2006 PPP Haeberli Et Al PDF

PERMAFROST AND PERIGLACIAL PROCESSES
Permafrost and Periglac. Process. 17: 189–214 (2006)

Published online in Wiley InterScience
(www.interscience.wiley.com) DOI: 10.1002/ppp.561
Permafrost Creep and Rock Glacier Dynamicsz

Wilfried Haeberli,1* Bernard Hallet,2 Lukas Arenson,3 Roger Elconin,4 Ole Humlum,5 Andreas Kääb,1,y
Viktor Kaufmann,6 Branko Ladanyi,7 Norikazu Matsuoka,8 Sarah Springman9 and Daniel Vonder Mühll10
1
Department of Geography, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
2
Quaternary Research Center and Department of Earth and Space Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle,
Washington, USA
3
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
4
1734 Bannister Road, Anchorage, Alaska, USA
5
Institute of Geosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
6
Institute of Remote Sensing and Photogrammetry, Graz University of Technology, Graz, Austria
7
Northern Engineering Center (CINEP), Ecole Polytechnique, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada
8
Institute of Geoscience, University of Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan
9
ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
10
University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
ABSTRACT
This review paper examines thermal conditions (active layer and permafrost), internal composition
(rock and ice components), kinematics and rheology of creeping perennially frozen slopes in cold
mountain areas. The aim is to assemble current information about creep in permafrost and rock glaciers
from diverse published sources into a single paper that will be useful in studies of the flow and
deformation of subsurface ice and their surface manifestations not only on Earth, but also on Mars.
Emphasis is placed on quantitative information from drilling, borehole measurements, geophysical
soundings, photogrammetry, laboratory experiments, etc. It is evident that quantitative holistic
treatment of permafrost creep and rock glaciers requires consideration of: (a) rock weathering, snow
avalanches and rockfall, with grain-size sorting on scree slopes; (b) freezing processes and ice
formation in scree at sub-zero temperatures containing abundant fine material as well as coarse-grained
blocks; (c) coupled thermohydro-mechanical aspects of creep and failure processes in frozen rock
debris; (d) kinematics of non-isotropic, heterogeneous and layered, ice-rich permafrost on slopes with
long transport paths for coarse surface material from the headwall to the front and, in some cases,
subsequent re-incorporation into an advancing rock glacier causing corresponding age inversion at
* Correspondence to: Professor Wilfried Haeberli, Glaciology and Geomorphodynamics Group, Geography Department, Univer-
sity of Zurich, Switzerland. E-mail: haeberli@geo.unizh.ch
y
Present address: Institute of Geosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
z
Final report of the Task Force on Permafrost Creep and Rock Glacier Dynamics. This Task Force was established in 1998 by the
International Permafrost Association (IPA) and the International Commission on Snow and Ice (ICSI; now the Commission on
Cryospheric Sciences, CCS) with Wilfried Haeberli and Bernard Hallet as co-chairs in order: (1) to define the state of knowledge
relevant to the flow and evolution of perennially frozen ice/rock mixtures; and (2) to provide an overview of ongoing studies that
obtain quantitative information from drilling, geophysical soundings, geodetic/photogrammetric monitoring and measurements of
surface conditions. For this purpose, a special half-day workshop took place on 27 March 2001 within the framework of the First
European Permafrost Conference in Rome, Italy (Rea, 2001). Further discussions followed during and after the 8th International
Conference on Permafrost in Zurich (20–25 July 2003). The present contribution is based on the corresponding results and
constitutes the final product of the Task Force. The following colleagues served as lead authors of the main subsections in this report:
thermal conditions: Ole Humlum (surface, active layer) and Daniel Vonder Mühll (boreholes); composition: Norikazu Matsuoka
(rocks) and Roger Elconin (ice); geometry/kinematics: Andreas Kääb and Viktor Kaufmann (photogrammetry, geodesy); and
rheology: Sarah Springman, Lukas Arenson (mountains) and Branko Ladanyi (lowlands).
Received 6 June 2006
Revised 20 June 2006
Copyright # 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Accepted 20 June 2006
190 W. Haeberli et al.
depth; and (e) the dynamics of rock glaciers, which include spatial and temporal variations in velocity
that are manifested in the ridges, furrows and other surface structures typical of rock glaciers, as well as
their down-valley motion. Copyright # 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
KEY WORDS: permafrost; rock glaciers; cold mountains; periglacial slope movement; geomorphic landforms; Martian
ice flow features
INTRODUCTION are suggestive of deformation of subsurface ice

(Head et al., 2005). The widespread occurrence of ice
The growing interest in mountain permafrost has led to just below the surface is consistent with measurements
rapid progress in recent years in understanding both from the gamma-ray and neutron spectrometers on
the gravitationally-induced creep of permafrost on board Mars Odyssey (Feldman et al., 2004) and
slopes in cold mountain areas and the motion of rock theoretical expectations (Mellon and Jakosky, 1995).
glaciers (Figure 1). The planetary science community In addition, conservative estimates suggest that Mars
has also become increasingly interested in diverse may possess a planetary inventory of water equivalent
features visible on Mars that resemble rock glaciers or to a global ocean 0.5–1 km deep of which as much as
90–95% is believed to reside as ground ice and
groundwater within the planet’s crust (Clifford et al.,
2003). Hence considerable attention is focused on
Martian permafrost, especially because the continuing
interest in extraterrestrial life is concentrated on the
surface where the common ingredients to sustain
life—photons and water—occur together.
In this paper, available knowledge is reviewed
that could eventually: (1) help advance our under-
standing of rock glaciers and related features on
Earth and Mars; and (2) form the basis for numeri-
cally modelling the thermo-mechanically coupled
dynamics of creeping ice/rock mixtures. It summar-
ises recent sophisticated field and laboratory exper-
iments (drilling, borehole observations, geophysics,
photogrammetry and remote sensing, creep tests, etc.)
that have improved our understanding of the principal
processes underlying the motion of deep-seated, large-
scale creep of perennially frozen debris in alpine
settings. The report also refers to the large set of well-
established methods, from simple to sophisticated,
that are currently available for probing, mapping and
monitoring permafrost, and for modelling its spatial
distribution in complex high-mountain topography
(e.g. Etzelmüller et al., 2001; Harris et al., 2001;
Hoelzle et al., 2001; Vonder Mühll et al., 2002).
The term ‘rock glacier’ has been used for
various complex landforms of cold mountain areas.
Figure 1 Active rock glacier ‘Giandia Grischa’ in the eastern Two extremes represent the ends of a geomorphic
Swiss Alps. The field of the flow vectors is continuous and quite continuum: (a) steadily creeping perennially frozen
homogeneous, as expected with thermally controlled occurrence of and ice-rich debris on non-glacierised mountain
subsurface ice/rock mixtures. Flow velocities range from a few slopes; and (b) debris-covered glaciers in permafrost-
centimetres (marginal zones) to slightly less than a metre per year,
and the time period involved with the development of the cumulative
free areas. Semantically, they can be differentiated as
talus deformation—which creates the spectacular landform—is follows: (a) is a ‘rock glacier’ whereas (b) is commonly
measured in millennia (Frauenfelder et al., 2005). called a ‘debris-covered glacier’. Terminological
Copyright # 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Permafrost and Periglac. Process., 17: 189–214 (2006)
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
Permafrost Creep and Rock Glacier Dynamics 191
problems arise in areas with continental climates Surface Conditions and Energy Fluxes.
where surface ice interacts with periglacial and In mountain areas outside the High Arctic, many
subglacial permafrost (Haeberli, 1983). There, com- rock glacier fronts closely approach limits of local
plex mixtures of buried surface ice and ice formed in permafrost occurrence. As a consequence, mean
the ground can occur and all transitions from debris- annual surface temperatures are often not far from
covered polythermal or cold glaciers to ice-cored melting conditions. Rock glacier surfaces are often
moraines and deep-seated creep of perennially frozen characterised by a system of ridges and depressions,
sediments are possible (cf. Haeberli, 2000; Kneisel orientated parallel or transverse to the overall flow
et al., 2000). Narrow definitions of landform terms are direction (Figure 2). Numerical modelling of energy
confusing in such cases and should be replaced by a fluxes through such surfaces requires parameterisation
flexible concept considering, for each individual case, of solar radiation, sensible heat, surface albedo, heat
the materials involved, thermal conditions, processes, conduction and advection, latent heat transfer, etc., for
time periods and spatial scales. The following sections complex topography and extremely heterogeneous
concentrate predominantly to exclusively on rock surface characteristics (air, rock); it needs a corre-
glaciers on non-glacierised mountain slopes. spondingly large amount of precisely measured or
A clear distinction must be made between two computed data. Models of energy-balance and
fundamental but complementary characteristics thermal-offset (accounting for the difference between
(Haeberli, 2000): the temperature at the surface and at the permafrost
table, respectively (Mittaz et al., 2000; Hoelzle et al.,
ground thermal conditions (permafrost) that allow
2001)) must be combined. Modelling the evolution of
for the formation and the long-term existence of
the snow cover (Mittaz et al., 2002) is one of the
subsurface ice; and
principal components because snow cover not only
composition of the ice/rock mixtures, that defines
insulates the ground from the cold air during winter
the amount and distribution of ice existing below
and from warm air in summer but also critically
the surface and enabling the steady-state creep
influences the surface albedo and, hence, net radiation.
of the ice/rock mass considered.
Initial results of detailed modelling (Stocker-Mittaz
et al., 2002) and measurements in coarse debris
Permafrost is used here to describe a specific ground mantling a glacier (e.g. Conway and Rasmussen,
thermal condition (temperature at or below 08C for a 2000) clearly show that advective subsurface fluxes
minimum of one—or even better two—years), are important. Special conditions are encountered at
irrespective of ice content or lithology. Such the head of many rock glaciers under near-perennial to
thermal conditions not only enable the formation perennial patches of surface ice—often deposited by
and preservation of a variety of ground ice but also
determine the spatio-temporal scales of permafrost
creep within ice-containing materials.
THERMAL CONDITIONS
Surface and Active Layer
The seasonally frozen active layer above the

