Articles | Volume 17, issue 11
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-4671-2013
© Author(s) 2013. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-4671-2013
© Author(s) 2013. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Research article
| 
26 Nov 2013
Research article |
| 26 Nov 2013
River ice flux and water velocities along a 600 km-long reach of Lena River, Siberia, from satellite stereo
Department of Geosciences, University of Oslo, P.O. Box 1047, Oslo, Norway
M. Lamare
Department of Geosciences, University of Oslo, P.O. Box 1047, Oslo, Norway
M. Abrams
Jet Propulsion Laboratory/California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
Related authors
Juditha Aga, Livia Piermattei, Luc Girod, Kristoffer Aalstad, Trond Eiken, Andreas Kääb, and Sebastian Westermann
Earth Surf. Dynam., 12, 1049–1070, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1049-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1049-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Coastal rock cliffs on Svalbard are considered to be fairly stable; however, long-term trends in coastal-retreat rates remain unknown. This study examines changes in the coastline position along Brøggerhalvøya, Svalbard, using aerial images from 1970, 1990, 2010, and 2021. Our analysis shows that coastal-retreat rates accelerate during the period 2010–2021, which coincides with increasing storminess and retreating sea ice.
Diego Cusicanqui, Pascal Lacroix, Xavier Bodin, Benjamin Aubrey Robson, Andreas Kääb, and Shelley MacDonell
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2393, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2393, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
This study presents for the first time a robust methodological approach to detect and analyse rock glacier kinematics using 24 years of Landsat 7/8 imagery. Within a small region in the semi-arid andes, 382 movements were monitored showing an average velocity of 0.3 ± 0.07 m yr-1, with rock glaciers moving faster. We highlight the value of integrating optical imagery and radar interferometry supporting monitoring of rock glacier kinematics, using available medium-resolution optical imagery.
Livia Piermattei, Michael Zemp, Christian Sommer, Fanny Brun, Matthias H. Braun, Liss M. Andreassen, Joaquín M. C. Belart, Etienne Berthier, Atanu Bhattacharya, Laura Boehm Vock, Tobias Bolch, Amaury Dehecq, Inés Dussaillant, Daniel Falaschi, Caitlyn Florentine, Dana Floricioiu, Christian Ginzler, Gregoire Guillet, Romain Hugonnet, Matthias Huss, Andreas Kääb, Owen King, Christoph Klug, Friedrich Knuth, Lukas Krieger, Jeff La Frenierre, Robert McNabb, Christopher McNeil, Rainer Prinz, Louis Sass, Thorsten Seehaus, David Shean, Désirée Treichler, Anja Wendt, and Ruitang Yang
The Cryosphere, 18, 3195–3230, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-3195-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-3195-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Satellites have made it possible to observe glacier elevation changes from all around the world. In the present study, we compared the results produced from two different types of satellite data between different research groups and against validation measurements from aeroplanes. We found a large spread between individual results but showed that the group ensemble can be used to reliably estimate glacier elevation changes and related errors from satellite data.
Andreas Kääb and Luc Girod
The Cryosphere, 17, 2533–2541, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-2533-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-2533-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Following the detachment of the 130 × 106 m3 Sedongpu Glacier (south-eastern Tibet) in 2018, the Sedongpu Valley underwent massive large-volume landscape changes. An enormous volume of in total around 330 × 106 m3 was rapidly eroded, forming a new canyon of up to 300 m depth, 1 km width, and almost 4 km length. Such consequences of glacier change in mountains have so far not been considered at this magnitude and speed.
Sebastian Westermann, Thomas Ingeman-Nielsen, Johanna Scheer, Kristoffer Aalstad, Juditha Aga, Nitin Chaudhary, Bernd Etzelmüller, Simon Filhol, Andreas Kääb, Cas Renette, Louise Steffensen Schmidt, Thomas Vikhamar Schuler, Robin B. Zweigel, Léo Martin, Sarah Morard, Matan Ben-Asher, Michael Angelopoulos, Julia Boike, Brian Groenke, Frederieke Miesner, Jan Nitzbon, Paul Overduin, Simone M. Stuenzi, and Moritz Langer
Geosci. Model Dev., 16, 2607–2647, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-2607-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-2607-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
The CryoGrid community model is a new tool for simulating ground temperatures and the water and ice balance in cold regions. It is a modular design, which makes it possible to test different schemes to simulate, for example, permafrost ground in an efficient way. The model contains tools to simulate frozen and unfrozen ground, snow, glaciers, and other massive ice bodies, as well as water bodies.
Fuming Xie, Shiyin Liu, Yongpeng Gao, Yu Zhu, Tobias Bolch, Andreas Kääb, Shimei Duan, Wenfei Miao, Jianfang Kang, Yaonan Zhang, Xiran Pan, Caixia Qin, Kunpeng Wu, Miaomiao Qi, Xianhe Zhang, Ying Yi, Fengze Han, Xiaojun Yao, Qiao Liu, Xin Wang, Zongli Jiang, Donghui Shangguan, Yong Zhang, Richard Grünwald, Muhammad Adnan, Jyoti Karki, and Muhammad Saifullah
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 847–867, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-847-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-847-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
In this study, first we generated inventories which allowed us to systematically detect glacier change patterns in the Karakoram range. We found that, by the 2020s, there were approximately 10 500 glaciers in the Karakoram mountains covering an area of 22 510.73 km2, of which ~ 10.2 % is covered by debris. During the past 30 years (from 1990 to 2020), the total glacier cover area in Karakoram remained relatively stable, with a slight increase in area of 23.5 km2.
Maximillian Van Wyk de Vries, Shashank Bhushan, Mylène Jacquemart, César Deschamps-Berger, Etienne Berthier, Simon Gascoin, David E. Shean, Dan H. Shugar, and Andreas Kääb
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 3309–3327, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-22-3309-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-22-3309-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
On 7 February 2021, a large rock–ice avalanche occurred in Chamoli, Indian Himalaya. The resulting debris flow swept down the nearby valley, leaving over 200 people dead or missing. We use a range of satellite datasets to investigate how the collapse area changed prior to collapse. We show that signs of instability were visible as early 5 years prior to collapse. However, it would likely not have been possible to predict the timing of the event from current satellite datasets.
Frank Paul, Livia Piermattei, Désirée Treichler, Lin Gilbert, Luc Girod, Andreas Kääb, Ludivine Libert, Thomas Nagler, Tazio Strozzi, and Jan Wuite
The Cryosphere, 16, 2505–2526, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2505-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2505-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Glacier surges are widespread in the Karakoram and have been intensely studied using satellite data and DEMs. We use time series of such datasets to study three glacier surges in the same region of the Karakoram. We found strongly contrasting advance rates and flow velocities, maximum velocities of 30 m d−1, and a change in the surge mechanism during a surge. A sensor comparison revealed good agreement, but steep terrain and the two smaller glaciers caused limitations for some of them.
Bas Altena, Andreas Kääb, and Bert Wouters
The Cryosphere, 16, 2285–2300, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2285-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2285-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Repeat overflights of satellites are used to estimate surface displacements. However, such products lack a simple error description for individual measurements, but variation in precision occurs, since the calculation is based on the similarity of texture. Fortunately, variation in precision manifests itself in the correlation peak, which is used for the displacement calculation. This spread is used to make a connection to measurement precision, which can be of great use for model inversion.
Isabelle Gärtner-Roer, Nina Brunner, Reynald Delaloye, Wilfried Haeberli, Andreas Kääb, and Patrick Thee
The Cryosphere, 16, 2083–2101, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2083-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2083-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
We intensely investigated the Gruben site in the Swiss Alps, where glaciers and permafrost landforms closely interact, to better understand cold-climate environments. By the interpretation of air photos from 5 decades, we describe long-term developments of the existing landforms. In combination with high-resolution positioning measurements and ground surface temperatures, we were also able to link these to short-term changes and describe different landform responses to climate forcing.
Tazio Strozzi, Andreas Wiesmann, Andreas Kääb, Thomas Schellenberger, and Frank Paul
Earth Syst. Sci. Data Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2022-44, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2022-44, 2022
Revised manuscript not accepted
Short summary
Short summary
Knowledge on surface velocity of glaciers and ice caps contributes to a better understanding of a wide range of processes related to glacier dynamics, mass change and response to climate. Based on the release of historical satellite radar data from various space agencies we compiled nearly complete mosaics of winter ice surface velocities for the 1990's over the Eastern Arctic. Compared to the present state, we observe a general increase of ice velocities along with a retreat of glacier fronts.
Paul Willem Leclercq, Andreas Kääb, and Bas Altena
The Cryosphere, 15, 4901–4907, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4901-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4901-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
In this study we present a novel method to detect glacier surge activity. Surges are relevant as they disturb the link between glacier change and climate, and studying surges can also increase understanding of glacier flow. We use variations in Sentinel-1 radar backscatter strength, calculated with the use of Google Earth Engine, to detect surge activity. In our case study for the year 2018–2019 we find 69 cases of surging glaciers globally. Many of these were not previously known to be surging.
