Clément Miège

Greenland Ice Sheet Mass Balance Reconstruction. Part I: Net Snow Accumulation (1600–2009)

Ice core data are combined with Regional Atmospheric Climate Model version 2 (RACMO2) output (1958‐2010) to develop a reconstruction of Greenland ice sheet net snow accumulation rate, ^ At(G), spanning the years 1600‐2009. Regression parameters from regional climate model (RCM) output regressed on 86 ice cores are used with available cores in a given year resulting in the reconstructed values. Each core site’s residual variance is used to inversely weight the cores’ respective contributions. The interannual amplitude of the reconstructed accumulation rate is damped by the regressions and is thus calibrated to match that of the RCM data. Uncertainty and significance of changes is measured using statistical models. A 12% or 86 Gt yr 21 increase in ice sheet accumulation rate is found from the end of the Little Ice Age in ;1840 to the last decade of the reconstruction. This 1840‐1996 trend is 30% higher than that of 1600‐2009, suggesting an accelerating accumulation rate. The correlation of ^ At(G) with the average surface air temperature in the Northern Hemisphere (SATNHt) remains positive through time, while the correlation of ^ At(G) with local near-surface air temperatures or North Atlantic sea surface temperatures is inconsistent, suggestinga hemispheric-scale climateconnection.An annualsensitivityof ^ At(G) to SATNHtof 6.8%K 21 or 51 Gt K 21 is found. The reconstuction, ^ At(G), correlates consistently highly with the North Atlantic Oscillation index. However, at the 11-yr time scale, the sign of this correlation flips four times in the 1870‐2005 period.

Southeast Greenland high accumulation rates derived from firn cores and ground-penetrating radar

Abstract Despite containing only 14% of the Greenland ice sheet by area, the southeastern sector has the highest accumulation rates, and hence receives ∼30% of the total snow accumulation. We present accumulation rates obtained during our 2010 Arctic Circle Traverse derived from three 50 m firn cores dated using geochemical analysis. We tracked continuous internal reflection horizons between the firn cores using a 400 MHz ground-penetrating radar (GPR). GPR data combined with depth-age scales from the firn cores provide accumulation rates along a 70 km transect. We followed an elevation gradient from ∼2350 to ∼1830m to understand how progressive surface melt may affect the ability to chemically date the firn cores and trace the internal layers with GPR. From the firn cores, we find a 52% (∼0.43 m w.e. a-1) increase in average snow accumulation and greater interannual variability at the lower site than the upper site. The GPR profiling reveals that accumulation rates are influenced by topographic undulations on the surface, with up to 23% variability over 7 km. These measurements confirm the presence of high accumulation rates in the southeast as predicted by the calibrated regional climate model Polar MM5.

Spatial extent and temporal variability of Greenland firn aquifers detected by ground and airborne radars

We document the existence of widespread firn aquifers in an elevation range of ~1200–2000 m, in the high snow-accumulation regions of the Greenland ice sheet. We use NASA Operation IceBridge accumulation radar data from five campaigns (2010–2014) to estimate a firn-aquifer total extent of 21,900 km2. We investigate two locations in Southeast Greenland, where repeated radar profiles allow mapping of aquifer-extent and water table variations. In the upper part of Helheim Glacier the water table rises in spring following above-average summer melt, showing the direct firn-aquifer response to surface meltwater production changes. After spring 2012, a drainage of the firn-aquifer lower margin (5 km) is inferred from both 750 MHz accumulation radar and 195 MHz multicoherent radar depth sounder data. For 2011–2014, we use a ground-penetrating radar profile located at our Ridgeline field site and find a spatially stable aquifer with a water table fluctuating less than 2.5 m vertically. When combining radar data with surface topography, we find that the upper elevation edge of firn aquifers is located directly downstream of locally high surface slopes. Using a steady state 2-D groundwater flow model, water is simulated to flow laterally in an unconfined aquifer, topographically driven by ice sheet surface undulations until the water encounters crevasses. Simulations suggest that local flow cells form within the Helheim aquifer, allowing water to discharge in the firn at the steep-to-flat transitions of surface topography. Supported by visible imagery, we infer that water drains into crevasses, but its volume and rate remain unconstrained.

Hydraulic Conductivity of a Firn Aquifer in Southeast Greenland

Some regions of the Greenland ice sheet, where snow accumulation and melt rates are high, currently retain substantial volumes of liquid water within the firn pore space throughout the year. These firn aquifers, found between ~10-30 m below the snow surface, may significantly affect sea level rise by storing or draining surface meltwater. The hydraulic gradient and the hydraulic conductivity control flow of meltwater through the firn. Here we describe the hydraulic conductivity of the firn aquifer estimated from slug tests and aquifer tests at six sites located upstream of Helheim Glacier in southeastern Greenland. We conducted slug tests using a novel instrument, a piezometer with a heated tip that melts itself into the ice sheet. Hydraulic conductivity ranges between 2.5x10-5 and 1.1x10-3 m/s. The geometric mean of hydraulic conductivity of the aquifer is 2.7x10-4 m/s with a geometric standard deviation of 1.4 from both depth specific slug tests (analyzed using the Hvorslev method) and aquifer tests during the recovery period. Hydraulic conductivity is relatively consistent between boreholes and only decreases slightly with depth. The hydraulic conductivity of the firn aquifer is crucial for determining flow rates and patterns within the aquifer, which inform hydrologic models of the aquifer, its relation to the broader glacial hydrologic system, and its effect on sea level rise.

Investigation of Firn Aquifer Structure in Southeastern Greenland Using Active Source Seismology

In spring of 2011, a perennial storage of water was observed in the firn of the southeastern Greenland ice sheet, a region of both high snow accumulation and high melt. This aquifer is created through percolation of surface meltwater downward through the firn, saturating the pore space above the ice-firn transition. The aquifer may play a significant role in sea level rise through storage or draining freshwater into the ocean. We carried out a series of active source seismic experiments using continuously refracted P-waves and inverted the first P-arrivals using a transdimensional Bayesian approach where the depth, velocity, and number of layers are allowed to vary to identify the seismic velocities associated with the base of the aquifer. When our seismic approach is combined with a radar sounding of the water table situated at the top of the firn aquifer, we are able to quantify the volume of water present. In our study region, the base of the aquifer lies on average 27.7±2.9 m beneath the surface, with an average thickness of 11.5±5.5 m. Using a Wyllie average for porosity, we found the aquifer has an average water content of 16±8%, with considerable variation in water storage capacity along the studied east-west flow line, 40 km upstream of the Helheim glacier terminus. Between 2015 and 2016, we observed a 1-2 km uphill expansion of the aquifer system, with a site dry in summer 2015 exhibiting a water content of 530 kg m-2 in summer 2016. We estimate the volume of water stored in the aquifer across the entire region upstream of Helheim glacier to be 4.7±3.1 Gt, approximately 3% of the total water stored in firn aquifers across the Greenland ice sheet. Elucidating the volume of water stored within these recently discovered aquifers is vital for determining the hydrological structure and stability of the southeastern Greenland ice sheet.