Rock slope failure and landscape evolution in the Caledonian Mountains, as exemplified in the Abisko area, northern Sweden

Paraglacial rock slope failure (RSF) is here studied as a locally major contributor to mountain landscape evolution in the Caledonian ranges. Dense RSF clusters exist in Scotland and Norway, but overall RSF distribution in Scandinavia is poorly known. In the Abisko area, air photo scrutiny confirms the reported incidence of sparse but significant RSF. In the Kärkevagge complex, the Rissa RSF is one of the largest in northern Europe, with a scar volume of 42 Mm3. The well–known Giant Boulder Deposit (GBD) is a rock avalanche emanating from the Rissa RSF scar, the interpretation of wholesale valley wall retreat at deglaciation being discounted. In the adjacent valley of Vassivagge, a major RSF on Vuoitasrita has a similar area and morpholocation, but lacks a GBD. It has consumed 5–10% of the relict preglacial mountain surface. Both RSFs are near incipient watershed breaches in valleys which may have undergone vigorous enlargement during the last stadial. Glaciation history may explain spatial incidence as well as neotectonic and other triggers. The localised geomorphic impact of RSF in the Abisko mountains is high by comparison with contemporary slope processes. The cumulative impact of paraglacial RSF over the Quaternary may have been considerable, and RSF may be an indicator of concentrated late–stage glacial erosion.     

Rock slope failure and landscape evolution in the Caledonian Mountains, as exemplified in the Abisko area, northern Sweden

Paraglacial rock slope failure (RSF) is here studied as a locally major contributor to mountain landscape evolution in the Caledonian ranges. Dense RSF clusters exist in Scotland and Norway, but overall RSF distribution in Scandinavia is poorly known. In the Abisko area, air photo scrutiny confirms the reported incidence of sparse but significant RSF. In the Kärkevagge complex, the Rissa RSF is one of the largest in northern Europe, with a scar volume of 42 Mm3. The well–known Giant Boulder Deposit (GBD) is a rock avalanche emanating from the Rissa RSF scar, the interpretation of wholesale valley wall retreat at deglaciation being discounted. In the adjacent valley of Vassivagge, a major RSF on Vuoitasrita has a similar area and morpholocation, but lacks a GBD. It has consumed 5–10% of the relict preglacial mountain surface. Both RSFs are near incipient watershed breaches in valleys which may have undergone vigorous enlargement during the last stadial. Glaciation history may explain spatial incidence as well as neotectonic and other triggers. The localised geomorphic impact of RSF in the Abisko mountains is high by comparison with contemporary slope processes. The cumulative impact of paraglacial RSF over the Quaternary may have been considerable, and RSF may be an indicator of concentrated late–stage glacial erosion.     

Statistic-empirical modelling of mountain permafrost distribution in the Abisko region,sub-Arctic northern Sweden

The mountain permafrost distribution in the Abisko region in northern Sweden has been assessed using a combination of empirical and statistical analysis. The empirical data was obtained using the bottom temperature of snow cover (BTS) method, supported by continuous ground temperature measurements. The statistical analysis was based on 148 data points in total and used logistic regression to model the probability of permafrost occurrence. Further, Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) was introduced as an exploratory tool for detecting non-stationarity in the relationships between permafrost and the independent variables models and showed to be a useful tool in the statistical analysis. As a result of the GWR analysis the region was divided into two subregions. The models show probabilities >0.8 for permafrost at elevations above 1300 m a.s.l. in the western part of the region. In the eastern part, the probabilities are likely to be influenced by the potential incoming shortwave summer radiation, indicating a probability >0.8 above 850 m a.s.l. on the north-east and east-facing slopes, above 1000 m on the west-facing slopes and above 1100 m a.s.l. on the south-facing slopes. Permafrost conditions throughout the region were found to be marginal and sensitive to current warming trends.     