Andreas Kääb, Mylène Jacquemart, Adrien Gilbert, Silvan Leinss, Luc Girod, Christian Huggel, Daniel Falaschi, Felipe Ugalde, Dmitry Petrakov, Sergey Chernomorets, Mikhail Dokukin, Frank Paul, Simon Gascoin, Etienne Berthier, and Jeffrey S. Kargel
The Cryosphere, 15, 1751–1785, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-1751-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-1751-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Hardly recognized so far, giant catastrophic detachments of glaciers are a rare but great potential for loss of lives and massive damage in mountain regions. Several of the events compiled in our study involve volumes (up to 100 million m3 and more), avalanche speeds (up to 300 km/h), and reaches (tens of kilometres) that are hard to imagine. We show that current climate change is able to enhance associated hazards. For the first time, we elaborate a set of factors that could cause these events.
Andreas Kääb, Tazio Strozzi, Tobias Bolch, Rafael Caduff, Håkon Trefall, Markus Stoffel, and Alexander Kokarev
The Cryosphere, 15, 927–949, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-927-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-927-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We present a map of rock glacier motion over parts of the northern Tien Shan and time series of surface speed for six of them over almost 70 years.
This is by far the most detailed investigation of this kind available for central Asia.
We detect a 2- to 4-fold increase in rock glacier motion between the 1950s and present, which we attribute to atmospheric warming.
Relative to the shrinking glaciers in the region, this implies increased importance of periglacial sediment transport.
Andreas Alexander, Jaroslav Obu, Thomas V. Schuler, Andreas Kääb, and Hanne H. Christiansen
The Cryosphere, 14, 4217–4231, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4217-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4217-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
In this study we present subglacial air, ice and sediment temperatures from within the basal drainage systems of two cold-based glaciers on Svalbard during late spring and the summer melt season. We put the data into the context of air temperature and rainfall at the glacier surface and show the importance of surface events on the subglacial thermal regime and erosion around basal drainage channels. Observed vertical erosion rates thereby reachup to 0.9 m d−1.
Andreas Alexander, Maarja Kruusmaa, Jeffrey A. Tuhtan, Andrew J. Hodson, Thomas V. Schuler, and Andreas Kääb
The Cryosphere, 14, 1009–1023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-1009-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-1009-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
This work shows the potential of pressure and inertia sensing drifters to measure flow parameters along glacial channels. The technology allows us to record the spatial distribution of water pressures, as well as an estimation of the flow velocity along the flow path in the channels. The measurements show a high repeatability and the potential to identify channel morphology from sensor readings.
Jaroslav Obu, Sebastian Westermann, Gonçalo Vieira, Andrey Abramov, Megan Ruby Balks, Annett Bartsch, Filip Hrbáček, Andreas Kääb, and Miguel Ramos
The Cryosphere, 14, 497–519, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-497-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-497-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Little is known about permafrost in the Antarctic outside of the few research stations. We used a simple equilibrium permafrost model to estimate permafrost temperatures in the whole Antarctic. The lowest permafrost temperature on Earth is −36 °C in the Queen Elizabeth Range in the Transantarctic Mountains. Temperatures are commonly between −23 and −18 °C in mountainous areas rising above the Antarctic Ice Sheet, between −14 and −8 °C in coastal areas, and up to 0 °C on the Antarctic Peninsula.
Désirée Treichler, Andreas Kääb, Nadine Salzmann, and Chong-Yu Xu
The Cryosphere, 13, 2977–3005, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2977-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2977-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Glacier growth such as that found on the Tibetan Plateau (TP) is counterintuitive in a warming world. Climate models and meteorological data are conflicting about the reasons for this glacier anomaly. We quantify the glacier changes in High Mountain Asia using satellite laser altimetry as well as the growth of over 1300 inland lakes on the TP. Our study suggests that increased summer precipitation is likely the largest contributor to the recently observed increases in glacier and lake masses.
Andreas Kääb, Bas Altena, and Joseph Mascaro
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 4233–4247, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-4233-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-4233-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Knowledge of water surface velocities in rivers is useful for understanding a wide range of processes and systems, but is difficult to measure over large reaches. Here, we present a novel method to exploit near-simultaneous imagery produced by the Planet cubesat constellation to track river ice floes and estimate water surface velocities. We demonstrate the method for a 60 km long reach of the Amur River and a 200 km long reach of the Yukon River.
B. Altena, O. N. Haga, C. Nuth, and A. Kääb
Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., XLII-2-W13, 1723–1727, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLII-2-W13-1723-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLII-2-W13-1723-2019, 2019
Daniel Falaschi, Andreas Kääb, Frank Paul, Takeo Tadono, Juan Antonio Rivera, and Luis Eduardo Lenzano
The Cryosphere, 13, 997–1004, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-997-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-997-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
In March 2007, the Leñas Glacier in the Central Andes of Argentina collapsed and released an ice avalanche that travelled a distance of 2 km. We analysed aerial photos, satellite images and field evidence to investigate the evolution of the glacier from the 1950s through the present day. A clear potential trigger of the collapse could not be identified from available meteorological and seismic data, nor could a significant change in glacier geometry leading to glacier instability be detected.
Robert McNabb, Christopher Nuth, Andreas Kääb, and Luc Girod
The Cryosphere, 13, 895–910, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-895-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-895-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Estimating glacier changes involves measuring elevation changes, often using elevation models derived from satellites. Many elevation models have data gaps (voids), which affect estimates of glacier change. We compare 11 methods for interpolating voids, finding that some methods bias estimates of glacier change by up to 20 %, though most methods have a smaller effect. Some methods produce reliable results even with large void areas, suggesting that noisy elevation data are still useful.
Bas Altena, Ted Scambos, Mark Fahnestock, and Andreas Kääb
The Cryosphere, 13, 795–814, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-795-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-795-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Many glaciers in southern Alaska and the Yukon experience changes in flow speed, which occur in episodes or sporadically. These flow changes can be measured with satellites, but the resulting raw velocity products are messy. Thus in this study we developed an automatic method to produce a synthesized velocity product over a large glacier region of roughly 600 km by 200 km. Velocities are at a monthly resolution and at 300 m resolution, making all kinds of glacier dynamics observable.
Luc Girod, Niels Ivar Nielsen, Frédérique Couderette, Christopher Nuth, and Andreas Kääb
Geosci. Instrum. Method. Data Syst., 7, 277–288, https://doi.org/10.5194/gi-7-277-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/gi-7-277-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
Historical surveys performed through the use of aerial photography gave us the first maps of the Arctic. Nearly a century later, a renewed interest in studying the Arctic is rising from the need to understand and quantify climate change. It is therefore time to dig up the archives and extract the maximum of information from the images using the most modern methods. In this study, we show that the aerial survey of Svalbard in 1936–38 provides us with valuable data on the archipelago's glaciers.
Adrien Gilbert, Silvan Leinss, Jeffrey Kargel, Andreas Kääb, Simon Gascoin, Gregory Leonard, Etienne Berthier, Alina Karki, and Tandong Yao
The Cryosphere, 12, 2883–2900, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-2883-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-2883-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
In Tibet, two glaciers suddenly collapsed in summer 2016 and produced two gigantic ice avalanches, killing nine people. This kind of phenomenon is extremely rare. By combining a detailed modelling study and high-resolution satellite observations, we show that the event was triggered by an increasing meltwater supply in the fine-grained material underneath the two glaciers. Contrary to what is often thought, this event is not linked to a change in the thermal condition at the glacier base.
Martina Barandun, Matthias Huss, Ryskul Usubaliev, Erlan Azisov, Etienne Berthier, Andreas Kääb, Tobias Bolch, and Martin Hoelzle
The Cryosphere, 12, 1899–1919, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-1899-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-1899-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
In this study, we used three independent methods (in situ measurements, comparison of digital elevation models and modelling) to reconstruct the mass change from 2000 to 2016 for three glaciers in the Tien Shan and Pamir. Snow lines observed on remote sensing images were used to improve conventional modelling by constraining a mass balance model. As a result, glacier mass changes for unmeasured years and glaciers can be better assessed. Substantial mass loss was confirmed for the three glaciers.
Chiyuki Narama, Mirlan Daiyrov, Murataly Duishonakunov, Takeo Tadono, Hayato Sato, Andreas Kääb, Jinro Ukita, and Kanatbek Abdrakhmatov
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 983–995, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-18-983-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-18-983-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
Four large drainages from glacial lakes occurred during 2006–2014 in the western Teskey Range, Kyrgyzstan. These floods caused extensive damage, killing people and livestock, as well as destroying property and crops. Due to their subsurface outlet, we refer to these short-lived glacial lakes as being of the
tunnel-type, a type that drastically grows and drains over a few months.
Solveig H. Winsvold, Andreas Kääb, Christopher Nuth, Liss M. Andreassen, Ward J. J. van Pelt, and Thomas Schellenberger
The Cryosphere, 12, 867–890, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-867-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-867-2018, 2018
B. Altena, A. Mousivand, J. Mascaro, and A. Kääb
Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., XLII-3-W3, 7–11, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLII-3-W3-7-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLII-3-W3-7-2017, 2017
Andreas Kääb, Bas Altena, and Joseph Mascaro
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 627–639, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-17-627-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-17-627-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
We evaluate for the first time a new class of optical satellite images for measuring Earth surface displacements due to earthquakes – images from cubesats. The PlanetScope cubesats used in this study are 10 cm × 10 cm × 30 cm small and standardized satellites. Around 120 of these cubesats orbit around Earth and are about to provide daily 2–4 m resolution images of the entire land surface of the Earth.
