On the uncertainty of sea-ice isostasy
Date
2015-10-01
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Publisher
International Glaciological Society
Abstract
During late winter 2007, coincident measurements of sea ice were collected using various
sensors at an ice camp in the Beaufort Sea, Canadian Arctic. Analysis of the archived data provides new
insight into sea-ice isostasy and its related R-factor through case studies at three scales using different
combinations of snow and ice thickness components. At the smallest scale (<1 m; point scale), isostasy
is not expected, so we calculate a residual and define this as ��� (‘zjey’) to describe vertical displacement
due to deformation. From 1 to 10m length scales, we explore traditional isostasy and identify a specific
sequence of thickness calculations which minimize freeboard and elevation uncertainty. An effective
solution exists when the R-factor is allowed to vary: ranging from 2 to 12, with mean of 5.17, mode of
5.88 and skewed distribution. At regional scales, underwater, airborne and spaceborne platforms are
always missing thickness variables from either above or below sea level. For such situations, realistic
agreement is found by applying small-scale skewed ranges for the R-factor. These findings encourage a
broader isostasy solution as a function of potential energy and length scale. Overall, results add insight
to data collection strategies and metadata characteristics of different thickness products.
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Citation
GEIGER, Cathleen, et al. "On the uncertainty of sea-ice isostasy." Annals of Glaciology 56.69 (2015): 341.