perennially frozen material is commonly a few
decimetres to a few metres thick (Humlum, 1997).
Energy fluxes at the surface and thermal character-
istics of the active layer control the initiation, growth
and maintenance of rock glaciers. The coupling
between atmospheric and ground thermal processes
due to the non-conductive heat transfer processes is
highly complex. Increased knowledge of this coupling
and of rock glacier active-layer thermal characteristics
Figure 2 Example of a rock glacier active layer surface with
is, therefore, essential for understanding the age, 3–10 m topography and associated variations in maximum grain
climatic sensitivity and palaeoclimatic significance of size. The biggest rock fragments visible measure about 1.5 m, Disko
rock glaciers (Humlum, 1996). Island, Greenland, September 2000.
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
spring avalanches. Such perennial snowbanks or below due to mechanical thickening (compression)
glacierets are generally thin (metres), cold and frozen and thinning (extension) of the active layer.
to the bed, because ice temperature cannot rise above Automatic dataloggers can readily be used to
zero during the summer while temperatures drop far monitor ground temperatures, snow cover duration,
below zero during the winter (Haeberli, 2000). As a zero-curtain effects, etc. During winter periods with
consequence, they are conducive to generating low wind speed and thin snow cover, radiative heat
negative ground temperatures and participate in the losses may produce very cold air, which tends to
build-up of frozen material, which tends to creep penetrate into the active layer. For example, rock
downslope. glacier active layer temperatures in Greenland in early
October follow the surface temperature with little lag
Active Layer Characteristics and Processes. (Figure 4). A thin snow cover during autumn and
The thickness of the active layer on rock glaciers is winter contributes to rapid cooling of the active layer,
a function of local meteorological characteristics, partly due to surface radiation effects (Keller and
thickness and duration of the winter snow cover, and Gubler, 1993), but primarily by not blocking surface
the active layer’s textural characteristics. The grain openings in the active layer surface (Bernhard et al.,
size usually decreases with depth in the active layer. 1998).
With increasing depth, fine-grained material gradually Cold air penetrating somewhere upslope slowly
becomes abundant, and close to the permafrost table, flows downslope within the active layer, to resurface at
fines are often predominant (Figure 3). On pebbly rock lower elevations. In contrast, when a thick snow cover
glaciers (Matsuoka and Ikeda, 2001), fines may be exists on rock glaciers, active layer temperatures are
significant through most of the active layer. Especially mainly controlled by conduction (Harris and Pedersen,
large boulders may penetrate the general terrain 1998; Humlum, 1997; Hoelzle et al., 1999). In the
surface to form ‘natural cairns’ (Humlum, 1988). latter situation, temperature variations are smooth and
Active-layer thicknesses from about 0.5 m to 3 m are follow the surface temperature with considerable lag.
typically reported from excavations, drill-holes or In Figure 4, this characterises the period from late
geophysical soundings (e.g. Barsch, 1996; Vonder November to late April. Non-conductive processes
Mühll, 1996; Wagner, 1996; Humlum, 1997; Isaksen may, however, be important if vertical holes (funnels)
et al., 2000). Depending upon deformation of the rock exist in the winter snow, connecting the outside air
glacier, the active layer may extend across zones of with the air beneath the snow cover. As described by
longitudinal extension and compression, giving rise to Keller and Gubler (1993) and Bernhard et al. (1998),
local thermo-mechanical interactions (Haeberli and such funnels are mainly found along surface depres-
Vonder Mühll, 1996), introducing at a local scale sions in the rock glacier surface and provide easy
either degradation or aggradation of the permafrost access for cold air to reach the interior of the active
layer, displacing warmer air upwards.
The presence of snow cover in late winter and early
spring introduces non-conductive heat transfer pro-
cesses during periods of snowmelt, as surface melt-
water percolates into the active layer and refreezes
(Humlum, 1997). Similarly, if warm air masses
deliver rain on cold snow in the winter or spring,
the refreezing of percolating water can warm the snow
and the upper part of the active layer appreciably
(Putkonen and Roe, 2002).
Such an event is illustrated in Figure 4 at the end of
May 2001, when temperatures rise rapidly at all levels
in the active layer. Radiation effects during summer
produce very warm air masses at the surface. However,
due to density differences, such warm air rises and
does not penetrate into the active layer. Corresponding
heat transfer is conductive, while cooling during clear
Figure 3 Excavation in the 1.2 m thick active layer on a rock nights may take place much more rapidly due to
glacier near Longyearbyen, Svalbard, August 2000. The surface of
the active layer consists of rock fragments 10–60 cm in size. With density-induced non-conductive effects (Humlum,
depth, fines become more abundant, especially close to the perma- 1997). This is essentially what has been called Balch
frost table (exposed at the bottom of the excavation). ventilation, defined as the insulating effect of air-filled
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
Figure 4 Surface and active layer temperatures (8C) and photogaphs illustrating conditions from October 2000 to June 2001 at
Mellemfjord, Disko Island, central West Greenland. Upper left photograph: 4 October 2000; upper right: 14 May 2001; lower left:
24 May 2001; lower right: 26 June 2001. The photographs were obtained by an automatic digital camera looking SW towards two cirques
with rock glaciers. The mountains on the opposite side of the fjord reach about 1000 m a.s.l.
voids in coarse deposits (Thompson, 1962; Barsch, Permafrost Conditions

