Glacier inventory of the upper Huasco valley, Norte Chico, Chile: glacier characteristics, glacier change and comparison with central Chile

Nicholson, Lindsey; Marín, Jorge; Lopez, David Humberto; Rabatel, Antoine; Bown, Francisca; Rivera, Andrés

doi:10.3189/172756410790595787

Cited by 58 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…the northern part of the Dry Andes (north of latitude 31 • S), according to the division of the Chilean and Argentinean Andes by Lliboutry (1998). In this semi-arid area, although elevation frequently exceeds 5000 m a.s.l., glacier cover is limited by low precipitation and high shortwave radiation rates due to low nebulosity (Nicholson et al, 2010). Precipitation from westerly circulation is concentrated in austral winter and occurs almost exclusively as snowfall.…”

Section: Site Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…1 The studied catchments encompass various ice bodies, including glaciers, glacierets, debris-covered glaciers and rock glaciers (Nicholson et al, 2010). In this paper we consider only apparent ice bodies, i.e.…”

Section: Site Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The recent glacier inventory of the Huasco valley by Nicholson et al (2010) allowed us to identify 74 glaciers and glacierets in the studied catchments. Glacier areas were taken from the inventory, but when possible, the glaciers contours were refined using an orthorectified Ikonos image of the Pascua-Lama area (date of acquisition 26 March 2007).…”

Section: Glaciologymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Glacier contribution to streamflow in two headwaters of the Huasco River, Dry Andes of Chile

et al. 2011

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Abstract. Quantitative assessment of glacier contribution to present-day streamflow is a prerequisite to the anticipation of climate change impact on water resources in the Dry Andes. In this paper we focus on two glaciated headwater catchments of the Huasco Basin (Chile, 29 • S). The combination of glacier monitoring data for five glaciers (Toro 1, Toro 2, Esperanza, Guanaco, Estrecho and Ortigas) with five automatic streamflow records at sites with glacier coverage of 0.4 to 11 % allows the estimation of the mean annual glacier contribution to discharge between 2003/2004 and 2007/2008 hydrological years. In addition, direct manual measurements of glacier runoff were conducted in summer at the snouts of four glaciers, which provide the instantaneous contribution of glacier meltwater to stream runoff during summer. The results show that the mean annual glacier contribution to streamflow ranges between 3.3 and 23 %, which is greater than the glaciated fraction of the catchments. We argue that glacier contribution is partly enhanced by the effect of snowdrift from the non-glacier area to the glacier surface. Glacier mass loss is evident over the study period, with a mean of −0.84 m w.e. yr −1 for the period

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Section: Site Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Site Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Glaciologymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Glacier contribution to streamflow in two headwaters of the Huasco River, Dry Andes of Chile

et al. 2011

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“…aerial photography, satellite imagery and historic maps), are currently relatively few in number, with most including only a small number of glaciers (e.g., Lliboutry, 1956;Marangunic, 1979;Valdivia, 1984;Garin, 1987;Aniya and others, 1996;Leiva, 1999;Nicholson and others, 2009;Rabatel and others, 2011). Although indicating glacier retreat, these inventories and glacier change studies cover different time intervals throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, making direct glacier comparisons difficult.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Glacier area changes in the central Chilean and Argentinean Andes 1955–2013/14

Malmros

Mernild

Wilson³

et al. 2016

J. Glaciol.

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ABSTRACT. To improve our knowledge of glacier area changes in the central Chilean and Argentinean Andes (32°9′S-33°4′S), two new glacier inventories from 1989 to 2013/14 are compared with a reinterpreted inventory from 1955. Comparisons show glacier area retreat of 30 ± 3% since 1955, decreasing from 134 to 94 km 2 in 2013/14, whilst the annual rate of area loss showed a small increase (insignificant) between the periods of 1955-1989 and 1989-2013/14. Separate analysis of the 1989 and 2013/14 inventories, including a larger sample, revealed a higher rate of glacier change compared with the smaller samples of these inventories. Additionally, an analysis at ∼5 year intervals for six major glaciers indicates large variability in response times and area loss magnitudes. Glacier Olivares Alfa, for example, lost 63% of its ice area, while the Juncal Norte Glacier lost only 10% . The findings from this study improve our current knowledge base concerning widespread glacier decline in the southern Andes, and furthers monitoring efforts in this poorly described region of the world, a region containing vital water resources for populated areas in South America.

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“…Kenya [40]. Appropriate mapping techniques for very small glaciers may also have increasing significance for providing accurate information for resolving socioeconomic conflicts over diminishing glacier resources in arid mountainous regions [41]. A major increase of debris cover is not observed on Mt.…”

Section: Accuracymentioning

confidence: 99%

Mapping the Loss of Mt. Kenya’s Glaciers: An Example of the Challenges of Satellite Monitoring of Very Small Glaciers

et al. 2018

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Abstract:Since the last complete glacier mapping of Mt. Kenya in 2004, strong glacier retreat and glacier disintegration have been reported. Here, we compile and present a new glacier inventory of Mt. Kenya to document recent glacier change. Glacier area and mass changes were derived from an orthophoto and digital elevation model extracted from Pléiades tri-stereo satellite images. We additionally explore the feasibility of using freely available imagery (Sentinel-2) and an alternative elevation model (TanDEM-X-DEM) for monitoring very small glaciers in complex terrain, but both proved to be inappropriate; Sentinel-2 because of its too coarse horizontal resolution compared to the very small glaciers, and TanDEM-X-DEM because of errors in the steep summit area of Mt. Kenya. During 2004-2016, the total glacier area on Mt. Kenya decreased by 121.0 × 10 3 m 2 (44%). The largest glacier (Lewis) lost 62.8 × 10 3 m 2 (46%) of its area and 1.35 × 10 3 m 3 (57%) of its volume during the same period. The mass loss of Lewis Glacier has been accelerating since 2010 due to glacier disintegration, which has led to the emergence of a rock outcrop splitting the glacier in two parts. If the current retreat rates prevail, Mt. Kenya's glaciers will be extinct before 2030, implying the cessation of the longest glacier monitoring record of the tropics.

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Glacier inventory of the upper Huasco valley, Norte Chico, Chile: glacier characteristics, glacier change and comparison with central Chile

Cited by 58 publications

References 12 publications

Glacier contribution to streamflow in two headwaters of the Huasco River, Dry Andes of Chile

Glacier contribution to streamflow in two headwaters of the Huasco River, Dry Andes of Chile

Glacier area changes in the central Chilean and Argentinean Andes 1955–2013/14

Mapping the Loss of Mt. Kenya’s Glaciers: An Example of the Challenges of Satellite Monitoring of Very Small Glaciers

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