Exploring beneath the retreating ice: swath bathymetry reveals sub- to proglacial processes and longevity of future alpine glacial lakes
Abstract Knowledge of how glaciations formed landscapes is particularly important as receding glaciers currently uncover subglacial landscapes that are prone to a series of natural hazards, but that also bring opportunities for hydropower or water resources. We present high-resolution (1 × 1 m) swat...
Published in: | Annals of Glaciology |
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Cambridge University Press (CUP)
2024
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/aog.2024.18 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0260305524000181 |
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crcambridgeupr:10.1017/aog.2024.18 2024-09-15T17:39:51+00:00 Exploring beneath the retreating ice: swath bathymetry reveals sub- to proglacial processes and longevity of future alpine glacial lakes Hosmann, Siro L. Fabbri, Stefano C. Buechi, Marius W. Hilbe, Michael Bauder, Andreas Anselmetti, Flavio S. 2024 http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/aog.2024.18 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0260305524000181 en eng Cambridge University Press (CUP) http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Annals of Glaciology page 1-6 ISSN 0260-3055 1727-5644 journal-article 2024 crcambridgeupr https://doi.org/10.1017/aog.2024.18 2024-08-21T04:04:43Z Abstract Knowledge of how glaciations formed landscapes is particularly important as receding glaciers currently uncover subglacial landscapes that are prone to a series of natural hazards, but that also bring opportunities for hydropower or water resources. We present high-resolution (1 × 1 m) swath bathymetric data of a proglacial lake in front of the Rhonegletscher (Swiss Alps) that started to form in the early 2000s allowing a look into a freshly uncovered glacier bed and its characterized morphology in an overdeepened setting. The comparison of two surveys from 2015 and 2021 allows an unprecedented quantification of the accumulation and erosion processes in the central lake basin. This highly dynamic environment is characterized by iceberg calving, fluctuating outflow conduits, rapid sedimentation due to particle-laden meltwaters and dumped glacial debris. Assuming constant sediment yield, the Rhone Lake would persist for ~300 years. However, as intense glacier retreat continues in the coming decades, a chain of overdeepened lakes will be revealed that will act as long persisting sediment traps. Article in Journal/Newspaper Annals of Glaciology Cambridge University Press Annals of Glaciology 1 19 |
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Open Polar |
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Cambridge University Press |
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crcambridgeupr |
language |
English |
description |
Abstract Knowledge of how glaciations formed landscapes is particularly important as receding glaciers currently uncover subglacial landscapes that are prone to a series of natural hazards, but that also bring opportunities for hydropower or water resources. We present high-resolution (1 × 1 m) swath bathymetric data of a proglacial lake in front of the Rhonegletscher (Swiss Alps) that started to form in the early 2000s allowing a look into a freshly uncovered glacier bed and its characterized morphology in an overdeepened setting. The comparison of two surveys from 2015 and 2021 allows an unprecedented quantification of the accumulation and erosion processes in the central lake basin. This highly dynamic environment is characterized by iceberg calving, fluctuating outflow conduits, rapid sedimentation due to particle-laden meltwaters and dumped glacial debris. Assuming constant sediment yield, the Rhone Lake would persist for ~300 years. However, as intense glacier retreat continues in the coming decades, a chain of overdeepened lakes will be revealed that will act as long persisting sediment traps. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Hosmann, Siro L. Fabbri, Stefano C. Buechi, Marius W. Hilbe, Michael Bauder, Andreas Anselmetti, Flavio S. |
spellingShingle |
Hosmann, Siro L. Fabbri, Stefano C. Buechi, Marius W. Hilbe, Michael Bauder, Andreas Anselmetti, Flavio S. Exploring beneath the retreating ice: swath bathymetry reveals sub- to proglacial processes and longevity of future alpine glacial lakes |
author_facet |
Hosmann, Siro L. Fabbri, Stefano C. Buechi, Marius W. Hilbe, Michael Bauder, Andreas Anselmetti, Flavio S. |
author_sort |
Hosmann, Siro L. |
title |
Exploring beneath the retreating ice: swath bathymetry reveals sub- to proglacial processes and longevity of future alpine glacial lakes |
title_short |
Exploring beneath the retreating ice: swath bathymetry reveals sub- to proglacial processes and longevity of future alpine glacial lakes |
title_full |
Exploring beneath the retreating ice: swath bathymetry reveals sub- to proglacial processes and longevity of future alpine glacial lakes |
title_fullStr |
Exploring beneath the retreating ice: swath bathymetry reveals sub- to proglacial processes and longevity of future alpine glacial lakes |
title_full_unstemmed |
Exploring beneath the retreating ice: swath bathymetry reveals sub- to proglacial processes and longevity of future alpine glacial lakes |
title_sort |
exploring beneath the retreating ice: swath bathymetry reveals sub- to proglacial processes and longevity of future alpine glacial lakes |
publisher |
Cambridge University Press (CUP) |
publishDate |
2024 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/aog.2024.18 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0260305524000181 |
genre |
Annals of Glaciology |
genre_facet |
Annals of Glaciology |
op_source |
Annals of Glaciology page 1-6 ISSN 0260-3055 1727-5644 |
op_rights |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1017/aog.2024.18 |
container_title |
Annals of Glaciology |
container_start_page |
1 |
op_container_end_page |
19 |
_version_ |
1810482975306940416 |