Evidence of changing basal and internal ice properties near the grounding line was derived from airborne radio-echo-sounder observations of the ice sheet around the Sør Rondane Mountains, Antarctica. From the trailing figure of the bottom-echo signal, the roughness of the ice bottom near the grounding line was inferred. Results show that the specular components of scattering begin to appear on the ice-shelf side of the grounding line. Furthermore, double-trip echoes were observed with a strong scattering in the shelf area, and their boundary of occurrence was very close to the grounding line. This is evidence of interaction between ice and sea water at the bottom of the ice shelf. We also examined the occurrence of internal layered echoes. In most of the area around the mountains, internal echoes were observed continously, but they were not found at or close to the ice shelf. The boundary between the appearance and disappearance of internal-layer echoes is distinct, and occurs 20–30 km inland from the grounding line. These results suggest that some major change may occur in the internal ice on the inland side of the grounding line.

Systematic isotopic studies based on natural and artificial radio-isotopes (32Si, 137Cs), stable isotopes (δ18O) and total β activity measurements have been carried out on Chhota Shigri glacier, Himachal Pradesh, central Himalaya, to study the dynamics of the ice, meltwater composition and to identify the deposition of the Chernobyl fall-out in the Himalayan region.

Using 32Si concentrations, the snout ice has been dated at ~ 250 years, based on which the past average surface ice-flow rate has been estimated as ~ 28 m year−1. Based on δ18O variations, in a shallow ice core, the accumulation rate of the ice has been estimated at ~520kgm−2 year−1. 32Si measurements of snout ice and englacial meltwaters indicate that at least 55% of the snow meltwater mixed with 45% of the old ice-melt water that emerged from englacial streams in the month of August 1987. Deposition of the artificial radionuclide (137Cs) and the very high total β activity observed in snow samples on Chhota Shigri glacier give the first evidence of Chernobyl fall-out deposition in the Indian Himalaya.

This paper examines the origin of moraine ridges in East Antarctic coastal oases and derives depositional models appropriate for the reconstruction of Quaternary history. On the basis of morphology, structure and sedimentology, four principal types of ridge may be identified: (1) type A moraines from when the basal debris zone crops out near an ice margin; (2) type B moraines form when large recumbent folds develop in the basal debris zone; (3) type C moraines are ice-contact screes and fans which form when debris accumulates at steep or cliffed ice margins; and (4) type D moraines are thrust-block moraines that form when unconsolidated sediment is entrained by freezing, shearing and thrusting of sediment blocks at the base of the glacier. Simple calculations of the rate of debris accumulation at ice margins suggest that type A, B and C moraines take thousands of years to form and record stable ice margins. Type D moraines are structural features that may form relatively quickly when ice margins override unconsolidated sediment. Constructing models to explain the origin of the moraines is an important part of reconstructing the Quaternary history of Antarctic coastal oases, because the models provide a basis for reconstructing the position and behaviour of the ice sheet during advance and retreat

VLF surface-impedance measurements have been used in the past for sub-surface mapping. The application of this technique to glacial ice probing is discussed theoretically and results of measurements on Brewster Glacier, New Zealand, are presented. Results were fitted to a three-layer model and a section profile is given. Dramatic changes in the phase of the surface impedance were observed in the vicinity of crevasses. Results indicate that the technique has potential as a tool for quick, reliable, and non-invasive ice-thickness measurements.

The annual balance has been measured for ten North Cascade glaciers in 1983–84, 1984–85, 1985–86, and 1986–87 (1984, 1985, 1986, and 1987). Based on these data, an annual balance prediction method was designed and tested. Comparison of measured versus predicted annual balances indicates an accuracy of ±0.22–0.30 m. The method is based on annual measurement of the accumulation area ratio (AAR), and determination of the perennially constant activity index and area-altitude distribution on each glacier. The accumulation area ratio is determined from aerial and ground photographs at the end of the ablation season. The activity index is identified from observation of the rise of the snow line with time, compared to measured snow depths above the snow line. The AAR-activity index method was used to calculate the annual balance of 47 North Cascade glaciers in 1984, 1985, 1986, and 1987. The mean balance during the 4 year period was —0.33 m.

From the mass-balance records, it is apparent that North Cascade glaciers can be divided into six climatic sensitivity groups. Each glacier type responds differently to specific climatic conditions. The mass-balance variation for glaciers of the same type is small.

Since 1977, warmer, drier climatic conditions have prevailed in the North Cascades, resulting in the retreat of 42 of the 47 glaciers examined.

