Satellite picture of Ålfotbreen glacier in Norway, caught on August 23, 2003.
Satellite picture of Ålfotbreen glacier in Norway, caught on September 4, 2022.
Resting atop a shingled sandstone landscape, the Norwegian glacier has actually remained in decrease considering that the late 1990 s.
Ålfotbreen glacier rests on ledges of sandstone amongst the fjords of Norway’s western coast. The ice cap is susceptible to altering temperature levels and has actually remained in decrease considering that the late 1990 s.
Unique Geological Formation
Ålfotbreen, which is Norway’s 25 th biggest glacier, covers the top of a distinct landscape of shingled sandstone in a location called the HornelenBasin The basin was formed after tectonic plates clashed and later on weakened about 400 million years back, in the Devonian duration.
Sandstone mountain ledges run north to south and are typically flanked by cliffs of as much as 100 meters in height. As Ålfotbreen retreats, more of this special geology is being exposed.
Climate Impact on Ålfotbreen
The glacier sees significant swings in its surface area mass in between winter season and summer season. This is partially due to its place along the western coast, which gets about 600 centimeters (236 inches) of yearly rainfall, making it among the wettest locations in Europe.
Ålfotbreen gains mass as snow collects over winter season and loses mass as it melts over summer season. Heatwaves melt snow cover previously in the season, which exposes darker icy surface areas earlier and speeds up melting.
Monitoring Glacier Health
Scientists compare glaciers’ winter season build-ups with summer season losses to track how their mass modifications from year to year– a computation called surface area mass balance (usually determined in meters water equivalent; that is, the depth of water that would result if the ice melted). The Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate preserves a 60- year record of Ålfotbreen’s mass, which is gathered in the field and reported to the World Glacier Monitoring Service.
Much of Ålfotbreen’s surface area is snow that has actually made it through 1– 3 summertimes– called firn– which is a shift phase to forming glacier ice. Although snowy winter seasons resulted in the ice cap’s development in between 1989 and 1995, more regular and extreme heatwaves have actually considering that added to the glacier’s decrease.
Recent Trends and Concerns
“There have been many years recently—in 2017, 2018, 2021, 2022, and 2023, for example—when the glacier lost most of its snow before the melt season ended,” stated Mauri Pelto, a glaciologist at NicholsCollege “This leads to glacier decline as the more permanent ice and firn melt away.”
The image set above programs Ålfotbreen throughout the summertimes of 2003 (left) and 2022 (right). On August 3, 2003, with more than a month left in the melt season, the glacier had actually currently lost all of its snow cover, which resulted in a big loss of its mass (3 meters of water equivalent). Likewise, in 2022, the glacier had actually lost much of its snow cover on September 4, causing a net mass loss, although not as serious as 2003.
Over the previous 10 years (2013-2022), the World Glacier Monitoring Service reports that Ålfotbreen lost approximately 1.07 meters water comparable each year. In about half of the summertimes over the previous 20 years, no snow cover stayed on the glacier at the end of the melt season. Pelto included, “the lack of a persistent accumulation zone suggests that the glacier cannot survive the current climate.”
Global Perspective on Glacier Decline
Pelto led an evaluation of World Glacier Monitoring Service mass balance information for 37 mountain glaciers around the world in 2022, and discovered that 34 of those glaciers had actually lost mass. The analysis discovered that, usually, glaciers lost more than a meter of ice that year which ice loss from mountain glaciers internationally has actually been speeding up gradually.
< period class ="glossaryLink" aria-describedby ="tt" data-cmtooltip ="<div class=glossaryItemTitle>NASA</div><div class=glossaryItemBody>Established in 1958, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is an independent agency of the United States Federal Government that succeeded the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). It is responsible for the civilian space program, as well as aeronautics and aerospace research. Its vision is "To discover and expand knowledge for the benefit of humanity." Its core values are "safety, integrity, teamwork, excellence, and inclusion." NASA conducts research, develops technology and launches missions to explore and study Earth, the solar system, and the universe beyond. It also works to advance the state of knowledge in a wide range of scientific fields, including Earth and space science, planetary science, astrophysics, and heliophysics, and it collaborates with private companies and international partners to achieve its goals.</div>" data-gt-translate-attributes="[{"attribute":"data-cmtooltip", "format":"html"}]" tabindex ="0" function ="link" > NASA EarthObservatory images byWanmei Liang, utilizing Landsat information from the U.S.GeologicalSurvey
