Research | University at Buffalo Glacier Modeling Lab

Midgard Glacier in East Greenland has retreated ~10 kilometers up its fjord since 2000.
Scene center is 66.44°N, 36.74°W.
I made this video using Google Earth Engine.

Dr. Kristin Poinar studies earth’s ice sheets, especially the Greenland Ice Sheet, as well as Antarctica and past ice sheets (e.g., the Laurentide). She and her group ask questions about ice dynamics and the interactions between ice flow and liquid water. How, when, and where does surface melt water get to the ice-sheet bed, and how does this affect ice dynamics? The group writes and uses numeric models of specific ice-sheet processes, informed and validated by remote sensing products, to investigate how Earth’s ice sheets work.

Ilulissat Icefjord, Greenland, where icebergs from Jakobshavn Glacier float by on their journey to the ocean.

Student research

There are opportunities for undergraduate, Master’s, and PhD work in my lab, for students with quantitative backgrounds and interests. If a certain research topic interests you, send me an email or drop in to my office to tell me why you’d be a good fit!

Research topics

Model-based investigations of glacier flow, including glacier testbed modeling
Formation of moulins
Crevasse field locations and prediction
Firn aquifers
Formation and life cycle of crevasses on mountain glaciers
Flow of surface meltwater across glaciers and ice sheets
Subsurface meltwater
Permafrost on the periphery of current or past ice sheets
Recent history and near future of particular Greenland glaciers, e.g. Helheim Glacier
Model-based investigations of glacier history (this sometimes relates to glacial geology)
Surging glaciers
Supraglacial streams that incise deep canyons
Englacial fracture network
Detection of subglacial tills
Seismoelectric geophysics on ice
Sidewall stresses and ice flow of outlet glaciers (Greenland/Antarctica) or ice streams (Antarctica)
Glacier seismicity from the opening or propagation of crevasses
GHub, an online data and computing hub centered around Greenland glaciology
Sub-ice geology and basal characteristics

… and more! Drop me a note and we’ll explore a research fit!