The Firn Model Inter-Comparison Experiment: Visualizing Firn Densification Models to Characterize Uncertainty in the Physics of Firn Densification
Abstract
Modeling firn densification accurately is necessary for a number of problems in glaciology. Knowledge of the age and depth of firn when it turns to ice is needed to accurately interpret climate records from ice cores. Determining ice-sheet mass balance from satellite altimetry requires knowing the depth-integrated porosity of firn. Multiple research groups have developed models of firn evolution, incorporating different physical processes. The Firn Model Inter-Comparison Experiment (FirnMICE) compares the steady-state and transient behavior of 10 firn-densification models. Each model was spun up to a steady-state, perturbed with a step change in accumulation or temperature, and run to a new steady state. Model output included: depth, density, age, depth and age of bubble close off, and depth-integrated porosity. FirnMICE results are available through an interactive online tool, allowing users to browse the suite of figures for each experiment. The FirnMICE website also includes animations and 3D visualizations of results.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2013
- Bibcode:
- 2013AGUFM.C41C0648L
- Keywords:
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- 0738 CRYOSPHERE Ice;
- 0720 CRYOSPHERE Glaciers;
- 0736 CRYOSPHERE Snow