Spatial, temporal and kinematic characteristics of surges of Variegated Glacier, Alaska

Abstract

Analysis of five surges of Variegated Glacier, Alaska, indicates that they all terminated with their surge fronts in the terminal lobe of the glacier, and that different surges penetrated into the terminal lobe by different amounts. Of the five surges, the one that occurred in 1905–06 penetrated furthest into the terminal lobe. The 1964–65 surge affected a greater proportion of the glacier than either the 1947–48 or the 1982–83 surge, caused greater total ice displacements than the 1982–83 surge and appears to have resulted in larger total displacements down-glacier than the 1982–83 surge. Overall, the 1964–65 surge was a significantly larger event than either the 1947–48 or the 1982–83 surge.