1996). Wind pumping generated by high wind speeds
may, however, upset the above general pattern and Boreholes.
drive warm surface air masses into the active layer by Relatively few boreholes have been drilled into and
way of forced ventilation, dynamically displacing through rock glaciers to permit investigation of the
colder and denser air masses (Humlum, 1997), as is thermal characteristics of the deeper subsurface. In the
well known from similar processes in snow (Clarke 1970s, two boreholes were completed in the Swiss
et al., 1987; Colbeck, 1989). Alps (10 m at Murtèl: Barsch, 1977a; 7 m at Gruben:
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
Barsch et al., 1979) and one in Canada (Kluane Range: with an absolute and relative accuracy of < 0.18C
Johnson and Nickling, 1979). In the latter, tempera- and < 0.058C, respectively (Vonder Mühll, 1992),
tures remeasured some six years after drilling were and borehole measurements in other permafrost
no longer negative indicating a very rapid thaw of regions and ice sheets indicate that modern instru-
the permafrost (probably assisted by water advection). mentation could provide considerably more precise
In 1987, a 58 m deep borehole drilled through the definition of the thermal regime of rock glaciers (e.g.
Murtèl-Corvatsch rock glacier initiated one of the Cuffey and Clow, 1997; Dahl-Jensen et al., 1998).
longest measurement time series of Alpine permafrost The most systematic analysis of temperatures
temperatures (Vonder Mühll and Haeberli, 1990; observed in a rock glacier borehole was made for
Haeberli et al., 1998; Vonder Mühll et al., 1998). At the 1987 borehole at Murtèl 2 (Vonder Mühll and
Pontresina-Schafberg, two boreholes were drilled in Haeberli, 1990; Vonder Mühll, 1992; Vonder Mühll
1990 (37 m and 65 m deep) as part of a project et al., 1998). Murtèl rock glacier is located at the lower
concerning snow avalanches and debris flows (Vonder limit of permafrost distribution and its tongue is
Mühll and Holub, 1992). A borehole was cored to advancing onto permafrost-free terrain. Heat flow was
10 m depth in 1995 at Galena Creek, Wyoming, determined as about 150 mW m2, with thermal
USA (Ackert, 1998). Within a joint project of conductivity of the frozen material being determined
three institutes of the Swiss Federal Institute of (a) experimentally on core samples in the laboratory
Technology (ETH) Zurich, several boreholes and (b) using observed amplitude reductions and
were cored in the Muragl rock glacier (four boreholes, phase lags at depths. The exceptionally high
ca. 70 m deep, 1999) and in the Murtèl-Corvatsch temperature gradient and heat flow are caused by
rock glacier (two boreholes, 51 m and 63 m, 2000: the existence of a talik at a depth of about 50 m
Arenson and Springman, 2000; Arenson, 2002; (Vonder Mühll, 1992), probably maintained by
Vonder Mühll et al., 2003). The main results obtained groundwater flow in summer. At the same site, the
concerning thermal conditions are summarised in time series of borehole data collected since 1987
Table 1. (Figure 5) clearly documents some thermal charac-
The rock glaciers investigated are all located near teristics of permafrost, in particular:
the local boundary of permafrost distribution and
below the active layer, heat is transported almost
correspondingly contain warm permafrost typically
exclusively by conduction resulting in an exponen-
some tens of metres thick. Kudrayahov et al. (1991)
tial decrease in amplitude and a linear increase in
discuss technical aspects of drilling in permafrost.
phase lag with depth;
Details about drilling in mountain permafrost and
the subsurface acts as a low-pass filter in terms of
parameters to be investigated are given in Vonder
the temperature signal introduced at the surface,
Mühll (1996) and Arenson (2002).
resulting in a low-amplitude sinusoidal annual sig-
Data Analysis and Results. nal at about 10 m depth and a temperature that is
Heat transfer in permafrost largely occurs through close to the annual average;
conduction (Lachenbruch et al., 1988), hence perma- snow strongly influences permafrost temperatures,
frost temperatures can be analysed using classical heat and
conduction theory (Carslaw and Jaeger, 1959). Borehole since the beginning of the measurements, tempera-
temperatures have been measured in rock glaciers tures ranged from 2.68C to 1.28C at 10 m
Table 1 Key temperature data from boreholes through rock glaciers.
Site Number of Maximum Mean Permafrost Depth of

boreholes drilling temperature at thickness shear zone (m)
depth (m) the permafrost (estimated) (m)
table (8C)
Murtèl-Corvatsch (Switz.) 5 63 2.0 >50, talik 22–30
Gruben 1 7 1.0 80
RG II, Kluane Range 1 17 0.6 >20
Pontresina-Schafberg 1/1990 1 65 1.5 >60 16
Pontresina-Schafberg 2/1990 2 37 0.5 30 ca. 30
Galena Creek 1 10 1? ?
Muragl 4 72 >0.5 20 17–20
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
Figure 5 Time series of borehole temperatures at various depths (2.55, 3.55, 9.55 and 19.57 m) within the active Murtèl rock glacier, eastern
Swiss Alps.
depth, and from 2.18C to 1.48C at 20 m with a rather than water, movements (Vonder Mühll et al.,
warming trend of a few tenths of degrees celsius per 2003).
decade.
The temperature at the base of the active layer is the COMPOSITION

upper boundary condition for the permafrost tem-
peratures at depth. From borehole temperature data Rock Component
above the depth of zero annual amplitude, the date of
the first major snowfall, the duration of positive and The characteristics and origin of the rock component
negative temperatures and the occurrence of zero- of rock glaciers can be examined in the light of
curtain effects—especially during snowmelt—appear lithological influences, debris supply processes and
to be the most important factors influencing overall subsurface structure. The initial formation of a rock
ground temperatures. Zones of circulating water or air glacier requires thick debris accumulation under a
can exist within or below the permafrost body of a periglacial climate conducive to permafrost. Typical
rock glacier. Besides the talik already mentioned at origins of such debris accumulation include debris-
Murtèl rock glacier, water was observed in several laden snow avalanches, episodic rock avalanches and
boreholes in connection with pressuremeter tests in long-lasting rockfall activity, which are triggered by
two boreholes (1/2000 (Arenson, 2002) and 2/2000), unloading during deglaciation, earthquakes, heavy
and a sudden warming took place between 3 and rains or weathering processes. Further rock glacier
20 m depth on 25 April 2001 (Vonder Mühll et al., development requires continuous debris input from
2003) without affecting the top 3 m of the borehole. rock walls, which balances the removal of debris as it
In the latter case, warming must have happened is advected downslope by the motion of the rock
from the bottom upwards, and subsequent cooling glacier (e.g. Burger et al., 1999; Haeberli et al., 1999;
took place from the top downwards. Indications of Humlum, 2000). Modelling of rock glacier dynamics
temperature variations being closely related to should incorporate debris budgets in the rock wall-
atmospheric temperatures and layers of frozen ground rock glacier system. This downslope transfer of debris
below the main portion of the permafrost were has its own significance as a slope process that can
observed in all three boreholes from the Muragl rock play an important role in the geomorphic evolution of
glacier. Such short-term changes at depth are cold-climate, high-relief areas (Barsch, 1977b, 1977c,
interpreted to arise from heat advection due to air, 1996; Frauenfelder et al., 2003; Humlum, 2000).
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
Debris input mainly results from physical weath- much smaller forms (mostly less than 300 m in length)
ering in rock walls, which periodically releases blocks termed ‘pebbly’ rock glaciers, which consist mainly of
of rock that fragment into coarse materials as they pebbles and cobbles filled with fine debris (Matsuoka
fall onto talus slopes and rock glaciers. In an early et al., 2005; Figure 6A). Despite their size, the latter
model of rock glacier evolution, Olyphant (1983, group is more susceptible to weathering than the
1987) simply assumed the rate of debris input to be a former, so that the debris input to rock glaciers per unit
function of a topographic factor, the area of the rock area of rock wall may actually be more rapid. At least
wall above the rock glacier. This simplification is two conditions are responsible for small forms. First,
probably appropriate at a local scale where climate mechanically weak rocks can only support low rock
and geology can be assumed to be similar. A universal walls, which restrict the total debris input despite the
model of the rate of debris input, however, should higher weathering susceptibility. Where such a
encompass three kinds of source rock wall character- lithology constitutes an exceptionally high rock wall,
istics: topographic (height, width, gradient and however, large pebbly rock glaciers can develop
exposure of the source rock wall), geological (grain (Figure 6B). Second, the fine-grained debris that is
sizes and pore structures that affect weathering, joint relatively abundant in the active layer of pebbly rock
spacing, continuity and orientation of joints and other glaciers is frost-susceptible, and hence is prone to
discontinuities that dictate large-scale strength) and downslope motion by solifluction or debris flows. The
climatic factors (thermal and hydrological regimes). resulting rapid downslope transport of debris inhibits
debris accumulation. The rounded frontal slope of
Lithological Controls. pebbly rock glaciers may also reflect such surficial soil
Table 2 highlights geological effects on rock glacier movements.
distribution. Four major rock types, granite, gneiss,
sandstone and limestone, are commonly found in rock Environmental Controls.
glaciers in the form of boulders or blocky debris. Debris production processes can be classified in
Lithologies that mainly produce finer or platy debris, terms of temporal and dimensional scales (Whalley,
including schist and shale, are more rarely sources of 1984; Matsuoka et al., 1998). Weathering associated
material for rock glaciers (e.g. Wahrhaftig and Cox, with diurnal freeze-thaw and thermal fatigue can only
1959; Evin, 1987). Rock walls composed of the former be effective on the outermost rock a few centimetres or
group of lithologies often feed relatively large rock decimetres thick and causes small rock falls. Weath-
glaciers that have a blocky outer layer lacking ering associated with seasonal temperature variations,
interstitial fine debris, which can be termed ‘bouldery’ including annual freeze-thaw cycling, can be effective
rock glaciers. In contrast, the latter group produces to a depth of a few metres, possibly triggering larger
rock falls and potentially removing the entire active
layer. Major rock avalanches and rock wall failures
Table 2 Bedrock geology and rock glacier distribution
compiled from the literature (data after Matsuoka and
can occur progressively over longer time scales as a
Ikeda, 2001). result of: (1) increasing gravitational stresses by
oversteepening the rock wall or decreasing the support
Lithology Major type of Number provided by permafrost due to lowering of the rock
surface material of regions glacier surface; and (2) weakening the rock mass
either by increasing stresses inside rock fractures, due
Granite (incl. Bouldery 16 to increasing water or ice pressure, or by localised
granodiorite)
chemical weathering that slowly lowers the fracture
Gneiss Bouldery 14
Sandstone Bouldery 13 toughness of rock (Hallet et al., 1991). Rock
Limestone (incl. Bouldery 12 avalanches are also commonly observed in association
dolomite) with major earthquakes in mountainous terrain (e.g.
Schist Pebbly 10 Bull et al., 1994; Keefer, 1994; Bull and Brandon,
Basalt (incl. Bouldery 8 1998). A question is then raised: which process is most
andesite) responsible for rock glacier development?
Shale (incl. Pebbly 8 Field observations suggest that seasonal events
mudstone, phyllite) mainly contribute to talus accumulation, at least in
Quarzite Bouldery 6 areas that are not subject to frequent and large
Rhyolite Pebbly 3
earthquakes. Boulder falls associated with annual
Conglomerate Bouldery 3
Porphyry Bouldery 2 freeze-thaw action are considered to prevail for many
rock glaciers, because they are volumetrically
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
Figure 6 Pebbly rock glaciers in the Swiss Alps having a rounded frontal slope and a gravelly active layer filled with fine debris. (A) Small
forms developed below a shale rock wall 70 m high, Piz Nair, Upper Engadin. (B) Extraordinarily large forms (ca. 1 km long) developed at
the foot of a shale rock wall 300 m high, Piz Üertsch, Albula.
dominant and most common during seasonal thawing joint distribution in the bedrock also affect the
periods (e.g. Church et al., 1979; Matsuoka et al., production rate of rock fall debris, but little is known
1998). Figure 7 shows a large boulder fall that about how these factors vary in space and time in any
occurred above the Murtèl rock glacier in June 1997. area. Freeze-thaw weathering may be most intensive
The debris volume is equivalent to 1 mm of retreat of in a humid zone near the base of the active layer
the whole rock wall, which is comparable with the (Hallet et al., 1991), which suggests that the thaw
Late Holocene mean annual retreat rate for this site depth affects the maximum size of removable rock.
(Haeberli et al., 1999). Other studies also estimate that The size of the rock fragments in rock falls depends
rock walls above active rock glaciers have been also on the joint spacing in the bedrock (Matsuoka,
retreating at rates in the order of millimetres per year, 2001). Because joints in schist and shale are closely
based on estimates of what is needed to sustain the flux spaced, for example, short-term temperature cycling
of debris in rock glaciers (Barsch, 1977c, 1996; Frich (e.g. Matsuoka, 1991), which affects only the outer
and Brandt, 1985; Humlum, 2000). Moisture and rock few centimetres of rock walls, can be important in
delivering debris to pebbly rock glaciers where these
lithologies occur. Debris is also transferred by
secondary processes that remove material already
loosened by weathering processes and temporarily
accumulated on ledges or in couloirs. These processes
include snow avalanches and debris flows, which are
of particular significance in transporting fine materials
onto rock glaciers.
Development of the Two-layer Structure.

