scholarly journals Use of WWI photos for quantitative reconstructions of glaciers along the Italian-Austrian front

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luca Carturan ◽  
Aldino Bondesan ◽  
Alberto Carton ◽  
Federico Cazorzi ◽  
Sara Cucchiaro ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Length Change ◽  
Quantitative Information ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Aerial Photogrammetry ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Julian Alps ◽  
Length Changes ◽  
Unique Source

<p>The knowledge of past fluctuations of glaciers is the key for understanding their dynamics and their climate-related evolution. Glacier mass balance and length changes are the two metrics normally used for reconstructing past fluctuations series of glaciers. However, length change measurements series are often discontinuous and require validation, whereas mass balance measurements are available for only a few glaciers worldwide and only for the latest decades.</p><p>In the context of glacier reconstructions, other sources of information such as historical-archival, glacio-archaeological and geomorphological data are of critical importance, because they enable the completion and validation of direct measurement series and their extension into the past, providing spatial and temporal constraints.</p><p>A unique source of unexploited historical information dating back to the First World War (WWI, 1915-1918) exists for many glaciers in the Eastern Italian Alps. This information mainly consists of old photos, which however are spread over a multitude of sources, often difficult to access, and in many cases not yet digitized.</p><p>We propose a workflow that enables extracting quantitative information from terrestrial photographs taken during the WWI period, aimed at the reconstruction of glacier area, volume and firn lines by means of the monoplotting technique. This method relies on the availability of high-resolution digital elevation models, which became recently available over wide areas thanks to LiDAR and aerial photogrammetry. This work presents the methods applied, and the results obtained, on several case studies in the Adamello-Presanella, Ortles-Cevedale, Dolomites, and Julian Alps.    </p>

scholarly journals Long-term records of glacier surface velocities in the Ötztal Alps (Austria)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Stocker-Waldhuber ◽  
Andrea Fischer ◽  
Kay Helfricht ◽  
Michael Kuhn
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Climatic Forcing ◽  
Glacier Surface ◽  
Ice Flow ◽  
Strong Indicator ◽  
Length Changes ◽  
Flow Velocities

Abstract. Climatic forcing affects glacier mass balance and ice flow dynamics on different time scales, resulting in length changes. Mass Balance and length changes are operationally used for glacier monitoring, whereas only a few time series of glacier dynamics have been recorded. With more than 100 years of measurements of ice flow velocities at stakes and stone lines on Hintereisferner and more than 50 years on Kesselwandferner, annual velocity and glacier fluctuation records have similar lengths. Subseasonal variations of ice flow velocities have been measured on Gepatschferner and Taschachferner for nearly a decade. The ice flow velocities on Hintereisferner and especially on Kesselwandferner show great variations between advancing and retreating periods, with magnitudes increasing from the highest to the lowest stakes, making ice flow records at ablation stakes a very sensitive indicator of glacier state. Since the end of the latest glacier advances from the 1970s to the 1980s, the ice flow velocities have decreased continuously, a strong indicator of the negative mass balances of the glaciers in recent decades. The velocity data sets of the four glaciers are available at https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.896741.

scholarly journals Mass balances of Yala and Rikha Samba glaciers, Nepal, from 2000 to 2017

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 3791-3818
Author(s):  
Dorothea Stumm ◽  
Sharad Prasad Joshi ◽  
Tika Ram Gurung ◽  
Gunjan Silwal
Keyword(s):  
Mass Loss ◽  
Mass Balance ◽  
Water Resource Management ◽  
Important Variable ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Mass Balances ◽  
Monitoring Strategies ◽  
Length Changes ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Geodetic Mass Balance

