Mass Balance of 14 Icelandic Glaciers, 1945–2017: Spatial Variations and Links With Climate

Belart, Joaquín M. C.; Magnússon, Eyjólfur; Berthier, Étienne; Gunnlaugsson, Ágúst Þ.; Pálsson, Finnur; Ađalgeirsdóttir, Guðfinna; Jøhannesson, Tómas; Þorsteinsson, Þorsteinn; Björnsson, Helgi

doi:10.3389/feart.2020.00163

Cited by 12 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 81 publications

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“…a −1 is adopted for the smaller glaciers in 1945/46 to 2016/17. This corresponds to uncertainty values typically given for 10-20 year periods (Belart et al, 2020), while for periods exceeding 30 years, the uncertainty estimates are typically on the order of a few cm w.e. a −1 .…”

Section: Uncertainties Of the Presented Mass-balance Recordsmentioning

confidence: 72%

“…In the light of the limited geodetic observations ( Figures 3B,D) (Pálsson et al, 2012;Belart et al, 2020), the lengthchange observations back to 1930 (Eyþórsson, 1963;Sigurðsson et al, 2005), the glaciological measurements carried out on southeast outlets of Vatnajökull in the 1930s (Thorarinsson, 1940;Björnsson et al, 2013), modeling of the Vatnajökull SE outlet glacier Hoffellsjökull (Aðalgeirsdóttir et al, 2011), and the temperature evolution in Iceland during our study period ( Figure 3E), it is likely that a large proportion of the 20thcentury mass loss occurred during the ∼30 year period from the late 1920s to the late 1950s. For other time periods of the 20th century, Icelandic glaciers were probably close to equilibrium on a decadal timescale.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…This is supported by the small area changes during these periods (Hannesdóttir et al, 2020), the relatively cold weather conditions ( Figure 3E), the observations of limited terminus length changes (spordakost.jorfi.is), and the near-zero geodetic mass balances of several of the smaller glaciers in these periods ( Figure 3D). (5) Geodetic mass-balance records for Langjökull (Pálsson et al, 2012), from 1937/38 to 1996/97 (red lines with uncertainties in Figure 3B) and 12 smaller glaciers ( Figure 3D) from 1945/ 46 to 2016/17 (Belart et al, 2020) that cover 8.3% of the glacier area in Iceland. The remaining 1.3% of glacier area that is not observed is assumed to have the same mass loss rate as the measured small glaciers.…”

Section: Methods and Datamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The remaining 1.3% of glacier area that is not observed is assumed to have the same mass loss rate as the measured small glaciers. The geodetic results were also used to scale (Jóhannesson et al, 2013) and validate (Pálsson et al, 2012) 1994/95-2003/04, 2004/5-2009/10, and 2010/11-2016/17 (1.176, 1.131, and 1.056, respectively), corresponding to the geodetic massbalance periods of Belart et al (2020). After 1994/95, an estimate of the annual variability of the mass change for other glaciers than the three largest is included by calculating the net mass change for each glaciological year, using the corresponding F value for each period.…”

Section: Methods and Datamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Since 2001, mass-balance measurements have also been carried out on an irregular basis on Mýrdalsjökull (Ágústsson et al, 2013). Geodetic mass balance has been estimated for several glaciers, with an increasing coverage in recent years (Pálsson et al, 2012;Jóhannesson et al, 2013;Hannesdóttir et al, 2015a;Magnússon et al, 2016;Belart et al , 2019;Belart et al, 2020). Mass changes of the Icelandic glaciers have, furthermore, been estimated using ICESat (Nilsson et al, 2015), CryoSat2 (Foresta et al, 2016), and the GRACE satellites (von Hippel and Harig, 2019;Wouters et al, 2019;Ciracì et al, 2020), and Sørensen et al (2017) showed that signal leakage due to mass changes of the neighboring Greenland Ice Sheet and the effect of glacial isostatic rebound need to be carefully taken into account.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Glacier Changes in Iceland From ∼1890 to 2019

et al. 2020

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The volume of glaciers in Iceland (∼3,400 km3 in 2019) corresponds to about 9 mm of potential global sea level rise. In this study, observations from 98.7% of glacier covered areas in Iceland (in 2019) are used to construct a record of mass change of Icelandic glaciers since the end of the 19th century i.e. the end of the Little Ice Age (LIA) in Iceland. Glaciological (in situ) mass-balance measurements have been conducted on Vatnajökull, Langjökull, and Hofsjökull since the glaciological years 1991/92, 1996/97, and 1987/88, respectively. Geodetic mass balance for multiple glaciers and many periods has been estimated from reconstructed surface maps, published maps, aerial photographs, declassified spy satellite images, modern satellite stereo imagery, and airborne lidar. To estimate the maximum glacier volume at the end of the LIA, a volume–area scaling method is used based on the observed area and volume from the three largest ice caps (over 90% of total ice mass) at 5–7 different times each, in total 19 points. The combined record shows a total mass change of −540 ± 130 Gt (−4.2 ± 1.0 Gt a−1 on average) during the study period (1890/91 to 2018/19). This mass loss corresponds to 1.50 ± 0.36 mm sea level equivalent or 16 ± 4% of mass stored in Icelandic glaciers around 1890. Almost half of the total mass change occurred in 1994/95 to 2018/19, or −240 ± 20 Gt (−9.6 ± 0.8 Gt a−1 on average), with most rapid loss in 1994/95 to 2009/10 (mass change rate −11.6 ± 0.8 Gt a−1). During the relatively warm period 1930/31–1949/50, mass loss rates were probably close to those observed since 1994, and in the colder period 1980/81–1993/94, the glaciers gained mass at a rate of 1.5 ± 1.0 Gt a−1. For other periods of this study, the glaciers were either close to equilibrium or experienced mild loss rates. For the periods of AR6 IPCC, the mass change rates are −3.1 ± 1.1 Gt a−1 for 1900/01–1989/90, −4.3 ± 1.0 Gt a−1 for 1970/71–2017/18, −8.3 ± 0.8 Gt a−1 for 1992/93–2017/18, and −7.6 ± 0.8 Gt a−1 for 2005/06–2017/18.