A long-term Arctic snow depth record from Abisko, northern Sweden, 1913–2004

A newly digitized record of snow depth from the Abisko Scientific Research Station in northern Sweden covers the period 1913-present. Mean snow depths were taken from paper records of measurements made on a profile comprising 10 permanent stakes. This long-term record yields snow depths consistent with two other shorter term Abisko records: measurements made at another 10-stake profile (1974-present) and at a single stake (1956-present). The measurement interval is variable, ranging from daily to monthly, and there are no data for about half of the winter months in the period 1930-1956. To fill the gaps, we use a simple snowpack model driven by concurrent temperature and precipitation measurements at Abisko. Model snow depths are similar to observed; differences between the two records are comparable to those between profile and single stake measurements. For both model and observed snow depth records, the most statistically significant trend is in winter mean snow depths, amounting to an increase of about 2 cm or 5 % of the mean per decade over the whole measurement period, and 10% per decade since the 1930-40s, but all seasonal means of snow depth show positive trends on the longest timescales. However, the start, end, and length of the snow season do not show any statistically significant long-term trends. Finally, the relation between the Arctic Oscillation index and Abisko temperature, precipitation and snow depth is positive and highly significant, with the best correlations for winter.     

Towards an integration of process measurements, archive analysis and modelling in geomorphology — the Kärkevagge experimental site, Abisko area, northern Sweden

The analysis of Holocene geomorphic process activity demands long–term data sets, which are available for the Kärkevagge catchment due to 50 years of intensive geomorphologic field studies. This data set is used in combination with additional field measurements, remote sensing and digital elevation model (DEM) analysis to provide input data for modelling Holocene valley development. On the basis of this information, geomorphic process units (GPUs) are defined by means of GIS modelling. These units represent areas of homogeneous process composition that transfer sediments. Since the data base enables the quantification of single processes, the interaction of processes within the units can also be quantified. Applying this concept permits calculation of recent sediment transfer rates and hence leads to a better understanding of actual geomorphic landscape development activity. To extrapolate these data in time and space the process–related sediments in the valley are analysed for depth and total volume, primarily using geophysical methods. In this fashion the validity of measured process rates is evaluated for the Holocene time scale. Results from this analysis are exemplified in a cross–profile showing some of the principal sediment units in the valley. For example, the measured modern rates on a slush torrent debris fan seem to represent the Holocene mean rate. This approach should also be suitable for revealing Holocene geomorphic landscape development in terms of climate change.     

Towards an integration of process measurements, archive analysis and modelling in geomorphology — the Kärkevagge experimental site, Abisko area, northern Sweden

The analysis of Holocene geomorphic process activity demands long–term data sets, which are available for the Kärkevagge catchment due to 50 years of intensive geomorphologic field studies. This data set is used in combination with additional field measurements, remote sensing and digital elevation model (DEM) analysis to provide input data for modelling Holocene valley development. On the basis of this information, geomorphic process units (GPUs) are defined by means of GIS modelling. These units represent areas of homogeneous process composition that transfer sediments. Since the data base enables the quantification of single processes, the interaction of processes within the units can also be quantified. Applying this concept permits calculation of recent sediment transfer rates and hence leads to a better understanding of actual geomorphic landscape development activity. To extrapolate these data in time and space the process–related sediments in the valley are analysed for depth and total volume, primarily using geophysical methods. In this fashion the validity of measured process rates is evaluated for the Holocene time scale. Results from this analysis are exemplified in a cross–profile showing some of the principal sediment units in the valley. For example, the measured modern rates on a slush torrent debris fan seem to represent the Holocene mean rate. This approach should also be suitable for revealing Holocene geomorphic landscape development in terms of climate change.     

Quantifying the erosional impact of the Fennoscandian ice sheet in the Torneträsk–Narvik corridor, northern Sweden, based on cosmogenic radionuclide data

Despite spectacular landform evidence of a dominant role for glacial action in shaping landscapes under former northern hemisphere ice sheets, there is little quantitative evidence for rates and patterns of erosion associated with specific glaciations. Here we use cosmogenic nuclide data to assess rates of subglacial erosion underneath the Fennoscandian ice sheet. By testing whether there are remnant nuclide concentrations in samples taken from sites that include both relict areas and features and landscapes typically associated with vigorous glacial erosion, we can constrain the level and pattern of modification that resulted from the last glaciation. Cosmogenic ¹⁰Be and ³⁶Cl data from the Torneträsk region confirm the temporal and spatial variability of glacial erosion suggested by geomorphological mapping. At some sites, glacial erosion estimates in what appear to be heavily scoured areas indicate erosion of only c. 2 ± 0.4 m of bedrock, based on cosmogenic nuclide inheritance. This implies that the generation of severely scoured terrain in this study area required multiple glaciations. The overall modification produced by ice sheets along glacial corridors may be more restricted than previously thought, or may have occurred preferentially during earlier Quaternary glacial periods.     

