Ringeis: Dynamic climatologic processes of barometric cave systems using the example of Jewel Cave and Wind Cave in South Dakota, USA Jewel and Wind Cave are two big barometric cave systems in Sout� Dakota, USA. The entrances of Jewel and Wind Cave are roug�ly 50 km apart, and until now it is unknown w�et�er t�eir entrances belong to two separate caves or to one muc� larger cave system. One possibility for testing t�ese two competing �ypot�eses is to measure and analyse t�e climatic conditions in t�e vicinity of t�ese entrances and wit�in t�e caves in detail. In t�is context, t�e t�ermal conditions and air currents are crucial. These in turn can be c�aracterised by t�e spatial and temporal patterns of t�e dynamics of air entering and leaving t�roug� t�e respective entrances; even t�oug� t�ese dynamics are coupled to atmosp�eric pressure fluctuations outside t�e caves, t�ey differ for different cave systems and provide a "fingerprint" t�at �as implications for t�e size and structure of individual cave systems. To give an example, Jewel and Wind Cave as t�e second and fourt�-largest cave systems on eart� s�ow some similarities, but many more noticeable differences regarding t�eir climatological be�aviour, despite t�eir close proximity to eac� ot�er. The last big measurement campaigns on t�e climatic systems of t�e two barometric caves were carried out by Herb and Jan Conn in t�e 1960s, (Conn 1966). Despite t�eir elementary work, t�e tec�nical possibilities were very limited in t�ose days. The self-constructed me-c�anical measurement equipment could only be used for basic measurements. Herb Conn was still able to identify t�e basic mec�anism very clearly. He also carried out a number of different calculations on barometric air flow t�at remain important COBISS: 1.01
Previous investigations of climatic conditions of glaciers primarily focused on the glacier's surface or on the moulin as the entrance to the glacier's interior. Many glaciers, however, contain far-reaching cave systems inside the ice that have been understood and investigated as drainage systems for meltwater. Until now, there have been no comprehensive climate studies inside a glacier cave. Thus, the climatic conditions, as well as their effects on the glacier, are unknown. The first climatologic investigations inside the cave system of Sandy Glacier on Mt. Hood in Oregon (USA) in June 2015 have shown that both thermic activity of the volcanic subsurface and chimney effects between the glacier snout at the base of the glacier and higher opening of the moulin can cause drastic melting inside the glacier. Those processes lead to considerably stronger melting from the inside than observations at the surface suggest and can cause an unexpected collapse over a distance of several hundred meters. We will present and assess the first measuring results of both the thermic and flow conditions inside Sandy Glacier.
The focus of this article is both a region and a type of cave not typically associated with ice caves. Nevertheless, both the region and the type play an important role in American ice-cave research. Talus-and-gorge ice caves in the northeastern United States can be used as climate indicators for a whole region; and therefore, they are the target of this young field of research. Ice caves, in general, are sensitive climatopes that can serve as excellent indicators for short and long term changes in the climate of a region, principally because of shifts between phases of increasing ice growth and melting during a year and over time. This research started with an investigation of known talus-and-gorge ice caves, followed by environmental monitoring of selected caves with perennial ice that were equipped with temperature sensors recorded over four years. This is one of the world's longest high-resolution climatologic monitoring record of such caves. In addition, the height of the ice was surveyed annually at a time when ice would most likely be at its minimum, the start of November. This allowed for investigation of the annual changes and the influence of the temperature over the previous year. Some predictions for the future of the ice caves and the whole region could be deduced from the data. At the moment, there is no sign of either a renewed increase in the number of talus-and-gorge ice caves or an increase in ice accumulation within the existing ones.D. Holmgren, A. Pflitsch, K. Rancourt, and J. Ringeis. Talus-and-gorge ice caves in the northeastern United States past to present-A microclimatological study.
Abstract. In this paper we present a method to detect airflow through ice caves and to quantify the corresponding airflow speeds by the use of temperature loggers. The time series of temperature observations at different loggers are crosscorrelated. The time shift of best correlation corresponds to the travel time of the air and is used to derive the airflow speed between the loggers. We apply the method to test data observed inside Schellenberger Eishöhle (ice cave). The successful determination of airflow speeds depends on the existence of distinct temperature variations during the time span of interest. Moreover the airflow speed is assumed to be constant during the period used for the correlation analysis. Both requirements limit the applicability of the correlation analysis to determine instantaneous airflow speeds. Nevertheless the method is very helpful to characterize the general patterns of air movement and their slow temporal variations. The correlation analysis assumes a linear dependency between the correlated data. The good correlation we found for our test data confirms this assumption. We therefore in a second step estimate temperature biases and scale factors for the observed temperature variations by a least-squares adjustment. The observed phenomena, a warming and an attenuation of temperature variations, depending on the distance the air traveled inside the cave, are explained by a mixing of the inflowing air with the air inside the cave. Furthermore we test the significance of the determined parameters by a standard F test and study the sensitivity of the procedure to common manipulations of the original observations like smoothing. In the end we will give an outlook on possible applications and further development of this method.
Classic ice cave literature is oriented toward bedrock caves that include perennial ice (Persoiu & Lauritzen, 2017, and references therein). In the literature on ice caves formed within glaciers, conduit development results mainly from flowing water, either through moulins or along the glacier base (Gulley et al., 2009). While air flow in ice caves and resulting ice melt has been investigated through the lens of "cold-air traps" or the "chimney effect" (Bertozzi et al., 2019; Luetscher & Jeannin, 2004; Meyer et al., 2016; Williams & McKay, 2015), these processes do not adequately describe systems that are formed entirely within ice and solely from advective air flow driven by temperature and pressure gradients at the ice-bedrock interface. Strictly speaking, this last category is glacio-thermo karst and is amplified in regions with increased geothermal gradient and, therefore, high heat flux. These high heat flux regions are often volcanic settings, glaciovolcanic caves. The speleogenesis of glaciovolcanic caves is one of thermal equilibrium. Heat flux creates melt, and on active volcanic edifices, this glacial melt percolates into the bedrock and undergoes a phase change to steam. Heat flux may be by conduction where the heated bedrock and ice are in contact (Giggenbach, 1976), but heat transfer by radiation and convection dominate where melt-formed voids that separate bedrock and ice. Discrete fumaroles of steam and volcanic gas, as well as thermal springs, enhance cave formation; the size and shape of the "fumarole ice cave" (Curtis & Kyle, 2011; Pflitch et al., 2017) is guided by the magnitude and locus of heat flux, larger cross sections form near concentrated fumarole and spring activity and localized heat transfer by convection (Kiver & Steele, 1975). The positive pressure gradient from fumarole activity causes lateral and vertical advection of steam and volcanic gas toward the glacial margins or moulins, which can enlarge and connect voids into conduits for moisture, volcanic gas, and heat transfer, such as on Mount Erebus in Antarctica (Wardell et al., 2003). Thermal equilibrium and, therefore, advection through conduits in fumarole ice caves is modulated by short-and long-term changes in volcanic activity and external climate. Certainly, volcanism may rapidly
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