Thickness evolution of the Scandinavian Ice Sheet during the Late Weichselian in Nordfjord, western Norway: evidence from ice-flow modeling

Results from experiments with a two-dimensional ice-flow model, applied along a west - east transect in western Norway, provide new constraints on the thickness evolution of the Scandinavian Ice Sheet throughout the Late Weichselian glaciation and deglaciation. Investigations took place along an E - W flowline of the former ice sheet at c. 62 degrees N, from the modern glacier Jostedalsbreen, through the Nordfjord, and across the continental shelf. A paleoclimate record from Krakenes, which is located directly at the flowline, provides temperature and precipitation information for the time between 13 800 and 9200 cal. yr BP. LGM climate conditions for the study area are estimated from various GCM studies. The GISP2 delta O-18 record has been tuned to the local data in order to provide a continuous temperature record as input for time-transgressive model runs. The results of all experiments suggest that the ice did not cover the highest mountain peaks in this area, and that nunataks persisted throughout the Late Weichselian glaciation. These findings are in contrast to results from many previous model studies and other ice-sheet reconstructions, but agree well with minimum thickness estimates from cosmogenic dating and with vertical ice limits inferred from lower block field boundaries and trimlines.