L. Bistrup Bræ / Storstrømmen / Dove Bugt / North East Greenland

[Espen]

Where the 2 great glaciers L. Bistrup Bræ and Storstrømmen meet, big cracks have been seen on several Modis images over some time now. Last melt season, we saw substantial melting in this area resulting in Borgfjorden reaching further inland and even Bræ Øerne was almost free of surrounding ice at the end of the melting season 2012, it will be interesting to follow  this area over the next coming months.

[Espen]

Following images show the relatively large calving from the 2012 season at Brede Bræ into Borgfjorden and Dove Bugt.
It will be interesting to follow the further retreat of this junction glacier ( Storstrømmen / L. Bistrup Bræ) in the coming seasons.
Note the poor snow/ ice condition on the southern part of the image (2012) of L. Bistrup Bræ.
All 3 images (2009,2010 and 2012) are from the same period of the years August - September.

[Espen]

The red lines indicate cracking lines and the area of Brede Bræ, Borgfjorden / Dove Bugt encroached upon in the melting season of 2012.

The area of the part of Bredebræ that disappeared in 2012 is +/- 10 km2.
And the length or the width depending how you look at it was reduced from +/- 14 km to only +/- 10 km (see below). 

""Bredebræ  76Ø-107 (76°42.0'N 22°48.0'W) Broad glacier at the head of Borgfjorden, formed by the confluence of Storstrømmen and L. Bistrup Bræ; it produces many large icebergs. Named as Brede Bræ by the 1906-08 Danmark-Ekspeditionen. (Broad Glacier, Brede Glacier, Breidijökull.) From GEUS Copenhagen""

[Espen]

Here is an animation of the calving event at Bredebræ in July - August 2012, it is pretty heavy so be patient and keep an eye on this part of Greenland the next couple of months!

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B_a0Tecpig0jSVAwSnpmZ3Bsc0k/edit?usp=sharing

[Espen]

Dove Bugt / North East Greenland:

The disintegration of the fast ice is underway, a large piece went of today:

[Espen]

New image showing the calving line at Storstrømmen , L. Bistrup Bræ and Bredebræ.

Click on image to enlarge!

[Espen]

More fast ice is being released:

[ghoti]

Is there any chance that the ice where buoy 2012M is will break loose this year?

[Espen]

Ghoti;

I think 2013 is one of the years when the fast ice from Nordostrundingen in the North to Shannon Island in the south will be cleared from fast ice, so I believe Buoy 2012M will be released in the same process.

[Espen]

The 2013 melt season may be behind 2012 elsewhere, but not at the North East Coast of Greenland, I reckon we are at least 2 weeks ahead of 2012 at the time being and with much  greater melt potential than the 2012 season, I even believe the fast ice will be gone all the way up to Nordostrundingen by the end of the melt season 2013.
Below you see the latest developments in the area:

[Espen]

Dove Bugt 2012 and 2013.

Click to enlarge the image!

[Espen]

July 12 update:

[Neven]

There goes the queen's forehead... 

[Espen]

A "little" further south than the topic area, we find Scoresbysund Fjord. It is the largest and longest fjord system in the world and by all means very impressive. 20+ Outlet Glaciers are found inside this labyrinth of fjords the largest being Daugaard-Jensen Gletscher (5,3 km). The image below show the near sea ice free fjord:

[Espen]

Here is a better image of the Scoresbysund Fjord System.
Click on image to enlarge:

[Espen]

The glacier erosion at Bredebræ /Dove Bugt:

Black line indicates calvingfront from 2012.

Click on image to enlarge!

[Espen]

Dove Bugt update, several interesting places to be watched:

[Espen]

The fast ice in Dove Bugt will soon break up, several fissures are seen in the Bay area, 1 day max 2. And the southern limit of Fast Ice in North East Greenland, will be moved several hundred kms further north.

Fissures enhanced (photoshop)

[Espen]

Break up update, cracks enhanced by image editor, swath image only:

[Espen]

As advised earlier, the breakup in Dove is speeding up, the southern fast ice limit on the East Coast is moving north, it is now north of Shannon Island:



 

[Espen]

More action from Dove Bugt, please notice changes at Bredebræ:

[Espen]

Strong IN SITU melting in Dove Bugt, notice how the sea ice "evaporates" into "clouds".

Please click on image to enlarge, and for better details:

[Espen]

A calving is underway at L. Ibstrup Bræ, and it seems more is coming later, and we may see the birth of a navigable island "Lindhard Ø", at least I have seen no evidence of this fact in satellite history:

Please click on image to enlarge ad for better details:

[Espen]

More fissures observed at Storstrømmen and L. Ibstrup Bræ/Bredebræ:

Please click on image to enlarge!

[Espen]

Here is an animation showing the retreat of the fusion glaciers :Bredebræ, Storstømmen and L. Ibstrup Bræ from 2009 to 2013:

[mspelto]

Just published a piece on the Storstrømmen and L. Bistrup Brae area, any further suggestions welcome. http://glacierchange.wordpress.com/2013/08/25/storstrommen-susceptible-to-rapid-retreat/.

[Shared Humanity]

Here is an animation showing the retreat of the fusion glaciers :Bredebræ, Storstømmen and L. Ibstrup Bræ from 2009 to 2013:

It sure looks like the strong melt season of 2012 set the stage for the glacier to retreat over the last 2 years. Given the dramatic melt all along the northeast coast fast ice this summer, could we see further glacier retreat next summer?

[Espen]

Hi Mauri:

Here is some additional place names from the area, great arcticle  by the way:

[Espen]

Mauri,

My immediate suggestion to what we are watching at  Storstrømmen/L. Ibstrup/ Bredebræ is what we also see at Zacharia, no flux to speak of like Jakobshavn / Petermann and both areas are undermined by top and especially bottom melt.

