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- C31C-0949: A New Physical Model of Subglacial Hydrology
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Board 0949‚ Hall EFG (Poster Hall)NOLA CC
Author(s):Generic 'disconnected' Message
Sophia O'Connell, University of Portland (First Author, Presenting Author)
Kiya Riverman, University of Portland
Hannah McClelland, University of Portland
John Leeman, Leeman Geophysical
The way glaciers move and behave is strongly influenced by the channels of water flowing beneath them. Observing how water flows beneath glaciers is challenging due to limited resolution of measuring instruments and difficulties getting to glaciers themselves. Physically modeling is a great way to visually represent these processes to study them in a tangible way. Our project developed a low-cost clear polymer that is able to flow and deform in a similar way that a glacier behaves. We used a flow table with computer controlled water pumps to inject dyed water beneath the clear polymer in order to observe how the water moved underneath the polymer. An aerial camera captured the polymer flow, and beads were placed on top of the polymer to track how fast it moved. We then compared how fast the polymer moved with how big the channels of water were beneath it, and found that their polymer moved fastest where there were widest channels of water. This physical model provides a useful technique for exploring how water beneath glaciers can impact their flow.
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