Bedload component of glacially discharged sediment: Insights from the Matanuska Glacier, Alaska

Research Article| January 01, 2003 Bedload component of glacially discharged sediment: Insights from the Matanuska Glacier, Alaska Justin T. Pearce; Justin T. Pearce 1Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18015, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Frank J. Pazzaglia; Frank J. Pazzaglia 1Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18015, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Edward B. Evenson; Edward B. Evenson 1Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18015, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Daniel E. Lawson; Daniel E. Lawson 2Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory, Fort Richardson, Alaska 99505, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Richard B. Alley; Richard B. Alley 3Department of Geosciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Dru Germanoski; Dru Germanoski 4Department of Geology and Environmental Geosciences, Lafayette College, Easton, Pennsylvania 18042, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Jon D. Denner Jon D. Denner 5U.S. Geological Survey, Montpelier, Vermont 05601, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Geology (2003) 31 (1): 7–10. https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(2003)031<0007:BCOGDS>2.0.CO;2 Article history received: 10 May 2002 rev-recd: 07 Sep 2002 accepted: 12 Sep 2002 first online: 02 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Justin T. Pearce, Frank J. Pazzaglia, Edward B. Evenson, Daniel E. Lawson, Richard B. Alley, Dru Germanoski, Jon D. Denner; Bedload component of glacially discharged sediment: Insights from the Matanuska Glacier, Alaska. Geology 2003;; 31 (1): 7–10. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(2003)031<0007:BCOGDS>2.0.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract The flux of glacially derived bedload and the proportions of the suspended and bedload components carried by proglacial streams are highly debated. Published data indicate a large range—from <30% to >75%—in the bedload percentage of the total load. Two "vents," where supercooled subglacial meltwater and sediment are discharged, were sampled over the course of an entire melt season in order to quantify the flux of glacially delivered bedload at the Matanuska Glacier, Alaska. The bedload component contributed by these vents, for the one melt season monitored, is negligible. Furthermore, the bedload fluxes appear to be strongly supply limited, as shown by the poorly correlated discharge, bedload-flux magnitude, and grain-size caliber. Thus, in this case, any attempt to employ a predictive quantitative expression for coarse-sediment production based on discharge alone would be inaccurate. A nonglaciated basin proximal to the Matanuska Glacier terminus yielded higher bedload sediment fluxes and larger clast sizes than delivered by the two monitored vents. Such nonglaciated basins should not be overlooked as potentially major sources of coarse bedload that is reworked and incorporated into valley outwash. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.