Abstract
Electrical d.c. resistivity measurements made on the George VI Ice Shelf have established the polar nature of Antarctic ice despite saturation by melt-water from surface melt-lakes. Previously it has been suggested that different impurity concentrations are responsible for the extremes in resistivity (a factor of 1,000) between temperate ice (essentially at its pressure melting point) and polar ice (well below its pressure melting point). However, the evidence suggests that impurity levels are similar despite the leaching of contaminants by free water in temperate glaciers, a process which is absent in true polar glaciers. This implies that, although impurities can significantly alter the electrical behaviour of glacier ice, there is a more fundamental mechanism at work. We suggest that this process is one of recrystallisation.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Queille-Lèfevre, C., Albertinoli, P., Bauer, A., Cagniard, L. & Fournier, H. Annls Géophys. 13, 54–68 (1957).
Queille-Lèfevre, C., Bauer, A. & Girard Annls Géophys. 15, 564–567 (1959).
Cagniard, L. Annls Géophys. 15, 561–563 (1959).
Østrem, G. J. Glaciol. 6, 643–650 (1967).
Röthlisberger, H. & Vögtli, K. J. Glaciol. 6, 607–621 (1967).
Chaillou, A. & Vallon, M. Annls Géophys. 20, 201–205 (1964).
Bullemer, B., Engelhardt, H. & Riehl, N. in Physics of Ice (eds Riehl, N., Bullemer, B. & Engelhardt, H.) 416–429 (Plenum, New York, 1969).
Camp, P. R., Kiszenick, W. & Arnold, D. A. US Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory Research Report 198 (1967).
Meyer, A. U. & Röthlisberger, H. US Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory Technical Report 87 (1962).
Hochstein, M. J. Glaciol. 6, 623–633 (1967).
Vögtli, K. J. Glaciol. 6, 635–642 (1967).
Andrieux, P. thesis, Univ. Paris (1964).
Bentley, C. R. J. Glaciol. 18, 15–35 (1977).
Shabtaie, S. & Bentley, C. R. J. Glaciol. 24 (in the press).
Keller, G. V. & Frischknecht, F. C. J. Res. Nat. Bur. Standards (Washington, D.C.) D 64, 439–448 (1960).
Kopp, M. Z. angew. Math. Phys. 13, 431–441 (1962).
Glen, J. W. & Paren, J. G. J. Glaciol. 15, 15–38 (1975).
Fitzgerald, W. J. & Paren, J. G. J. Glaciol. 15, 39–48 (1975).
Müller, F. J. Glaciol. 4, 302–311 (1962).
Bentley, C. R. J. Glaciol. 22, 237–246 (1979).
Sanderson, T. J. J. Glaciol. 20, 257–283 (1978).
Martin, P. J. & Peel, D. A. J. Glaciol. 20, 311–317 (1978).
Harrison, W. D. & Raymond, C. F. J. Glaciol. 16, 173–180 (1976).
Stauffer, B. & Berner, W. J. Glaciol. 21, 291–300 (1978).
Hammer, C. U. Nature 270, 482–486 (1977).
Fitzgerald, W. J., Glen, J. W. & Paren, J. G. IAHS-AISH Publ. No. 118, 3–8 (1977).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Reynolds, J., Paren, J. Recrystallisation and electrical behaviour of glacier ice. Nature 283, 63–64 (1980). https://doi.org/10.1038/283063a0
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/283063a0
This article is cited by
-
On the Use of Electromagnetics for Earth Imaging of the Polar Regions
Surveys in Geophysics (2020)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.
