Most of our research focuses on dynamical systems, so we invest a lot of effort into making kinematic observations. Dynamics and kinematics go hand-in-hand, as kinematics is the study of motion while dynamics is the study of forces that drive that motion. We take advantage of a variety of remote sensing platforms and techniques to derive our kinematic observations. Our methods can be broadly grouped as interferometric (which entails differencing the phase of two electromagnetic waves recorded at different times) and feature tracking (where we cross-correlate images taken at different times to find the displacement of observed features). For our applications, interferometry can only be done with synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data while feature tracking applies to SAR and optical imagery.
Our research usually focuses on short-timescale variations in glacier flow velocity, so we place a premium on time-dependent kinematic observations. Such observations can inform our understanding of local and nonlocal dynamics, including changes in water pressure at the beds of glaciers and changes in resistive buttressing stresses from floating ice shelves. We are always looking for new data and new ways to extract detailed information about spatiotemporal variations in dynamical systems.
Some relevant publications (Names of group members are bolded; * represents students, ^ postdocs and research scientists)
B. V. Riel^, B. M. Minchew, and I. Joughin. Observing traveling waves in glaciers with remote sensing: New flexible time-series methods and application to Sermeq Kujalleq (Jakobshavn Isbræ), Greenland. The Cryosphere Discussions, 2020. [ pdf | doi | movie ]
B. M. Minchew, C. R. Meyer, A. A. Robel, G. H. Gudmundsson, and M. Simons. Processes controlling the downstream evolution of ice rheology in glacier shear margins: Case study on Rutford Ice Stream, West Antarctica. Journal of Glaciology, 64(246):583-594, 2018. [ pdf | doi ]
B. M. Minchew, G. H. Gudmundsson, A. Gardner, F. S. Paolo, and H. A. Fricker. Modeling the dynamic response of outlet glaciers to observed ice-shelf thinning in the Bellingshausen Sea Sector, West Antarctica. Journal of Glaciology, 64(244):333-342, 2018. [ pdf | doi ]
P. Milillo, B. M. Minchew, P. Agram, B. V. Riel, and M. Simons. Geodetic imaging of time-dependent three-component surface deformation: application to tidal-timescale ice flow of Rutford Ice Stream, West Antarctica. IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, 55(10):5515-5524, 2017. [ pdf | doi ]
B. M. Minchew, M. Simons, B. V. Riel, and P. Milillo. Tidally induced variations in vertical and horizontal motion on Rutford Ice Stream, West Antarctica, inferred from remotely sensed observations. Journal of Geophysical Research - Earth Surface, 122:167-190, 2017. [ pdf | doi | sup | movie1 | movie2 ]
B. M. Minchew, M. Simons, H. Björnsson, F. Pálsson, M. Morlighem, H. Seroussi, E. Larour, and S. Hensley. Plastic bed beneath Hofsjökull Ice Cap, central Iceland, and the sensitivity of ice flow to surface meltwater flux. Journal of Glaciology, 62(231):147-158, 2016. [ pdf | doi ]
P. Milillo, B. V. Riel, B. M. Minchew, S. H. Yun, M. Simons, and P. Lundgren. On the synergistic use of SAR constellations' data exploitation for earth science and natural hazard response. IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing, 9(3):1095-1100, 2015. [ pdf | doi ]
B. M. Minchew, M. Simons, S. Hensley, H. Björnsson, and F. Pálsson. Early melt-season velocity fields of Langjökull and Hofsjökull ice caps, central Iceland. Journal of Glaciology, 61(226), 2015. [ pdf | doi ]
J. S. Scheingross, B. M. Minchew, B. H. Mackey, M. Simons, M. P. Lamb, and S. Hensley. Fault zone controls on the spatial distribution of slow-moving landslides. GSA Bulletin, 125(3-4):473-489, 2013. [ pdf | doi ]