Submitted by Anonymous on Mon, 04/25/2011 - 11:32
Forums
Glacial Movement and Seismicity

What specifically are you researching under your glacier home? Sincerely, Danny, Teresa, and Kelsey

P.S. We hope you brought your long johns. :P

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 08:57

Anonymous

Is it dark under the glacier? Do sun rays get through at all?Armando & Grace

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 09:26

Anonymous

Whats it sound like in the glaicer? Does the ice crack a lot?Morgan and trent

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 09:41

Anonymous

How is a glacier formed?
Ida

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 10:44

Anonymous

What does the glacier feel like and how are you collecting your data?Russell

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 10:48

Anonymous

Is this glacier moving or sliding and melting? If it is moving, do you know how much it is moving?- Larysa

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 10:54

Anonymous

What kind of animals live in and around the glacier?Ellen and Jackie

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 11:01

Anonymous

What is the average temperture of the glacier?Erik, Aleha, Paige.

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 11:02

Anonymous

What is the mass of the glacier?Sincerely,
Jordan and Kameron

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 12:17

Anonymous

What is the average temperature of the core of the glacier.Alex, Elliott.

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 13:02

Michael Lampert

Actually, that is a really good question, ofcourse coming from you I would expect that.... we will be about 600 feet beneath the glacier... the ice is rather clear but at that depth it will not allow any light through.    What is interesting is that different colors of light are absorbed as it penetrates the glacier... red is absorbed the most giving glaciers their bluish color. More interesting still is how clear ice can be... in Antarctica they have a science experiment called project ICE CUBE, series of photomultiplier tubes that look for neutrinos by searching and amplifying small flashes of light in the clear, approximately one cubic mile of ice at the South Pole, see http://www.icecube.wisc.edu/info/explained.php

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 13:02

Michael Lampert

Ok, great question, I had to ask Mark about this, he is the technician who has been under there... He says he does hear ice quakes.  The scientists will be placing geo-phones to hear the sounds and will try to correlate those sounds to the overall movement of the glacier. I will let you know more when I am under there... maybe I can make a recording....

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 13:13

Anonymous

Is there a caveman in the glacier? If so, melt it and check if he is alive please.Sincerely,
Taylor

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 13:17

Michael Lampert

Ida, everyone over here talks like you!   The glacier comes from years of snow piling up and the weight of this snow causes the snow to compact into ice.    It is a long process, the bottom of some glaciers can be on the order of thousands of years old.   I will learn more about how old the part of the Svartisen glacier is where we will be working... it would be interesting to taste vintage water.

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 13:17

Anonymous

How is the weather up there currently?Alex

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 13:19

Anonymous

Hey. Its taylor again. I read your post about the phones, and you asked what elemet 66 is. It is Dysprosium. It doesn't sound as cool as iridium though, so I would chose iridium as well.

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 13:32

Michael Lampert

Hey, thanks for the question you guys... makes me feel at home.... There are many researchers gathered at the glacier... the fundamental question is just how to glaciers move down the hill?   What is the nature of the viscous flow of ice over the ground... is this a glacier that sticks and slips as it moves, or does it gradually slide down.... by placing sensors under, and over, the glacier more can be learned about this movement.   I will let you know more as I go under. Right now I am in Bodo, a city that looks something like Fairbanks...

Tue, 04/26/2011 - 13:32

Michael Lampert

Hey Russel, I am not at the glacier quite yet, but I will let you know soon.   As to collecting data, some of it will be done with the simple Arduino processor. There are several of these in the physics classroom, one behind my desk if you want to work on it... There is a small accelerometer that can measure accelerations down to much less than a thousandth of g=9.8 m/s/s, imagine trying to accelerate that slowly.

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 07:20

Anonymous

Mr Lampert!
What is the level of danger of being in the glacier? Do cave-ins or collapses happen?
-Ben W.

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 07:29

Anonymous

Hi Armando and Grace, the glacier is very thick, so light does not get through because it is absorbed by the ice. It is a very interesting physics question... as it turns out blue light travels further through the ice, the smaller wavelength apparently is not absorbed as it is with red light. this gives the glacier a bluish color in thick areas. There is a lot to this question... In Antarctica they take advantage of the clarity of the ice in the neutrino detector called Ice Cube, an approximately one mile cube of ice with photo multiplier tubes that detect faint flashes of light produced by neutrinos that get captured by the ice.

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 07:34

Anonymous

Hi Ben, always concerned about stuff falling on my head... the glacier does have a few boulders or rocks mixed in with the ice that can be melted out and fall... the tunnel has been around since the '90s so it has had plenty of chance to settle. In Norway there are trains everywhere, and these go through similar tunnels.... I am told it is not too exciting to ride a train here because you are often in a tunnel.

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 07:46

Michael Lampert

hi all, the specific question is What is the exact mechanism that allows for glacier movement? It is a question that is difficult to answer, the viscous form of ice has interesting physics and the great weight of the glacier and the bedrock interaction makes for difficult friction calculations. The scientists are listening carefully to the glacier to understand the details of its movement.

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 07:49

Michael Lampert

Apparently the glacier does make sounds that you can hear from beneath it. I look forward to it! They will be using geophones do record the sounds and use these to interpret what movement they record.

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 07:52

Michael Lampert

Yep, I agree, Iridium sounds cool, and it works just as cool too. I wonder if you could make something interior to the earth that could reflect messages back and forth in the same way... what would you name that?

