Melt-induced speed-up of Greenland ice sheet offset by efficient subglacial drainage.

Fluctuations in surface melting are known to affect the speed of glaciers and ice sheets, but their impact on the Greenland ice sheet in a warming climate remains uncertain. Although some studies suggest that greater melting produces greater ice-sheet acceleration, others have identified a long-term decrease in Greenland's flow despite increased melting. Here we use satellite observations of ice motion recorded in a land-terminating sector of southwest Greenland to investigate the manner in which ice flow develops during years of markedly different melting.

Large-scale radon hazard evaluation in the Oslofjord region of Norway utilizing indoor radon concentrations, airborne gamma ray spectrometry and geological mapping.

We test whether airborne gamma ray spectrometer measurements can be used to estimate levels of radon hazard in the Oslofjord region of Norway. We compile 43,000 line kilometres of gamma ray spectrometer data from 8 airborne surveys covering 10,000 km2 and compare them with 6326 indoor radon measurements. We find a clear spatial correlation between areas with elevated concentrations of uranium daughters in the near surface of the ground and regions with high incidence of elevated radon concentrations in dwellings.

The influence of meteorological parameters on soil radon levels in permeable glacial sediments.

The influence of meteorological parameters on soil radon concentrations in a permeable ice-marginal deposit in Kinsarvik, Norway, was investigated based on continuous measurements of soil radon concentrations, temperature, precipitation, wind speed, wind direction, air pressure and soil moisture content over a period of 10 months. The results show that the soil radon concentrations exhibit distinct seasonal and diurnal variations that predominantly are caused by changes in air temperature. Air flows between areas of different elevation occur in the ice-marginal deposit due to temperature differences between soil air and atmospheric air, and instantaneous changes in air flow direction were recorded when the atmospheric air temperature reached the average annual air temperature.