Bouldery rock glaciers are composed of outer
blocky sediments representing the active layer and an
inner matrix-supported frozen core (e.g. Wahrhaftig
and Cox, 1959). The outer blocky layer lacks
interstitial fine materials and the blocks are generally
much larger than those comprising the talus above the
Figure 7 A large rock fall generated from the rock wall above rock glacier. The inner frozen core is a mixture of
Murtèl rock glacier during a thawing period (photograph taken on
15 June 1997). The measurement of large blocks on snow indicated clasts, fine-grained lithic fragments and various types
that the total rock fall volume was about 100 m3, which is equivalent of ground ice (Fisch et al., 1977; Haeberli and Vonder
to the rock wall retreat of about 1 mm. Mühll, 1996; Elconin and LaChapelle, 1997). The
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
wide range of the grain size distribution reflects the measured C-axis orientations at a depth of 9.5 m in
diverse processes by which material is transferred to Murtèl rock glacier; the mean dip of the basal planes
the rock glacier surface, including rockfalls, debris was 11.58 from horizontal, roughly parallel to the
flows and snow avalanches. Several factors probably surface slope. Spherical and elongated air bubbles are
contribute to the formation of the outer blocky layer, common in rock glacier ice. Air bubbles 1–2 mm in
including fall sorting, by which—during a rockfall diameter and elongated up to 20 mm in the direction of
event—the larger blocks have sufficient kinetic flow were reported by Elconin and LaChapelle (1997).
energy to reach the rock glacier surface while finer The air content in the upper 10 m of a core retrieved
clasts are trapped on the talus (e.g. Haeberli et al., from Murtèl rock glacier averaged 3% by volume
1998). The finer debris eventually covers the larger (Wagner, 1990). Alternating layers of bubbly and non-
blocks due to creep, and subsequently new boulders bubbly ice can also be prevalent (e.g. Barsch et al.,
fall and roll onto the finer frozen core. This process 1979); Elconin and LaChapelle (1997) reported
develops the two-layer structure and can explain the foliation, defined by layers of bubbly and bubble-
difference in the size of blocks. Other plausible factors free ice, which was strongly associated with other
include ‘kinetic sieving’, a phenomenon in which flow-generated structures.
coarse particles in granular mixtures gradually move
upward as the mixture is shaken (which for our Geochemical and Organic Constituents for
purposes corresponds to disturbing the outer blocky Determining Ice Origin and Age.
18
layer due to deformation of the rock glacier surface) Oxygen and Deuterium: The relationship between
because of the likelihood that small grains can settle these stable isotopes in rock glacier ice has been
further than larger ones (Rosato et al., 1987) and subject to in-depth analysis in two studies (Stauffer
washing away of fine-grained material when perma- and Wagenbach, 1990; Steig et al., 1998). Results
frost has thawed (e.g. Giardino and Vick, 1987). from both suggest that insignificant isotopic fraction-
However, neither of these processes accounts for ation occurred before ice formation, indicating a
blocks in the outer layer tending to be larger than those meteoric or short-residence groundwater source.
in the talus above the rock glacier and washing appears Nuclear Bomb Era Radionuclides: Diverse radio-
ineffective on pebbly rock glaciers. nuclides in rock glacier ice and meltwater have been
Understanding the genesis of the internal structure analysed, including 210Pb and 238U (Gäggeler et al.,
is relevant when modelling the debris budget, because 1990), 3H (Wagenbach, 1990), and 3H, 36Cl, and 35S
it affects the debris flux in the rock glacier. (Cecil et al., 1998). These studies suggest that modern
precipitation does not infiltrate more than 0.5 m into
Ice Component rock glacier ice, the ice is more than a century old, and
that meltwater is probably derived from snow and ice
Information about the internal structure of rock that fell after the end of atmospheric atomic bomb
glaciers is important but very difficult to obtain. testing.
Hence, few direct observations have been reported on Chemical Impurities: Chemical analyses of solute
ice distribution or ice physical and chemical charac- and insoluble material from 17 m of core taken from
teristics, including organic impurities. the Murtèl rock glacier were performed by Balten-
sperger et al. (1990). Analysis of ion constituents and
Occurrences, Volumes and Structures. concentrations in solution show little if any anthro-
The structure of the permafrost core of rock pogenic impact. Extracted insoluble crystalline matter
glaciers, as determined by direct observation of was derived from local bedrock.
borehole cores, large outcrops and tunnels is Organic Impurities: Stem remains from seven
summarised in Table 3. These observations reveal different moss species were extracted from 3 m below
three general types of ice occurrences: (1) massive ice the active layer in the Murtèl rock glacier (Haeberli
with dispersed debris and intercalated debris-laden et al., 1999). The 14C age of the moss was 2250
ice, overlying a basal layer of rock; (2) a few metres to (100) years BP. Twenty-three taxa of pollen and
tens of metres of debris-laden ice overlying massive spores extracted from the moss were present in the
ice; and (3) ice/rock mélange throughout (Figure 8). region between 2000–8000 years BP. These data and
Ice crystals in massive ice in thin section and in other collateral evidence indicate ice aggradation
natural, sun-etched exposures consist of fine-to-coarse spans the greater part of the Holocene. Konrad et al.
interlocking grains with diameters of 5 mm (Barsch (1999) reported the following 14C ages: (1) 200 40
et al., 1979), 5–10 mm (Wagner, 1990) and 10–30 mm years BP of a pine needle 100 m from the headwall at
(Elconin and LaChapelle, 1997). Wagner (1990) an undisclosed depth; (2) 2250 (35) and 2040 (35)
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
Table 3 Summary of direct observations of active rock glacier internal structures.
Exposure type Internal Reference Rock glacier

