Measurements of mesoscale sea-ice deformation over a region approximately 20 km in diameter were carried out over a five-week period in the spring of 1972 at the main AIDJEX camp in the Beaufort Sea. They have been analyzed to determine non-linearities in the ice velocity field (due to the discrete small-scale nature of the ice pack), as well as a continuum mode of deformation represented by a least-squares strain-rate tensor and vorticity. The deformation-rate time series between Julian day 88 and 112 exhibited net areal changes as large as 3% and deformation rates up to 0.16% per hour. In the principal axis co-ordinate system, the strain-rate typically exhibited a much larger compression (or extension) along one axis than along the other. Persistent cycles at ≈ 12 h wavelengths were observed in the divergence rate.

A comparison of the average residual error with the average strain-rate magnitude indicated that strains measured on a scale of 10 km or greater can serve as a valid measure of the continuum motion of the sea ice. This conclusion is also substantiated by a comparison between the mesoscale deformation, and macroscale deformation measured over a ≈ 100 km diameter region.

Regarding pack-ice rotation, vorticity calculations indicate that at low temporal frequencies (0.02 h−1), the whole mesoscale array rotates essentially as an entity and consequently the low-frequency vorticity can be estimated accurately from the rotation of a single floe.

A theoretical basis for introducing capillary effects into the theory of water percolation through snow is given. A capillary pressure-liquid saturation relationship found in the laboratory is used together with the theory to make a quantitative examination of capillary effects. It is shown that capillarity accounts for less than 10% of the total force when water flux is 10–8 m s–1 although the percentage rapidly increases for smaller fluxes. The experiments suggest that the irreducible water content of dense snow is 7% of the pore volume. It is concluded that the wave-front diffusion seen in lysimeter studies is not the result of capillary action. Other possible causes are suggested.

Kolahoi Glacier is one of the longest glaciers in Kashmir and in the past it extended for at least 35 km. In the Pleistocene there were three advances of Kolahoi Glacier and the last one of them was a major advance when the glacier extended as far as Pahalgam.

A comparison of mesoscale strain measurements with the atmospheric pressure field and the wind velocity field indicate that the ice divergence rate and vorticity follow the local pressure and wind divergence with significant correlation. For low atmospheric pressures and converging winds the divergence rate was found to be negative with the vorticity being counter-clockwise. The inverse behavior was observed for high pressures and diverging winds. This behavior was shown to agree with predictions based upon the infinite boundary solution of a linearized drift theory in the absence of gradient current effects and using the constitutive law proposed by Glen (1970) for pack ice. The best least-squares values of the constitutive law parameters η and ζ were found to be ≈ 1012 kg/s. Using typical divergence rates these values yield compressive stresses of the magnitude of 105 N/m which are similar to values suggested by the Parmerter and Coon (1972) ridge model. In general, the infinite boundary solution of the linear drift equation indicates that in a low-pressure region that is reasonably localized in space, the ice would be expected to converge for high compactness (winter) and diverge for low compactness (summer).

Calculations were also carried out using a more general linear visco-elastic constitutive law that includes memory effects and which includes a generalized Hooke’s law as well as the Glen law as special cases. A best fit of this more general calculation with strain measurements indicates overall a better agreement with viscous behavior than with elastic behavior, with the frequency behavior of the estimated “viscosities” similar to the Glen law behavior at temporal frequencies less than ≈ 0.01 h−1.

A linear elastic finite element computer program was applied to determine the stress distributions in multi-layered snow-packs typical of those found at Berthoud Pass, Colorado. The effect on stress distribution of wide variations in elastic material properties was examined. Also, an attempt was made to model the shear failure of a weak sub-layer in the snow-pack by relaxing the condition that the bottom snow layer be firmly attached to the ground.

Results of petrographic and fabric analysis of fine-grained cold ice from the tongue of Meserve Glacier, Antarctica, are described. Most of the basal ice is remarkably uniform in texture and shows an optic-axis fabric with a single strong maximum, which is consistent with the steady-state conditions of flow. Within 0.5 m of the ice–rock interface, irregularities in the bed cause flow perturbations which are correlated with recrystallization and changes in fabric of the ice. Optic-axis fabrics in the basal ice show close symmetry relationships with dimensional fabric and deformation symmetry. Grain-size of the ice increases towards the surface of the glacier and the single maximum of the optic-axis fabric undergoes a rotation about the flow vector. In the near surface, where strain-rates are relatively much lower, the optic-axis fabric symmetry is not closely related to either deformation symmetry or the dimensional fabric. Syntectonic recrystallization of ice throughout the glacier tongue characteristically produces a strong single-maximum fabric, the orientation of which in relation to the stress field is apparently determined by stress level. Under steady-state conditions of flow, the strength of the maximum also appears to be a function of stress level.

This paper describes laboratory research performed to determine the effects of crude and diesel oils on the porous sub-structure of Arctic sea ice. It includes a qualitative description of what occurs when oil is placed under the ice and an evaluation of some quantitative measurements made to determine the maximum extent to which crude oil can spread in an Arctic environment.

Nucleation and growth of bubbles during freezing of solutions of air and helium in water has been investigated experimentally using different techniques to give freezing rates between 1 μ m s−1 and 10 mm s−1. Bubbles grow as cylinders below 5 μ m s−1, becoming egg shaped, the narrow ends towards the freezing interlace, at higher ice growth velocities. Bubble concentration increases and size decreases with increase of growth rate. The detail of bubble size and concentration is influenced appreciably by the particulate content of the water sample. Very high freezing rates give initially clear ice. Subsequently, bubbles nucleate and grow at grain boundaries within the ice. Bubbles do not move with recrystallization, their spatial distribution showing the grain boundary positions at the time of nucleation.

