

et al. 2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Mass and dimensional estimates of these 'ice islands' are used by the offshore resource extraction and shipping industries to model the risk associated with these ice hazards, as well as that imposed by the smaller ice island fragments and icebergs produced during their deterioration [3][4][5][6]. Deterioration model output is used in operational drift models that predict the trajectory and the mass of ice hazards through time and space [6,7].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Surveying Drifting Icebergs and Ice Islands: Deterioration Detection and Mass Estimation with Aerial Photogrammetry and Laser Scanning

2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Icebergs and ice islands (large, tabular icebergs) are challenging targets to survey due to their size, mobility, remote locations, and potentially difficult environmental conditions. Here, we assess the precision and utility of aerial photography surveying with structure-from-motion multi-view stereo photogrammetry processing (SfM) and vessel-based terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) for iceberg deterioration detection and mass estimation. For both techniques, we determine the minimum amount of change required to reliably resolve iceberg deterioration, the deterioration detection threshold (DDT), using triplicate surveys of two iceberg survey targets. We also calculate their relative uncertainties for iceberg mass estimation. The quality of deployed Global Positioning System (GPS) units that were used for drift correction and scale assignment was a major determinant of point cloud precision. When dual-frequency GPS receivers were deployed, DDT values of 2.5 and 0.40 m were calculated for the TLS and SfM point clouds, respectively. In contrast, values of 6.6 and 3.4 m were calculated when tracking beacons with lower-quality GPS were used. The SfM dataset was also more precise when used for iceberg mass estimation, and we recommend further development of this technique for iceberg-related end-uses.

show abstract

“…Though often much smaller than their Antarctic counterparts, Arctic ice islands are still considered 'extreme ice features' (McGongial et al, 2011) and ice island and iceberg research in the Northern Hemisphere has often been driven by the related concerns of the offshore natural resource extraction and shipping industries. This is due to their large size as well as the production of smaller ice hazards throughout their deterioration McGonigal et al, 2011;Ballicater Consulting, 2012;Mueller et al, 2013;Fuglem and Jordaan, 2017). The offshore natural resource extraction industry incorporates both the occurrence probability and damage potential when calculating the risk magnitude associated with ice hazards (Ballicater Consulting, 2012;Fuglem and Jordaan, 2017), and zonal occurrence probability assessments have been conducted for both the western (Li et al, 1989;McGonigal et al, 2011) and eastern (C-CORE, 2005) Canadian waters.…”

Section: Ice Islands In a Changing Climate And Research Justificationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Antarctic (e.g., Larsen-C Ice Shelf: ~5,800 km 2 ) (Hogg and Gudmundsson, 2017). Mass and dimensional estimates of these 'ice islands' are used by the offshore resource extraction and shipping industries to model the risk associated with these ice hazards, as well as that imposed by the smaller ice island fragments and icebergs produced during their deterioration (Kubat et al, 2007;Crocker et al, 2013;Allison et al, 2014;Fuglem and Jordaan, 2017). Deterioration model output is used in operational drift models that predict the trajectory and the mass of ice hazards through time and space (Kubat et al, 2005(Kubat et al, , 2007.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…6.1) (Crawford et al, 2018). Research concerning ice islands and the many ice island fragments produced during their deterioration has predominantly been dedicated to two subjects: their potential as hazards to shipping and offshore industrial operations (Li et al, 1989;McGonigal et al, 2011;Peterson, 2011;Haas, 2012;Mueller et al, 2013;Fuglem and Jordaan, 2017), and the dispersal of fresh meltwater as they deteriorate during drift (Gladstone et al, 2001;Smith, 2011;Merino et al, 2016). Arctic research has historically focused on the former.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Ice island deterioration

Crawford¹

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Ice islands are large, tabular icebergs that calve from ice shelves and floating ice tongues. Their drift and deterioration is of concern to offshore industry and influences the dispersal of freshwater from Earth's major ice sheets. However, the analysis and modelling of ice island deterioration is constrained by a lack of systematic studies using field and remotely sensed data. The aim of this thesis is to improve our understanding of ice island deterioration through the use and development of novel techniques and datasets. It uses complementary field and remotely sensed datasets in three studies that individually focus on vertical deterioration (i.e., thinning), small-scale areal deterioration (e.g., wave erosion), and large-scale areal deterioration (i.e., fracture). The study subjects are ice islands in eastern Canadian waters that calved from the Petermann Glacier of northwest Greenland between 2008 and 2012. The vertical deterioration of a grounded Petermann ice island (PII) was quantified with stationary ice penetrating radar (IPR), mobile IPR and ablation stake data measurements collected over three field campaigns. Derived basal ablation was used to calibrate a basal ablation model, which was applied in a separate study to quantify the spatial distribution of meltwater from the drift and deterioration of hundreds of PIIs. This study used the Canadian Ice Island Drift, Deterioration and Detection Database, which was generated through the analysis of thousands of RADARSAT-2 synthetic aperture radar scenes. The database was also used to evaluate the fit of statistical distributions to the size-frequency distributions of PIIs. The results indicate that fracture remained an influential deterioration process over the monitoring period. A third study found that deterioration on the order of 40 cm could be detected under optimal conditions with aerial photogrammetry with structure-from-motion processing and that this technique was superior to laser scanning. iii This thesis presents new insights into ice island deterioration processes. It also documents new techniques for measuring deterioration and contributes pertinent information to two major ice island research themes (i.e., hazards and freshwater vectors). Finally, many results and future research directions are applicable to ice island research conducted in both Polar Regions on planet Earth. The time that I have spent as a graduate student researching big, diminishing blocks of ice has been an incredible experience due to a wide support network. Derek Mueller's supervision was paramount, as was his encouragement, understanding and enthusiasm for innovation. I thank Gregory Crocker and Doug King for providing strategic and analytical guidance from the time of my comprehensive exam to thesis submission. I also greatly appreciate the thoughtful review of my thesis by Douglas MacAyeal (University of Chicago) and Shawn Kenney (Carleton University). It has been exciting to watch the Water and Ice Research Lab (WIRL) grow over my seven years in the Department of...

show abstract

Risk Analysis and Hazards of Ice Islands

Cited by 13 publications

References 10 publications

The Aftermath of Petermann Glacier Calving Events (2008–2012): Ice Island Size Distributions and Meltwater Dispersal

The Aftermath of Petermann Glacier Calving Events (2008–2012): Ice Island Size Distributions and Meltwater Dispersal

Surveying Drifting Icebergs and Ice Islands: Deterioration Detection and Mass Estimation with Aerial Photogrammetry and Laser Scanning

Ice island deterioration

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About