Drift-dependent changes in iceberg size-frequency distributions
Kirkham, J.D.; Rosser, N.J.; Wainwright, J.; Vann Jones, E.C.; Dunning, S.A.; Lane, V.S.; Hawthorn, D.E.; Strzelecki, M.C.; Szczucinski, W. (2017). Drift-dependent changes in iceberg size-frequency distributions. NPG Scientific Reports 7(1): 10 pp. https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-14863-2
In: Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group). Nature Publishing Group: London. ISSN 2045-2322; e-ISSN 2045-2322, more
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| Authors | | Top |
- Kirkham, J.D.
- Rosser, N.J.
- Wainwright, J.
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- Vann Jones, E.C.
- Dunning, S.A.
- Lane, V.S.
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- Hawthorn, D.E.
- Strzelecki, M.C.
- Szczucinski, W.
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| Abstract |
Although the size-frequency distributions of icebergs can provide insight into how they disintegrate, our understanding of this process is incomplete. Fundamentally, there is a discrepancy between iceberg power-law size-frequency distributions observed at glacial calving fronts and lognormal size-frequency distributions observed globally within open waters that remains unexplained. Here we use passive seismic monitoring to examine mechanisms of iceberg disintegration as a function of drift. Our results indicate that the shift in the size-frequency distribution of iceberg sizes observed is a product of fracture-driven iceberg disintegration and dimensional reductions through melting. We suggest that changes in the characteristic size-frequency scaling of icebergs can be explained by the emergence of a dominant set of driving processes of iceberg degradation towards the open ocean. Consequently, the size-frequency distribution required to model iceberg distributions accurately must vary according to distance from the calving front. |
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