The Cryosphere Discussions
www.the-cryosphere-discuss.net
1994-0432
1994-0440
3
2
2009
10.5194/tcd-3-415-2009
http://www.the-cryosphere-discuss.net/3/415/2009/
http://www.the-cryosphere-discuss.net/3/415/2009/tcd-3-415-2009.html
http://www.the-cryosphere-discuss.net/3/415/2009/tcd-3-415-2009.pdf
415
441
2009-07-01
Quantifying changes and trends in glacier area and volume in the Austrian Ötztal Alps (1969–1997–2006)
J. Abermann
jakob.abermann@uibk.ac.at
A. Lambrecht
A. Fischer
M. Kuhn
Austrian Academy of Sciences, Commission for Geophysical Research, Vienna, Austria
Institute of Meteorology and Geophysics, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
In this study we apply a simple and reliable method to derive recent changes
in glacier area and volume by taking advantage of high resolution LIDAR
(light detection and ranging) DEMs (digital elevation models) from the year
2006. Together with two existing glacier inventories (1969 and 1997) the new
dataset enables to quantify area and volume changes over the past 37 years
at three dates. This has been done for 81 glaciers (116 km<sup>2</sup>) in the
Ötztal Alps which accounts for almost one third of Austria's glacier
extent. Glacier area and volume have reduced drastically with significant
differences within the individual size classes. Between 1997 and 2006 an
overall area loss of 10.5 km<sup>2</sup> or 8.2% occurred. Volume has reduced
by 1.0 km<sup>3</sup> which accounts for a mean thickness change of −8.2 m. The
availability of three comparable inventories allows a comprehensive analysis
of glacier changes over all size classes but lacks a high temporal
resolution. We therefore used glacier length as well as mass balance
measurements from all available glaciers within the study area to analyse
the potential temporal course of glacier changes in terms of area and volume
which allows a rough estimation of mean annual area and volume changes and
thus acceleration trends. Comparing the net retreating period between 1969
and 1997 with the period 1997 to 2006, the analysis reveals that mean annual
absolute area losses have remained constant. Relative area losses have
accelerated slightly whereas volume as well as mean thickness losses have
accelerated significantly.
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