Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-g8jcs Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-22T15:47:59.607Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Equilibrium-line Altitudes of Late Quaternary Glaciers in the Southern Alps, New Zealand

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Stephen C. Porter
Stephen C. Porter*
Affiliation:
Department of Geologica Sciences and Quaternary Research Center, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195 USA
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Equilibrium-line altitudes (ELA's) of former glaciers in the Tasman River-Lake Pukaki drainage basin of the Southern Alps were reconstructed from glacial-geologic data on former ice limits by using an assumed accumulation-area ratio of 0.6 ± 0.05. Late Holocene (Neoglacial) ELA's were depressed 140 m below present levels, whereas those of four late Pleistocene ice advances were depressed 500 m (Birch Hill), 750 m (Tekapo), 875 m (Mt. John), and 1050 m (Balmoral). Reconstructed ELA gradients are approximately parallel to one another and range from 19 to 23 m km−1. Although vertical movement on active faults and isostatic tilting due to deglaciation have both contributed to modification of reconstructed ELA gradients from their original values, the maximum resulting effect probably amounts to less than 2.0 m km−1 and is undetectable from present data.

Type
Research Article
Information
Quaternary Research , Volume 5 , Issue 1 , March 1975 , pp. 27 - 47
Copyright
University of Washington

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Anderson, B.G., (1968). Glacial geology of western Troms, North Norway. Norges Geologiske Undersökelse 256, 160.Google Scholar
Anderton, P.W., (1973). The significance of perennial snow and ice to the water resources of the South Island, New Zealand. New Zealand Journal of Hydrology 12, 6 18.Google Scholar
Bowen, F.E., (1954). Late Pleistocene and Recent vertical movement at the Alpine Fault. New Zealand Journal of Science and Technology 35B, 390 397.Google Scholar
Burrows, C.J., (1973). Studies on some glacial moraines in New Zealand-2. Ages of moraines of the Mueller, Hooker, and Tasman Glaciers (S79). New Zealand Journal of Geology and Geophysics 16, 831 855.Google Scholar
Burrows, C. J., (in press). Late glacial and Holocene moraines of the Cameron Valley, Arrowsmith Range, Canterbury, New Zealand. , Arctic and Alpine Research , 7.Google Scholar
Charlesworth, J.K., (1957). The Quaternary Era. Edward Arnold, London 17002 vols..Google Scholar
Denton, G.H., Karlén, Wibjörn, (1973). Holocene climatic variations-their pattern and possible cause. Quaternary Research 3, 155 205.Google Scholar
Flint, R.F., (1957). Glacial and Pleistocene Geology. John Wiley and Sons, New York 553.Google Scholar
Flint, R.F., (1971). Glacial and Quaternary Geology. John Wiley and Sons, New York 892.Google Scholar
Gair, H.S., (1967). Sheet 20, Mt. Cook. 1st Ed. Geol. Map of New Zealand (1:250,000): New Zealand Geological Survey .Google Scholar
Gage, Maxwell, Soons, J.M., (1973). Early Otiran glacial chronology—a reexamination. IX INQUA Congress Abstracts Christchurch, New Zealand111 112.Google Scholar
Goldthwait, R.P., McKellar, I.C., (1962). New Zealand Glaciology, in Antarctic Research Geophysical Monograph American Geophysical Union 7, 209 216.Google Scholar
Grosval'd, M.G., Kotlyakov, V.M., (1969). Present-day glaciers in the USSR and some data on their mass balance. Journal of Glaciology 8, 23 50.Google Scholar
Herd, D.G., (1974). Glacial and volcanic geology of the Ruiz-Tolima volcanic complex Cordillera Central, Colombia. Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation University of Washington.Google Scholar
Heuberger, Helmut, (1968). Die Alpengletscher im Spät- und Postglazial. : Eiszeitalter und Gegenwart 19, 270 275.Google Scholar
