research
The authors present a method to estimate the glacier contribution to sea-level rise from glacier length records. These records form the only direct evidence of glacier changes prior to 1946, when the first continuous mass-balance observations began. A globally representative length signal is calculated from 197 length records from all continents by normalisation and...
An optimal estimation method for simultaneously determining both basal slipperiness and basal topography from variations in surface flow velocity and topography along a flow line on ice streams and ice sheets is presented. The authors use Bayesian inference to update prior statistical estimates for basal topography and slipperiness using surface measurements along a...
A Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) scene from 2003 covering the Jotunheimen and Breheimen region has been used to map the recent glacier extents using thresholded ratio images (TM3/TM5). Orthoprojected aerial photographs and glacier outlines from digital maps have been used to validate the method and control the results. The authors further calculated glacier changes by...
Glacier volume response time is a measure of the time taken for a glacier to adjust its geometry to a climate change. It is currently believed that the volume response time is given approximately by the ratio of glacier thickness to ablation at the glacier terminus. The authors propose a new conceptual model of glacier hypsometry (area-altitude relation) and derive the volume...
Higher temperature and change in precipitation patterns have induced an acute decrease in Andean glaciers, thus leading to an additional stress on water supply. To adapt to climate changes, local governments need information on the rate of glacier volume losses and on current ice thickness. The authors show how volume changes can be accurately estimated in remote areas using...
This book broadens and deepens understanding of a wide range of population-climate change linkages. Incorporating population dynamics into research, policy-making and advocacy around climate change is critical for understanding the trajectory of global greenhouse gas emissions, for developing and implementing adaptation plans and thus for global and national efforts to curtail...
Swiss National Research Programs (NRPs) are usually geared to addressing issues of major societal concern. In so doing these programmes produce different kinds of knowledge: analytical knowledge necessary for revealing the driving forces, conflicting interests and institutional settings that govern the processes under scrutiny; target knowledge oriented towards revealing the...
The expected outcomes of the collaborative research project, which will continue through at least 2010, are (1) the generation of cutting-edge empirical data and theoretical insights into the current rate and magnitude of climate change induced glacier recession, shifting hydrologic processes, and human livelihood vulnerability and adaptation; (2) the refinement of rigorous...
Multivariate regression analysis, combined with residuals correction, was carried out to develop a precipitation prediction model for the Daqing Mountains of Inner Mongolia in northern China. Precipitation data collected at 56 stations between 1955 and 1990 were used: data from 48 stations for model development and data from 8 stations for additional tests. Five topographic factors — altitude,...
High elevation páramo (wetland) ecosystems in the Andes are important water sources for local communities and downstream agricultural and urban users. These headwater catchments, however, are often impacted by human activities (eg agricultural production) that affect both stream water quality and flow. Knowledge about water availability, quality, and use is essential for effective management but...
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