Abstract. The glacier mass balance is an important variable to describe the climate system and is used for various applications like water resource management or runoff modelling. The direct or glaciological method and the geodetic method are the standard methods to quantify glacier mass changes, and both methods are an integral part of international glacier monitoring strategies. In 2011, we established two glacier mass-balance programmes on Yala and Rikha Samba glaciers in the Nepal Himalaya. Here we present the methods and data of the directly measured annual mass balances for the first six mass-balance years for both glaciers from 2011/2012 to 2016/2017. For Yala Glacier we additionally present the directly measured seasonal mass balance from 2011 to 2017, as well as the mass balance from 2000 to 2012 obtained with the geodetic method. In addition, we analysed glacier length changes for both glaciers. The directly measured average annual mass-balance rates of Yala and Rikha Samba glaciers are −0.80 ± 0.28 and −0.39 ± 0.32 m w.e. a−1, respectively, from 2011 to 2017. The geodetically measured annual mass-balance rate of Yala Glacier based on digital elevation models from 2000 and 2012 is −0.74 ± 0.53 m w.e. The cumulative mass loss for the period 2011 to 2017 for Yala and Rikha Samba glaciers is −4.80 ± 0.69 and −2.34 ± 0.79 m w.e., respectively. The mass loss on Yala Glacier from 2000 to 2012 is −8.92 ± 6.33 m w.e. The winter balance of Yala Glacier is positive, and the summer balance is negative in every investigated year. The summer balance determines the annual balance. Compared to regional mean geodetic mass-balance rates in the Nepalese Himalaya, the mean mass-balance rate of Rikha Samba Glacier is in a similar range, and the mean mass-balance rate of Yala Glacier is more negative because of the small and low-lying accumulation area. During the study period, a change of Yala Glacier's surface topography has been observed with glacier thinning and downwasting. The retreat rates of Rikha Samba Glacier are higher than for Yala Glacier. From 1989 to 2013, Rikha Samba Glacier retreated 431 m (−18.0 m a−1), and from 1974 to 2016 Yala Glacier retreated 346 m (−8.2 m a−1). The data of the annual and seasonal mass balances, point mass balance, geodetic mass balance, and length changes are accessible from the World Glacier Monitoring Service (WGMS, 2021), https://doi.org/10.5904/wgms-fog-2021-05.

scholarly journals Examining geodetic glacier mass balance in the eastern Pamir transition zone

2020 ◽  
Vol 66 (260) ◽  
pp. 927-937
Author(s):  
Mingyang Lv ◽  
Duncan J. Quincey ◽  
Huadong Guo ◽  
Owen King ◽  
Guang Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Statistical Difference ◽  
Mass Gain ◽  
High Mountain ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Negative Mass ◽  
Glacier Surface ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Elevation Changes ◽  
Individual Scale

AbstractGlaciers in the eastern Pamir have reportedly been gaining mass during recent decades, even though glaciers in most other regions in High Mountain Asia have been in recession. Questions still remain about whether the trend is strengthening or weakening, and how far the positive balances extend into the eastern Pamir. To address these gaps, we use three different digital elevation models to reconstruct glacier surface elevation changes over two periods (2000–09 and 2000–15/16). We characterize the eastern Pamir as a zone of transition from positive to negative mass balance with the boundary lying at the northern end of Kongur Tagh, and find that glaciers situated at higher elevations are those with the most positive balances. Most (67% of 55) glaciers displayed a net mass gain since the 21st century. This led to an increasing regional geodetic glacier mass balance from −0.06 ± 0.16 m w.e. a−1 in 2000–09 to 0.06 ± 0.04 m w.e. a−1 in 2000–15/16. Surge-type glaciers, which are prevalent in the eastern Pamir, showed fluctuations in mass balance on an individual scale during and after surges, but no statistical difference compared to non-surge-type glaciers when aggregated across the region.

scholarly journals Geodetic Mass Balances and Area Changes of Echaurren Norte Glacier (Central Andes, Chile) between 1955 and 2015

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 260 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Farías-Barahona ◽  
Sebastián Vivero ◽  
Gino Casassa ◽  
Marius Schaefer ◽  
Flavia Burger ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Central Andes ◽  
Aerial Photographs ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Mass Balances ◽  
Positive Mass ◽  
Negative Mass ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Elevation Changes ◽  
Monitoring Service

The Echaurren Norte Glacier is a reference glacier for the World Glacier Monitoring Service (WGMS) network and has the longest time series of glacier mass balance data in the Southern Hemisphere. The data has been obtained by the direct glaciological method since 1975. In this study, we calculated glacier area changes using satellite images and historical aerial photographs, as well as geodetic mass balances for different periods between 1955 and 2015 for the Echaurren Norte Glacier in the Central Andes of Chile. Over this period, this glacier lost 65% of its original area and disaggregated into two ice bodies in the late 1990s. The geodetic mass balances were calculated by differencing digital elevation models derived from several sources. The results indicated a mean cumulative glacier wide mass loss of −40.64 ± 5.19 m w.e. (−0.68 ± 0.09 m w.e. a−1). Within this overall downwasting trend, a positive mass balance of 0.54 ± 0.40 m w.e. a−1 was detected for the period 2000–2009. These estimates agree with the results obtained with the glaciological method during the same time span. Highly negative mass change rates were found from 2010 onwards, with −1.20 ± 0.09 m w.e. a−1 during an unprecedented drought in Central Andes of Chile. The observed area and the elevation changes indicate that the Echaurren Norte Glacier may disappear in the coming years if negative mass balance rates prevail.

scholarly journals Glacier mass balance over the central Nyainqentanglha Range during recent decades derived from remote-sensing data