Klute, Fritz, (1928). Die Bedeutung der Depression der Schneegrenze für eiszeitliche Probleme. Zeitschrift für Gletscherkunde 16, 70 93.Google Scholar
Lawrence, D.B., Lawrence, E.G., (1965). Glacier studies in New Zealand. Mazama 47, 17 27.Google Scholar
Mansergh, G.D., (1973). Quaternary of the Mackenzie Basin. IX INQUA Congress Guidebook for Excursion 7. Central and Southern Canterbury of New Zealand 102 111.Google Scholar
Mathews, W.H., (1967). Profiles of late Pleistocene glaciers in New Zealand. New Zealand Journal of Geology and Geophysics 10, 146 163.Google Scholar
McGregor, V.R., (1967). Holocene moraines and rock glaciers in the central Ben Ohau Range, south Canterbury, New Zealand. Journal of Glaciology 6, 737 748.Google Scholar
Meier, M.F., (1965). Glaciers and climate. Wright, H.E. Jr. Frey, D.G., The Quaternary of the United States Princeton University Press, Princeton 795 806.Google Scholar
Meier, M.F., Post, A.S., (1962). Recent variations in mass net budgets of glaciers in western North America. IUGG/IASH Committee on Snow and Ice, General Assembly, Obergurgl, International Association of Science and Hydrology 58, 63 77.Google Scholar
New Zealand Geological Survey, (1973). Quaternary geology-South Island, 1:1,000,000. 1st ed. New Zealand Geologic Survey Miscellaneous Series Map 6 .Google Scholar
Osmaston, H.A., (1965). The Past and Present Climate and Vegetation of Ruwenzori and its Neighborhood. D. Phil. thesisOxford University, Worcester College.Google Scholar
Østrem, Gunnar, (1966). The height of the glaciation limit in southern British Columbia and Alberta. Geografiska Annaler 48, A 126 138.Google Scholar
Paterson, W.S.B., (1969). The Physics of Glaciers. Pergamon Press 250.Google Scholar
Péwé, T.L., Reger, R.D., (1972). Modern and Wisconsinan snowlines in Alaska. Proceedings of the 24th International Geologic Congress 187 197Section 12.Google Scholar
Porter, S.C., (1966). Pleistocene geology of Anaktuvuk Pass, central Brooks Range, Alaska. Arctic Institute of North America Technical Paper 18, 100.Google Scholar
Porter, S.C., (1970). Quaternary glacial record in Swat Kohistan, West Pakistan. Geological Society of America Bull 81, 1421 1446.Google Scholar
Porter, S. C., (in press). Glaciation limit in New Zealand's Southern Alps.. Arctic and Alpine Research , 7.Google Scholar
Scott, W.E., (1974). Quaternary Glacial and Volcanic Environments, Metolius River Area, Oregon. Unpublished Ph. D. dissertation Univ. Washington.Google Scholar
Suggate, R.P., (1961). The upper boundary of the Hawera Series. Transactions of the Royal Society of New Zealand 1, 11 16.Google Scholar
Suggate, R.P., (1963). The Alpine Fault. Transactions of the Royal Society of New Zealand 2, 105 129.Google Scholar
Suggate, R.P., (1965). Late Pleistocene geology of the northern part of South Island, New Zealand. New Zealand Geological Survey Bull 77, 91.Google Scholar
Suggate, R.P., Moar, N.T., (1970). Revision of the chronology of the late Otira glacial. New Zealand Journal of Geology and Geophysics 13, 742 746.Google Scholar
Taylor, Griffith, (1926). Glaciation in the southwest Pacific. Proceedings of the Third Pan-Pacific Congress 1819 1825.Google Scholar
Wardle, Peter, (1970). Pleistocene snowlines in the Fox Glacier area. New Zealand Journal of Geology and Geophysics 13, 560.Google Scholar
Wardle, Peter, (1973). Variations of glaciers of Westland National Park and the Hooker Range, New Zealand. New Zealand Journal of Botany 11, 349 388.Google Scholar
Willett, R.W., (1950). The New Zealand Pleistocene snowline, climatic conditions, and suggested biological effects. New Zealand Journal of Science and Technology 32B, 18 48.Google Scholar
Zotov, V.D., (1938). Some correlations between vegetation and climate in New Zealand. New Zealand Journal of Science and Technology 19, 474 487.Google Scholar