Quantifying the erosional impact of the Fennoscandian ice sheet in the Torneträsk–Narvik corridor, northern Sweden, based on cosmogenic radionuclide data

Despite spectacular landform evidence of a dominant role for glacial action in shaping landscapes under former northern hemisphere ice sheets, there is little quantitative evidence for rates and patterns of erosion associated with specific glaciations. Here we use cosmogenic nuclide data to assess rates of subglacial erosion underneath the Fennoscandian ice sheet. By testing whether there are remnant nuclide concentrations in samples taken from sites that include both relict areas and features and landscapes typically associated with vigorous glacial erosion, we can constrain the level and pattern of modification that resulted from the last glaciation. Cosmogenic ¹⁰Be and ³⁶Cl data from the Torneträsk region confirm the temporal and spatial variability of glacial erosion suggested by geomorphological mapping. At some sites, glacial erosion estimates in what appear to be heavily scoured areas indicate erosion of only c. 2 ± 0.4 m of bedrock, based on cosmogenic nuclide inheritance. This implies that the generation of severely scoured terrain in this study area required multiple glaciations. The overall modification produced by ice sheets along glacial corridors may be more restricted than previously thought, or may have occurred preferentially during earlier Quaternary glacial periods.     

Glacial Erosion in the Abisko Mountains: Kärkevagge and Vassivagge, Northern Sweden

This paper discusses direct current resistivity soundings and geomorphological studies of Quaternary deposits in two glacial troughs in the Abisko Mountains of northern Sweden. The subject of the fieldwork is the depth of Pleistocene glacial erosion. Studies were carried out in 1998 and 2003 in the Kärkevagge and Vassivagge. The estimated thickness of Quaternary deposits and bedrock properties are discussed in the broader context of glacial erosion studies in the Abisko area. Geophysical and geomorphological studies suggest that the depth of glacial erosion was highly differentiated from –190 m in the Torneträsk basin to the metric overall erosion on the upland plateau. In medium‐sized valleys several kilometres long, erosion depth measures 30–50 m. Present‐day stream channel patterns reveal a strong relation to the bedrock configuration in valley floors     

Detailed geomorphological survey of a small mountain drainage area, Abisko, northern Swedish Lapland

A thorough geomorphological survey of a small (2km²) drainage area has been conducted using digital magnification of aerial photographs in conjunction with field visits. The result presented is a geomorphological map where individual geomorphological features down to metre size can be identified. The study was done in connection with a project focusing on the relationship between geomorphological processes and lacustrine sedimentation. Good knowledge of the geomorphological setting and the related process activity in the catchment is important in studies using lacustrine sediments as environmental archives.
The survey reveals a small–scale geomorphology dominated by a number of different periglacial upfreezing forms together with bedrock–controlled slope processes. Three different geographically separated geomorphological assemblages were recognised with few sediment transportation pathways connecting them. Composition of substrate, soil water content and vegetation cover combined with different slope angles are probably the most important factors controlling the distribution of the geomorphological features.     

Detailed geomorphological survey of a small mountain drainage area, Abisko, northern Swedish Lapland

A thorough geomorphological survey of a small (2km²) drainage area has been conducted using digital magnification of aerial photographs in conjunction with field visits. The result presented is a geomorphological map where individual geomorphological features down to metre size can be identified. The study was done in connection with a project focusing on the relationship between geomorphological processes and lacustrine sedimentation. Good knowledge of the geomorphological setting and the related process activity in the catchment is important in studies using lacustrine sediments as environmental archives.
The survey reveals a small–scale geomorphology dominated by a number of different periglacial upfreezing forms together with bedrock–controlled slope processes. Three different geographically separated geomorphological assemblages were recognised with few sediment transportation pathways connecting them. Composition of substrate, soil water content and vegetation cover combined with different slope angles are probably the most important factors controlling the distribution of the geomorphological features.     

