Modelling the reorientation of sea-ice faults as the wind changes direction
Wilchinsky, Alexander V.; Feltham, Daniel; Hopkins, Mark A.. 2011 Modelling the reorientation of sea-ice faults as the wind changes direction. Annals of Glaciology, 52 (57). 83-90.
Full text not available from this repository. (Request a copy)Abstract/Summary
A discrete-element model of sea ice is used to study how a 900 change in wind direction alters the pattern of faults generated through mechanical failure of the ice. The sea-ice domain is 400 km in size and consists of polygonal floes obtained through a Voronoi tessellation. Initially the floes are frozen together through viscous-elastic joints that can break under sufficient compressive, tensile and shear deformation. A constant wind-stress gradient is applied until the initially frozen ice pack is broken into roughly diamond-shaped aggregates, with crack angles determined by wing-crack formation. Then partial refreezing of the cracks delineating the aggregates is modelled through reduction of their length by a particular fraction, the ice pack deformation is neglected and the wind stress is rotated by 90 degrees. New cracks form, delineating aggregates with a different orientation. Our results show the new crack orientation depends on the refrozen fraction of the initial faults: as this fraction increases, the new cracks gradually rotate to the new wind direction, reaching 90 degrees for fully refrozen faults. Such reorientation is determined by a competition between new cracks forming at a preferential angle determined by the wing-crack theory and at old cracks oriented at a less favourable angle but having higher stresses due to shorter contacts across the joints.
Item Type: | Publication - Article |
---|---|
Programmes: | BAS Programmes > Polar Science for Planet Earth (2009 - ) > Polar Oceans |
ISSN: | 0260-3055 |
NORA Subject Terms: | Marine Sciences Glaciology |
Date made live: | 21 Jun 2011 09:02 +0 (UTC) |
URI: | https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/14499 |
Actions (login required)
View Item |
Document Downloads
Downloads for past 30 days
Downloads per month over past year