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The role of englacial meltwater in the collapse of the Gorner-Grenzgletscher junction
The project will investigate the retreat and collapse of the Gorner-Grenzgletscher junction and quantify the role of englacial melt in the overall ice-loss budget.
Retreating glaciers are icons of climate change, impact regional runoff and drivers of global sea-level rise. Numerous dynamic feedbacks amplify glacier sensitivity to atmospheric forcing, such as ice surface darkening or elevation lowering. This project aims at investigating the cryo-hydraulic amplification process by which energy fluxes carried by meltwater flowing englacially contribute to melting glaciers from the inside, thus accelerating their collapse. The study area is Gornergletscher, the second largest glacier in Europe. Gornergletscher is located in Valais, Switzerland, and recently detached from its main tongue, the Grenzgletscher. The detachment from the tributary glaciers does not only suppress the alimentation of ice from the upper accumulation zone but also provides the conditions for lateral meltwater streams to enter the main glacier body. By releasing their latent heat directly into the englacial interior, vast ice contact caves have been carved out.
Retreating glaciers are icons of climate change, impact regional runoff and drivers of global sea-level rise. Numerous dynamic feedbacks amplify glacier sensitivity to atmospheric forcing, such as ice surface darkening or elevation lowering. This project aims at investigating the cryo-hydraulic amplification process by which energy fluxes carried by meltwater flowing englacially contribute to melting glaciers from the inside, thus accelerating their collapse. The study area is Gornergletscher, the second largest glacier in Europe. Gornergletscher is located in Valais, Switzerland, and recently detached from its main tongue, the Grenzgletscher. The detachment from the tributary glaciers does not only suppress the alimentation of ice from the upper accumulation zone but also provides the conditions for lateral meltwater streams to enter the main glacier body. By releasing their latent heat directly into the englacial interior, vast ice contact caves have been carved out.
The project will investigate the retreat and collapse of the Gorner-Grenz junction in the last ten years and will quantify the role of the above cryo-hydraulic process in the overall ice-loss budget. This will be done by combining (i) time series of aerial images and digital terrain models, with (ii) a dataset of meltwater temperature and discharge, as well as (iii) 3D imaging of ice contact caves, collected during two summer field expeditions (2022-2023). The project will provide insights into a process that enhances the demise of Alpine glaciers, and will foster process-understanding relevant to larger ice masses.
The project will investigate the retreat and collapse of the Gorner-Grenz junction in the last ten years and will quantify the role of the above cryo-hydraulic process in the overall ice-loss budget. This will be done by combining (i) time series of aerial images and digital terrain models, with (ii) a dataset of meltwater temperature and discharge, as well as (iii) 3D imaging of ice contact caves, collected during two summer field expeditions (2022-2023). The project will provide insights into a process that enhances the demise of Alpine glaciers, and will foster process-understanding relevant to larger ice masses.
For further information please contact Dr. Francesco Sauro (cescosauro@milesbeyond.it) or Prof. Daniel Farinotti (daniel.farinotti@ethz.ch).
For further information please contact Dr. Francesco Sauro (cescosauro@milesbeyond.it) or Prof. Daniel Farinotti (daniel.farinotti@ethz.ch).