Luc Girod, Christopher Nuth, Andreas Kääb, Bernd Etzelmüller, and Jack Kohler
The Cryosphere, 11, 827–840, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-827-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-827-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
While gathering data on a changing environment is often a costly and complicated endeavour, it is also the backbone of all research. What if one could measure elevation change by just strapping a camera and a hiking GPS under an helicopter or a small airplane used for transportation and gather data on the ground bellow the flight path? In this article, we present a way to do exactly that and show an example survey where it helped compute the volume of ice lost by a glacier in Svalbard.
Tazio Strozzi, Andreas Kääb, and Thomas Schellenberger
The Cryosphere, 11, 553–566, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-553-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-553-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
The strong atmospheric warming observed since the 1990s in polar regions requires quantifying the contribution to sea level rise of glaciers and ice caps, but for large areas we do not have much information on ice dynamic fluctuations. The recent increase in satellite data opens up new possibilities to monitor ice flow. We observed over Stonebreen on Edgeøya (Svalbard) a strong increase since 2012 in ice surface velocity along with a decrease in volume and an advance in frontal extension.
Thomas Schellenberger, Thorben Dunse, Andreas Kääb, Thomas Vikhamar Schuler, Jon Ove Hagen, and Carleen H. Reijmer
The Cryosphere Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-2017-5, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-2017-5, 2017
Preprint withdrawn
Short summary
Short summary
Basin-3, NE-Svalbard, was still surging with 10 m d-1 in July 2016. After a speed peak of 18.8 m d-1 in Dec 2012/Jan 2013, speed-ups are overlying the fast flow every summer. The glacier is massively calving icebergs (5.2 Gt yr-1 ~ 2 L drinking water for every human being daily!) which in the same order of magnitude as all other Svalbard glaciers together.
Since autumn 2015 also Basin-2 is surging with maximum velocities of 8.7 m d-1, an advance of more than 2 km and a mass loss of 0.7 Gt yr-1.
Désirée Treichler and Andreas Kääb
The Cryosphere, 10, 2129–2146, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-10-2129-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-10-2129-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
Satellite data are often the only source of information on mountain glaciers. We show that data from ICESat laser satellite can accurately reflect glacier volume development in 2003–2008, also for individual years. We detect a spatially varying elevation bias in commonly used data sets, and provide a correction that strongly increases the significance of the glacier change estimates – a crucial driver of climate-induced meltwater changes that directly affect the life of lowland populations.
T. Schellenberger, T. Dunse, A. Kääb, J. Kohler, and C. H. Reijmer
The Cryosphere, 9, 2339–2355, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-2339-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-2339-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
Kronebreen and Kongsbreen are among the fastest flowing glaciers on Svalbard, and surface speeds reached up to 3.2m d-1 at Kronebreen in summer 2013 and 2.7m d-1 at Kongsbreen in late autumn 2012 as retrieved from SAR satellite data. Both glaciers retreated significantly during the observation period, Kongsbreen up to 1800m or 2.5km2 and Kronebreen up to 850m or 2.8km2. Both glaciers are important contributors to the total dynamic mass loss from the Svalbard archipelago.
A. Kääb, D. Treichler, C. Nuth, and E. Berthier
The Cryosphere, 9, 557–564, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-557-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-557-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
Based on satellite laser altimetry over the Pamir--Karakoram Himalaya we detect strongest elevation losses over east Nyainqentanglha Shan and Spiti--Lahaul but slight elevation gains over west Kunlun Shan rather than over Karakoram. The current sea-level contribution of Pamir--Karakoram Himalaya glaciers is about 10% of the total global contribution of glaciers outside the ice sheets. We also improve estimates of glacier imbalance contribution to river discharge in the Himalayas.
T. Dunse, T. Schellenberger, J. O. Hagen, A. Kääb, T. V. Schuler, and C. H. Reijmer
The Cryosphere, 9, 197–215, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-197-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-197-2015, 2015
A. Kääb, L. Girod, and I. Berthling
The Cryosphere, 8, 1041–1056, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-8-1041-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-8-1041-2014, 2014
C. Nuth, J. Kohler, M. König, A. von Deschwanden, J. O. Hagen, A. Kääb, G. Moholdt, and R. Pettersson
The Cryosphere, 7, 1603–1621, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-7-1603-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-7-1603-2013, 2013
J. Gardelle, E. Berthier, Y. Arnaud, and A. Kääb
The Cryosphere, 7, 1263–1286, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-7-1263-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-7-1263-2013, 2013
Juditha Aga, Livia Piermattei, Luc Girod, Kristoffer Aalstad, Trond Eiken, Andreas Kääb, and Sebastian Westermann
Earth Surf. Dynam., 12, 1049–1070, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1049-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1049-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Coastal rock cliffs on Svalbard are considered to be fairly stable; however, long-term trends in coastal-retreat rates remain unknown. This study examines changes in the coastline position along Brøggerhalvøya, Svalbard, using aerial images from 1970, 1990, 2010, and 2021. Our analysis shows that coastal-retreat rates accelerate during the period 2010–2021, which coincides with increasing storminess and retreating sea ice.
Diego Cusicanqui, Pascal Lacroix, Xavier Bodin, Benjamin Aubrey Robson, Andreas Kääb, and Shelley MacDonell
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2393, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2393, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
This study presents for the first time a robust methodological approach to detect and analyse rock glacier kinematics using 24 years of Landsat 7/8 imagery. Within a small region in the semi-arid andes, 382 movements were monitored showing an average velocity of 0.3 ± 0.07 m yr-1, with rock glaciers moving faster. We highlight the value of integrating optical imagery and radar interferometry supporting monitoring of rock glacier kinematics, using available medium-resolution optical imagery.
Livia Piermattei, Michael Zemp, Christian Sommer, Fanny Brun, Matthias H. Braun, Liss M. Andreassen, Joaquín M. C. Belart, Etienne Berthier, Atanu Bhattacharya, Laura Boehm Vock, Tobias Bolch, Amaury Dehecq, Inés Dussaillant, Daniel Falaschi, Caitlyn Florentine, Dana Floricioiu, Christian Ginzler, Gregoire Guillet, Romain Hugonnet, Matthias Huss, Andreas Kääb, Owen King, Christoph Klug, Friedrich Knuth, Lukas Krieger, Jeff La Frenierre, Robert McNabb, Christopher McNeil, Rainer Prinz, Louis Sass, Thorsten Seehaus, David Shean, Désirée Treichler, Anja Wendt, and Ruitang Yang
The Cryosphere, 18, 3195–3230, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-3195-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-3195-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Satellites have made it possible to observe glacier elevation changes from all around the world. In the present study, we compared the results produced from two different types of satellite data between different research groups and against validation measurements from aeroplanes. We found a large spread between individual results but showed that the group ensemble can be used to reliably estimate glacier elevation changes and related errors from satellite data.
Andreas Kääb and Luc Girod
The Cryosphere, 17, 2533–2541, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-2533-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-2533-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Following the detachment of the 130 × 106 m3 Sedongpu Glacier (south-eastern Tibet) in 2018, the Sedongpu Valley underwent massive large-volume landscape changes. An enormous volume of in total around 330 × 106 m3 was rapidly eroded, forming a new canyon of up to 300 m depth, 1 km width, and almost 4 km length. Such consequences of glacier change in mountains have so far not been considered at this magnitude and speed.
Sebastian Westermann, Thomas Ingeman-Nielsen, Johanna Scheer, Kristoffer Aalstad, Juditha Aga, Nitin Chaudhary, Bernd Etzelmüller, Simon Filhol, Andreas Kääb, Cas Renette, Louise Steffensen Schmidt, Thomas Vikhamar Schuler, Robin B. Zweigel, Léo Martin, Sarah Morard, Matan Ben-Asher, Michael Angelopoulos, Julia Boike, Brian Groenke, Frederieke Miesner, Jan Nitzbon, Paul Overduin, Simone M. Stuenzi, and Moritz Langer
Geosci. Model Dev., 16, 2607–2647, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-2607-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-2607-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
The CryoGrid community model is a new tool for simulating ground temperatures and the water and ice balance in cold regions. It is a modular design, which makes it possible to test different schemes to simulate, for example, permafrost ground in an efficient way. The model contains tools to simulate frozen and unfrozen ground, snow, glaciers, and other massive ice bodies, as well as water bodies.
