On deglaciation induced perturbations of the geoid

Abstract

The importance of geoid perturbations in interpreting tilts of glacial lake levels is investigated, using a representative theoretical model. It is shown that near the ice margin, the slope of the Earth's perturbed surface is everywhere large compared with the slope of the associated undulation of the geoid. Perturbations of the geoid may therefore be neglected in interpretations of glacial strandline tilt.