Glacial Isostatic Adjustment in the Great Lakes Region Inferred by Tide Gauges and Satellite Altimetry

Glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) of the solid Earth due to deglaciation since the last Ice Age is characterized by its viscous rebound as a result of relaxation of the shear stresses inside the Earth. GIA uplift (in the form of 3-D crustal motion and the ensuing geoid change due to redistribution of mass in the solid Earth) has been recently measured with long-term GPS (e.g., the BIFROST project). In this paper, we used more than 50 long-term (1860-2000) water level gauges located around the Great Lakes, and satellite altimetry measurements (TOPEX/ POSEIDON and Geosat, 9-15 year data span) to measure the vertical motion of the region. Preliminary results indicate that Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, Lake Erie, and Lake Ontario, are uplifting at a rate of 1.8, 0.9, 1.4, -0.5, and 1.0 mm/yr, respectively. The uncertainty of the measurement is primarily due to the error in satellite altimetry due to its relatively short data span. The results are compared with available GIA models, including ICE-4G, and Mitrovica-Milne 2001 models, as well as relative vertical motion measured using water level gauges [Manville et al., 2001]. Analysis also includes the examination of GIA models using different estimates of mantle thickness and upper and lower mantle viscosity. Results using the vertical measurement in an inverse geophysical solution will be reported.