Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English English
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS

A physics-based study of ice stream dynamics

Objective

Ice streams are river-like corridors of fast flowing ice that account for the vast majority of ice discharge to the ocean in continental ice sheets. Their most outstanding feature is that they can appear spontaneously within a slowly moving ice sheet, self-organize in evenly spaced patterns, and switch on and off over time. Yet, a full explanation of ice stream formation and evolution is one of the longest standing open problems in glaciology. This knowledge gap has precluded fundamental investigations on the role of ice streams in driving ice sheet change, and also casts doubt on the ability of state-of-the-art ice sheet simulation codes to project future sea levels.

Recent work by the PI identified an entirely novel class of feedbacks related to the onset of basal sliding which could be the missing ingredient needed to fully explain observed ice stream dynamic behaviors.

Drawing on a unique combination of novel glaciological observations, first-principle theoretical work, and ice-sheet-wide numerical simulations, PHAST builds on this insight to:

1. Develop a complete and coherent theory of ice stream spatial and temporal dynamics that clarifies under what environmental conditions these dynamics are to be expected.

2. Test the hypothesis that sliding onset physics play a central role in ice stream dynamics through a targeted field experiment.

3. Build a new ice sheet simulation code that resolves sliding onset and ice stream margin physics at low computational cost thanks to emerging domain partitioning methods.

4. Assess for the first time the sensitivity of Antarctic and Greenland mass loss to ice stream dynamics.

By developing new modeling tools and generating process-level understanding across scales ranging from few tens of meters to thousands of kilometers, PHAST will lead the way towards unraveling the complex interplay between internal ice sheet dynamics and climate over timescales ranging from decades to millennia.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.

You need to log in or register to use this function

Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

HORIZON-ERC - HORIZON ERC Grants

See all projects funded under this funding scheme

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) ERC-2022-STG

See all projects funded under this call

Host institution

LUDWIG-MAXIMILIANS-UNIVERSITAET MUENCHEN
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 1 210 393,00
Address
GESCHWISTER SCHOLL PLATZ 1
80539 MUNCHEN
Germany

See on map

Region
Bayern Oberbayern München, Kreisfreie Stadt
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 1 210 393,00

Beneficiaries (2)

My booklet 0 0