Modelling the dynamics and evolution of debris-covered glaciers

Abstract

Debris-covered glaciers are found in most of the world’s glacierized areas. The presence of debris on the glacier surface affects the ablation rate of the underlying ice. When the debris cover exceeds a thickness of a few centimetres, thermal insulation becomes dominant, thereby reducing the ablation of the underlying ice so that for a given climate forcing, debris-covered glaciers exhibit a significantly different response than that observed for debris-free glaciers. Understanding the response of debris-covered glaciers to a warming Show more