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J.G. Ferrigno

Publications and source records attributed to J.G. Ferrigno.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

Velocities of the Pine Island, Thwaites, and smaller glaciers along the Marie Byrd Land coast, West Antarctica

Average velocities for time intervals ranging from < 1 to 15 years were measured by tracking ice-surface patterns on sequential Landsat and European Remote-sensing Satellite synthetic aperture radar images. Velocities ofThwaites Glacier range from 2.2 km a −1 above the grounding line to 3.4 km a −1 at the limit of measurements onThwaites Glacier ice tongue. The glacier increases in velocity by about 1 km a −1 where it crosses the grounding line. Over the period 1984-93, Thwaites Glacier ice tongue accelerated by about 0.6 kin a .Velocities of the floating part of several minor glaciers and some ice shelves are also determined: Land Glacier, 17—1.9 km a −1 ; DeVicq Glacier, 0.7-1.1 km a −1 ; Dotson Ice Shelf 0.2-0.5 km a −1 ; Gctz Ice Shelf, 0.2-0.8 km a −1 ; and Sulzberger Ice Shelf, 0.01 -0.02 km a −1 . The high velocities along the Marie Byrd Land coast are consistent with the high precipitation rates over West Antarctica and, for some of the glaciers, the lack of buttressing ice shelves.

Annals of Glaciology

Ice-front change and iceberg behaviour along Oates and George V Coasts, Antarctica, 1912-96

Ice-front change may well be a sensitive indicator of regional climate change. We have studied the western Oates Coast from Cape Kinsey (158°50' E, 69°19' S) to Cape Hudson (153°45' Ε, 68°20' S) and the entire George V Coast, from Cape Hudson to Point Alden (142°02' E, 66°48' S). The glaciers here drain part of the Dome Charlie and Talos Dome areas (640 000 km 2 ). A comparison between various documents, dated several years apart, has allowed an estimate of the surficial ice discharge, the ice-front fluctuation and the iceberg-calving flux during the last 50 years. The ice-front discharge of the studied coast has been estimated at about 90 ± 12 km 3 a −1 in 1989-91, 8.5 km 3 a −1 for western Oates Coast and 82 km 3 a −1 for George V Coast. From 1962-63 to 1973-74 the floating glaciers underwent a net reduction that continued from 1973-74 to 1989-91. On the other hand, from 1989-91 to 1996 the area of floating glaciers increased. Ninnis Glacier Tongue and the western part of Cook Ice Shelf underwent a significant retreat after 1980 and 1947, respectively. Satellite-image analysis of large icebergs has provided information about ice-ocean interaction and the existence of an “iceberg trap” along George V Coast. A first estimate of the mass balance of the drainage basin of Mertz and Ninnis Glaciers shows a value close to zero or slightly negative.

Annals of Glaciology

Retreating glacier fronts on the Antarctic Peninsula over the past half-century

The continued retreat of ice shelves on the Antarctic Peninsula has been widely attributed to recent atmospheric warming, but there is little published work describing changes in glacier margin positions. We present trends in 244 marine glacier fronts on the peninsula and associated islands over the past 61 years. Of these glaciers, 87% have retreated and a clear boundary between mean advance and retreat has migrated progressively southward. The pattern is broadly compatible with retreat driven by atmospheric warming, but the rapidity of the migration suggests that this may not be the sole driver of glacier retreat in this region.

Science

Evaluation of the National Archives program to convert nitrate aerial photographs of the United States to a stable-base safety film.

Discusses the programme on reproducing the 1930's and early 1940's nitrate aerial photographs of large areas of the US onto stable-base safety film, and the proceedings of a February 1981 meeting at the National Archives and Records Service, General Services Administration, which discussed the programme and inspected the results of the new full-size (1:1), roll-to-roll conversions. The latter process was found to be acceptable to all current and envisaged future users of this photography.-R.House

Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing

Satellite image atlas of glaciers

The US Geological Survey has initiated a project to prepare a satellite image atlas of glaciers with the cooperation of a number of US and international organizations. The atlas will include the geographical distribution of glaciers as well as topics of glaciology and related environmental phenomena using Landsat, NOAA and other satellite data. The primary objectives of the atlas are to provide an inventory of available images of extant glaciers, to demonstrate their scientific value and to serve as the basis of Landsat image maps of glacierized areas.

Antarctica, Svalbard