Back to UTIG Seminars

Abstract
Tides over the last glacial cycle are investigated in a global
numerical model that captures 92 percent of the present-day open-ocean
tidal height variance from ``first-principles'' (i.e. without
assimilating observations).  From about 65,000 to 7,000 years ago the
modeled tides at the debouchement point of the Hudson Strait ice
stream in the Labrador Sea are exceptionally large.  Since tides
significantly impact the dynamics of both continental ice streams and
their associated floating ice shelves, we postulate that large
Labrador Sea tides played a catalytic role in the formation of
Heinrich event icebergs, that is, massive discharges of ice from the
Labrador Sea into the glacial North Atlantic ocean.