Title: Distribution and activity of ice wedges across the forest-tundra transition, western Arctic Canada - CIMP164
Citation: Kokelj, S. (2014). Distribution and activity of ice wedges across the forest-tundra transition, western Arctic Canada - CIMP164. NWT Discovery Portal. https://nwtdiscoveryportal.enr.gov.nt.ca/geoportal/catalog/search/resource/details.page?uuid=%7BD2624838-2848-4CA5-99C8-99A2E09F3FBF%7D
Study Site: Mackenzie Delta, Northwest Territories
Purpose: The objectives of this paper are to (1) investigate the distribution of polygonal terrain and the size of ice wedges in hummocky fine-grained mineral soils and peatlands across the low Arctic forest-tundra transition and (2) examine soil and permafrost conditions that control ice wedge development. Three working hypotheses provided the impetus for this research: (1) that the northward decrease in snow accumulation across the forest-tundra transition controls the frequency of thermal contraction cracking on a regional basis; (2) that spatially, conditions conducive to thermal contraction cracking are positively associated with a greater abundance and size of ice wedges; and (3) that soil physical properties are a secondary modulator of thermal contraction cracking, leading to distinct differences in the distribution and size of ice wedges in organic and hummocky fine-grained mineral soils.
Abstract: Remote sensing, regional ground temperature and ground ice observations, and numerical simulation were used to investigate the size, distribution, and activity of ice wedges in fine-grained mineral and organic soils across the forest-tundra transition in uplands east of the Mackenzie Delta.
Supplemental Information Summary:
Research:
Further Info: Kokelj, S. V., Lantz, T. C., Wolfe, S. A., Kanigan, J. C., Morse, P. D., Coutts, R., Molina-Giraldo, N. & Burn, C. (2014). Distribution and activity of ice wedges across the forest-tundra transition, western Arctic Canada. Journal of Geophysical Research, 119, 9, 2032-2047. https://doi.org/10.1002/2014jf003085
Status: Complete
Keywords:
remote sensing,
hydrology,
climate change,
permafrost,
Geographical coordinates: North: 70.4793, South: 68.2247 East: -130.2302 West: -136.247
Bounding Temporal Extent: Start Date: , End
Date:
