Dynamics of ice sheets and glaciers

Ralf Greve, Heinz Blatter (auth.)9783642034152, 3642034152

Dynamics of Ice Sheets and Glaciers presents an introduction to the dynamics and thermodynamics of flowing ice masses on Earth. Based on an outline of general continuum mechanics, the different initial-boundary-value problems for the flow of ice sheets, ice shelves, ice caps and glaciers are systematically derived. Special emphasis is put on developing hierarchies of approximations for the different systems, and suitable numerical solution techniques are discussed. A separate chapter is devoted to glacial isostasy. The book is appropriate for graduate courses in glaciology, cryospheric sciences, environmental sciences, geophysics and related fields. Standard undergraduate knowledge of mathematics (calculus, linear algebra) and physics (classical mechanics, thermodynamics) provide a sufficient background for successfully studying the text.

Table of contents :
Front Matter….Pages i-xiv
Ice in the Climate System….Pages 1-6
Vectors, Tensors and Their Representation….Pages 7-16
Elements of Continuum Mechanics….Pages 17-48
Constitutive Equations for Polycrystalline Ice….Pages 49-60
Large-Scale Dynamics of Ice Sheets….Pages 61-109
Large-Scale Dynamics of Ice Shelves….Pages 111-143
Dynamics of Glacier Flow….Pages 145-184
Glacial Isostasy….Pages 185-201
Advanced Topics….Pages 203-259
Conclusions, Summary and Outlook….Pages 261-262
Erratum….Pages 1-3
Back Matter….Pages 263-287