structure–generalised1 name and location
Three tunnel levels admixed ice and rock Bateman and ‘Glacier Mine’
with several throughout, estimated McLaughlin (informal),
cross-cuts ice volume 40–70% (1920) south-central
Alaska, USA
horizontal tunnel admixed ice and rock Brown (1925) ‘Hurricane Basin’
100 m long and throughout, with (informal),
30 m below massive ice near Colorado, USA
surface lateral margin
borehole, 10.4 m stratified debris-laden Barsch (1977a) ‘Murtèl I’, Swiss Alps
ice and massive ice,
estimated average ice
volume 50–60%
outcrop, 10 m deep Ice/rock mélange with Fisch et al. (1977) ‘Comb de Prafleuri’
deformed ice lenses, (informal), Swiss Alps
high ice content
borehole, 7 m deep stratified debris-laden Barsch et al. (1979) ‘Gruben’, Swiss Alps
ice and massive ice,
estimated average ice
volume 50–70%
Three boreholes to massive ice in upper Haeberli et al. (1988); ‘Murtèl I’, Swiss Alps
bedrock, 50–60 m 25 m, with ice volumes Haeberli (1990);
deep of 90 to 100%, Arenson et al. (2002)
debris-laden ice and
massive ice layers at
intermediate depth
(7 m thick), and rock
with interstitial? ice to
bedrock
outcrop, longitudinal debris-laden ice upper Moore and Friedman ‘Berthoud Pass’
section >80 m 2–3 m overlying massive (1991) (informal), Colorado,
long, max. ice 3–11 m thick with USA
thickness 14 m scattered rock fragments
Four boreholes admixed rock and ice up Hamre and McCarty, ‘East Lone Mountain’,
to 24 m thick; drilling 1996; Hamre Montana, USA
stopped in ice laden with et al. (2000)
fine grained debris
outcrop, complete Ice/rock mélange Elconin and ‘Fireweed’, (informal),
transverse section, throughout with folded LaChapelle (1997) south-central Alaska,
>90 m wide, max. strata, ice volume >50% USA
thickness 60 m
several boreholes massive ice up to 25 m Konrad et al. (1999) ‘Galena Creek’,
thick with dispersed Wyoming, USA
debris overlying unknown
thickness of rock and ice
Four boreholes to layers of ice and rock, Arenson et al. (2002) ‘Muragl’, Swiss Alps
bedrock, estimated ice volume 40–70%
64–72 m deep
1
The term ‘admixed ice and rock’ is used when field evidence of a sheared matrix is not given; ‘melange’ is used when
field evidence of a sheared matrix is given.
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
glacial ice and of short-residence groundwater can be

quite similar, however. In addition, rock glacier ice is
likely to be polygenetic and may include significant
meteoric contributions. Moreover, debris-rich ice
typically from the basal portion of glaciers shares
many characteristics with diverse forms of ground ice.
Ice Origin: Accumulation Area (‘Rooting Zone’ or

‘Source Area’).
Typically, the head of a rock glacier is located at the
base of a bedrock headwall and is the primary
accumulation site for both rock debris and ice. Due
to dynamic and diverse atmospheric, hydrologic
Figure 8 Small section of the full transverse cross-sectional and geologic conditions in alpine environments, a
exposure of Fireweed rock glacier, Wrangell Mountains, Alaska. wide range of ice formation processes can exist in
The rock and ice mélange is representative of the composition and close proximity in space and time, particularly in the
structure of the entire exposure. accumulation zone. Observable types of ice formation
in the accumulation zone at the surface are related to
snow metamorphism and surface icings. In the
years BP from unspecified organic material in ice at
subsurface, negative mean annual ground tempera-
the surface 400 m from the accumulation zone; and
tures and abundant liquid water assure ice growth in
(3) 1680 70 years BP from leaf fragments in the
rock debris in the form of interstitial, segregation,
upper 0.2 m of ice halfway down the rock glacier.
injection or vein ice (Wahrhaftig and Cox, 1959;
Wayne, 1981; Haeberli and Vonder Mühll, 1996).
Ice Origin: Diagnostics.
Sources for the liquid water include groundwater,
Differentiation between ice of glacial or non-glacial
rain and meltwater from snow, avalanche runout, firn
origin in permafrost is usually difficult because the
and ice.
two types share petrographic, stratigraphic, physical
and chemical qualities (cf. Mackay, 1989; French and
Harry, 1990). Transformation of original structures
GEOMETRY AND KINEMATICS
due to flow (i.e. flow metamorphism) in rock glacier
permafrost and the close proximity of some rock
There is a long tradition of geodetic and photogram-
glaciers to glacierets and small glaciers compound this
metric surveying of the effects of permafrost creep
problem.
within active rock glaciers (Kääb, 2005). Available
Petrofabrics: Glacier-like ice crystal morphology,
measurements indicate that the surface movements of
orientation and air bubble content observed in rock
rock glaciers are characteristically slow (typically
glaciers do not indicate glaciogenic ice, as is
decimetres per year) and that they form a continuous
sometimes assumed. Post-depositional processes,
and internally coherent flow field as expected with
most notably flow metamorphism, lead to glacier-like
thermally controlled, macroscopically homogeneous
crystal morphology and orientation but are indepen-
permafrost. It is also evident from the surface flow
dent of ice origin. Spherical and elongate air bubbles,
fields that the debris transported on the surface of rock
in ordered or dispersed arrangements, are common in
glaciers originates from talus and other accumu-
both types of ice. Bubble foliation in glacier ice is
lations, such as moraines or other heaps of loose
caused primarily by flow metamorphism (e.g. Hambrey,
debris, and most likely over time scales of millennia
1979), and by analogy, so is bubble foliation in rock
(Figure 9). The precise determination of surface flow
glaciers (Elconin and LaChapelle, 1997).
fields in rock glaciers also provides a context for
Stratigraphy: Small- to large-scale depositional and
subsurface information obtained from boreholes and
deformational structures composed of massive and
geophysical soundings, and helps to determine the
debris-laden ice, formed in glacial and non-glacial
degree to which this subsurface information is
environments, can appear very similar.
representative spatially.
Water Quality: A common assumption is that ice
Optimal investigation of permafrost creep requires:
formed in the non-glacial environment is composed
of ion-rich groundwater, while glacier ice is composed spatially distributed information on kinematics to
of relatively pure meteoric water. The ionic content of account for three-dimensional effects;
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
1 m for rock glaciers in the Dry Valleys of Antarctica and

on Mt St Helens, USA (http://www.nasa.gov/vision/
earth/lookingatearth/mshelenslidar.html).
Photogrammetry is the remote sensing technology
most commonly used for rock glacier monitoring. Rock
glacier thickness changes and surface displacements
can be measured from repeated stereo-imagery (e.g.
Haeberli and Schmid, 1988; Kääb et al., 1997, 1998;
Kaufmann, 1998a, 1998b; Kääb, 2002, 2005). Recent
advances, especially in image processing, permit the
measurement of surface motion on rock glaciers with
unprecedented resolution, accuracy and spatial cover-
age, which has led to a number of new insights into rock
glacier development and behaviour (Kääb and Vollmer,
2000; Kaufmann and Ladstädter, 2002; Kääb et al.,
2003; Figure 10). Space-borne differential synthetic
aperture radar interferometry (DInSAR) is also able to
measure rock glacier surface displacements, especially
those in the vertical plane, with an accuracy of a few
millimetres to centimetres (Rott and Siegel, 1999;
Kenyi and Kaufmann, 2003; Nagler et al., 2001; Rignot
et al., 2002; Strozzi et al., 2004).
Figure 9 Horizontal surface velocities on Murtèl rock glacier for Dynamic Processes
1987–96. The dotted lines represent selected flow paths interpolated
from the velocity field over this period. The time step between two
adjacent dots is 100 years. The dashed transverse lines indicate 1000 The main processes related to the evolution of a
year-isochrones interpolated from the flow paths. A white rectangle rock glacier can be identified from high-resolution
at the central flow line and at about 2670 m a.s.l. indicates where
moss macrofossils dating from 2300 years BP were found in
the permafrost. Data computed from airphotos taken by the Swiss
Federal Office of Cadastral Survey (after Kääb et al., 2003).
precise high-resolution techniques capable of resol-