Fuming Xie, Shiyin Liu, Yongpeng Gao, Yu Zhu, Tobias Bolch, Andreas Kääb, Shimei Duan, Wenfei Miao, Jianfang Kang, Yaonan Zhang, Xiran Pan, Caixia Qin, Kunpeng Wu, Miaomiao Qi, Xianhe Zhang, Ying Yi, Fengze Han, Xiaojun Yao, Qiao Liu, Xin Wang, Zongli Jiang, Donghui Shangguan, Yong Zhang, Richard Grünwald, Muhammad Adnan, Jyoti Karki, and Muhammad Saifullah
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 847–867, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-847-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-847-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
In this study, first we generated inventories which allowed us to systematically detect glacier change patterns in the Karakoram range. We found that, by the 2020s, there were approximately 10 500 glaciers in the Karakoram mountains covering an area of 22 510.73 km2, of which ~ 10.2 % is covered by debris. During the past 30 years (from 1990 to 2020), the total glacier cover area in Karakoram remained relatively stable, with a slight increase in area of 23.5 km2.
Maximillian Van Wyk de Vries, Shashank Bhushan, Mylène Jacquemart, César Deschamps-Berger, Etienne Berthier, Simon Gascoin, David E. Shean, Dan H. Shugar, and Andreas Kääb
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 3309–3327, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-22-3309-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-22-3309-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
On 7 February 2021, a large rock–ice avalanche occurred in Chamoli, Indian Himalaya. The resulting debris flow swept down the nearby valley, leaving over 200 people dead or missing. We use a range of satellite datasets to investigate how the collapse area changed prior to collapse. We show that signs of instability were visible as early 5 years prior to collapse. However, it would likely not have been possible to predict the timing of the event from current satellite datasets.
Frank Paul, Livia Piermattei, Désirée Treichler, Lin Gilbert, Luc Girod, Andreas Kääb, Ludivine Libert, Thomas Nagler, Tazio Strozzi, and Jan Wuite
The Cryosphere, 16, 2505–2526, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2505-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2505-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Glacier surges are widespread in the Karakoram and have been intensely studied using satellite data and DEMs. We use time series of such datasets to study three glacier surges in the same region of the Karakoram. We found strongly contrasting advance rates and flow velocities, maximum velocities of 30 m d−1, and a change in the surge mechanism during a surge. A sensor comparison revealed good agreement, but steep terrain and the two smaller glaciers caused limitations for some of them.
Bas Altena, Andreas Kääb, and Bert Wouters
The Cryosphere, 16, 2285–2300, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2285-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2285-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Repeat overflights of satellites are used to estimate surface displacements. However, such products lack a simple error description for individual measurements, but variation in precision occurs, since the calculation is based on the similarity of texture. Fortunately, variation in precision manifests itself in the correlation peak, which is used for the displacement calculation. This spread is used to make a connection to measurement precision, which can be of great use for model inversion.
M. Abrams, Y. Yamaguchi, and R. Crippen
Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., XLIII-B4-2022, 593–598, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLIII-B4-2022-593-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLIII-B4-2022-593-2022, 2022
Isabelle Gärtner-Roer, Nina Brunner, Reynald Delaloye, Wilfried Haeberli, Andreas Kääb, and Patrick Thee
The Cryosphere, 16, 2083–2101, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2083-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2083-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
We intensely investigated the Gruben site in the Swiss Alps, where glaciers and permafrost landforms closely interact, to better understand cold-climate environments. By the interpretation of air photos from 5 decades, we describe long-term developments of the existing landforms. In combination with high-resolution positioning measurements and ground surface temperatures, we were also able to link these to short-term changes and describe different landform responses to climate forcing.
Tazio Strozzi, Andreas Wiesmann, Andreas Kääb, Thomas Schellenberger, and Frank Paul
Earth Syst. Sci. Data Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2022-44, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2022-44, 2022
Revised manuscript not accepted
Short summary
Short summary
Knowledge on surface velocity of glaciers and ice caps contributes to a better understanding of a wide range of processes related to glacier dynamics, mass change and response to climate. Based on the release of historical satellite radar data from various space agencies we compiled nearly complete mosaics of winter ice surface velocities for the 1990's over the Eastern Arctic. Compared to the present state, we observe a general increase of ice velocities along with a retreat of glacier fronts.
Paul Willem Leclercq, Andreas Kääb, and Bas Altena
The Cryosphere, 15, 4901–4907, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4901-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4901-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
In this study we present a novel method to detect glacier surge activity. Surges are relevant as they disturb the link between glacier change and climate, and studying surges can also increase understanding of glacier flow. We use variations in Sentinel-1 radar backscatter strength, calculated with the use of Google Earth Engine, to detect surge activity. In our case study for the year 2018–2019 we find 69 cases of surging glaciers globally. Many of these were not previously known to be surging.
Andreas Kääb, Mylène Jacquemart, Adrien Gilbert, Silvan Leinss, Luc Girod, Christian Huggel, Daniel Falaschi, Felipe Ugalde, Dmitry Petrakov, Sergey Chernomorets, Mikhail Dokukin, Frank Paul, Simon Gascoin, Etienne Berthier, and Jeffrey S. Kargel
The Cryosphere, 15, 1751–1785, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-1751-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-1751-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Hardly recognized so far, giant catastrophic detachments of glaciers are a rare but great potential for loss of lives and massive damage in mountain regions. Several of the events compiled in our study involve volumes (up to 100 million m3 and more), avalanche speeds (up to 300 km/h), and reaches (tens of kilometres) that are hard to imagine. We show that current climate change is able to enhance associated hazards. For the first time, we elaborate a set of factors that could cause these events.
Andreas Kääb, Tazio Strozzi, Tobias Bolch, Rafael Caduff, Håkon Trefall, Markus Stoffel, and Alexander Kokarev
The Cryosphere, 15, 927–949, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-927-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-927-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We present a map of rock glacier motion over parts of the northern Tien Shan and time series of surface speed for six of them over almost 70 years.
This is by far the most detailed investigation of this kind available for central Asia.
We detect a 2- to 4-fold increase in rock glacier motion between the 1950s and present, which we attribute to atmospheric warming.
Relative to the shrinking glaciers in the region, this implies increased importance of periglacial sediment transport.
Andreas Alexander, Jaroslav Obu, Thomas V. Schuler, Andreas Kääb, and Hanne H. Christiansen
The Cryosphere, 14, 4217–4231, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4217-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4217-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
In this study we present subglacial air, ice and sediment temperatures from within the basal drainage systems of two cold-based glaciers on Svalbard during late spring and the summer melt season. We put the data into the context of air temperature and rainfall at the glacier surface and show the importance of surface events on the subglacial thermal regime and erosion around basal drainage channels. Observed vertical erosion rates thereby reachup to 0.9 m d−1.
Andreas Alexander, Maarja Kruusmaa, Jeffrey A. Tuhtan, Andrew J. Hodson, Thomas V. Schuler, and Andreas Kääb
The Cryosphere, 14, 1009–1023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-1009-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-1009-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
This work shows the potential of pressure and inertia sensing drifters to measure flow parameters along glacial channels. The technology allows us to record the spatial distribution of water pressures, as well as an estimation of the flow velocity along the flow path in the channels. The measurements show a high repeatability and the potential to identify channel morphology from sensor readings.
Jaroslav Obu, Sebastian Westermann, Gonçalo Vieira, Andrey Abramov, Megan Ruby Balks, Annett Bartsch, Filip Hrbáček, Andreas Kääb, and Miguel Ramos
The Cryosphere, 14, 497–519, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-497-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-497-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Little is known about permafrost in the Antarctic outside of the few research stations. We used a simple equilibrium permafrost model to estimate permafrost temperatures in the whole Antarctic. The lowest permafrost temperature on Earth is −36 °C in the Queen Elizabeth Range in the Transantarctic Mountains. Temperatures are commonly between −23 and −18 °C in mountainous areas rising above the Antarctic Ice Sheet, between −14 and −8 °C in coastal areas, and up to 0 °C on the Antarctic Peninsula.
Désirée Treichler, Andreas Kääb, Nadine Salzmann, and Chong-Yu Xu
The Cryosphere, 13, 2977–3005, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2977-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2977-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Glacier growth such as that found on the Tibetan Plateau (TP) is counterintuitive in a warming world. Climate models and meteorological data are conflicting about the reasons for this glacier anomaly. We quantify the glacier changes in High Mountain Asia using satellite laser altimetry as well as the growth of over 1300 inland lakes on the TP. Our study suggests that increased summer precipitation is likely the largest contributor to the recently observed increases in glacier and lake masses.
Andreas Kääb, Bas Altena, and Joseph Mascaro
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 4233–4247, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-4233-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-4233-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Knowledge of water surface velocities in rivers is useful for understanding a wide range of processes and systems, but is difficult to measure over large reaches. Here, we present a novel method to exploit near-simultaneous imagery produced by the Planet cubesat constellation to track river ice floes and estimate water surface velocities. We demonstrate the method for a 60 km long reach of the Amur River and a 200 km long reach of the Yukon River.
B. Altena, O. N. Haga, C. Nuth, and A. Kääb
Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., XLII-2-W13, 1723–1727, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLII-2-W13-1723-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLII-2-W13-1723-2019, 2019
Daniel Falaschi, Andreas Kääb, Frank Paul, Takeo Tadono, Juan Antonio Rivera, and Luis Eduardo Lenzano
The Cryosphere, 13, 997–1004, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-997-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-997-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
In March 2007, the Leñas Glacier in the Central Andes of Argentina collapsed and released an ice avalanche that travelled a distance of 2 km. We analysed aerial photos, satellite images and field evidence to investigate the evolution of the glacier from the 1950s through the present day. A clear potential trigger of the collapse could not be identified from available meteorological and seismic data, nor could a significant change in glacier geometry leading to glacier instability be detected.
