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Movement of King's Throne rock glacier, Mount Rae area, Canadian Rocky Mountains
Author(s) -
Koning Donna M.,
Smith Dan J.
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
permafrost and periglacial processes
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.867
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1099-1530
pISSN - 1045-6740
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1099-1530(199904/06)10:2<151::aid-ppp312>3.0.co;2-r
Subject(s) - geology , rock glacier , glacier , bedrock , throne , geomorphology , front (military) , period (music) , physical geography , geography , oceanography , physics , politics , political science , acoustics , law
This paper reports on the results of an eight‐year geodetic survey at King's Throne rock glacier in the Front Ranges of the southern Canadian Rocky Mountains. The rock glacier originates below talus deposits skirting towering bedrock walls. It has many of the geomorphological characteristics of an active rock glacier, with photographic evidence collected over an 18‐year period (1978–96) attesting to this activity. The positions of 25 survey markers on the rock glacier surface were established by triangulation surveys in 1988. Repeat surveys are used to describe surface movements over a one‐year and an eight‐year period. Between 1988 and 1996, horizontal displacements of the largest set of boulder targets averaged 5.35±0.39 cm a −1 and were accompanied by vertical displacements averaging 2.49±0.62 cm a −1 . Two groups of smaller boulders moved some 27% faster and may reflect the influence of ancillary transport processes. These measurements are interpreted to show that King's Throne rock glacier is advancing downslope at an average rate of 1.61 cm a −1 . This rate of rock glacier mass movement is lower than those previously reported from the Canadian Rocky Mountains but is comparable to rates at other North American sites. Our survey results confirm that King's Throne rock glacier is presently active but suggest that it may be thermally unstable and adjusting to present‐day climates. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.