Observed runoff, jokulhlaups and suspended sediment load from the Greenland ice sheet at Kangerlussuaq, West Greenland, 2007 and 2008

This study fills the gap in hydrologic measurements of runoff exiting a part of the Greenland ice sheet (GrIS), the Kangerlussuaq drainage area, West Greenland. The observations are of value for obtaining knowledge about the terrestrial freshwater and sediment output from part of the GrIS and the strip of land between the ice sheet and the ocean, in the context of varying ice-sheet surface melt and influx entering the ocean. High-resolution stage, discharge and suspended sediment load show a decrease in runoff of similar to 25% and in sediment load of similar to 40% from 2007 to 2008 in response to a decrease in the summer accumulated number of positive degree-days. During the 2007 and 2008 runoff seasons, jokulhlaups were observed at Kangerlussuaq, drained from an ice-dammed lake at the margin of the GrIS.