Collaborative Research: Characterizing Soft-Bedded Glacier Sliding Dynamics Using Integrated Borehole, Seismic, and Numerical Experiments

Conducted in Southeast Alaska, the investigators will use Taku Glacier as a uniquely accessible location to study how glaciers slide over soft, deformable beds. Investigators will combine novel borehole instrumentation, seismic sensors, radar surveys, and computer models to produce the most detailed picture yet of how water and material under the glacier interact to cause rapid ice flow. The resulting framework will allow surface observations to reveal subglacial processes in the polar regions, where direct ice-bed measurements are logistically challenging but essential for accurate predictions. Because the physics of how glaciers slide over their beds is one of the largest sources of uncertainty in current sea-level rise projections, reducing it will strengthen the predictive foundation for resilient coastal communities and infrastructure. The project will train undergraduates, graduate students, and a postdoctoral researcher, and will support exhibitions and outreach programming to improve public understanding of glacier systems and their links to global sea levels. Centered on Taku Glacier, an unusually thick, temperate tidewater glacier in Southeast Alaska, the work combines custom borehole instrumentation, dense passive-seismic arrays, ground-based radar surveys, and numerical modeling to investigate how subglacial drainage configurations (distributed vs. channelized) influence effective stress, till strength, and slip stability. New approaches, including instrumentation to measure the strength of subglacial material, "cryoeggs" to track water pressure, and real-time mapping of water networks, will resolve the coupled hydrology and mechanics of the bed in unprecedented detail. Taku Glacier’s unique “out-of-phase” seasonal speed-up signals at different regions of its terminus suggest the coexistence of contrasting hydrological systems, providing a natural laboratory to capture critical empirical data and test the leading theories of soft-bed hydrology. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. NSF Award ID: 2518992 | Program: 0100CYXXDB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT | Principal Investigator: Marianne Haseloff | Institution: University of Wisconsin-Madison, MADISON, WI | Award Amount: $351,931 View on NSF Award Search: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/show-award/?AWD_ID=2518992 View on Research.gov: https://www.research.gov/awardapi-service/v1/awards/2518992.html