[mspelto]

Zachariae does have a substantial flux, what makes you think much of Storstrommen is afloat?

[TerryM]

Mauri
Very nice explanation of the dynamics in the area. Is there bathymetry of the region other than the flyover that you mention? I'm also curious as to which glacier you think would be more likely to surge if a void should open between them.
Terry

[Espen]

Mauri,

When flipping images from year to year I don't see any movements at Storstrømmen and L. Ibstrup as is easily seen with eg. Petermann Glacier where the movement is about 1 - 2 km a year. I believe Germania Land will eventually become an island and most of Storstrømmen will be gone from Bredebræ in the south to Kofoed-Hansen Bræ in the north. Much of the top melt at both L. Ibstrup Bræ and Storstrømmen end up at Randsøen and from there it is going by rivers across to Borgfjorden and some even by tunnels? And thus breaking down as the calving we have seen over the last couple of years making Borgfjorden greater and the end of Bagfjorden (becoming a sound).
The same is seen at Zachariae the calving (disintegration) front is moving into the land, and not showing much forward movements.

[Espen]

Zachariae does have a substantial flux, what makes you think much of Storstrommen is afloat?

I have discussed this question with some people here i Copenhagen,since there is very little data on both Storstrømmen and L. Ibstrup, but there is no evidence of Storstrømmen not being a floating glacier, and some think like me, it is at least floating north of Bræ Øerne.
Another evidence of a floating glacier is the crack across the glacier from Randsøen to Borgfjorden?
And to the head line of Mauris article "Storstrømmen Susceptible to Rapid Retreat" I completely  agree, I think the whole area from 79 in the north to L. Ibstrup in the south is worth spending some time investigating over next few seasons. And with the fast ice almost gone this season things might speed up?

[Espen]

New updated action map more details will come:

Please click on the image for enlargement and better details, very large image!!

[sidd]

As you requested, Espen, i hope these satisfy.

Image 1) bedrock. But bathymetry data is sparse in the region indicated, see the suspicious long, straight contours

Image 2) surface

Have fun.

sidd

[Espen]

One of the "lazy dogs" of glaciers, Bredebræ aka Storstrømmen (to the north) and L. Ibstrup Bræ (to the south) is waking up, but it is another place where I expect some actions in the future:

Please click on image to start animation!

[Espen]

Here is another reminder animation showing a span of 40 years, with somehow not expected results?

Please click on the image to start animation!

[Espen]

Here comes the 3rd "fever" check this time from Dronning Louise Land ( North East Greenland), the 2 previous checks were from the south ( Near Kap Farvel) and from the north west (Washington Land).
The ice caps seem to hold their size, but all the 4 glaciers included in the animation below are all retreating, especially Borgjøkelen retreated some 1,800 meters:

Please click on image to start the animation.

[Espen]

A rare visitor to the calving scene, waiting for better data but here is a teaser:

[Espen]

As promissed yesterday here is a rare sizeable calving at Storstrømmen /Bredebræ:

[Gray-Wolf]

https://earthdata.nasa.gov/labs/worldview/?p=arctic&l=MODIS_Aqua_CorrectedReflectance_TrueColor,MODIS_Aqua_CorrectedReflectance_Bands721(hidden),MODIS_Terra_CorrectedReflectance_TrueColor,MODIS_Terra_CorrectedReflectance_Bands367(hidden),MODIS_Terra_CorrectedReflectance_Bands721(hidden),Graticule,Coastlines&t=2015-09-10&v=152523.65577353298,-884206.6790305657,327371.655773533,-801902.6790305657

Someone flagged this on another forum? Any idea what this sediment flow is and what could be the cause? If you move back you can see when(ish) the flow began ( cloud blights a few images).

Is this basal waters powering out from the ice sheet or is it some kind of slump/collapse?

[solartim27]

It looks to me that is a flushing out of accumulated silt in the valley as a lake to the right of the channel drains out.  But that could be ice that gets snowed over, as it begins to reappear on the 11th.  I can't tell if something is going on up in the valley, or if it just shadows from the mountains.

[TenneyNaumer]

Good spotting that. I'm sure we'll be seeing many more examples in the coming years.

[Espen]

A minor calving is seen in the border area of Storstrømmen  and L. Ibstrup Bræ aka Bredebræ:

Click on image to enlarge and animate!

[Espen]

A follow up of the animation above, the iceberg created in January 2016, suddenly decided to blow up?

[NotaDenier]

Calving on the inland side of where the two glaciers meet. It looks like these glaciers are melting in place rather than retreating.

[NotaDenier]

There is no more fast ice in the area.

[crandles]

Calving on the inland side of where the two glaciers meet. It looks like these glaciers are melting in place rather than retreating.

>"rather than"?

Isn't melting the usual means of retreat? I didn't know retreat usually meant flow back uphill 

[Espen]

Calving on the inland side of where the two glaciers meet. It looks like these glaciers are melting in place rather than retreating.

Actually the area where Storstrømmen (from the north) and L. Ibstrup Bræ (from the south) meet, is where you find a so called confluence glacier named Bredebræ and the lake Randsøen where you see the inland calving, and funny  enough most of the calving in area is actually from Bredebræ (you could also call it a cuckoo glacier)

[NotaDenier]

Calving on the inland side of where the two glaciers meet. It looks like these glaciers are melting in place rather than retreating.

>"rather than"?

Isn't melting the usual means of retreat? I didn't know retreat usually meant flow back uphill 

I meant they are not calving into the ocean as a means of retreat. I apologize for being less than clear. Espen thank you for your vast trove of knowledge.