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Section: Uncertainties Of the Presented Mass-balance Recordsmentioning

confidence: 72%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Section: Methods and Datamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methods and Datamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Glacier Changes in Iceland From ∼1890 to 2019

et al. 2020

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Paraglacial exposure and collapse of glacial sediment: The 2013 landslide onto Svínafellsjökull, southeast Iceland

Ben‐Yehoshua

Sæmundsson

Helgason

et al. 2022

Earth Surf Processes Landf

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In the last 130 years, Icelandic glaciers have experienced significant mass loss, and numerous paraglacial slope failures have been documented in the country. One such failure occurred in late February 2013, when a large landslide fell onto the Svínafellsjökull outlet glacier in southeast Iceland. Digital elevation models and aerial imagery were used to quantify the glacial and paraglacial changes leading up to the event, reconstructing the processes that occurred during the landslide and the effects of the debris on the glacier surface. Between 1994 and 2013, glacier thinning and glacier-retreat exposed a steep lateral moraine perched on bedrock which later failed and caused the landslide. Increased pore-water pressure after an intense rainstorm and potential fluvial erosion at the toe of the source area are considered to be the primary trigger mechanisms. Morphological evidence indicates multiple phases of movement in the source area and a highly water-rich debris avalanche on Svínafellsjökull. The debris reached a runout distance of almost 4 km and affected an area of about 1.7 km 2 . The estimated displaced volume of the slide is 5.33 AE 0.08 Â 10 6 m 3 , making it the largest documented landslide originating from unconsolidated material in Iceland. The glacier surface ablation beneath the debris

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A 2012–2021 high‐resolution glacier mass balance estimate for Icelandic ice caps based on ArcticDEM and ICESat‐2

Luo,

Ke,

Fan

2024

Earth Surf Processes Landf

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Ice caps are important water resources for Iceland and are threatened by climate change. Despite their importance and vulnerability, the geodetic glacier mass balance estimate for the recent decade lacks a high‐resolution result. To address this gap, we first co‐registered the 2012–2021 ArcticDEM (v4) strips with ICESat‐2 points acquired over off‐ice areas and evaluated the accuracy of the co‐registered DEMs. We then applied a per‐pixel weighted liner regression to the multi‐temporal ArcticDEM strips and generated a high‐resolution (2 m) glacier surface elevation change rate for six major Icelandic ice caps. Based on these estimates we calculated the geodetic mass balance. Additionally, we estimated the seasonal relative surface elevation changes using ICESat‐2 ATL06 data for the 2019 to 2021 period. The results showed the co‐registered ArcticDEM strips exhibit good accuracy, with a standard deviation of 1.15 m across the Icelandic ice cap regions. Between 2012 and 2021, Icelandic ice caps experienced a state of mass loss, with a surface elevation change rate of −0.57 ± 0.21 m/a, corresponding to a mass loss of −0.51 ± 0.02 m w.e/a. Spatial variability in glacier surface elevation changes among different Icelandic ice caps ranges −0.19 m/a to −0.75 m/a. The Langjökull ice cap exhibited the most severe glacier mass loss at −0.68 ± 0.006 m w.e/a. Furthermore, our observations indicate a change in seasonal trends occurred across all six ice caps from 2019 to 2021. Specifically, the glacier surface thickening decreased during the accumulation period, while the thinning rate increased during the ablation period. These findings highlight that ArcticDEM v4 strips provide new insights into the mass balance of Icelandic glaciers and will aid in making future water management decisions. Moreover, the high‐resolution surface elevation topography and change rates provided in this study may contribute to an improved understanding of the influence of glacier dynamics on glacier change.

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Mass Balance of 14 Icelandic Glaciers, 1945–2017: Spatial Variations and Links With Climate

Cited by 12 publications

References 81 publications

Glacier Changes in Iceland From ∼1890 to 2019

Glacier Changes in Iceland From ∼1890 to 2019

Paraglacial exposure and collapse of glacial sediment: The 2013 landslide onto Svínafellsjökull, southeast Iceland

A 2012–2021 high‐resolution glacier mass balance estimate for Icelandic ice caps based on ArcticDEM and ICESat‐2

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