ving the slow displacement over reasonable time
periods; and
long-term monitoring for documenting slow
temporal changes at a sufficient level of accuracy.
Monitoring Techniques
Ground-based approaches as well as air- and space-borne

ones have been applied for monitoring rock glacier
kinematics with high resolution. Ground-based surveys
utilise triangulation and laser ranging (e.g. Haeberli,
1985; Zick, 1996; Sloan and Dyke, 1998; Koning and
Smith, 1999; Konrad et al., 1999; Krainer and Mostler,
2000), or satellite geodesy (e.g. GPS; Berthling et al.,
1998). Other methods for deformation measurements,
such as steel tapes or strain wires, are seldom used (e.g.
Haeberli, 1985; White, 1987). Terrestrial laser scanning Figure 10 Horizontal surface displacements on a section of the
provides local digital terrain models (DTM) with very lowermost part of Outer Hochebenkar rock glacier, Austrian Alps,
for 1971–77. The terminus of the rock glacier showed a creep
high resolution and accuracy (Bauer et al., 2003), and instability indicated by missing targets for displacement measure-
airplane-based laser scanning systems have recently been ments and crevasse-like transverse ruptures (after Kaufmann and
used to generate a DTM with a resolution approaching Ladstädter, 2002).
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
measurements of three-dimensional surface velocity