Observations are interpreted in terms of nucleation on particles in suspension in the water and a significant incorporation of air molecules into the ice lattice. The relevance of the results to bubble-containing ice formed under natural conditions is discussed.

The conditions under which a floating fragment of ice is either entrained under the upstream edge of a down-stream ice cover or accumulated up-stream are examined by means of dimensional analysis and a simplified analysis of the moments acting on an idealized ice fragment. The significant parameter descriptive of the critical conditions is found to be a Froude number based on block thickness. The influence of the ratio of thickness to flow depth is shown to be due to the effect of the block constricting the flow cross-section, thus amplifying the velocity in accordance with simple continuity. Under-turning instability occurs at a lower critical velocity than required for vertical submergence. Comparison of experimental data with the theoretical results show good agreement and demonstrates the vital dependence on fragment thickness as well as providing a criterion readily applicable to special flow conditions where a Froude number based on flow depth is illogical.

The salinity distribution in multi-year sea ice is dependent on the ice topography and cannot be adequately represented by a single average profile. The cores collected from areas beneath surface hummocks generally showed a systematic increase in salinity with depth from 0‰ at the surface to about 4‰ at the base. The cores collected from areas beneath surface depressions were much more saline and displayed large salinity fluctuations.

Salinity observations from sea ice of varying thicknesses and ages collected at various Arctic and sub-Arctic locations revealed a strong correlation between the average salinity of the ice and the ice thickness h. For salinity samples collected from cold sea ice at the end of the growth season, this relationship can be represented by two linear equations: ; . It is suggested that the pronounced break in slope at 0.4 m is due to a change in the dominant brine drainage mechanism from brine expulsion to gravity drainage. A linear regression for the data collected during the melt season gives . An annual cyclic variation of the mean salinity exists for multi-year sea ice. The mean salinity reaches a maximum at the end of the growth season and a minimum at the end of the melt season.

A method to measure the vertical strain in glacier bore holes is described that entails placement of passive markers at varying depths. The position of these markers with respect to a surface reference is measured by an electronic sensor lowered into the hole. These measurements can be combined with inclinometer measurements to yield the total velocity vector in the ice surrounding the hole. Although the method was designed for use in a 0.05 m diameter hole, it can easily be applied to holes of different diameters and to winter snow covers as well as glacier ice.

Soil temperatures were recorded over periods of several weeks in the years 1909 and 1970 in two sites to a depth of 100 cm. It was found that snow depth was of major importance in the rate of freezing of the soil in winter; where snow cover was less than 5 cm in depth freezing rates were almost double those where snow depth was over 1 m. Snow cover also insulated the soil surface from above-zero air temperatures during spring, and soil thawing commenced from the surface only following the clearance of snow. Similarly, insulation of the soil surface by snow prevented short-term freezing and thawing cycles penetrating the soil, although even where snow cover was absent such short-term cycles were not observed to penetrate the soil to depths in excess of 5 cm. This surficial freezing and thawing of the soil took place more readily in spring than in the autumn. It was concluded that the annual cycle of soil freezing and thawing was the dominant factor in the thermal regime of these soils, short-term freezing cycles affecting only the immediate surface soil layers.

In Les météores (1637), in the midst of a father far-fetched theory of their origin, Descartes incorporated a detailed description, from actual observation, of a variety or kinds of snow crystals and hail particles. These even include the tsuzumi crystals, described as “wheels joined two by two by an axle” or as “little crystal columns decorated at each end with a six-petalled rose”, and such exceptional forms as twelve-rayed and eight-rayed stars. The accompanying diagrams, which have been reproduced a number of times, are distinctly inferior to his verbal description.

A new method of electromagnetic sounding in resistive electrical environments has been developed for use in lunar exploration. It is applicable to the study of terrestrial glaciers and ice sheets. A horizontal electric dipole antenna on the ground is used to transmit power at frequencies of 1, 2, 4, 8, 16 and 32 MHz. A set of orthogonal receiving coils is mounted on a vehicle which traverses away from the transmitter. Field strength is recorded as a function of distance. Waves which travel above the surface interfere with waves from the subsurface, generating interference patterns which can be used to determine the dielectric constant, the loss tangent, and depth to reflecting horizons.

The technique was tested on the Athabasca Glacier in western Canada. At 1, 2 and 4 MHz the ice was found to have a dielectric constant of about 3.3, a loss tangent (tan δ) which is roughly inversely proportional to frequency giving values of f tan δ in the range 0.25 to 0.35 (where f is in MHz). These values correspond well with the known properties of ice near 0° C, which is a temperature typical of temperate glaciers. It has been possible to determine the depth of the ice but results are not always consistent with previous seismic and gravity surveys and with drilling. At frequencies of 16 and 32 MHz, scattering is the dominant feature of the results. At 8 MHz there is a transition from clear-cut interference patterns to the scattering patterns. From these findings, we suggest that the Athabasca Glacier has a large number of dielectric scatterers with dimensions less than about 35 m, probably due in large part to crevasses.

A rotary drill for deep coring in temperate ice has been constructed and tested. The total length of the drill is 6 m and its weight is 100 kg. A steel armoured cable carries power to the 2 h.p, electric motor of the drill. The diameter of the core is 90 mm and the maximum length of core is 2 m. An antifreeze mixture at the bottom of the hole was necessary to prevent refreezing of ice chips on the cutting bits.

A 415 m deep hole was drilled during the summer of 1972 into the temperate accumulation area of Vatnajökull. Core recovery was 99%. Because of a fault in the cable the bottom was not reached.