scholarly journals Long-Term Glacier Mass-Balance Investigations in Svalbard, 1950–88

1990 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 102-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon Ove Hagen ◽  
Olav Liestøl
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Winter Precipitation ◽  
Summer Temperature ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Climatic Warming ◽  
Equilibrium Line Altitude ◽  
Stable Conditions ◽  
The Mean ◽  
One Year

Mass-balance investigations on glaciers in Svalbard at high latitudes (78°N) show that the ice masses have been steadily decreasing during the period 1950–88. Detailed annual observations have been carried out on Brøggerbreen since 1966 and Lovénbreen since 1967. The mean specific net balances are −0.46 and −0.37 m year−1 water equivalent respectively. Only one year had positive net balance in this period. The cumulative mass lost in the period is then more than 10% of the volume in 1967. Zero net balance would be obtained if the summer temperature was lowered about 1°C or if the winter precipitation increased about 50%. There is a strong correlation between the net mass balance and the height of the equilibrium-line altitude (ELA). Because of the high amount of superimposed ice (10–30% of winter balance) stake readings are necessary to find the ELA. There is no sign of climatic warming through increased melting. The trend analysis of the data from the last 20 years shows stable conditions with a slight increase of the winter balance. The net balance is then slightly increasing and thus less negative than 20 years ago.

scholarly journals Long-Term Glacier Mass-Balance Investigations in Svalbard, 1950–88

1990 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 102-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon Ove Hagen ◽  
Olav Liestøl
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Winter Precipitation ◽  
Summer Temperature ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Climatic Warming ◽  
Equilibrium Line Altitude ◽  
Stable Conditions ◽  
The Mean ◽  
One Year

Mass-balance investigations on glaciers in Svalbard at high latitudes (78°N) show that the ice masses have been steadily decreasing during the period 1950–88. Detailed annual observations have been carried out on Brøggerbreen since 1966 and Lovénbreen since 1967. The mean specific net balances are −0.46 and −0.37 m year−1 water equivalent respectively. Only one year had positive net balance in this period. The cumulative mass lost in the period is then more than 10% of the volume in 1967. Zero net balance would be obtained if the summer temperature was lowered about 1°C or if the winter precipitation increased about 50%. There is a strong correlation between the net mass balance and the height of the equilibrium-line altitude (ELA). Because of the high amount of superimposed ice (10–30% of winter balance) stake readings are necessary to find the ELA. There is no sign of climatic warming through increased melting. The trend analysis of the data from the last 20 years shows stable conditions with a slight increase of the winter balance. The net balance is then slightly increasing and thus less negative than 20 years ago.

scholarly journals Predicted response of Storglaciären, Sweden, to climatic warming

1997 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 217-222 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keith A. Brugger
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Surface Profile ◽  
Summer Temperature ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Climatic Warming ◽  
Temperature And Precipitation ◽  
Precipitation Increase ◽  
Dependent Model ◽  
Glacier Flow ◽  
Comparable Magnitude

A time-dependent model of glacier flow was used to predict the response of Storglaciären, a small valley glacier in northern Sweden, to different warming scenarios by imposing two possible climatic forcings: one in which temperature alone increases (T model), and one in which both temperature and precipitation increase (TP model). A range of possible changes in temperature and/or precipitation was related to changes in glacier mass balance through a multiple linear correlation of mean specific net balance with mean summer temperature and mean specific winter balance. The T model was run with mass-balance perturbations in the form of linear increases from the recent (1980–89) mean summer temperature of 1, 2 and 4°C over the next 100 years. Perturbations for the TP model also used linear increases in precipitation of 10, 20 and 50% over current mean winter values in addition to increases in temperature. Results of the modeling suggest that initial changes in the glacier‘s profile due to increases in temperature, or in both temperature and precipitation, are of comparable magnitude to those that might be expected as the glacier completes its response under the existing climate. Changes in the glacier‘s surface profile and terminus position that can, with some certainty, be attributed to climatic warming may only become apparent several decades after warming has begun.

scholarly journals Mass balance of White Glacier, Axel Heiberg Island, N.W.T., Canada, 1960–91

1996 ◽  
Vol 42 (142) ◽  
pp. 548-563 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.Graham Cogley ◽  
W. P. Adams ◽  
M. A. Ecclestone ◽  
F. Jung-Rothenhäusler ◽  
C. S. L. Ommanney
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Satellite Images ◽  
Equilibrium Line ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Equilibrium Line Altitude ◽  
Fold Reduction ◽  
Random Samples ◽  
Measurements Errors ◽  
Standard Techniques

