Little Ice Age and contemporary glacier extent in the Western and South-Western Piedmont Alps (North-Western Italy)

Lucchesi, Stefania; Fioraso, Gianfranco; Bertotto, Stefania; Chiarle, Marta

doi:10.1080/17445647.2014.880226

Cited by 25 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…Since the end of the LIA (between 1845-1860 according to Orombelli 2011) the glacier shrunk mainly in its lowest, southern part, with a marked increase of the debris cover. The glacier area was about 1.75 km 2 at the LIA maximum (Lucchesi et al 2014), it shrunk to 1.45 km 2 in the 1950s (CNR-CGI 1961) and in 2010 only 0.31 km 2 of ice remained (Smiraglia et al 2015). Five lakes can be found in the proglacial area, changing in extent during time.…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

An integrated approach to investigate climate-driven rockfall occurrence in high alpine slopes: the Bessanese glacial basin, Western Italian Alps

et al. 2020

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Rockfalls are one of the most common instability processes in high mountains. They represent a relevant issue, both for the risks they represent for (infra) structures and frequentation, and for their potential role as terrestrial indicators of climate change. This study aims to contribute to the growing topic of the relationship between climate change and slope instability at the basin scale. The selected study area is the Bessanese glacial basin (Western Italian Alps) which, since 2016, has been specifically equipped, monitored and investigated for this purpose. In order to provide a broader context for the interpretation of the recent rockfall events and associated climate conditions, a cross-temporal and integrated approach has been adopted. For this purpose, geomorphological investigations (last 100 years), local climate (last 30 years) and near-surface rock/air temperatures analyses, have been carried out. First research outcomes show that rockfalls occurred in two different geomorphological positions: on rock slopes in permafrost condition, facing from NW to NE and/or along the glacier margins, on rock slopes uncovered by the ice in the last decades. Seasonal thaw of the active layer and/or glacier debutressing can be deemed responsible for slope failure preparation. With regard to timing, almost all dated rock falls occurred in summer. For the July events, initiation may have been caused by a combination of rapid snow melt and enhanced seasonal thaw of the active layer due to anomalous high temperatures, and rainfall. August events are, instead, associated with a significant positive temperature anomaly on the quarterly scale, and they can be ascribed to the rapid and/or in depth thaw of the permafrost active layer. According to our findings, we can expect that in the Bessanese glacierized basin, as in similar high mountain areas, climate change will cause an increase of slope instability in the future. To fasten knowledge deepening, we highlight the need for a growth of a network of high elevation experimental sites at the basin scale, and the definition of shared methodological and measurement standards, that would allow a more rapid and effective comparison of data.

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Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

An integrated approach to investigate climate-driven rockfall occurrence in high alpine slopes: the Bessanese glacial basin, Western Italian Alps

et al. 2020

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“…Bedrock outcrops and deposits occupy almost equivalent areas (41% and 46%, respectively). These values are intermediate between those found for the Aosta Valley, where bedrock outcrops represent 2/3 of the deglaciated areas since the peak of the LIA (Curtaz et al, 2014), and those found for the Western and South-Western Piedmont Alps, where over 70% of the recently deglaciated areas are covered with debris (Lucchesi et al, 2014). This might be due to the much higher and steeper reliefs that characterize the Aosta Valley, compared to the South-Western Alpine sector, which do not favor debris accumulation.…”

Section: Geomorphological Analysismentioning

confidence: 56%

“…The limits of the areas involved by LIA glaciers in the Orco Valley have been obtained from Lucchesi, Fioraso, Bertotto, and Chiarle (2014), and are outlined in the schemes A1 and B1 in the Main Maps. The geomorphology of the study area has been obtained from the interpretation of a multitemporal set of aerial photos (Table 1) and represented in a GIS.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Little Ice Age glacial systems and related natural instability processes in the Orco Valley (North-Western Italy)

et al. 2019

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Glaciated and recently (post-Little Ice Age) deglaciated areas are very dynamic environments, undergoing continuous changes, in particular as a consequence of climatic fluctuations and cryosphere changes. The intense geomorphic activity that takes place here conditions natural hazard, sediment transport and tourist fruition. A geo-morphological mapping with applicative purposes has to take into account the peculiarities and the dynamism of these specific areas. We here propose a methodological approach based on the interpretation of a multitemporal set of aerial photos (from 1983 to 2012), in a GIS environment, with application to the sectors modeled by Little Ice Age glaciers in the upper Orco Valley (NW Italy). The result is a geo-morphological map focused on the elements that are most relevant for application purposes, complemented by a map of the spatio-temporal distribution of the natural instability processes identified in the study area for the reference period, aimed to highlight the recent dynamism of the geomorphological elements in the map.

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“…The extensions are available as. kml file from the 155 project website (http://www.glariskalp.eu/?it_inventario-delle-estensioni-attuali-e-passate-dei-156 ghiacciai,9, accessed on 14 th April 2021; Lucchesi et al 2014). 157…”

Section: Data and Methods 143mentioning

confidence: 99%

Socio-environmental value of glacier lakes: assessment in the Aosta Valley (Western Italian Alps)

et al. 2022

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Progressive glacier retreat can deeply impact high-mountain areas. New glacier lakes are forming and potential connected opportunities (e.g. geosystem services) and risks (e.g. floods) are emerging. In the last decades, glacier lakes in the European Alps have increased in number and size, including in the study area (Aosta Valley Region, NW Alps, Italy). This work presents a methodology for a regional scale assessment of the potential of glacier lakes for socio-environmental development of mountain territories. Within the Aosta Valley, 337 glacier lakes were identified covering a total area of about 1.55 km 2 . These lakes were numerically evaluated and ranked through a semiautomatic analysis in a GIS environment that was based on a set of parameters related to: 1) the geo-environmental value; 2) the existence of human infrastructures and/or activities close to the lakes; 3) the potential interaction of natural instabilities within the areas surrounding the lakes. Results showed the robustness of the assessment considering some of the highest scored lakes (e.g. Lago del Miage, lakes at the Rutor Glacier, etc.) and mountain sectors (Mont Blanc and Matterhorn areas). The application of the proposed methodology represents an initial step towards the identification of hot-spot lakes for a sustainable and integrated management, that also takes into account potential risk conditions connected to natural instabilities.

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Little Ice Age and contemporary glacier extent in the Western and South-Western Piedmont Alps (North-Western Italy)

Cited by 25 publications

References 14 publications

An integrated approach to investigate climate-driven rockfall occurrence in high alpine slopes: the Bessanese glacial basin, Western Italian Alps

An integrated approach to investigate climate-driven rockfall occurrence in high alpine slopes: the Bessanese glacial basin, Western Italian Alps

Little Ice Age glacial systems and related natural instability processes in the Orco Valley (North-Western Italy)

Socio-environmental value of glacier lakes: assessment in the Aosta Valley (Western Italian Alps)

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