ENAC Seminar Series by Prof. Francesca Pellicciotti
Event details
| Date | 04.12.2018 |
| Hour | 08:30 › 09:30 |
| Speaker | Prof. Francesca Pellicciotti |
| Location | |
| Category | Conferences - Seminars |
8:30 – 9:30 – Prof. Francesca Pellicciotti
Associate Professor, Department of Geography, Faculty of Engineering and Environment, Northumbria University, UK
What drives changes in debris-covered glaciers in High Mountain Asia?
One of the most important questions of climate change impact research today is how glaciers are responding to global warming. This is a pressing question in High Mountain Asia (HMA), where glaciers provide water resources for millions of people, but their historical changes and future trends are unclear. The scarcity of direct observations and unresolved thinning patterns for debris-covered glaciers in the region challenge established understanding and the application of regional simulation models. While mantles of rock debris theoretically insulate the underlying ice and thus reduce melt, research has documented that debris-covered glaciers are thinning at the same rates as debris-free glaciers in HMA. The causes of this possible “debris-cover anomaly” are yet to be resolved.
Here, I present key recent advancements for understanding debris-covered glaciers at multiple scales. I show that supra-glacial cliffs and ponds forming on debris-covered glaciers are hot spots for melt and discuss some recent advancements in modelling their energy balance, surface evolution and dynamics. Leveraging these advanced models, I demonstrate that they affect the mass balance and runoff of glaciers at the catchment scale, accounting for up to 60% of total ice losses.
Associate Professor, Department of Geography, Faculty of Engineering and Environment, Northumbria University, UK
What drives changes in debris-covered glaciers in High Mountain Asia?
One of the most important questions of climate change impact research today is how glaciers are responding to global warming. This is a pressing question in High Mountain Asia (HMA), where glaciers provide water resources for millions of people, but their historical changes and future trends are unclear. The scarcity of direct observations and unresolved thinning patterns for debris-covered glaciers in the region challenge established understanding and the application of regional simulation models. While mantles of rock debris theoretically insulate the underlying ice and thus reduce melt, research has documented that debris-covered glaciers are thinning at the same rates as debris-free glaciers in HMA. The causes of this possible “debris-cover anomaly” are yet to be resolved.
Here, I present key recent advancements for understanding debris-covered glaciers at multiple scales. I show that supra-glacial cliffs and ponds forming on debris-covered glaciers are hot spots for melt and discuss some recent advancements in modelling their energy balance, surface evolution and dynamics. Leveraging these advanced models, I demonstrate that they affect the mass balance and runoff of glaciers at the catchment scale, accounting for up to 60% of total ice losses.
Practical information
- General public
- Free
Organizer
- ENAC
Contact
- Cristina Perez