AbstractWhite Glacier is a valley glacier at 79.5°N with an area of 38.7 km2. Its mass balance has been measured, over 32 years with a 3 year gap, by standard techniques using the stratigraphic system with a stake density of the order of one stake per km2. Errors in stake mass balance are about ±(200–250) mm, due largely to the local unrepresentativeness of measurements. Errors in the whole-glacier mass balanceBare of the same order as single-slake errors. However, the lag-1 autocorrelation in the time series ofBis effectively zero, so it consists of independent random samples, and the error in the long-term “balance normal”〈B〉is noticeably less.〈B〉is −100 ± 48 mm. The equilibrium-line altitude (ELA) averages 970 m. with a range of 470–1400 m. Mass balance is well correlated with ELA, but detailed modelling shows that the equilibrium line is undetectable on visible-band satellite images. A reduced network of a few stakes could give acceptable but less accurate estimates of the mass balance, as could estimates based on data from a weather station 120 km away. There is no evidence of a trend in the mass balance of White Glacier. To detect a climatologically plausible trend will require a ten-fold reduction of measurement error, a conclusion which may well apply to most estimates of mass balance based on similar stake densities.

scholarly journals Relation between the Mass Balance of Western Canadian Mountain Glaciers and Meteorological Data

1988 ◽  
Vol 34 (116) ◽  
pp. 11-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne Letréguilly
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Meteorological Data ◽  
Winter Precipitation ◽  
Summer Temperature ◽  
Equilibrium Line ◽  
Regression Equations ◽  
Equilibrium Line Altitude ◽  
Mountain Glaciers

AbstractThe mass balance, summer balance, winter balance, and equilibrium-line altitude of three Canadian glaciers (Peyto, Place, and Sentinel Glaciers) are compared with the meteorological records of neighbouring stations for the period 1966—84. While Peyto Glacier’s mass balance is almost entirely related to summer temperature, Sentinel Glacier’s mass balance is mostly controlled by winter precipitation. Place Glacier is influenced by both elements. Statistical reconstructions are presented for the three glaciers, using the best regression equations with the meteorological records since 1938.

scholarly journals A re-analysis of the 58 year mass-balance record of Storglaciären, Sweden

2005 ◽  
Vol 42 ◽  
pp. 389-394 ◽  
Author(s):  
Per Holmlund ◽  
Peter Jansson ◽  
Rickard Pettersson
Keyword(s):  
Time Series ◽  
Mass Balance ◽  
Measurement Methods ◽  
Summer Temperature ◽  
Quality Data ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Equilibrium Line Altitude ◽  
High Quality Data ◽  
Time Periods

AbstractThe use of glacier mass-balance records to assess the effects of glacier volume change from climate change requires high-quality data. The methods for measuring glacier mass balance have been developed in tandem with the measurements themselves, which implies that the quality of the data may change with time. We have investigated such effects on the mass-balance record of Storglaciären, Sweden, by re-analyzing the records using a better map base and applying successive maps over appropriate time periods. Our results show that errors <0.8 m occur during the first decades of the time series. Errors decrease with time, which is consistent with improvements in measurement methods. Comparison between the old and new datasets also shows improvements in the relationships between net balance, equilibrium-line altitude and summer temperature. A time-series analysis also indicates that the record does not contain longer-term (>10 year) oscillations. The pseudo-cyclic signal must thus be explained by factors other than cyclically occurring phenomena, although the record may still be too short to establish significant signals. We strongly recommend re-analysis of long mass-balance records in order to improve the mass-balance records used for other analyses.

scholarly journals The impact of Saharan dust and black carbon on albedo and long-term mass balance of an Alpine glacier

2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 1385-1400 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Gabbi ◽  
M. Huss ◽  
A. Bauder ◽  
F. Cao ◽  
M. Schwikowski
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Black Carbon ◽  
Mineral Dust ◽  
Swiss Alps ◽  
Saharan Dust ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Mass Balances ◽  
The Mean ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. Light-absorbing impurities in snow and ice control glacier melt as shortwave radiation represents the main component of the surface energy balance. Here, we investigate the long-term effect of snow impurities, i.e., mineral dust and black carbon (BC), on albedo and glacier mass balance. The analysis was performed over the period 1914–2014 for two sites on Claridenfirn, Swiss Alps, where an outstanding 100-year record of seasonal mass balance measurements is available. Information on atmospheric deposition of mineral dust and BC over the last century was retrieved from two firn/ice cores of high-alpine sites. A combined mass balance and snow/firn layer model was employed to assess the effects of melt and accumulation processes on the impurity concentration at the surface and thus on albedo and glacier mass balance. Compared to pure snow conditions, the presence of Saharan dust and BC lowered the mean annual albedo by 0.04–0.06 depending on the location on the glacier. Consequently, annual melt was increased by 15–19 %, and the mean annual mass balance was reduced by about 280–490 mm w.e. BC clearly dominated absorption which is about 3 times higher than that of mineral dust. The upper site has experienced mainly positive mass balances and impurity layers were continuously buried whereas at the lower site, surface albedo was more strongly influenced by re-exposure of dust and BC-enriched layers due to frequent years with negative mass balances.

scholarly journals Relation between the Mass Balance of Western Canadian Mountain Glaciers and Meteorological Data

1988 ◽  
Vol 34 (116) ◽  
pp. 11-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne Letréguilly
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Meteorological Data ◽  
Winter Precipitation ◽  
Summer Temperature ◽  
Equilibrium Line ◽  
Regression Equations ◽  
Equilibrium Line Altitude ◽  
Mountain Glaciers

