Recurring jökulhlaups in Sälka, northern Sweden

Responsible organisation

2004 (English)In: Gerografiska Annaler A. Physical Geography, Vol. 86A, no 1, p. 169-179Article in journal (Refereed)

Abstract [en]

An ice-dammed lake at the margin of the glacier Sälkaglaciären, in the Kebnekaise Mountains in northern Sweden, drained suddenly in July 2003 producing a flood with a measured peak discharge of 9.5±0.25 m3s-1. The total lake volume of 4.55×105 million3 drained within two days. The hydrograph of this event is characteristic of a jökulhlaup controlled by a single basal ice tunnel that enlarges due to melting. The jökulhlaup had an exponential rise to a peak discharge, and following the peak, a very steep fall in discharge as the water supply to the drainage system ceased. A similar jökulhlaup was observed in August 1990 with an estimated release of 8.05×105 m3 water. Jökulhlaups at Sälkaglaciären are recurring events and have been indirectly observed since the 1950s

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages

2004. Vol. 86A, no 1, p. 169-179

Keywords [en]

Arctic, Sälka, outburst flood, jökulhlaup, glacier, ice-dammed lake, peak-discharge, hydrograph, polythermal glacier, northern Sweden

Identifiers

URN: urn:nbn:se:polar:diva-996OAI: oai:DiVA.org:polar-996DiVA, id: diva2:569130

Note

Source: Polardok by Swedish Polar Research Secretariat

Available from: 2012-11-15 Created: 2012-11-15 Last updated: 2012-11-15

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