Robert McNabb, Christopher Nuth, Andreas Kääb, and Luc Girod
The Cryosphere, 13, 895–910, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-895-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-895-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Estimating glacier changes involves measuring elevation changes, often using elevation models derived from satellites. Many elevation models have data gaps (voids), which affect estimates of glacier change. We compare 11 methods for interpolating voids, finding that some methods bias estimates of glacier change by up to 20 %, though most methods have a smaller effect. Some methods produce reliable results even with large void areas, suggesting that noisy elevation data are still useful.
Bas Altena, Ted Scambos, Mark Fahnestock, and Andreas Kääb
The Cryosphere, 13, 795–814, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-795-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-795-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Many glaciers in southern Alaska and the Yukon experience changes in flow speed, which occur in episodes or sporadically. These flow changes can be measured with satellites, but the resulting raw velocity products are messy. Thus in this study we developed an automatic method to produce a synthesized velocity product over a large glacier region of roughly 600 km by 200 km. Velocities are at a monthly resolution and at 300 m resolution, making all kinds of glacier dynamics observable.
Luc Girod, Niels Ivar Nielsen, Frédérique Couderette, Christopher Nuth, and Andreas Kääb
Geosci. Instrum. Method. Data Syst., 7, 277–288, https://doi.org/10.5194/gi-7-277-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/gi-7-277-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
Historical surveys performed through the use of aerial photography gave us the first maps of the Arctic. Nearly a century later, a renewed interest in studying the Arctic is rising from the need to understand and quantify climate change. It is therefore time to dig up the archives and extract the maximum of information from the images using the most modern methods. In this study, we show that the aerial survey of Svalbard in 1936–38 provides us with valuable data on the archipelago's glaciers.
Adrien Gilbert, Silvan Leinss, Jeffrey Kargel, Andreas Kääb, Simon Gascoin, Gregory Leonard, Etienne Berthier, Alina Karki, and Tandong Yao
The Cryosphere, 12, 2883–2900, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-2883-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-2883-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
In Tibet, two glaciers suddenly collapsed in summer 2016 and produced two gigantic ice avalanches, killing nine people. This kind of phenomenon is extremely rare. By combining a detailed modelling study and high-resolution satellite observations, we show that the event was triggered by an increasing meltwater supply in the fine-grained material underneath the two glaciers. Contrary to what is often thought, this event is not linked to a change in the thermal condition at the glacier base.
Martina Barandun, Matthias Huss, Ryskul Usubaliev, Erlan Azisov, Etienne Berthier, Andreas Kääb, Tobias Bolch, and Martin Hoelzle
The Cryosphere, 12, 1899–1919, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-1899-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-1899-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
In this study, we used three independent methods (in situ measurements, comparison of digital elevation models and modelling) to reconstruct the mass change from 2000 to 2016 for three glaciers in the Tien Shan and Pamir. Snow lines observed on remote sensing images were used to improve conventional modelling by constraining a mass balance model. As a result, glacier mass changes for unmeasured years and glaciers can be better assessed. Substantial mass loss was confirmed for the three glaciers.
Chiyuki Narama, Mirlan Daiyrov, Murataly Duishonakunov, Takeo Tadono, Hayato Sato, Andreas Kääb, Jinro Ukita, and Kanatbek Abdrakhmatov
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 983–995, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-18-983-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-18-983-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
Four large drainages from glacial lakes occurred during 2006–2014 in the western Teskey Range, Kyrgyzstan. These floods caused extensive damage, killing people and livestock, as well as destroying property and crops. Due to their subsurface outlet, we refer to these short-lived glacial lakes as being of the
tunnel-type, a type that drastically grows and drains over a few months.
Solveig H. Winsvold, Andreas Kääb, Christopher Nuth, Liss M. Andreassen, Ward J. J. van Pelt, and Thomas Schellenberger
The Cryosphere, 12, 867–890, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-867-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-867-2018, 2018
B. Altena, A. Mousivand, J. Mascaro, and A. Kääb
Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., XLII-3-W3, 7–11, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLII-3-W3-7-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLII-3-W3-7-2017, 2017
Andreas Kääb, Bas Altena, and Joseph Mascaro
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 627–639, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-17-627-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-17-627-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
We evaluate for the first time a new class of optical satellite images for measuring Earth surface displacements due to earthquakes – images from cubesats. The PlanetScope cubesats used in this study are 10 cm × 10 cm × 30 cm small and standardized satellites. Around 120 of these cubesats orbit around Earth and are about to provide daily 2–4 m resolution images of the entire land surface of the Earth.
Luc Girod, Christopher Nuth, Andreas Kääb, Bernd Etzelmüller, and Jack Kohler
The Cryosphere, 11, 827–840, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-827-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-827-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
While gathering data on a changing environment is often a costly and complicated endeavour, it is also the backbone of all research. What if one could measure elevation change by just strapping a camera and a hiking GPS under an helicopter or a small airplane used for transportation and gather data on the ground bellow the flight path? In this article, we present a way to do exactly that and show an example survey where it helped compute the volume of ice lost by a glacier in Svalbard.
Tazio Strozzi, Andreas Kääb, and Thomas Schellenberger
The Cryosphere, 11, 553–566, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-553-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-553-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
The strong atmospheric warming observed since the 1990s in polar regions requires quantifying the contribution to sea level rise of glaciers and ice caps, but for large areas we do not have much information on ice dynamic fluctuations. The recent increase in satellite data opens up new possibilities to monitor ice flow. We observed over Stonebreen on Edgeøya (Svalbard) a strong increase since 2012 in ice surface velocity along with a decrease in volume and an advance in frontal extension.
Thomas Schellenberger, Thorben Dunse, Andreas Kääb, Thomas Vikhamar Schuler, Jon Ove Hagen, and Carleen H. Reijmer
The Cryosphere Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-2017-5, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-2017-5, 2017
Preprint withdrawn
Short summary
Short summary
Basin-3, NE-Svalbard, was still surging with 10 m d-1 in July 2016. After a speed peak of 18.8 m d-1 in Dec 2012/Jan 2013, speed-ups are overlying the fast flow every summer. The glacier is massively calving icebergs (5.2 Gt yr-1 ~ 2 L drinking water for every human being daily!) which in the same order of magnitude as all other Svalbard glaciers together.
Since autumn 2015 also Basin-2 is surging with maximum velocities of 8.7 m d-1, an advance of more than 2 km and a mass loss of 0.7 Gt yr-1.
Désirée Treichler and Andreas Kääb
The Cryosphere, 10, 2129–2146, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-10-2129-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-10-2129-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
Satellite data are often the only source of information on mountain glaciers. We show that data from ICESat laser satellite can accurately reflect glacier volume development in 2003–2008, also for individual years. We detect a spatially varying elevation bias in commonly used data sets, and provide a correction that strongly increases the significance of the glacier change estimates – a crucial driver of climate-induced meltwater changes that directly affect the life of lowland populations.
M. Abrams
Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., XLI-B4, 107–110, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLI-B4-107-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLI-B4-107-2016, 2016
T. Schellenberger, T. Dunse, A. Kääb, J. Kohler, and C. H. Reijmer
The Cryosphere, 9, 2339–2355, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-2339-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-2339-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
Kronebreen and Kongsbreen are among the fastest flowing glaciers on Svalbard, and surface speeds reached up to 3.2m d-1 at Kronebreen in summer 2013 and 2.7m d-1 at Kongsbreen in late autumn 2012 as retrieved from SAR satellite data. Both glaciers retreated significantly during the observation period, Kongsbreen up to 1800m or 2.5km2 and Kronebreen up to 850m or 2.8km2. Both glaciers are important contributors to the total dynamic mass loss from the Svalbard archipelago.
A. Kääb, D. Treichler, C. Nuth, and E. Berthier
The Cryosphere, 9, 557–564, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-557-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-557-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
Based on satellite laser altimetry over the Pamir--Karakoram Himalaya we detect strongest elevation losses over east Nyainqentanglha Shan and Spiti--Lahaul but slight elevation gains over west Kunlun Shan rather than over Karakoram. The current sea-level contribution of Pamir--Karakoram Himalaya glaciers is about 10% of the total global contribution of glaciers outside the ice sheets. We also improve estimates of glacier imbalance contribution to river discharge in the Himalayas.
