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Evidence for two zones of debris entrainment beneath the Greenland ice sheet

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Abstract

Investigation of the ice, debris and stable isotope characteristics of basal ice exposed at the margin of the Greenland ice sheet provides a means of testing and refining models of ice-sheet erosion and deposition. The basal ice exposed at the ice-sheet margin gives evidence of the processes operating at the bed at different locations, which can be used to constrain theoretical models predicting varying basal conditions1,2. Improved understanding of the effects of isotope fractionation in hydrogen and oxygen caused by freezing processes at the bed which modify the isotope characteristics of the basal ice layers enables us to report evidence of two separate zones of debris entrainment beneath the ice sheet.

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References

  1. 1. Budd, W., Jenssen, D. & Radok, U. Polarforschung 6, 39, 293–306 (1970). 2. Sugden, D. E. Arctic Alpine Res. 9, 21–47 (1977). 3. Haldorsen, S. Boras 10,91–105 (1981). 4. Jouzel, J. & Souchez, R. A. / Glacial. 28, 35–42 (1982). 5. Souchez, R. A. & Jouzel, J. J. Glacial. 30, 369–372 (1984). 6. Souchez, R. A. & De Groote, J–M. /. Glacial 31, 229–232 (1985). 7. Dansgaard, W. Tellus 16, 436–468 (1964). 8. Weertman, J. / Glacial. 3, 965–978 (1961). 9. Boulton, G. S. in Ice Ages: Ancient and Modern (eds Wright, H. E. & Moseley, F.) 7–42 (Seel House, Liverpool, 1975). 10. Gow, A. J., Epstein, S. & Sheely, W. J. Glacial. 23, 185–192 (1979). 11. Herron, S. & Langway, C. C J. Glacial. 23, 193–208 (1979). 12. Gemmell, A. M. D., Sharp, M. J. & Sugden, D. E. Earth Surf. Processes Landforms 11, 123–130 (1986).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography, University of Edinburgh, Drummond Street, Edinburgh, EH8 9XP, UK

    D. E. Sugden

  2. Department of Geography, University of Aberdeen, AB9 2UF, UK

    P. G. Knight

  3. Department of Soil Science, University of Aberdeen, AB9 2UF, UK

    N. Livesey

  4. Laboratoire de Géomorphologie, Universite Libre de Bruxelles, B1050, Belgium

    R. D. Lorrain, R. A. Souchez & J.-L. Tison

  5. Laboratoire de Géochimie Isotopique, LODYC/DPC/CEN Saclay, France

    J. Jouzel

Authors
  1. D. E. Sugden
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  2. P. G. Knight
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  3. N. Livesey
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  4. R. D. Lorrain
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  5. R. A. Souchez
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  6. J.-L. Tison
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  7. J. Jouzel
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Sugden, D., Knight, P., Livesey, N. et al. Evidence for two zones of debris entrainment beneath the Greenland ice sheet. Nature 328, 238–241 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1038/328238a0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/328238a0

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