We use satellite image processing techniques to measure surface elevation and velocity changes on a temperate surging glacier, Sít’ Kusá, throughout its entire 2013–2021 surge cycle. We present detailed records of its dynamic changes during quiescence (2013–2019) and its surge progression (2020–2021). Throughout quiescence, we observe order-of-magnitude speedups that propagate down-glacier seasonally from the glacier's upper northern tributary, above a steep icefall, into the reservoir zone for the surging portion of the glacier. The speedups initiate in fall and gradually accelerate through winter until they peak in late spring, ~1 − 2 months after the onset of melt. Propagation distance of the speedups controls the distribution of mass accumulation in the reservoir zone prior to the surge. Furthermore, the intensity and propagation distance of each year's speedup is correlated with the positive degree day sum from the preceding melt season, suggesting that winter melt storage drives the seasonal speedups. We demonstrate that the speedups are kinematically similar to the 2020–2021 surge, differing mainly in that the surge propagates past the dynamic balance line at the lower limit of the reservoir zone, likely triggered by the exceedance of a tipping point in mass accumulation and basal enthalpy in the reservoir zone.

Kolahoi Glacier is one of the longest glaciers in Kashmir and in the past it extended for at least 35 km. In the Pleistocene there were three advances of Kolahoi Glacier and the last one of them was a major advance when the glacier extended as far as Pahalgam.

All available 10 m. snow temperatures from the Greenland Ice Sheet have been analyzed using multiple regression techniques to develop equations capable of accurately predicting these temperatures. The analysis was carried out for all Greenland and for various sub-areas. The resulting equations show that 10 m. snow temperatures can be accurately predicted from the parameters latitude and elevation. Longitude was found to be a further significant parameter in south Greenland.

Gradients of 10 m. snow temperatures versus elevation for north Greenland are close to the dry adiabatic lapse rate indicating adiabatic warming of katabatic winds as the controlling mechanism in their altitudinal distribution. In both south Greenland and the Thule peninsula, gradients of 10 m. snow temperatures versus elevation are markedly greater than the dry adiabatic lapse rate and are highly dependent upon elevation, indicating downward transfer of latent heat in the snow, largely as a result of percolating melt water.

An isotherm map, showing the distribution of 10 m. snow temperatures on the Greenland Ice Sheet calculated from the prediction equations, was prepared. The map is based upon a revised contour map of the ice sheet made from a compilation of all known elevations.

Forbes Glacier, one of the outlet ice streams from the Antarctic ice sheet, is located 20 km west of Mawson, Mac.Robertson Land, east Antarctica. In the uppermost part of the glacier near Casey Range, the velocity at the centre of the glacier is 59 m year−1 and the strain-rate at seven strain grids ranges from −6.7 to 6.7×10−3 year−1 on the surface of the glacier. The fabric types of this area are characterized by single-maximum and small-girdle fabrics. It is confirmed that the single-maximum fabric is an original pattern which changes gradually to a small girdle fabric about the maximum compressive axis in association with grain growth. The patterns predicted by Brace (1960) can be adapted to the small-girdle fabrics of this area.

Over the past few years an investigation has been conducted to determine the extent of seismic signals associated with avalanching snow slopes. A number of the signals recorded have been examined and classified according to their origin. One of these signals, however, is not clearly defined in terms of an observable source mechanism. To obtain information regarding the origin of this signal we have compared the results from several investigations conducted to study the seismic activity associated with glaciers. A comparative analysis of the snow and glacier signals indicates that the high-frequency signals observed in snow fields are due to internal fracture within the snow.

The supercooling of water in nature occurs more frequently than is generallyknown. It always takes place when still water is in process of being covered with thefirst ice needles. It is of even greater importance when ice formation takes place in running and turbulent water, in which case it represents the necessary conditions for the formation of frazil and anchor ice. The supercooling may be observed by a sensitive thermometer when the bulb is heated before being immersed in the water. The degree of supercooling of still water may be more than 1° C. in a thin surface layer as the author has demonstrated by measuring the temperature by a recording thermopile exposed to radiation from the surface. It is emphasized that the state of supercooling in water is a stable one, the formation of ice being dependent upon the existence of nuclei or solid boundary surfaces from which crystallization will start and from which liberated heat of solidification will flow. This process of thermal conduction needs time.