AbstractThe mass balance, summer balance, winter balance, and equilibrium-line altitude of three Canadian glaciers (Peyto, Place, and Sentinel Glaciers) are compared with the meteorological records of neighbouring stations for the period 1966—84. While Peyto Glacier’s mass balance is almost entirely related to summer temperature, Sentinel Glacier’s mass balance is mostly controlled by winter precipitation. Place Glacier is influenced by both elements. Statistical reconstructions are presented for the three glaciers, using the best regression equations with the meteorological records since 1938.

scholarly journals Mass balance of White Glacier, Axel Heiberg Island, N.W.T., Canada, 1960–91

1996 ◽  
Vol 42 (142) ◽  
pp. 548-563 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.Graham Cogley ◽  
W. P. Adams ◽  
M. A. Ecclestone ◽  
F. Jung-Rothenhäusler ◽  
C. S. L. Ommanney
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Satellite Images ◽  
Equilibrium Line ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Equilibrium Line Altitude ◽  
Fold Reduction ◽  
Random Samples ◽  
Measurements Errors ◽  
Standard Techniques

AbstractWhite Glacier is a valley glacier at 79.5°N with an area of 38.7 km2. Its mass balance has been measured, over 32 years with a 3 year gap, by standard techniques using the stratigraphic system with a stake density of the order of one stake per km2. Errors in stake mass balance are about ±(200–250) mm, due largely to the local unrepresentativeness of measurements. Errors in the whole-glacier mass balance B are of the same order as single-slake errors. However, the lag-1 autocorrelation in the time series of B is effectively zero, so it consists of independent random samples, and the error in the long-term “balance normal” 〈B〉 is noticeably less. 〈B〉 is −100 ± 48 mm. The equilibrium-line altitude (ELA) averages 970 m. with a range of 470–1400 m. Mass balance is well correlated with ELA, but detailed modelling shows that the equilibrium line is undetectable on visible-band satellite images. A reduced network of a few stakes could give acceptable but less accurate estimates of the mass balance, as could estimates based on data from a weather station 120 km away. There is no evidence of a trend in the mass balance of White Glacier. To detect a climatologically plausible trend will require a ten-fold reduction of measurement error, a conclusion which may well apply to most estimates of mass balance based on similar stake densities.

scholarly journals Predicted response of Storglaciären, Sweden, to climatic warming

1997 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 217-222
Author(s):  
Keith A. Brugger
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Surface Profile ◽  
Summer Temperature ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Climatic Warming ◽  
Temperature And Precipitation ◽  
Precipitation Increase ◽  
Dependent Model ◽  
Glacier Flow ◽  
Comparable Magnitude

A time-dependent model of glacier flow was used to predict the response of Storglaciären, a small valley glacier in northern Sweden, to different warming scenarios by imposing two possible climatic forcings: one in which temperature alone increases (T model), and one in which both temperature and precipitation increase (TP model). A range of possible changes in temperature and/or precipitation was related to changes in glacier mass balance through a multiple linear correlation of mean specific net balance with mean summer temperature and mean specific winter balance. The T model was run with mass-balance perturbations in the form of linear increases from the recent (1980–89) mean summer temperature of 1, 2 and 4°C over the next 100 years. Perturbations for the TP model also used linear increases in precipitation of 10, 20 and 50% over current mean winter values in addition to increases in temperature.Results of the modeling suggest that initial changes in the glacier‘s profile due to increases in temperature, or in both temperature and precipitation, are of comparable magnitude to those that might be expected as the glacier completes its response under the existing climate. Changes in the glacier‘s surface profile and terminus position that can, with some certainty, be attributed to climatic warming may only become apparent several decades after warming has begun.

A method for monitoring glacier mass balance using satellite albedo measurements: application to Vatnajökull, Iceland

2002 ◽  
Vol 48 (161) ◽  
pp. 267-278 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martijn S. De Ruyter De Wildt ◽  
Johannes Oerlemans ◽  
Helgi Björnsson
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Surface Albedo ◽  
Global Radiation ◽  
Winter Precipitation ◽  
Equilibrium Line ◽  
Gradual Transition ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Ice Cap ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Melting Season

AbstractWe compare satellite albedo images of Vatnajökull, Iceland, with mass-balance measurements for the years 1991–99. We find that the equilibrium line is mostly not visible when it is located above its position of the previous year(s). Equilibrium-line detection is further hindered by clouds and a gradual transition between ice and firn or snow. Consequently, firn-line elevation at the end of the melting season is not particularly useful for estimating the annual mass balance. Instead, we propose to study the mean albedo of the entire ice cap throughout the melting season so that all available information about the surface albedo is taken into account. The mean net potential global radiation, which can be estimated from the mean surface albedo alone, both depends on and influences summer melt. It also depends on winter precipitation and, integrated over the melting season, is found to relate linearly to the specific mass balance B (r = 0.87 and 0.94 for different outlets of Vatnajökull). B can be estimated quantitatively when this relation is known and qualitatively when it is not. The uncertainty in the satellite-derived value of B is 0.5–0.8 m w.e., which for Vatnajökull corresponds to about 27% of the interannual variability of B.

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