Multi-decadal elevation changes on Bagley Ice Valley and Malaspina Glacier, Alaska
Muskett RR, Lingle CS, Tangborn WV, Rabus BT. 2003. Multi-decadal elevation changes on Bagley Ice Valley and Malaspina Glacier, Alaska. Geophysical Research Letters
Fronting the Gulf of Alaska, the St. Elias and eastern Chugach Mountains contain the largest connected glacier and icefield complex in continental North America. The Bering and Malaspina Glacier systems (Figure 1) have a combined area of about 10,200 km2: 5200 km2 and 5000 km2 respectively. Most glaciers in this region are surge-type, with quasi-cycles of 5 to 30 years. Bagley Ice Valley (formerly Bagley Icefield), a 100 km long glacierized valley, is the main accumulation area of the Bering Glacier. Its last major surge occurred in 1993–95. Crevassing on Bagley Ice Valley was observed in August 1995 near the Canadian border. Measurements of accelerated flow by InSAR indicated the surge propagated up-glacier almost to the ice divide. Below the equilibrium line, heavy crevassing promoted increased ablation during subsequent summer seasons. The Malaspina Glacier (Figure 1), entirely in ablation area, is mostly fed by Seward Glacier, which is flanked on its upper north side by Mount Logan, in Yukon, Canada. DEMs from the NASA SRTM in 2000, and from ITI in 2000, are used with USGS DEMs, whose data date from 1972/73, to derive multi-decadal spatial patterns of glacier elevation changes that have resulted from the combined effects of climate change and glacier dynamics.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Muskett, Reginald; Lingle, Craig; Tangborn, Wendell; Rabus, Bernhard
- Units
- WRST
- Keywords
- Bagley Ice Vally, Elevation changes, Glacier, Malaspina Glacier, Multi-decadal, Muskett