On the possible influence of the Kolka Glacier bed on its dynamic instability

After the Karmadon catastrophe of 2002, the viewpoint was discussed that the important factors triggered the Kolka Glacier collapse were post-volcanic processes beneath the glacier and the accumulation of significant volumes of water in the glacier body. Both factors are directly related to the conditions on the glacier bed. The hypothesis of a possible change in the conditions of the Kolka Glacier sliding along the bed, leading to dynamic instability, was proposed earlier in the results of studies of its movement in 1969–1972. Field studies in the Kolka Glacier cirque in September 2024 revealed several thermokarst funnels in which ice is exposed. In the thermokarst funnel located near the glacier front, the visible ice thickness exceeds 20 m. The location of the thermokarst funnels and the surface character in the glacier foreland indicate the presence of an extensive layer of dead ice appears to extend just in front of the glacier and served as the sliding plane along which the glacier left the bed in 2002 In the last 6 years, a significant advance of glacier terminus (up to 70 m per year) has been noted, the revived glacier moves over a layer of dead ice and its speeds are close to the critical values on the eve of the 1969 movement. It is possible that the water in the glacier body will influence its dynamic instability in the future, since the meltwater runoff from the cirque is of a subglacial nature. The accumulation of water in the glacier body can be facilitated by deformation of the ice mass at the bed and obstruction of drainage.