Temporal and spatial trends of lake acidity in northern Sweden

Changes in lake-water pH, alkalinity and colour were inferred from diatoms in surface sediment samples and sediment samples from pre-industrial times from 118 northern Swedish lakes. This palaeolimnological study does not support the hypothesis that there is a large-scale modern acidification in the two northernmost counties of Sweden; pH had decreased significantly in eight lakes, while five had a significant increase. Partial least-squares regression of changes in water chemistry in relation to catchment characteristics was performed to evaluate the causes of the acidity status. Furthermore, temporal trends were assessed from long sediment cores from five acidic lakes. The results suggest that the presently acid lakes have faced a long-term acidification trend over several thousand years due to soil-forming processes and vegetation development. However, due to the acid sensitivity of the region, future acidification trends in northern Swedish lakes should be carefully observed and assessed.     

Spatial uniformity of sediment accumulation in varved lake sediments in northern Sweden

As part of an investigation aimed at assessing the potential of northern Swedish varved lake sediments for fine-resolution reconstruction of past climatic conditions, the following questions were addressed; how representative is a single core, does the appearance of varves change as the sediment ages, and how can varve thickness and within-varve structures be digitized? Analyses of replicate cores from Kassjön, using sample sequences of seasonal, annual and centennial time resolution, show that spatial variability of sediment accumulation in the varved sediment is very low. Comparisons of intensity curves from image analysis of freeze cores of recent sediments from Lake Nylandssjön, sampled in 1980 and 1985, indicate that the varves acquire their appearance at the sediment-water interface during sedimentation and that the varve structures are preserved during diagenetic processes. Measurement of varve thicknesses with a tree-ring microscope and with image analysis gave similar results. However, with image analysis, within-varve structures such as colour variations and thicknesses of seasonal layers, can also be recorded, increasing the possibilities for palaeolimnological and palaeoclimatic inferences.     

Lake Floor Morphology and Sediment Architecture of Lake Torneträsk,Northern Sweden

Here we present datasets from a hydroacoustic survey in July 2011 at Lake Torneträsk, northern Sweden. Our hydroacoustic data exhibit lake floor morphologies formed by glacial erosion and accumulation processes, insights into lacustrine sediment accumulation since the beginning of deglaciation, and information on seismic activity along the Pärvie Fault. Features of glacial scouring with a high‐energy relief, steep slopes, and relative reliefs of more than 50 m are observed in the large W‐basin. The remainder of the lacustrine subsurface appears to host a broad variety of well preserved formations from glacial accumulation related to the last retreat of the Fennoscandian ice sheet. Deposition of glaciolacustrine and lacustrine sediments is focused in areas situated in proximity to major inlets. Sediment accumulation in distal areas of the lake seldom exceeds 2 m or is not observable. We assume that lack of sediment deposition in the lake is a result of different factors, including low rates of erosion in the catchment, a previously high lake level leading to deposition of sediments in higher elevated paleodeltas, tributaries carrying low suspension loads as a result of sedimentation in upstream lakes, and an overall low productivity in the lake. A clear off‐shore trace of the Pärvie Fault could not be detected from our hydroacoustic data. However, an absence of sediment disturbance in close proximity to the presumed fault trace implies minimal seismic activity since deposition of the glaciolacustrine and lacustrine sediments.     

Geochemical assessment of an annually laminated lake sediment record from northern Sweden: a multi-core,multi-element approach

We used seven annually laminated (varved) sediment cores from Nylandssjön, a lake in northern Sweden, to assess between-core variation and diagenetic changes at annual resolution. By using several cores, multiple elements and employing principal components analysis (PCA), we also studied how the geochemical composition changed over time, and assessed to what extent these changes were related to variations in the weather. There are between-core differences for aluminum, silica, lead, titanium, zirconium and dry-mass accumulation rate. Diagenesis causes a decrease in bromine, as well as carbon, nitrogen and varve thickness, as reported in previous publications. In spite of anoxic bottom waters phosphorus is not lost from the sediment. In fact, there is an increase in phosphorus concentrations with time. The PCA identified four principal components (PCs). PC-1 accounts for the relative content of mineral and organic material; PC-2 represents mineral-particle grain size; PC-3 reflects phosphorus loading and PC-4 reflects atmospheric pollution. Variations in the weather partly explain the temporal patterns in PC-1 and PC-2: cold winters, i.e. more accumulation of snow, resulted in more mineral than organic matter (i.e. higher PC-1 scores), and increased the relative amount of coarse-grained mineral particles in the sediment (i.e. lower PC-2 scores). Increased spring precipitation had a weak positive effect on the PC-2 scores by promoting the transport of fine-grained material. However, the influence of weather is weak, explaining at most 30 % of the variance, and hence, other factors, e.g. land use and its effect on soil erosion, seem to be more important for the sediment geochemical composition. The importance of land use is also exemplified by an increase in PC-3 scores in the late 1970s, which can be attributed to a shift in agricultural practices that resulted in increased phosphorus loading to the lake. In summary, our findings show that down-core trends are reproducible between cores, but between-core variability and diagenesis need to be considered when interpreting some elements. We also conclude that there is a need to constrain temporal changes in land use before using lake sediments to study changes in weather or climate.     