T. Dunse, T. Schellenberger, J. O. Hagen, A. Kääb, T. V. Schuler, and C. H. Reijmer
The Cryosphere, 9, 197–215, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-197-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-197-2015, 2015
A. Kääb, L. Girod, and I. Berthling
The Cryosphere, 8, 1041–1056, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-8-1041-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-8-1041-2014, 2014
C. Nuth, J. Kohler, M. König, A. von Deschwanden, J. O. Hagen, A. Kääb, G. Moholdt, and R. Pettersson
The Cryosphere, 7, 1603–1621, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-7-1603-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-7-1603-2013, 2013
J. Gardelle, E. Berthier, Y. Arnaud, and A. Kääb
The Cryosphere, 7, 1263–1286, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-7-1263-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-7-1263-2013, 2013
Related subject area
Subject: Rivers and Lakes | Techniques and Approaches: Remote Sensing and GIS
Effect of the spatial resolution of digital terrain data obtained by drone on urban fluvial flood modeling of mountainous regions
Meteorological ingredients of heavy precipitation and subsequent lake-filling episodes in the northwestern Sahara
A mathematical model to improve water storage of glacial lake prediction towards addressing glacial lake outburst floods
High-resolution automated detection of headwater streambeds for large watersheds
Remote quantification of the trophic status of Chinese lakes
Hydrological regime of Sahelian small waterbodies from combined Sentinel-2 MSI and Sentinel-3 Synthetic Aperture Radar Altimeter data
Deriving transmission losses in ephemeral rivers using satellite imagery and machine learning
Long-term water clarity patterns of lakes across China using Landsat series imagery from 1985 to 2020
Changes in glacial lakes in the Poiqu River basin in the central Himalayas
Assimilation of probabilistic flood maps from SAR data into a coupled hydrologic–hydraulic forecasting model: a proof of concept
A simple cloud-filling approach for remote sensing water cover assessments
Evaluation of historic and operational satellite radar altimetry missions for constructing consistent long-term lake water level records
Sentinel-3 radar altimetry for river monitoring – a catchment-scale evaluation of satellite water surface elevation from Sentinel-3A and Sentinel-3B
Assessing the capabilities of the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission for large lake water surface elevation monitoring under different wind conditions
Assimilation of wide-swath altimetry water elevation anomalies to correct large-scale river routing model parameters
Technical Note: Flow velocity and discharge measurement in rivers using terrestrial and unmanned-aerial-vehicle imagery
River-ice and water velocities using the Planet optical cubesat constellation
Exposure of tourism development to salt karst hazards along the Jordanian Dead Sea shore
A global lake and reservoir volume analysis using a surface water dataset and satellite altimetry
Surface water monitoring in small water bodies: potential and limits of multi-sensor Landsat time series
Technical note: Bathymetry observations of inland water bodies using a tethered single-beam sonar controlled by an unmanned aerial vehicle
Satellite-derived light extinction coefficient and its impact on thermal structure simulations in a 1-D lake model
Observing river stages using unmanned aerial vehicles
Quantification of the contribution of the Beauce groundwater aquifer to the discharge of the Loire River using thermal infrared satellite imaging
Swath-altimetry measurements of the main stem Amazon River: measurement errors and hydraulic implications
Satellite radar altimetry for monitoring small rivers and lakes in Indonesia
Quantifying river form variations in the Mississippi Basin using remotely sensed imagery
Geometric dependency of Tibetan lakes on glacial runoff
Assessing the potential hydrological impact of the Gibe III Dam on Lake Turkana water level using multi-source satellite data
River monitoring from satellite radar altimetry in the Zambezi River basin
Flood occurrence mapping of the middle Mahakam lowland area using satellite radar
Satellite remote sensing of water turbidity in Alqueva reservoir and implications on lake modelling
Hydro-physical processes at the plunge point: an analysis using satellite and in situ data
Regional scale analysis of landform configuration with base-level (isobase) maps
Reconstructing the Tropical Storm Ketsana flood event in Marikina River, Philippines
Reading the bed morphology of a mountain stream: a geomorphometric study on high-resolution topographic data
Xingyu Zhou, Lunwu Mou, Tianqi Ao, Xiaorong Huang, and Haiyan Yang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 29, 1963–1980, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-1963-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-1963-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
This study explores using drone-acquired digital terrain models (DTMs) for flood modeling of mountainous urban rivers. Terrain analysis indicates that a DTM resolution of 1 m–5 m is optimal for accurate flood modeling. In larger cities with non-extreme discharge volumes, a resolution of 5 m–10 m can suffice for modeling inundation areas, although it may slightly overestimate flood depth. This provides a balance between model accuracy and processing costs.
Joëlle C. Rieder, Franziska Aemisegger, Elad Dente, and Moshe Armon
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 29, 1395–1427, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-1395-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-1395-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
The Sahara was wetter in the past and may become wetter in the future. Lake remnants are evidence of the desert’s wetter past. If the Sahara gets wetter in the future, these lakes may serve as a water resource. However, it is unclear how these lakes get filled and how moisture is carried into the desert and converted into rain in the first place. Therefore, we examine processes currently leading to the filling of a dry lake in the Sahara, which can help assess future water availability.
Miaomiao Qi, Shiyin Liu, Zhifang Zhao, Yongpeng Gao, Fuming Xie, Georg Veh, Letian Xiao, Jinlong Jing, Yu Zhu, and Kunpeng Wu
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 29, 969–982, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-969-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-969-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
Here we propose a new mathematically robust and cost-effective model to improve glacial lake water storage estimation. We have also provided a dataset of measured water storage in glacial lakes through field depth measurements. Our model incorporates an automated calculation process and outperforms previous ones, achieving an average relative error of only 14 %. This research offers a valuable tool for researchers seeking to improve the risk assessment of glacial lake outburst floods.
Francis Lessard, Naïm Perreault, and Sylvain Jutras
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 28, 1027–1040, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-1027-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-1027-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Headwaters streams, which are small streams at the top of a watershed, represent two-thirds of the total length of streams, yet their exact locations are still unknown. This article compares different techniques in order to remotely detect the position of these streams. Thus, a database of more than 464 km of headwaters was used to explain what drives their presence. A technique developed in this article makes it possible to detect headwater streams with more accuracy, despite the land uses.
Sijia Li, Shiqi Xu, Kaishan Song, Tiit Kutser, Zhidan Wen, Ge Liu, Yingxin Shang, Lili Lyu, Hui Tao, Xiang Wang, Lele Zhang, and Fangfang Chen
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 3581–3599, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-3581-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-3581-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
1. Blue/red and green/red Rrs(λ) are sensitive to lake TSI. 2. Machine learning algorithms reveal optimum performance of TSI retrieval. 3. An accurate TSI model was achieved by MSI imagery data and XGBoost. 4. Trophic status in five limnetic regions was qualified. 5. The 10m TSI products were first produced in 555 typical lakes in China.
Mathilde de Fleury, Laurent Kergoat, and Manuela Grippa
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 2189–2204, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-2189-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-2189-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
This study surveys small lakes and reservoirs, which are vital resources in the Sahel, through a multi-sensor satellite approach. Water height changes compared to evaporation losses in dry seasons highlight anthropogenic withdrawals and water supplies due to river and groundwater connections. Some reservoirs display weak withdrawals, suggesting low usage may be due to security issues. The
satellite-derived water balance thus proved effective in estimating water resources in semi-arid areas.
Antoine Di Ciacca, Scott Wilson, Jasmine Kang, and Thomas Wöhling
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 703–722, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-703-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-703-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
We present a novel framework to estimate how much water is lost by ephemeral rivers using satellite imagery and machine learning. This framework proved to be an efficient approach, requiring less fieldwork and generating more data than traditional methods, at a similar accuracy. Furthermore, applying this framework improved our understanding of the water transfer at our study site. Our framework is easily transferable to other ephemeral rivers and could be applied to long time series.
Xidong Chen, Liangyun Liu, Xiao Zhang, Junsheng Li, Shenglei Wang, Yuan Gao, and Jun Mi
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 3517–3536, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-3517-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-3517-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
A 30 m LAke Water Secchi Depth (LAWSD30) dataset of China was first developed for 1985–2020, and national-scale water clarity estimations of lakes in China over the past 35 years were analyzed. Lake clarity in China exhibited a significant downward trend before the 21st century, but improved after 2000. The developed LAWSD30 dataset and the evaluation results can provide effective guidance for water preservation and restoration.
Pengcheng Su, Jingjing Liu, Yong Li, Wei Liu, Yang Wang, Chun Ma, and Qimin Li
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 5879–5903, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-5879-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-5879-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We identified ± 150 glacial lakes in the Poiqu River basin (central Himalayas), and we explore the changes in five lakes over the last few decades based on remote sensing images, field surveys, and satellite photos. We reconstruct the lake basin topography, calculate the water capacity, and propose a water balance equation (WBE) to explain glacial lake evolution in response to local weather conditions. The WBE also provides a framework for the water balance in rivers from glacierized sources.
Concetta Di Mauro, Renaud Hostache, Patrick Matgen, Ramona Pelich, Marco Chini, Peter Jan van Leeuwen, Nancy K. Nichols, and Günter Blöschl
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 4081–4097, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-4081-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-4081-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
This study evaluates how the sequential assimilation of flood extent derived from synthetic aperture radar data can help improve flood forecasting. In particular, we carried out twin experiments based on a synthetically generated dataset with controlled uncertainty. Our empirical results demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed data assimilation framework, as forecasting errors are substantially reduced as a result of the assimilation.