Avalanche warnings can provide a valuable public service. To be effective, the warning program must inspire public confidence. Experience gained from the Colorado Avalanche Warning Program is used to develop guidelines for establishing and maintaining credibility. The topics discussed arc the requirements for a good forecaster, the working relationship between forecaster and field observers, relations with the news media and the public, and forecast accuracy.

Measurements of the electrical conductivity of subglacial water provide a useful complement to measurements of pressure and turbidity. In the summer season, fluctuations of conductivity can be attributed to changes in water transport, water provenance and subglacial residence time. These explanations are unlikely to apply during the winter season because surface melt sources are not active and the subglacial water system is predominantly unconnected. Thus, fluctuations in water conductivity during the winter months seem paradoxical. To introduce a quantitative basis for comprehending such phenomena, we develop an interpretative model of the hydrochemical interaction between a water-filled borehole and a subglacial aquifer. The electrical conductivity of water near the borehole–aquifer contact is affected not only by diffusion but also by advective transport of solute between the two reservoirs in response to pressure forcing of the system. Using records of ice strain, water pressure and electrical conductivity from unconnected boreholes in Trapridge Glacier, we demonstrate that changes in borehole geometry caused by ice-strain events provide a plausible mechanism for at least some of the observed fluctuations of electrical conductivity. Conductivity records provide information regarding advective coupling of the borehole–aquifer system that is not available from pressure records alone.

During the 1991 94 summer held seasons, time-correlated measure-merits of water pressure and surface speed were made over and down-glacier from a major riegel on Storglaciären, Sweden. Measurements were made at sub-hourly time-scales in order to discern details in the diurnal cycle. Large water-input events, typically associated with rain storms, produced coherent, lagged surface-velocity responses that could be understood in terms of till deformation or decoupling, and these have been discussed elsewhere. The consequences of smaller diurnal water-pressure events w ere more enigmatic, in that acceleration of ice flow generally preceded the onset of the local water-pressure rise. From consideration of these data and other work done on the hydrology of Storglaciären, we infer that the ice in this area is generally pushed from behind via a relaxation in extensional strain across the riegel. Hence, accelerations occur in response to increases in water pressure that occur up-glacier and that precede local water-pressure rises. In addition, following a period of large storm events, surface speeds became more spatially coherent and were in phase with the diurnal water-pressure cycle. This suggests that the large water-pressure events lead to a spatially more homogeneous subglacial drainage system. Sliding laws need to take into account such temporal changes in spatial coherence of the subglacial drainage system.

Recent investigations have shown that various factors may affect the shear strength of glacial till and that these factors may be involved in the drumlin-forming process. The presence of frozen till in the deforming zone, variation in pore-water pressure in the till, and the occurrence of random patches of dense stony-till texture have been considered. The occurrence of dense stony till may relate to the dilatancy hypothesis and can be considered a likely drumlin-forming factor within the region of critical stress levels. The up-glacier stress level now appears to be the more important, and to provide a sharper division between drumlin-forming and non-drumlin-forming conditions.

A stability equation is derived for a model glacier of initially uniform thickness and of infinite extent transverse to the primary flow flowing without slip down an inclined plane. A stress-dependent power-law viscosity is wholly incorporated into the equations of motion. Stability of the glacier is tested against long-wavelength surface perturbations. Results for this initial formulation indicate that the glacier is stable against infinitesimal amplitude surface perturbations, although for certain variations of model parameters, the decay-rate of the disturbance becomes very slow, approaching neutral stability. Results are presented in terms of decay-rate magnitudes over a large range of perturbation wavelengths for many model glaciers in which bed slope, ice thickness, and ice rheology parameters are varied. For all models, the maximum decay-rate of the perturbation occurs at disturbance wavelengths of roughly three to six times the glacier thickness. Infinite-wavelength perturbations are found to be only neutrally stable. Long-wavelength perturbations propagate at a faster rate down-glacier than do the intermediate- or shorter-wavelength ones which tend to remain fixed on the glacier surface andride down-glacier with the primary flow as they decay.

Active tectonism in the Himalaya, and the long-fault lineament controlling the east–west river valleys, play an important role in melt at the snouts of glaciers, or their fluctuations during the year. Lower glacier limits are controlled by high winds from the Indian plains flowing along the valleys. Fluctuations of the Chhota Shigri glacier depend on temperature variations at the junction with the Chandra River valley and in the unconsolidated morainic debris below the glacier ice. High flow rates in the ablation zone indicate that basal sliding is the main movement mechanism. Melt takes place mainly from advection, and this process of melting during the summer season occurs both day and night.