Significant contribution to total mass from very small glaciers
A single large glacier can contain tens of millions of times the mass of a small glacier. Nevertheless, very small glaciers (with area ≤1 km 2 ) are so numerous that their contribution to the world's total ice volume is significant and may be a notable source of error if excluded. With current...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:4cbda2d0ad4943178c5e0b93a3dda289 2023-05-15T18:32:31+02:00 Significant contribution to total mass from very small glaciers D. B. Bahr V. Radić 2012-07-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-6-763-2012 https://doaj.org/article/4cbda2d0ad4943178c5e0b93a3dda289 EN eng Copernicus Publications http://www.the-cryosphere.net/6/763/2012/tc-6-763-2012.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0416 https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0424 doi:10.5194/tc-6-763-2012 1994-0416 1994-0424 https://doaj.org/article/4cbda2d0ad4943178c5e0b93a3dda289 The Cryosphere, Vol 6, Iss 4, Pp 763-770 (2012) Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 article 2012 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-6-763-2012 2022-12-30T22:08:47Z A single large glacier can contain tens of millions of times the mass of a small glacier. Nevertheless, very small glaciers (with area ≤1 km 2 ) are so numerous that their contribution to the world's total ice volume is significant and may be a notable source of error if excluded. With current glacier inventories, total global volume errors on the order of 10% are possible. However, to reduce errors to below 1% requires the inclusion of glaciers that are smaller than those recorded in most inventories. At the global scale, 1% accuracy requires a list of all glaciers and ice caps (GIC, exclusive of the ice sheets) larger than 1 km 2 , and for regional estimates requires a complete list of all glaciers down to the smallest possible size. For this reason, sea-level rise estimates and other total mass and total volume analyses should not omit the world's smallest glaciers. In particular, upscaling GIC inventories has been common practice in sea level estimates, but downscaling may also be necessary to include the smallest glaciers. Article in Journal/Newspaper The Cryosphere Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles The Cryosphere 6 4 763 770 |
institution |
Open Polar |
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Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 |
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Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 D. B. Bahr V. Radić Significant contribution to total mass from very small glaciers |
topic_facet |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 |
description |
A single large glacier can contain tens of millions of times the mass of a small glacier. Nevertheless, very small glaciers (with area ≤1 km 2 ) are so numerous that their contribution to the world's total ice volume is significant and may be a notable source of error if excluded. With current glacier inventories, total global volume errors on the order of 10% are possible. However, to reduce errors to below 1% requires the inclusion of glaciers that are smaller than those recorded in most inventories. At the global scale, 1% accuracy requires a list of all glaciers and ice caps (GIC, exclusive of the ice sheets) larger than 1 km 2 , and for regional estimates requires a complete list of all glaciers down to the smallest possible size. For this reason, sea-level rise estimates and other total mass and total volume analyses should not omit the world's smallest glaciers. In particular, upscaling GIC inventories has been common practice in sea level estimates, but downscaling may also be necessary to include the smallest glaciers. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
D. B. Bahr V. Radić |
author_facet |
D. B. Bahr V. Radić |
author_sort |
D. B. Bahr |
title |
Significant contribution to total mass from very small glaciers |
title_short |
Significant contribution to total mass from very small glaciers |
title_full |
Significant contribution to total mass from very small glaciers |
title_fullStr |
Significant contribution to total mass from very small glaciers |
title_full_unstemmed |
Significant contribution to total mass from very small glaciers |
title_sort |
significant contribution to total mass from very small glaciers |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2012 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-6-763-2012 https://doaj.org/article/4cbda2d0ad4943178c5e0b93a3dda289 |
genre |
The Cryosphere |
genre_facet |
The Cryosphere |
op_source |
The Cryosphere, Vol 6, Iss 4, Pp 763-770 (2012) |
op_relation |
http://www.the-cryosphere.net/6/763/2012/tc-6-763-2012.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0416 https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0424 doi:10.5194/tc-6-763-2012 1994-0416 1994-0424 https://doaj.org/article/4cbda2d0ad4943178c5e0b93a3dda289 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-6-763-2012 |
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The Cryosphere |
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6 |
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4 |
container_start_page |
763 |
op_container_end_page |
770 |
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1766216634101399552 |