fields. The fundamental process is creep within the
permafrost. Nearly all high-resolution studies on
the deformation of (visually) active rock glaciers have
been able to detect creep. Whereas maximum speeds
are in the order of several metres per year, the
detection of minimum speeds seems mostly restricted
by the available measurement accuracy. From
comparison of available studies on rock glacier speed,
it is clear that differences in slope, thickness,
temperature, or internal composition are not able to
explain differences in speed at individual sites in any
straightforward way. On the other hand, within a
single rock glacier, the spatial pattern of surface
speeds often seems simply related to the pattern of
surface slopes (Konrad et al., 1999). ‘Cold’ polar rock
glaciers, in general, creep more slowly than ‘warm’
Alpine ones (Kääb et al., 2002). Relatively low speeds
at the rock-glacier root zones and margins probably
reflect thinner deforming layers (Kaufmann, 1998a;
Kaufmann and Ladstädter, 2002). Separation of
individual influences on surface speeds is difficult
due to the usual lack of knowledge about the internal Figure 11 Thickness changes of Muragl rock glacier measured for
structure (thickness and composition). 1981–94 from repeated aerial stereo-photography. Data computed
The advection of surface micro-topography by from airphotos taken by the Swiss Federal Office of Cadastral
Survey (after Kääb et al., 2003).
creep may result in a pattern of local positive and
negative thickness changes. A pattern of heaving in
front of individual transverse ridges and correspond- expression of thermal disequilibrium (active-layer
ing lowering behind them has been observed from thickness > debris cover thickness) rather than a
high-resolution studies (Kääb et al., 1998; Kääb and climate signal (Haeberli and Vonder Mühll, 1996;
Vollmer, 2000; Kääb and Weber, 2004). Comparing Kääb and Haeberli, 2001; Kääb and Reichmuth,
the observed vertical rates with ones calculated from 2005). According to the available monitoring series,
creep speed and surface slope clearly confirms these such small-scale differential melting or frost heave is
local patterns of surface elevation change. Three- clearly an exception and usually represents rather a
dimensional straining may lead to local heaving or disturbance of the general thermal equilibrium.
thinning. For an incompressible medium such as pure Widespread differential melting likely occurs only
ice, compression and extension should equal out. at the front where the ice content melts out (Kääb
Horizontal compression of the frozen debris is et al., 1997) or in areas of preferential water flow. In
accompanied by vertical extension, that is by surface fact, for most monitored rock-glacier mass changes,
heaving and vice-versa. Such relationships between no clear signal of overall mass gain or loss has been
horizontal and vertical strain rates can be applied for observed. Only the study of the Murtèl rock glacier
rock glaciers where ice contents exceed saturation clearly showed an overall mass loss of a few
(Kääb et al., 1998; Kääb and Vollmer, 2000; Rignot centimetres per year (Kääb et al., 1998).
et al., 2002) and where ground ice is not highly aerated Little is known about temporal changes in rock
or crevassed. glacier creep rates. For some rock glaciers or parts of
General thaw settlement and frost heave as an them, current surface velocity fields clearly differ from
expression of climate forcing affect large parts of a those of the past (Frauenfelder and Kääb, 2000). Over
rock glacier in a similar way. Surface heaving or shorter time scales, surface speeds vary both cyclically
settlement may also reflect the internal composition. and non-cyclically. Clear seasonal variations in speed
Thickness loss due to ice melt may be significant for have been observed (Haeberli, 1985; Arenson et al.,
zones in the vicinity of perennial ice patches or for 2002; Kääb et al., 2003). Non-cyclic pluriannual
dead ice remains (Kääb et al., 1997; Figure 11). Such changes in speed might result from external (climate?)
pronounced thermokarst phenomena in massive forcing (Zick, 1996; Kääb et al., 1997; Kääb and
ground ice or frost heave might, therefore, be an Frauenfelder, 2001; Schneider and Schneider, 2001).
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
Monitoring of rock glacier velocities to date has remains a distant goal. The only reliable way at
revealed several possible causes, mostly connected to present is to carry out analyses of individual
impacts of climate variations at the scale of decades components of rock glacier with simplified geometry
and longer time periods. and assumptions. Examples include separate con-
sideration of: (1) deformation within the active layer
Perspectives which is very strongly linked to pore pressures (e.g.
Arnold et al., 2005); (2) creeping of the main body
The technology for monitoring rock glacier dynamics of the rock glacier, which can be approximated
is comparably well developed. Research limitations using appropriate creep parameters for the relevant
primarily result from the limited availability of ad- stress state and temperature (Arenson and Springman,
vanced techniques, the difficulty of developing and 2005b); or (3) rheological response to time-dependent
implementing systematic monitoring strategies, and changes in temperature and hence state. All of these
the inherent difficulty of making subsurface measure- interact and suitable parameters must be selected
ments of rock glacier motion. Current research accordingly. We may also assume that the slope is
tendencies point towards an increase in accuracy infinite, or focus on more local viscous features, for
and temporal and spatial resolution, with an improve- example on the surface of the rock glacier, depending
ment in measurement automation, and towards on our specific area of interest.
enhanced application of space-borne techniques in The rheological behaviour of rock glaciers is
order to cover remote areas (Kääb, 2005). The highly sensitive to the character and temperature of
knowledge of geometry and surface kinematics of their deforming layers, which usually comprise
rock glaciers is quite detailed, and the primary process mixtures of ice and rock elements, the latter ranging
responsible for the creeping motion of rock glaciers is from silty sand up to large boulders. In addition,
relatively well understood to be due to creep unfrozen water may be present and influence
deformation in the ice, whereas analyses of the responses, at permafrost temperatures close to the
dynamics of rock glaciers remain elusive. Displace- melting point of the ice, in particular at the base of the
ment rates cannot be quantified because, contrary to rock glacier. As in the mechanics of rock masses,
ordinary glaciers that are comprised of relatively large-scale behaviour of such mixtures is difficult to
homogeneous ice, rock glaciers tend to consist of evaluate either by direct in situ measurements or by
inter-layered debris-rich and ice-rich domains, and in taking samples, but it can be estimated by a
general, information about the spatial extent and constitutive modelling approach.
rheological behaviour of these domains is insufficient Modelling the entire creep process, following
to permit detailed flow calculations. Moreover instantaneous elastic and plastic deformation due to
boundary conditions equivalent to specifying accumu- initial load application, including primary (e.g. see
lation and ablation rates are difficult to define, Vyalov et al., 1962; Domaschuk et al., 1991;
especially in view of the multiplicity of inputs of Wijeweera and Joshi, 1991, for specific models),
ice and debris in rock glaciers. The general lack of secondary (e.g. Andersland and AlNouri, 1970) and
information on the internal composition and archi- tertiary creep, is now possible for ice or related
tecture of rock glacier together with the complicated homogeneous mixtures according to developments by
and poorly-defined rheological behaviour of icy debris Goughnour and Andersland (1968), Fish (1983, 1984),
and debris-rich ice limit attempts to quantitatively Ting (1983), Zhu and Carbee (1983), or Gardner et al.
understand velocity variations, sensitivity to external (1984). However these models are less suitable for
forcing, rock glacier advance mechanisms, and the rock glaciers because of their heterogeneity. More-
development and dynamic interpretation of micro- over, some models only acknowledge tertiary creep
topography. A large number of globally distributed and for others, the secondary (steady state) creep
monitoring series could substantially improve our phase is reduced to an inflection point, that is the
understanding of the basic processes of rock glacier decrease of the strain rate with time is directly
creep with their local and temporal variabilities. followed by acceleration, without an interval at a
constant minimum strain rate. While all these
deformation phases are important for certain practical
CREEP OF ROCK GLACIERS problems, such as foundations in permafrost, and are
well covered in the literature (e.g. Andersland and
The creation of a unified constitutive model for Ladanyi, 2004), they are of less importance in
permafrost found in alpine rock glaciers, to represent connection with rock glaciers, where secondary creep
creep and failure in variable temperature regimes, (at a minimum strain rate) should dominate.
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
Glen’s (1955) original equation for secondary creep the potential to represent the in situ stress state
of polycrystalline ice is often used for the creep of more faithfully, although size effects (particle sizes
permafrost and other polycrystalline solids: related to sample size) and sample disturbance must
be considered and minimised where possible, by
"_ ¼ Bs n (1) increasing sample size, using appropriate cooling
fluids, and cooling the drill bit during drilling and
where "_ is strain rate, s is a corresponding stress, and extraction.
the coefficients B and n are material constants. B Figure 12 shows two different samples post-creep
contains the effect of temperature, grain size, fabric (volumetric ice content: 55% (no. 27) and 74%
and impurity content; it can be written explicitly as (no. 43)). The initial sample diameter was 74 mm and
(e.g. Andersland and Ladanyi, 2004): the initial sample height was approximately 150 mm.
Significant compression, that is volume decrease,
"_ c was recorded for sample no. 43, which also had
B¼ (2) a higher volumetric air content (26%, Arenson,
s ncu
2002).
The homogeneous approach presented above, with
where: averaged creep parameters derived from small-scale
tests, works very well for uniform ground conditions
u w found for some arctic permafrost (in certain areas—
s cu ¼ s co 1 þ (3)
uc e.g. Morgenstern et al., 1980; Ladanyi, 2002; Sego
et al., 2003). Recent geotechnical and geophysical
Here, "_ c denotes the reference strain rate, s cu is the investigations and monitoring at Muragl, Murtèl-
reference stress or creep modulus, for temperature Corvatsch and Pontresina Schafberg based on earlier
u ¼ T, and uc is an arbitrary reference temperature work (e.g. Haeberli et al., 1998; Kääb and Vollmer,
(see data for polycrystalline ice from Morgenstern 2000) have confirmed, however, that the internal
et al. (1980) "_ c ¼ 105 h1 , sco ¼ 0.103 MPa, and structure of a rock glacier is extremely heterogeneous
w ¼ 0.37 valid for T ¼ 18C, and 107 (Arenson, 2002; Musil, 2002; Maurer et al., 2003),
"_ 102 h1 ). Many authors (Vyalov et al., 1962; leading to significant variations in the parameters
Fish, 1983, 1984; Ting, 1983; Zhu and Carbee, 1983; back-fitted to standard creep expressions (Arenson
Gardner et al., 1984; Wijeweera and Joshi, 1991) have and Springman, 2005a, 2005b), or requiring explicit
reported results consistent with Equation (1) or similar theoretical simulation. For example, Ladanyi (2002,
expressions from uniaxial creep tests on cylindrical 2003) and Ladanyi and Archambault (2003) attempted
samples. Goughnour and Andersland (1968), Anders- to simulate the creep behaviour of ice/rock mixtures
land and AlNouri (1970) and Domaschuk et al. (1991) and ice-filled irregular rock joints under variable stress
have done so based on triaxial test data, which have and temperature conditions.
Figure 12 (A) Sample no. 27 and (B) no. 43 after testing (Arenson, 2002). Both samples were initially tested under constant stress
(creep) and after a strain of 10.3% for (A), and 19.6% for (B) they were sheared with a constant strain rate (A: 0.72 105s1;
B: 0.80 105s1).
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
Pressuremeter tests allow creep parameters to be virtually no deformation below this shear zone and
obtained in situ (e.g. in arctic permafrost or ice; relatively little creep deformation above it.
Ladanyi and Johnston, 1973; Kjartanson et al., 1988; Strain rates in shear zones within 20 m of the
Ladanyi and Melouki, 1993; Ladanyi, 1996), as well surface can be influenced by seasonal temperatures, so
as data on load controlled (relaxation) tests. They are that seasonal changes in the surface velocity have been
promising, even for alpine permafrost (Arenson et al., detected for a rock glacier with changes exceeding
2003b), because the internal conditions (in situ stress 0.2 m/a, which reflect temperature variations over the
and temperature) can approach reality if the pressure- seasonally affected zone (Arenson et al., 2002; Kääb
meter probe is pre-cooled prior to insertion in the et al., 2003). Seasonal changes in ground temperature
borehole shortly after completion of drilling to test are not only generated from changes in surface air
depth using pre-cooled rotary boring techniques rather temperature, but also from convective heat flow within
than percussion methods. Nonetheless, the volume of permeable taliks or layers at the permafrost base.
permafrost investigated by this technique in the Shear deformation is generally accompanied by either
annulus around the probe is still very limited when dilation or contraction depending on the structure of
compared to the volume of a rock glacier. In addition, the permafrost, but certainly does not occur at constant
temperature disturbances due to the drilling have to be volume as is often assumed in rock glacier dynamics.
considered and the creep parameters derived can vary Structural hindrance and hence dilation will occur if
significantly. the debris content exceeds about 35% (e.g. Goughnour
Temperature probably has the most significant and Andersland, 1968; Ting et al., 1983) and the
influence on creep behaviour. The minimum strain rate matrix is virtually air-free, whereas contraction will
approached during the secondary creep phase occur if there is a significant amount of air, for
increases with increasing temperature. The Arrhenius example > 5% present, which is not untypical for
equation may represent this behaviour acceptably at some rock glaciers (Wagner, 1990; Arenson et al.,
temperatures colder than about 108C (e.g. Mellor 2003a, 2004; Yasufuku et al., 2003). This will affect
and Testa, 1969; Hooke et al., 1980). At temperatures the volume of permafrost lying in and above the shear
close to the melting point of ice, which are important zone and the predictions of vertical and horizontal
in terms of degrading permafrost, the unfrozen strain.
water changes the behaviour (Barnes et al., 1971). Numerical modelling of the four-phase interaction
Voytkovskiy (1960) presents an empirical relationship between solids, water, ice and air may be achieved
that was successfully applied (e.g. Hooke et al., 1980; using discrete elements (Arenson and Sego, 2005) in
Arenson and Springman, 2005b). the future but the constitutive models will need to be
The rheological behaviour of sand/ice mixtures developed at a particulate level while computer
also depends on the applied normal stress. The capacity must increase by another order of magnitude
effect can be estimated using the methods presented, to make this feasible. Attempts to back-fit average
for example, in Andersland and Ladanyi (2004). creep parameters to a time series of deformation data,
Arenson and Springman (2005a, 2005b) report for example by treating the rock glacier as a
results from triaxial constant strain rate and constant homogeneous medium (e.g. Wagner, 1992), gave a
deviatoric stress tests on ‘undisturbed’ samples from useful perspective at the global scale but inevitably
Muragl and Murtèl-Corvatsch (Figure 12) depen- failed to represent the detailed deformation field that is
dent upon a constant confining cell pressure (s3), necessary for in-depth understanding of rock glacier
deviatoric stress (s1 s3), temperature and volu- dynamics and for risk assessments in combination
metric solids content (Figure 13). The data confirm with permafrost degradation.
that warm, ice-rich permafrost under higher normal
stresses will exhibit greater steady-state strain
rates. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Within many of the rock glaciers examined to date,
significantly higher local strain rates occur within a Research on permafrost creep and the kinematics
thin ‘shear’ zone, which may be 1–3 m or more in of active rock glaciers in cold mountainous areas
thickness. The depth of this zone and the magnitude of has advanced rapidly during recent decades and
strain rate are strongly dependent on the internal continues to expand. This results from the application
structure (% ice, % soil, including typical particle of sophisticated technology in comprehensive field
sizes) and local temperature, which is often very close and laboratory experiments, and especially from
to 08C (e.g. Haeberli, 1985; Wagner, 1992; Haeberli increasing cooperation among international specialists
et al., 1998; Arenson et al., 2002). Usually there is in geomorphology, microclimatology, glaciology,
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
Figure 13 Triaxial creep tests at confining pressure s3 ¼ 200 0.4 kPa for different volumetric ice contents, wi, and temperatures,
T; samples 1, 2, 4, 9 and 11 were artificially frozen; (A) wi ¼ 15–33%; (B) wi ¼ 61–78%; and (C) wi ¼ 85–100% (Arenson and Springman,
2005b).
geophysics, geodesy/photogrammetry and engineer- permafrost) as well as temporal dimensions (for-

