3.

The basal ice froze to the rock when the pressure was released by cutting out
the ice
immediately above. This confirmed the existence of a thin layer of water, at
freezing point,
at the ice-rock interface.
4. The icewas separated from bedrock over a distance of 10mdown-glacier from the
tunnel. As
the tunnel reached bedrock near the crest of a large rise, this separation could be
described as
a large cavity in the lee of the rise. Large cavities would be expected because the
hydrostatic
pressure, which would cause the ice to flow in and close them, was low.
Thewhite-roughness spectrum does not represent bedrock realistically. Because bumps
near
the controlling size provide most of the resistance to motion, abrasion should
flatten them
(Kamb 1970, p. 711). Indeed glaciated bedrock often lacks small bumps with
wavelength
scales of about half a meter or less. Perhaps hard-bed sliding is appreciable only
over
polished bedrock with no obstacles near the controlling size.
4. The basal ice layers usually differ from the remainder of the ice in grain size,
fabric, amount
of water, air bubbles, and impurities. Some of these factors change the ice’s
mechanical
properties (Section 3.4.5).
5. Thin deposits of calcite and silica are widespread on the lee side of small
bedrock bumps
exposed by retreating glaciers (Hallet 1976a). They form by expulsion from the
regelation
water when it refreezes on the downstream side of the bump. The increased
concentration
of impurities lowers the melting temperature and so reduces the rate of heat
conduction to
the upstream side. Hallet modified Nye’s theory to take account of this effect,
which should
reduce sliding rates.
6. Robin (1976b) suggested that patches of the basal ice may freeze to the bed,
reducing the
overall sliding velocity. If water produced by pressure meltingwithin the ice were
squeezed
out of it, the ice loses a potential heat source and the ice might cool below
melting point.
Changes in water pressure might also lead to temporary freeze-on.
7.2.5