Glaciers and laws of friction and sliding

Summary.

Glaciers slide at their base. A deeper understanding of the frictional behaviour and sliding between an ice mass and a rock bed is an important problem in glacier physics. In this study we investigate two approaches to the problem of glacier sliding. The first approach models friction forces between the ice and the bed. The second approach considers various proposals of a sliding velocity. Anisotropy of rock bed topographies is a source of anisotropic tribological phenomena. Therefore, anisotropic and inhomogeneous friction and anisotropic sliding are discussed in detail. Various types of friction anisotropy are distinguished with the aid of linear and nonlinear friction models. Next, anisotropic friction and sliding rules are derived using an elasto-plastic analogy. A sliding law proposed by Hindmarsh is applied in the analysis of anisotropic sliding. Extended forms of the sliding law are given with the aid of anisotropic friction models. Furthermore, stick-slip motions are identified as important in the dynamics of glacier sliding.