ing. The resulting information provides a clearer mation, preservation and melting of ground ice under
picture concerning the basic materials, processes, conditions of Holocene climates and recent atmos-
phenomena and spatio-temporal scales involved in the pheric warming). Surface temperatures affect the
motion of rock glaciers and associated features that permafrost through a highly heterogeneous active
also result from the gravitationally-induced defor- layer commonly exhibiting large, wide-open voids,
mation of subsurface ice. making conductive, convective and advective energy
Thermal conditions remain the fundamental fluxes extremely complex and strongly dependent on
boundary condition at the surface and define spatial snow-cover characteristics. The coarse blocks of this
scales (extent, distribution patterns and thickness of active layer, with its special thermal conditions, result
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
from weathering, rockfall activity and grain-size the headwall to the front and, in some cases
sorting at the rock headwall of the creeping ice/rock subsequent re-incorporation into the advancing
mixtures. Ground ice is most likely to be polygenetic rock glacier causing corresponding age inversion
and generally far exceeds the pore space of the talus at depth; and
within which it forms. Massive subsurface ice (e) dynamics of rock glaciers, which include spatial
sometimes occurs and may have formed below the and temporal variations in velocity that are man-
surface or could have originated as surface ice from ifested in the ridges, furrows and other surface
avalanche cones, perennial snowbanks, glacierets or structures typical of rock glaciers, as well as their
small (mainly cirque) glaciers, and was subsequently down-valley motion.
buried at negative ground temperatures in debris either
It was the clear goal of the IPA Task Force to
derived from valley walls or accumulating on the rock
concentrate on purely periglacial features and
glacier surface from ablating ice. The coherent pattern
processes, which predominate in most regions. As a
of the surface motion evident in the continuous surface
next step, however, interactions and feedbacks
structures commonly seen on rock glaciers reflects
between snow, glaciers and frozen scree on mountain
high ground-ice contents. Such motion continues over
slopes should be considered in order to understand
millennia as indicated by high-precision geodetic/
more complex landforms. In particular, the question of
photogrammetric surveys and radiocarbon dating. Due
a gradation or continuum between rock glaciers and
to the striking heterogeneity of the material and
debris-covered glaciers should be examined in view of
differences in ice content and internal architecture
ground thermal conditions and the common contrast in
between rock glaciers, however, the rheology gener-
surface character of these features: the transverse
ally remains difficult to define universally. In addition,
ridges, deep furrows and the steep, near-angle of
a number of aspects of the flow and evolution of
repose terminus, typical of perennially frozen rock
creeping permafrost and rock glaciers are poorly
glaciers and the ablation pits and lakes typical of
understood; these include short-term velocity fluctu-
debris-covered glaciers.
ations, the occurrence of thin but effective shear zones,
Future studies of rock glaciers should be closely
extrusion flow and time-dependent volume changes.
linked to other aspects of permafrost science, and
There is a clear need for integrated numerical
should benefit from major recent advances in under-
modelling of rock glacier development and evolution,
standing the physical and chemical processes that
as well as dynamics. However, this will require better
operate in all permafrost regions (e.g. Hallet et al.,
characterisation of rock glacier composition and
2004). These have resulted from diverse approaches
internal structure, and better understanding and more
that range from examining fundamental periglacial
rigorous modelling of specific processes. Such
phenomena at the microscopic scale to recognising the
quantitative holistic treatment is a difficult challenge
importance of permafrost processes on climate change
and must be based on diverse data available from
at the global scale. We firmly believe that significant
photogrammetry, data logging, borehole observations
advance in understanding most periglacial phenomena
and laboratory experiments. It should include and
requires the close integration of field and theoretical
combine partial models for:
studies, and will greatly benefit from ideas and
(a) rock weathering, snow avalanches and rockfall techniques in other disciplines within the geosciences
events with grain-size sorting and mass wasting and beyond. Much is to be gained from cross-
on scree slopes; fertilisation between scientists and engineers as well.
(b) freezing processes and ice formation in sub-zero For example, the transfer of energy through a surface
scree, with abundant fine material as well as layer of coarse rock debris is central to understanding
coarse blocks; the thermal regime of rock glaciers. It is, however,
(c) coupled thermohydro-mechanical modelling of poorly understood and little has yet been gained from
creep and failure processes in frozen rock debris, the extensive studies of a very similar engineering
including the entire range of particle sizes from problem associated with the use of artificial rock cover
fine to coarse, and the entire range of ice contents to avoid warming or melting permafrost. Another
from little or no ice in a dense interlocking matrix example is using what has been learned through
to massive subsurface ice with highly dispersed extensive empiricism in engineering studies about
debris and significant air content; frost resistance of concrete and other porous materials
(d) kinematics of non-isotropic, heterogeneous and to provide a basis for further studies of the physics of
layered, ice-rich permafrost on slopes with long frost weathering, which is one of the controls on the
transport paths for coarse surface material from debris supply to rock glaciers.
DOI: 10.1002/ppp
Future studies should also appeal to the broad Arenson LU, Hawkins P, Springman SM. 2003b. Pres-
scientific audience that is now aware and interested in suremeter tests within an active rock glacier in the
permafrost as a critical element of the Earth’s Swiss Alps. Proceedings of the Eighth International
cryosphere particularly in light of its vulnerability Conference on Permafrost, Zurich, Switzerland, 21–25
to atmospheric warming and potential feedbacks to July 2003, Phillips M, Springman SM, Arenson LU
(eds). Balkema Publishers: Lisse, The Netherlands;
global climate. In addition, they should capitalise on 33–38.
the growing interest from the engineering and Arenson LU, Johansen MM, Springman SM. 2004.
planetary communities, respectively, in geotechnical Effects of volumetric ice content and strain rate on
issues characteristic of cold regions and in diverse shear strength under triaxial conditions for frozen soil
aspects of permafrost on Mars and other icy planets samples. Permafrost and Periglacial Processes 15:
(e.g. Whalley and Azizi, 2003; Head et al., 2005). 261–271. DOI: 10.1002/ppp.498
Arnold A, Thielen A, Springman SM. 2005. On
the stability of active layers in alpine permafrost.
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PERMAFROST AND PERIGLACIAL PROCESSES

Permafrost and Periglac. Process. 17: 189–214 (2006)

Permafrost Creep and Rock Glacier Dynamicsz

INTRODUCTION are suggestive of deformation of subsurface ice

Surface and Active Layer

The seasonally frozen active layer above the

voids in coarse deposits (Thompson, 1962; Barsch, Permafrost Conditions

Table 1 Key temperature data from boreholes through rock glaciers.

Site Number of Maximum Mean Permafrost Depth of

The temperature at the base of the active layer is the COMPOSITION

Development of the Two-layer Structure.

Table 3 Summary of direct observations of active rock glacier internal structures.

Exposure type Internal Reference Rock glacier

glacial ice and of short-residence groundwater can be

Ice Origin: Accumulation Area (‘Rooting Zone’ or

1 m for rock glaciers in the Dry Valleys of Antarctica and

precise high-resolution techniques capable of resol-

Ground-based approaches as well as air- and space-borne

measurements of three-dimensional surface velocity

geophysics, geodesy/photogrammetry and engineer- permafrost) as well as temporal dimensions (for-

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