Alpine Glacier Mass Changes During the Past Two Millennia

Haeberli, Wilfried; Holzhauser, Hanspeter

doi:10.22498/pages.11.1.13

Cited by 49 publications

(46 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…It displays an undelayed response to climate variability and in-situ meteorological conditions (Haeberli and Holzhauser, 2003;Braithwaite, 2002). The observed annual mass balance of UG1 has been found to coincide with the mean annual mass balance of 30 reference glaciers worldwide (WGMS, 2007; Fig.…”

Section: Acceleration Of Shrinkage Glacier Mass Balancementioning

confidence: 68%

Mechanisms and simulation of accelerated shrinkage of continental glaciers: A case study of Urumqi Glacier No. 1 in eastern Tianshan, Central Asia

Chen

2011

J. Earth Sci.

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Similar to most mountain glaciers in the world, Urumqi Glacier No. 1 (UG1), the best observed glacier in China with continued glaciological and climatological monitoring records of longer than 50 years has experienced an accelerated recession during the past several decades. The purpose of this study is to investigate the acceleration of recession. By taking UG1 as an example, we analyze the generic mechanisms of acceleration of shrinkage of continental mountain glaciers. The results indicate that the acceleration of mass loss of UG1 commenced first in 1985 and second in 1996 and that the latter was more vigorous. The air temperature rises during melting season, the ice temperature augment of the glacier and the albedo reduction on the glacier surface are considered responsible for the accelerated recession. In addition, the simulations of the accelerated shrinkage of UG1 are introduced in this article.

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Section: Acceleration Of Shrinkage Glacier Mass Balancementioning

confidence: 68%

Mechanisms and simulation of accelerated shrinkage of continental glaciers: A case study of Urumqi Glacier No. 1 in eastern Tianshan, Central Asia

Chen

2011

J. Earth Sci.

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“…As a consequence, a direct and quantitative comparison of length change rates is not straightforward but requires analytical or numerical models that consider climate sensitivity as well as reaction and response times of each individual glacier. Such reconstructed decadal change rates are available from studies by Hoelzle and others (2003;between - They all indicate that current mass loss rates are indeed without precedent, at least for the observational time period and probably also for recorded history (Haeberli and Holzhauser, 2003;Holzhauser and others, 2005;Luckman, 2006;Jomelli and others, 2011;Le Roy and others, 2015). Only Marzeion and others (2012) report modelled mass loss rates higher in the 1930s than in the early 21st century (especially in the regions GRL, RUA, ACN and ACS).…”

Section: Historically Unprecedented Early 21st-century Declinementioning

confidence: 83%

Historically unprecedented global glacier decline in the early 21st century

et al. 2015

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Observations show that glaciers around the world are in retreat and losing mass. Internationally coordinated for over a century, glacier monitoring activities provide an unprecedented dataset of glacier observations from ground, air and space. Glacier studies generally select specific parts of these datasets to obtain optimal assessments of the mass-balance data relating to the impact that glaciers exercise on global sea-level fluctuations or on regional runoff. In this study we provide an overview and analysis of the main observational datasets compiled by the World Glacier Monitoring Service (WGMS). The dataset on glacier front variations (∼42 000 since 1600) delivers clear evidence that centennial glacier retreat is a global phenomenon. Intermittent readvance periods at regional and decadal scale are normally restricted to a subsample of glaciers and have not come close to achieving the maximum positions of the Little Ice Age (or Holocene). Glaciological and geodetic observations (∼5200 since 1850) show that the rates of early 21st-century mass loss are without precedent on a global scale, at least for the time period observed and probably also for recorded history, as indicated also in reconstructions from written and illustrated documents. This strong imbalance implies that glaciers in many regions will very likely suffer further ice loss, even if climate remains stable.

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“…Their use lies especially in quantitatively inferring past average decadal to secular mean specific mass balances for unmeasured glaciers by analyzing cumulative length change from moraine mapping, satellite imagery, aerial photography and long-term observations (Haeberli and Holzhauser, 2003).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%