2019 ◽  
Vol 65 (251) ◽  
pp. 422-439 ◽  
Author(s):  
KUNPENG WU ◽  
SHIYIN LIU ◽  
ZONGLI JIANG ◽  
JUNLI XU ◽  
JUNFENG WEI
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Remote Sensing Data ◽  
Shuttle Radar Topography Mission ◽  
Topographic Maps ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Glacier Area ◽  
Ice Surface ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Elevation Changes ◽  
Elevation Model

ABSTRACTTo obtain information on changes in glacier mass balance in the central Nyainqentanglha Range, a comprehensive study was carried out based on digital-elevation models derived from the 1968 topographic maps, the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission DEM (2000) and TerraSAR-X/TanDEM-X (2013). Glacier area changes between 1968 and 2016 were derived from topographic maps and Landsat OLI images. This showed the area contained 715 glaciers, with an area of 1713.42 ± 51.82 km2, in 2016. Ice cover has been shrinking by 0.68 ± 0.05% a−1 since 1968. The glacier area covered by debris accounted for 11.9% of the total and decreased in the SE–NW directions. Using digital elevation model differencing and differential synthetic aperture radar interferometry, a significant mass loss of 0.46 ± 0.10 m w.e. a−1 has been recorded since 1968; mass losses accelerated from 0.42 ± 0.20 m w.e. a−1 to 0.60 ± 0.20 m w.e. a−1 between 1968–2000 and 2000–2013, with thinning noticeably greater on the debris-covered ice than the clean ice. Surface-elevation changes can be influenced by ice cliffs, as well as debris cover and land- or lake-terminating glaciers. Changes showed spatial and temporal heterogeneity and a substantial correlation with climate warming and decreased precipitation.

scholarly journals Sensitivity of geodetic glacier mass balance estimation to DEM void interpolation

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert McNabb ◽  
Christopher Nuth ◽  
Andreas Kääb ◽  
Luc Girod
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Terrestrial Ecosystems ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Direct Impact ◽  
Glacier Surface ◽  
Southeast Alaska ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Regional Basis ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. Glacier mass balance is a direct expression of climate change, with implications for sea level, ocean chemistry, oceanic and terrestrial ecosystems, and water resources. Traditionally, glacier mass balance has been estimated using in-situ measurements of changes in surface height and density at select locations on the glacier surface, or by comparing changes in surface height using repeat, full-coverage digital elevation models (DEMs), also called the geodetic method. DEMs often have gaps in coverage (voids) based on the nature of the sensor used and the surface being measured. The way that these voids are accounted for has a direct impact on the estimate of geodetic glacier mass balance, though a systematic comparison of different proposed methods has been heretofore lacking. In this study, we determine the impact and sensitivity of void-filling methods on estimates of volume change. Using two spatially complete, high-resolution DEMs over Southeast Alaska, USA, we compare 11 different void-filling methods on a glacier-by-glacier and regional basis. We find that a few methods introduce biases of up to 20 % in the regional results, while other methods give results very close (

scholarly journals Multi-year Evaluation of Airborne Geodetic Surveys to Estimate Seasonal Mass Balance, Columbia and Rocky Mountains, Canada

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ben M. Pelto ◽  
Brian Menounos ◽  
Shawn J. Marshall
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Rocky Mountains ◽  
Laser Scanning ◽  
Late Summer ◽  
Mass Change ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Surface Classification ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Annual Balance

Abstract. Seasonal measurements of glacier mass balance provide insight into the relation between climate forcing and glacier change. To evaluate the feasibility of using remotely-sensed methods to assess seasonal balance we completed tandem airborne laser scanning surveys (ALS) and field-based glaciological measurements over a four-year period for six alpine glaciers that lie in Columbia and Rocky Mountains, near the headwaters of the Columbia River, British Columbia, Canada. We calculated annual geodetic balance using co-registered late-summer digital elevation models (DEMs), and distributed estimates of density based on surface classification of ice, snow and firn surfaces. Winter balance was derived using co-registered late-summer and spring DEMs, and density measurements from regional snow course observations and our glaciological measurements. Geodetic summer balance was calculated as the difference between winter and annual balance. Winter mass balance from our glaciological observations averaged 1.95 ± 0.09 m w.e., 4 % greater than those derived from geodetic surveys. Average glaciological summer and annual balance were also 4 % greater than our geodetic estimates. We find that distributing snow, firn and ice density based on surface classification has a greater influence on geodetic annual mass change than the density values themselves. Our results demonstrate that accurate assessments of seasonal mass change can be produced using airborne ALS over a series of glaciers spanning several mountain ranges. Such agreement over multiple seasons, years, and glaciers demonstrates the ability of high-resolution geodetic methods to increase the number of glaciers where seasonal mass balance can be reliably measured.

scholarly journals Remote-sensing estimate of glacier mass balance over the central Nyainqentanglha Range during 1968 – ∼ 2013

