Dynamics of crystal formation in the Greenland NorthGRIP ice core

The North Greenland Icecore Project (NorthGRIP) palaeoclimatic information back to about 120 kyr BP. The size distributions of ice crystals in the upper 880 m of the NorthGRIP ice core, which cover a time-span of approximately 5300 years, have been obtained previously. The distributions evolve towar...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of glaciology Vol. 50; no. 170; pp. 325 - 328
Main Authors Mathiesen, Joachim, Ferkinghoff-Borg, Jesper, Jensen, Mogens H., Levinsen, Mogens, Olesen, Poul, Dahl-Jensen, Dorthe, Svensson, Anders
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Cambridge, UK Cambridge University Press 01.01.2004
International Glaciological Society
Subjects
Earth, ocean, space
Exact sciences and technology
External geophysics
Snow. Ice. Glaciers
Arctic region
Greenland
models
Grain growth
Quaternary
paleoclimatology
Polycrystal
upper Quaternary
Dimension spectrum
fragmentation
drill cores
Ice crystals
Grain boundary diffusion
ice sheets
Growth mechanism
polar regions
ice caps
Cenozoic
Phanerozoic
Holocene
Formation mechanism
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:The North Greenland Icecore Project (NorthGRIP) palaeoclimatic information back to about 120 kyr BP. The size distributions of ice crystals in the upper 880 m of the NorthGRIP ice core, which cover a time-span of approximately 5300 years, have been obtained previously. The distributions evolve towards a universal curve, indicating a common underlying physical process in the formation of crystals. We identify this process as an interplay between fragmentation of the crystals and diffusion of their grain boundaries. The process is described by a two-parameter differential equation to which we obtain the exact solution. The solution is in excellent agreement with the measured distributions.
ISSN:0022-1430
1727-5652
DOI:10.3189/172756504781829873