Articles | Volume 12, issue 8
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-12-1601-2016
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-12-1601-2016
Research article
 | 
03 Aug 2016
Research article |  | 03 Aug 2016

The role of basal hydrology in the surging of the Laurentide Ice Sheet

William H. G. Roberts, Antony J. Payne, and Paul J. Valdes

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Status: closed
Status: closed
AC: Author comment | RC: Referee comment | SC: Short comment | EC: Editor comment
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Peer-review completion

AR: Author's response | RR: Referee report | ED: Editor decision
ED: Reconsider after major revisions (05 May 2016) by Volker Rath
AR by William Roberts on behalf of the Authors (10 May 2016)  Author's response    Manuscript
ED: Referee Nomination & Report Request started (23 May 2016) by Volker Rath
RR by Anonymous Referee #2 (18 Jun 2016)
ED: Publish subject to minor revisions (review by Editor) (06 Jul 2016) by Volker Rath
AR by William Roberts on behalf of the Authors (12 Jul 2016)  Author's response    Manuscript
ED: Publish as is (13 Jul 2016) by Volker Rath
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Short summary
There are observations from ocean sediment cores that during the last ice age the Laurentide Ice Sheet, which sat over North America, periodically surged. In this study we show the role that water at the base of an ice sheet plays in these surges. We show that with a more realistic representation of water drainage at the base of the ice sheet than usually used, these surges can still occur and that they are triggered by an internal ice sheet instability; no external trigger is needed.