Year of Award
2016
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Type
Master of Science (MS)
Degree Name
Computer Science
Department or School/College
Computer Science
Committee Chair
Jesse Johnson
Committee Co-chair
Joel Harper
Commitee Members
Jesse Johnson, Joel Harper, Rob Smith
Keywords
subglacial, hydrology, hydraulic, conductivity, glaciology, modeling
Publisher
University of Montana
Subject Categories
Numerical Analysis and Scientific Computing
Abstract
The link between subglacial hydrology and basal sliding has prompted work on basal hydrology models with water pressure and storage as prognostic variables. We find that a commonly used model of distributed drainage through linked cavities underpredicts winter water pressure when compared to borehole observations from Issunguata Sermia in Western Central Greenland. Possible causes for this discrepancy including unrealistic model inputs or unconstrained parameters are investigated through a series of modeling experiments on both synthetic and realistic ice sheet geometries. We find that conductivity acts as a proxy for the connectivity of the linked cavity system and should therefore change seasonally. Model experiments also suggest that trends in winter sliding velocity are more closely related to winter water storage rather than pressure.
Recommended Citation
Downs, Jacob Z., "Hydraulic Conductivity as a Proxy for Drainage System Connectivity in a Subglacial Hydrology Model" (2016). Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers. 10877.
https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd/10877
© Copyright 2016 Jacob Z. Downs