Connor Mullen, Gopal Penny, and Marc F. Müller
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 2373–2386, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2373-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2373-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
The level of lake water is rapidly changing globally, and long-term, consistent observations of lake water extents are essential for ascertaining and attributing these changes. These data are rarely collected and challenging to obtain from satellite imagery. The proposed method addresses these challenges without any local data, and it was successfully validated against lakes with and without ground data. The algorithm is a valuable tool for the reliable historical water extent of changing lakes.
Song Shu, Hongxing Liu, Richard A. Beck, Frédéric Frappart, Johanna Korhonen, Minxuan Lan, Min Xu, Bo Yang, and Yan Huang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1643–1670, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1643-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1643-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
This study comprehensively evaluated 11 satellite radar altimetry missions (including their official retrackers) for lake water level retrieval and developed a strategy for constructing consistent long-term water level records for inland lakes. It is a two-step bias correction and normalization procedure. First, we use Jason-2 as the initial reference to form a consistent TOPEX/Poseidon–Jason series. Then, we use this as the reference to remove the biases with other radar altimetry missions.
Cecile M. M. Kittel, Liguang Jiang, Christian Tøttrup, and Peter Bauer-Gottwein
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 333–357, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-333-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-333-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
In poorly instrumented catchments, satellite altimetry offers a unique possibility to obtain water level observations. Improvements in instrument design have increased the capabilities of altimeters to observe inland water bodies, including rivers. In this study, we demonstrate how a dense Sentinel-3 water surface elevation monitoring network can be established at catchment scale using publicly accessible processing platforms. The network can serve as a useful supplement to ground observations.
Jean Bergeron, Gabriela Siles, Robert Leconte, Mélanie Trudel, Damien Desroches, and Daniel L. Peters
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 5985–6000, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-5985-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-5985-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
We want to assess how well the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite mission will be able to provide information on lake surface water elevation and how much of an impact wind conditions (speed and direction) can have on these retrievals.
Charlotte Marie Emery, Sylvain Biancamaria, Aaron Boone, Sophie Ricci, Mélanie C. Rochoux, Vanessa Pedinotti, and Cédric H. David
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 2207–2233, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-2207-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-2207-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
The flow of freshwater in rivers is commonly studied with computer programs known as hydrological models. An important component of those programs lies in the description of the river environment, such as the channel resistance to the flow, that is critical to accurately predict the river flow but is still not well known. Satellite data can be combined with models to enrich our knowledge of these features. Here, we show that the coming SWOT mission can help better know this channel resistance.
Anette Eltner, Hannes Sardemann, and Jens Grundmann
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 1429–1445, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-1429-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-1429-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
An automatic workflow is introduced to measure surface flow velocities in rivers. The provided tool enables the measurement of spatially distributed surface flow velocities independently of the image acquisition perspective. Furthermore, the study illustrates how river discharge in previously ungauged and unmeasured regions can be retrieved, considering the image-based flow velocities and digital elevation models of the studied river reach reconstructed with UAV photogrammetry.
Andreas Kääb, Bas Altena, and Joseph Mascaro
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 4233–4247, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-4233-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-4233-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Knowledge of water surface velocities in rivers is useful for understanding a wide range of processes and systems, but is difficult to measure over large reaches. Here, we present a novel method to exploit near-simultaneous imagery produced by the Planet cubesat constellation to track river ice floes and estimate water surface velocities. We demonstrate the method for a 60 km long reach of the Amur River and a 200 km long reach of the Yukon River.
Najib Abou Karaki, Simone Fiaschi, Killian Paenen, Mohammad Al-Awabdeh, and Damien Closson
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 2111–2127, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-2111-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-2111-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
The Dead Sea shore is a unique salt karst system. Development began in the 1960s, when the water resources that used to feed the Dead Sea were diverted. The water level is falling at more than 1 m yr−1, causing a hydrostatic disequilibrium between the underground fresh water and the base level. Despite these conditions, tourism development projects have flourished. Here, we show that a 10 km long strip of coast that encompasses several resorts is exposed to subsidence, sinkholes and landslides.
Tim Busker, Ad de Roo, Emiliano Gelati, Christian Schwatke, Marko Adamovic, Berny Bisselink, Jean-Francois Pekel, and Andrew Cottam
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 669–690, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-669-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-669-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
This paper estimates lake and reservoir volume variations over all continents from 1984 to 2015 using remote sensing alone. This study improves on previous methodologies by using the Global Surface Water dataset developed by the Joint Research Centre, which allowed for volume calculations on a global scale, a high resolution (30 m) and back to 1984 using very detailed lake area dynamics. Using 18 in situ volume time series as validation, our volume estimates showed a high accuracy.
Andrew Ogilvie, Gilles Belaud, Sylvain Massuel, Mark Mulligan, Patrick Le Goulven, and Roger Calvez
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 4349–4380, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-4349-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-4349-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
Accurate monitoring of surface water extent is essential for hydrological investigation of small lakes (1–10 ha), which supports millions of smallholder farmers. Landsat monitoring of long-term surface water dynamics is shown to be suited to lakes over 3 ha based on extensive hydrometric data from seven field sites over 15 years. MNDWI water classification optimized here for the specificities of small water bodies reduced mean surface area errors by 57 % compared to published global datasets.
Filippo Bandini, Daniel Olesen, Jakob Jakobsen, Cecile Marie Margaretha Kittel, Sheng Wang, Monica Garcia, and Peter Bauer-Gottwein
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 4165–4181, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-4165-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-4165-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
Water depth observations are essential data to forecast flood hazard, predict sediment transport, or monitor in-stream habitats. We retrieved bathymetry with a sonar wired to a drone. This system can improve the speed and spatial scale at which water depth observations are retrieved. Observations can be retrieved also in unnavigable or inaccessible rivers. Water depth observations showed an accuracy of ca. 2.1 % of actual depth, without being affected by water turbidity or bed material.
Kiana Zolfaghari, Claude R. Duguay, and Homa Kheyrollah Pour
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 377–391, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-377-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-377-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
A remotely-sensed water clarity value (Kd) was applied to improve FLake model simulations of Lake Erie thermal structure using a time-invariant (constant) annual value as well as monthly values of Kd. The sensitivity of FLake model to Kd values was studied. It was shown that the model is very sensitive to variations in Kd when the value is less than 0.5 m-1.
Tomasz Niedzielski, Matylda Witek, and Waldemar Spallek
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 3193–3205, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-3193-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-3193-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
We study detectability of changes in water surface areas on orthophotomaps. We use unmanned aerial vehicles to acquire visible light photographs. We offer a new method for detecting changes in water surface areas and river stages. The approach is based on the application of the Student's t test, in asymptotic and bootstrapped versions. We test our approach on aerial photos taken during 3-year observational campaign. We detect transitions between all characteristic river stages using drone data.
E. Lalot, F. Curie, V. Wawrzyniak, F. Baratelli, S. Schomburgk, N. Flipo, H. Piegay, and F. Moatar
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 4479–4492, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-4479-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-4479-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
This work shows that satellite thermal infrared images (LANDSAT) can be used to locate and quantify groundwater discharge into a large river (Loire River, France - 100 to 300 m wide). Groundwater discharge rate is found to be highly variable with time and space and maximum during flow recession periods and in winter. The main identified groundwater discharge area into the Loire River corresponds to a known discharge area of the Beauce aquifer.
M. D. Wilson, M. Durand, H. C. Jung, and D. Alsdorf
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 1943–1959, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-1943-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-1943-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
We use a virtual mission analysis on a ca. 260km reach of the central Amazon River to assess the hydraulic implications of potential measurement errors in swath-altimetry imagery from the forthcoming Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite mission. We estimated water surface slope from imagery of water heights and then derived channel discharge. Errors in estimated discharge were lowest when using longer reach lengths and channel cross-sectional averaging to estimate water slopes.
Y. B. Sulistioadi, K.-H. Tseng, C. K. Shum, H. Hidayat, M. Sumaryono, A. Suhardiman, F. Setiawan, and S. Sunarso
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 341–359, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-341-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-341-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
This paper investigates the possibility of monitoring small water bodies through Envisat altimetry observation. A novel approach is introduced to identify qualified and non-qualified altimetry measurements by assessing the waveform shapes for each returned radar signal. This research indicates that small lakes (extent < 100 km2) and medium-sized rivers (e.g., 200--800 m in width) can be successfully monitored by satellite altimetry.
Z. F. Miller, T. M. Pavelsky, and G. H. Allen
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 4883–4895, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-4883-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-4883-2014, 2014
Short summary
Short summary
Many previous studies have used stream gauge data to estimate patterns of river width and depth based on variations in river discharge. However, these relationships may not capture all of the actual variability in width and depth. We have instead mapped the widths of all of the rivers wider than 100 m (and many narrower) in the Mississippi Basin and then used them to also improve estimates of depth as well. Our results show width and depth variations not captured by power-law relationships.