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kunpeng Wu ◽  
Shiyin Liu ◽  
Zongli Jiang ◽  
Junli Xu ◽  
Junfeng Wei
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Recent Decade ◽  
Shuttle Radar Topography Mission ◽  
Quality Data ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Glacier Area ◽  
Ice Surface ◽  
Air Temperatures ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Elevation Changes

Abstract. With high air temperatures and annual precipitation, maritime glaciers in southeastern Tibet are sensitive to climate change. Current glaciological knowledge of those in the central Nyainqentanglha Range is still limited because of their inaccessibility and low-quality data. To obtain information on changes in glacier area, length and mass balance, a comprehensive study was carried out based on topographic maps and Landsat TM/ETM+/OLI images (1968 and 2016), and on digital-elevation models (DEM) derived from the 1968 maps, from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) DEM (2000), and from TerraSAR-X/TanDEM-X (∼ 2013). This showed the area contained 715 glaciers, with an area of 1713.42 ± 51.82 km2, in 2016. Ice cover has been shrinking by 0.68 % ± 0.05% a−1 since 1968, although in the most recent decade this rate has slowed. The glacier area covered by debris accounted for 11.9 % of the total and decreased in SE-NW directions. Using DEM differencing and Differential Synthetic Aperture Radar Interferometry (DInSAR), a significant mass deficit of 0.46 ± 0.04 m w.e. a−1 has been recorded since 1968; mass losses accelerating from 0.42 ± 0.05 m w.e. a−1 to 0.60 ± 0.20 m w.e. a−1 during 1968–2000 and 2000–∼ 2013, with thinning noticeably greater on the debris-covered ice than the clean ice. Surface-elevation changes can be influenced by ice cliffs, as well as debris cover, and land- or lake-terminating glaciers and supraglacial lakes. Changes showed spatial and temporal heterogeneity and a substantial correlation with climate warming.

scholarly journals The transfer of mass-balance profiles to unmeasured glaciers

2009 ◽  
Vol 50 (50) ◽  
pp. 185-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Kuhn ◽  
Jakob Abermann ◽  
Michael Bacher ◽  
Marc Olefs
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Digital Elevation Models ◽  
Quantitative Information ◽  
Equilibrium Line ◽  
Equilibrium Line Altitude ◽  
Altitude Exposure ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Area Distribution ◽  
Elevation Changes ◽  
The Mean

AbstractFor estimation of the mass balance of an unmeasured glacier, its area distribution with altitude, s (h), generally is the only available quantitative information. The appropriate specific balance profile, b (h), needs to be transferred from a measured glacier, where transfer means modification and adaptation to the topographic and climatic situation of the unmeasured glacier, such as altitude, exposure to sun and wind, or temperature. This study proposes the area median elevation, M, as a parameter of prime importance for the transfer. Using as an example ten Alpine glaciers, the similarity of M and equilibrium-line altitude is quantified and the effect of aspect and surrounding topography is qualitatively suggested. The transfer of b (h) between well-measured glaciers yielded differences in the mean specific balance of 150 mm in the mean of a 10 year period, which corresponds to a change in median altitude by 30 m. Transfer of b (h) with a shift according to median glacier elevation to a basin with 27 glaciers and 23 km2 ice cover agreed to within 10% with elevation changes converted from digital elevation models of 1969 and 1997.

scholarly journals Photogrammetric reconstruction of glacier mass balance using a kinematic ice-flow model: a 20 year time series on Grubengletscher, Swiss Alps

2000 ◽  
Vol 31 ◽  
pp. 45-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Kääb
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Meteorological Data ◽  
Vertical Surface ◽  
Surface Strain ◽  
Swiss Alps ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Glacier Surface ◽  
Glacier Tongue ◽  
Aerial Photogrammetry ◽  
Ice Velocity

AbstractThe kinematic boundary condition at the glacier surface can be used to provide glacier mass balance at individual points if changes in surface elevation, horizontal and vertical surface velocities and surface slope are known. Vertical ice velocity can in turn be estimated from basal slope, basal ice velocity and surface strain. This relation is applied to reconstruct a 20 year mass-balance curve of Grubengletscher, Swiss Alps, largely using repeated aerial photogrammetry, with only a minimum of fieldwork For individual years the mass-balance distribution on the glacier tongue was modelled with an accuracy of about ±0.9 m a"1. Ice-mechanical assumptions and errors in glacier bed geometry markedly affect discrete mass-balance patterns but are largely eliminated in the calculation of year-to-year mass-balance changes The resulting 1973–92 curve for the Grubengletscher tongue shows reasonable consistency with meteorological data and other glaciologically derived mass-balance series. Large changes in measured ice speed on the glacier tongue (±50%) significantly governed the long-term variability of ice thickness over the observational period.

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