The long multiphase trunk–tributary surge history of the high-Arctic Chapman Glacier, 1959–2023
Surge-type glaciers have been identified throughout the Canadian Arctic, but detailed surge behavior has been sparsely studied. Recent high spatiotemporal resolution satellite products enable such studies, allowing for better process-based understanding of surging in this region. Here, we present a...
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Taylor & Francis Group
2025-12-01
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| Series: | Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research |
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| Online Access: | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/15230430.2024.2441541 |
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| author | Wesley Van Wychen Hester Jiskoot Kristie Shannon Carolyn Gorwill |
| author_facet | Wesley Van Wychen Hester Jiskoot Kristie Shannon Carolyn Gorwill |
| author_sort | Wesley Van Wychen |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Surge-type glaciers have been identified throughout the Canadian Arctic, but detailed surge behavior has been sparsely studied. Recent high spatiotemporal resolution satellite products enable such studies, allowing for better process-based understanding of surging in this region. Here, we present a multidecadal record (1999–2023) of flow velocities, strain rates, and elevation changes for Chapman Glacier, a 40-km-long land-terminating glacier on Umingmak Nuna (Ellesmere Island), using ITS_LIVE (Inter-mission Time Series of Land Ice Velocity and Elevation), Sentinel-1, and elevation time series data products. We further use historical remote sensing data to analyze surface morphology and displacement from 1959 to 2023. After an inferred century-long or longer quiescent phase, Chapman Glacier surged for at least twenty-two years in two successive phases. Phase 1 occurred from 2001 to 2012 and was spatially limited to the trunk, and Phase 2 started around 2012 and continues to 2024, impacting the main tributary and the lower part of the trunk. In each surge phase flow speeds increased from ~25 to >200 m a−1 over approximately ten years, propagated from up-glacier to down-glacier, and involved notable mass displacements. Our record of this high-Arctic surge and first account of a tributary–trunk surge in the Canadian Arctic contributes to the characterization of the spectrum of dynamic ice flow instabilities worldwide. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-bf31c0e28eab40a5abeebce027468109 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1523-0430 1938-4246 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-12-01 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis Group |
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| series | Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research |
| spelling | doaj-art-bf31c0e28eab40a5abeebce0274681092025-01-24T14:09:38ZengTaylor & Francis GroupArctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research1523-04301938-42462025-12-0157110.1080/15230430.2024.2441541The long multiphase trunk–tributary surge history of the high-Arctic Chapman Glacier, 1959–2023Wesley Van Wychen0Hester Jiskoot1Kristie Shannon2Carolyn Gorwill3Department of Geography and Environmental Management, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, CanadaDepartment of Geography and Environment, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, Alberta, CanadaDepartment of Geography and Environmental Management, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, CanadaDepartment of Geography and Planning, Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, CanadaSurge-type glaciers have been identified throughout the Canadian Arctic, but detailed surge behavior has been sparsely studied. Recent high spatiotemporal resolution satellite products enable such studies, allowing for better process-based understanding of surging in this region. Here, we present a multidecadal record (1999–2023) of flow velocities, strain rates, and elevation changes for Chapman Glacier, a 40-km-long land-terminating glacier on Umingmak Nuna (Ellesmere Island), using ITS_LIVE (Inter-mission Time Series of Land Ice Velocity and Elevation), Sentinel-1, and elevation time series data products. We further use historical remote sensing data to analyze surface morphology and displacement from 1959 to 2023. After an inferred century-long or longer quiescent phase, Chapman Glacier surged for at least twenty-two years in two successive phases. Phase 1 occurred from 2001 to 2012 and was spatially limited to the trunk, and Phase 2 started around 2012 and continues to 2024, impacting the main tributary and the lower part of the trunk. In each surge phase flow speeds increased from ~25 to >200 m a−1 over approximately ten years, propagated from up-glacier to down-glacier, and involved notable mass displacements. Our record of this high-Arctic surge and first account of a tributary–trunk surge in the Canadian Arctic contributes to the characterization of the spectrum of dynamic ice flow instabilities worldwide.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/15230430.2024.2441541Glacier surgingdynamic instabilitiesCanadian Arctictributary–trunk interactions |
| spellingShingle | Wesley Van Wychen Hester Jiskoot Kristie Shannon Carolyn Gorwill The long multiphase trunk–tributary surge history of the high-Arctic Chapman Glacier, 1959–2023 Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research Glacier surging dynamic instabilities Canadian Arctic tributary–trunk interactions |
| title | The long multiphase trunk–tributary surge history of the high-Arctic Chapman Glacier, 1959–2023 |
| title_full | The long multiphase trunk–tributary surge history of the high-Arctic Chapman Glacier, 1959–2023 |
| title_fullStr | The long multiphase trunk–tributary surge history of the high-Arctic Chapman Glacier, 1959–2023 |
| title_full_unstemmed | The long multiphase trunk–tributary surge history of the high-Arctic Chapman Glacier, 1959–2023 |
| title_short | The long multiphase trunk–tributary surge history of the high-Arctic Chapman Glacier, 1959–2023 |
| title_sort | long multiphase trunk tributary surge history of the high arctic chapman glacier 1959 2023 |
| topic | Glacier surging dynamic instabilities Canadian Arctic tributary–trunk interactions |
| url | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/15230430.2024.2441541 |
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