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 07:55

Michael Lampert

The south of Norway is a lot like Oregon... and the North looks more like Alaska. There is an ocean that moderates the climate, similar to Oregon, so there are lots of gray clouds... not much rain as yet. The hills are covered in snow... no trees have leaves yet.. only brown grass still .... temp is perfect for a light jacket.

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 07:57

Michael Lampert

sorry Taylor, no caveman... the tunnel has a maximum number of people allowed in it for safety reasons... I guess a caveman would be one to many.

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 08:02

Michael Lampert

Hey, nice question, much more to the answer... the mass balance of a glacier is an interesting topic, as it moves forward it may actually retreat in size. The exact weight of a glacier can be approximated by using the density of ice. A chunk of glacier will float in water...

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 08:06

Michael Lampert

Hey, another great question, the temperature at the base of a glacier is moderated by the warmth of the earth...remember the interior of the earth is warm from radioactive decay of elements, this means that at the base of this glacier where water is present the glacier is about 0 degrees C, at the top of the glacier it is colder.

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 08:13

Michael Lampert

The earth is actually warm.... If you turn off the sun the earth would radiate heat for awhile. This is because there is radioactive decay of Uranium and other elements that release smaller particles that give surrounding atoms kinetic energy, or heat. So the glacier sits on top of this warm earth and melts because of water dripping down from cracks above and because it can conduct this heat a bit. a melting glacier would have a temperature of about 0 degrees C.

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 08:15

Michael Lampert

hey, I have to check that out.... I am told Norway allows whaling... and that whale meat is pretty good tasting... lots of ships here in Bodo. apparently a lot of moose around here too.

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 10:44

Anonymous

What equipment do you use to measure how far the ice moves?Brad Cole, John Nguyen, Brock Gordon, Lucas Frey.

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 10:48

Anonymous

Hi Senor Lampert!!Our Second question hopefully to be answered is: How long did it take for the Glacier to be formed?
Love your smartest students!!
Kelsey, Teresa, and Danny
p.s. Danny wrote this all....

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 11:11

Anonymous

Hello there Mr. Lampert,The students are very curious if you are able to Skype while you are there? We also would love to see a photo of you in your surroundings.
Take care,
Mel Reichman

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 11:27

Anonymous

How do you measure seismic activity?Are all glaciers above sea level?
Riley,colin,connor

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 11:31

Anonymous

How Do you measure the seismic movement of a glacier? 4/25/11How long does it take for a glacier to form? 4/27/11
Hayden Dellenbach/Max Cen

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 11:31

Anonymous

How Do you measure the seismic movement of a glacier? 4/25/11How long does it take for a glacier to form? 4/27/11
Hayden Dellenbach/Max Cen

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 12:13

Anonymous

What is the melting point of the ice in the glacier?Savannah and Elijah
per 8

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 12:24

Anonymous

How much does a glacier typically melt each day?8th period
Alex Zuk, Michele Nornes

Wed, 04/27/2011 - 12:28

Anonymous

4/25Mr. Lampert-
What kind of wildlefe lives around the glacier and is it affected when the glacier moves or melts? If so, how?
-Ryan and Jake
4/27
What is the air temperature around where you are camping?
-Ryan and Jake

Thu, 04/28/2011 - 07:26

Anonymous

Hi Mr Lampert!I was just curious if you know how much the glacier melts in a given year (I know someone already asked how much melts daily) and how that has changed as a result of climate change. Have fun under the glacier!
Susie Q.

Thu, 04/28/2011 - 09:32

Anonymous

How long has the glacier that you are studying been around? How was it formed?Trent and Morgan

Thu, 04/28/2011 - 09:37

Anonymous

Hello Mr. Lampert!Wondering two things:
1. Is the tunnel you're staying in made of ice from the glacier or man-made with structures holding it in place?
2. What is your typical day like? What's your routine or activities during the day?
Thanks!
These questions are from Krista, and Mitch, but he is at home recovering from surgery on Tuesday for his hand. Hope you're having a great time...we definitely miss you!
Mitch and Krista

Thu, 04/28/2011 - 09:40

Anonymous

Hi Mr. LampertFirst off, how was your birthday? Did you chop off some of the ice you're living in to make a killer ice cream cake? I know I would. Oh, and to be just a little more scientific, how big is the glacier?
Miss you!
Love,
Maggie and Ida
P.S. Ida is indignant at being compared to a Norwegian. Haha

Thu, 04/28/2011 - 09:41

Anonymous

Have you seen any animals? Grace and Armando

Thu, 04/28/2011 - 10:27

Anonymous

What is Glacier seismicity and how are you working with it?Russell & David

Thu, 04/28/2011 - 10:31

Anonymous

What is the rate of glacial melting and how does that relate to its recession?Megan and Jordan

Thu, 04/28/2011 - 10:34

Anonymous

how often do you test the glaciers temperature?~ aleha and paige!!

Thu, 04/28/2011 - 10:36

Anonymous

How many people are you working with and what are they like, where are they from, what's their social security numbers?Ben & Khameron

Thu, 04/28/2011 - 10:37

Anonymous

Hey Mr Lampert, we were wondering is part of your reasearch reflective of temperature changes in the area, or is it just focused on the glaciers?Does the melt rate of the glacier show how much the local climate changes?
Paul and Larysa

Thu, 04/28/2011 - 10:38

Anonymous

Hi Mr. Lampert! Are there distinctive differences between the top of the glacier and the bottom of the glacier?Hope you're doing swell!
Jackie, Ellen, and Kenji