Channelized subglacial drainage over a deformable bed

Abstract

We develop theoretically a description of a possible subglacial drainage mechanism for glaciers and ice sheets moving over saturated, deformable till. The model is based on the plausible assumption that flow of water in a thin film at the ice-till interface is unstable to the formation of a channelized drainage system, and is restricted to the case in which meltwater cannot escape through the till to an underlying aquifer. In describing the physics of such channelized drainage, we have generalized and extended Rothlisberger's model of channels cut into basal ice to include "canals' cut into the till, paying particular attention to the role of sediment properties and the mechanics of sediment transport. We show that sediment-floored Rothlisberger (R) channels can exist for high effective pressures, and wide, shallow, ice-roofed canals cut into the till for low effective pressures. Canals should form a distributed, non-arborescent system, unlike R channels. Geologic evidence derived from land forms and deposits left by the Pleistocene ice sheets in North America and Europe is consistent with predictions of the model. -from Authors