Estimates of lichen growth–rate in northern Sweden

Two lichenometric techniques were compared in a study of lichen growth–rate in northern Sweden. The first technique, based on the maximum lichen diameter on glacier moraines, was identical to the technique used in the 1970s, whereas the other utilized the lichen diameter measured on 100 randomly selected boulders. The results indicate that it does not matter which technique is chosen, as long as the technique is used consistently on both the calibration surfaces and the surfaces to be dated. The use of data from both the 1970s and the 2000s increased the number of calibration surfaces available. The new calibration curve indicates that the age of Little Ice Age moraines was underestimated by up to about 30 years in the study conducted in the 1970s.     

Paleolimnology of McNearney lake: an acidic lake in northern Michigan

McNearney Lake is an acidic (pH=4.4) lake in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan with low acid neutralizing capacity (ANC=-38 eq L^-1) and high SO _inf4 ^sup2- and aluminium concentrations. Oligotrophy is indicated by high Secchi transparency and by low chlorophyll a, total phosphorus, and total nitrogen concentrations. The lake water is currently acidic because base cations are supplied to the lake water at a low rate and because SO _inf4 ^sup2- from atmospheric deposition was not appreciably retained by the lake sediments or watershed and was present in the water column.This interdisciplinary paleolimnological study indicates that McNearney Lake is naturally acidic and has been so since at least 4000 years B.P., as determined from inferred-pH techniques based on contemporary diatom-pH relationships. Predicted pH values ranged from 4.7 to 5.0 over the 4000-year stratigraphy. Considerable shifts in species composition and abundance were observed in diatom stratigraphy, but present-day distributions indicate that all abundant taxa most frequently occur under acidic conditions, suggesting that factors other than pH are responsible for the shifts. The diatom-inferred pH technique as applied to McNearney Lake has too large an uncertainly and is not sensitive enough to determine the subtle recent changes in lakewater pH expected from changes in atmospheric deposition because: (1) McNearney Lake has the lowest pH in the contemporary diatom data set in the region and confidence intervals for pH predictions increase at the extremes of regressions; (2) other factors in addition to pH may be responsible for the diatom species distribution in the lake and in the entire northern Great Lakes region; (3) McNearney Lake has a well-buffered pH as a consequence of its low pH and high aluminium concentrations and is not expected to exhibit a large pH change as a result of changes in atmospheric deposition; and (4) atmospheric deposition in the region is modest and would not cause a pH shift large enough to be discernable in McNearney Lake.Elevated atmospheric deposition is indicated in recent sediments by Pb, V, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon accumulation rates and to a lesser extent by those of Cu and Zn; however, these accumulation rates are substantially lower than those observed for acidified lakes in the northeastern United States. Although atmospheric loadings of materials associated with fossil fuel combustion have recently increased to McNearney Lake and apparently are continuing, the present study of the diatom subfossil record does not indicate a distinct, recent acidification (pH decrease).Order of the first two authors is alphabetical     

Estimates of lichen growth–rate in northern Sweden

Two lichenometric techniques were compared in a study of lichen growth–rate in northern Sweden. The first technique, based on the maximum lichen diameter on glacier moraines, was identical to the technique used in the 1970s, whereas the other utilized the lichen diameter measured on 100 randomly selected boulders. The results indicate that it does not matter which technique is chosen, as long as the technique is used consistently on both the calibration surfaces and the surfaces to be dated. The use of data from both the 1970s and the 2000s increased the number of calibration surfaces available. The new calibration curve indicates that the age of Little Ice Age moraines was underestimated by up to about 30 years in the study conducted in the 1970s.