Iceberg Calving and Flow Dynamics at Helheim Glacier, East Greenland, from Time-Lapse Photography

Helheim Glacier in East Greenland is the focus of coordinated studies aimed at understanding tidewater outlet-glacier dynamics and kinematics, and their link to glacial earthquakes. As part of this effort, we installed three time-lapse cameras overlooking the calving terminus of the glacier during the Arctic summer of 2008. Images were captured every five minutes during the mostly unattended period of operation. Several interesting aspects of the glacier's behavior are observed in the image sequences, including vertical displacement of the glacier terminus by ocean tides, and very large calving events. These observations, in combination with simultaneous measurements of ice flow, ocean tides (including tsunamis) and seismic activity, contribute to our understanding of the dynamics of Helheim Glacier and the source mechanism of glacial earthquakes.