V. H. Phan, R. C. Lindenbergh, and M. Menenti
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 4061–4077, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-4061-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-4061-2013, 2013
N. M. Velpuri and G. B. Senay
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 16, 3561–3578, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-3561-2012, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-3561-2012, 2012
C. I. Michailovsky, S. McEnnis, P. A. M. Berry, R. Smith, and P. Bauer-Gottwein
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 16, 2181–2192, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-2181-2012, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-2181-2012, 2012
H. Hidayat, D. H. Hoekman, M. A. M. Vissers, and A. J. F. Hoitink
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 16, 1805–1816, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-1805-2012, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-1805-2012, 2012
M. Potes, M. J. Costa, and R. Salgado
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 16, 1623–1633, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-1623-2012, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-1623-2012, 2012
A. T. Assireu, E. Alcântara, E. M. L. M. Novo, F. Roland, F. S. Pacheco, J. L. Stech, and J. A. Lorenzzetti
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 15, 3689–3700, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-15-3689-2011, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-15-3689-2011, 2011
C. H. Grohmann, C. Riccomini, and M. A. C. Chamani
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 15, 1493–1504, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-15-1493-2011, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-15-1493-2011, 2011
C. C. Abon, C. P. C. David, and N. E. B. Pellejera
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 15, 1283–1289, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-15-1283-2011, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-15-1283-2011, 2011
S. Trevisani, M. Cavalli, and L. Marchi
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 14, 393–405, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-14-393-2010, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-14-393-2010, 2010
Cited articles
Abrams, M., Hook, S., and Ramachandran, B.: ASTER User Handbook. Version 2, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, 2002.
ArcticRIMS: A regional, integrated hydrological monitoring system for the pan-Arctic land mass, http://rims.unh.edu/, 2013.
Beltaos, S. and Kääb, A.: River discharge during ice breackup from satellite imagery, Cold Reg. Sci. Technol., 98, 35–46, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coldregions.2013.10.010, 2013.
Bjerklie, D. M., Dingman, S. L., Vorosmarty, C. J., Bolster, C. H., and Congalton, R. G.: Evaluating the potential for measuring river discharge from space, J. Hydrol., 278, 17–38, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-1694(03)00129-X, 2003.
Bjerklie, D. M., Moller, D., Smith, L. C., and Dingman, S. L.: Estimating discharge in rivers using remotely sensed hydraulic information, J. Hydrol., 309, 191–209, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2004.11.022, 2005.
Costard, F. and Gautier, E.: The Lena River: hyrdomorphodynamic features in a deep permafrost zone, in: Large Rivers. Geomorphology and Mangement, edited by: Gupta, A., John Wiley and Sons Ltd., West Sussex, England, 225–234, 2007.
De Michele, M., Leprince, S., Thiebot, J., Raucoules, D., and Binet, R.: Direct measurement of ocean waves velocity field from a single SPOT-5 dataset, Remote. Sens. Environ., 119, 266–271, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2011.12.014, 2012.
Debella-Gilo, M. and Kääb, A.: Sub-pixel precision image matching for measuring surface displacements on mass movements using normalized cross-correlation, Remote Sens. Environ., 115, 130–142, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2010.08.012, 2011a.
Debella-Gilo, M. and Kääb, A.: Locally adaptive template sizes in matching repeat images of Earth surface mass movements, ISPRS J Photogramm, 69, 10–28, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2010.08.012, 2011b.
Garay, M. J. and Diner, D. J.: Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) time-lapse imagery of tsunami waves from the 26 December 2004 Sumatra-Andaman earthquake, Remote Sens. Environ., 107, 256–263, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2006.10.022, 2007.
Gerard, R. L. and Davar, K. S.: Introduction, in: River Ice Jams, edited by: Beltaos, S., Water Resources Rublication, LLC Highlands Ranch, CO, 1–28, 1995.
Grabs, W. E., Fortmann, F., and De Couuel, T.: Discharge observation networks in Arctic regions: Computation of the river runoff into the Arctic Ocean, its seasonality and variability, The Freshwater Budget of the Arctic Ocean, Tallin, 249–268, 1998.
Heid, T. and Kääb, A.: Evaluation of existing image matching methods for deriving glacier surface displacements globally from optical satellite imagery, Remote Sens. Environ., 118, 339–355, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2011.11.024, 2012.
Jasek, M. and Beltaos, S.: Ice-jam release: javes, ice runs and breaking fronts, in: River Ice Breakup, edited by: Beltaos, S., Water Resources Rublication, LLC Highlands Ranch, CO, 247–303, 2008.
Kääb, A. and Vollmer, M.: Surface geometry, thickness changes and flow fields on creeping mountain permafrost: automatic extraction by digital image analysis, Permafrost Periglac, 11, 315–326, 2000.
Kääb, A. and Prowse, T.: Cold-regions river flow observed from space, Geophys. Res. Lett., 38, L08403, https://doi.org/10.1029/2011GL047022, 2011.
Kääb, A.: Correlation Image Analysis software (CIAS), http://www.mn.uio.no/icemass, 2013.
Leprince, S., Barbot, S., Ayoub, F., and Avouac, J. P.: Automatic and precise orthorectification, coregistration, and subpixel correlation of satellite images, application to ground deformation measurements, Ieee T. Geosci. Remote, 45, 1529–1558, https://doi.org/10.1109/Tgrs.2006.888937, 2007.
Matthews, J.: Stereo observation of lakes and coastal zones using ASTER imagery, Remote Sens. Environ., 99, 16–30, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2005.04.029, 2005.
Matthews, J. P. and Awaji, T.: Synoptic mapping of internal-wave motions and surface currents near the Lombok Strait using the Along-Track Stereo Sun Glitter technique, Remote Sens. Environ., 114, 1765–1776, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2010.03.007, 2010.
Mermoz, S., Allain, S., Bernier, M., Pottier, E., and Gherboudj, I.: Classification of river ice using polarimetric SAR data, Can. J. Remote Sens., 35, 460–473, 2009.
Nuth, C. and Kääb, A.: Co-registration and bias corrections of satellite elevation data sets for quantifying glacier thickness change, Cryosphere, 5, 271–290, 2011.
Pavelsky, T. M. and Smith, L. C.: Spatial and temporal patterns in Arctic river ice breakup observed with MODIS and AVHRR time series, Remote Sens. Environ., 93, 328–338, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2004.07.018, 2004.
Peterson, B. J., Holmes, R. M., McClelland, J. W., Vorosmarty, C. J., Lammers, R. B., Shiklomanov, A. I., Shiklomanov, I. A., and Rahmstorf, S.: Increasing river discharge to the Arctic Ocean, Science, 298, 2171–2173, 2002.
Prowse, T. D.: Environmental significance of ice to streamflow in cold regions, Freshwater Biol., 32, 241–259, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2427.1994.tb01124.x, 1994.
Prowse, T. D. and Culp, J. M.: Ice breakup: a neglected factor in river ecology, Can. J. Civil Eng., 30, 128–144, https://doi.org/10.1139/L02-040, 2003.
Prowse, T. D.: River-ice hydrology, in: Encyclopedia of Hydrological Sciences, edited by: Anderson, M. G., John Wiley and Sons Ltd., West Sussex, England, 2657–2677, 2005.
Prowse, T. D., Bonsal, B., Duguay, C. R., Hessen, D. O., and Vuglinsky, V. S.: River and lake ice, in: Global Outlook for Ice and Snow, United Nations Environment Programme, 201–214, 2007.
Romeiser, R., Runge, H., Suchandt, S., Sprenger, J., Weilbeer, H., Sohrmann, A., and Stammer, D.: Current measurements in rivers by spaceborne along-track InSAR, Ieee T. Geosci. Remote, 45, 4019–4031, https://doi.org/10.1109/Tgrs.2007.904837, 2007.
Romeiser, R., Suchandt, S., Runge, H., Steinbrecher U., and Grünler, S.: First analysis of TerraSAR-X along-track InSAR-derived current fields, Ieee T. Geosci. Remote, 48, 820–829, https://doi.org/10.1109/Tgrs.2009.2030885, 2010.
Shiklomanov, A. I., Yakovleva, T. I., Lammers, R. B., Karasev, I. P., Vorosmarty, C. J., and Linder, E.: Cold region river discharge uncertainty – estimates from large Russian rivers, J. Hydrol., 326, 231–256, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2005.10.037, 2006.
Siegmund, R., Bao, M. Q., Lehner, S., and Mayerle, R.: First demonstration of surface currents imaged by hybrid along- and cross-track interferometric SAR, Ieee T. Geosci. Remote, 42, 511–519, https://doi.org/10.1109/Tgrs.2003.817816, 2004.
Smith, L. C.: Satellite remote sensing of river inundation area, stage, and discharge: A review, Hydrol. Process, 11, 1427–1439, 1997.
Smith, L. C.: Emerging applications of interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) in geomorphology and hydrology, Ann. Assoc. Am. Geogr., 92, 385–398, 2002.
Smith, L. C. and Pavelsky, T. M.: Estimation of river discharge, propagation speed, and hydraulic geometry from space: Lena River, Siberia, Water Resour. Res., 44, W03427, https://doi.org/10.1029/2007wr006133, 2008.
Teshima, Y. and Iwasaki, A.: Correction of attitude fluctuation of terra spacecraft using ASTER/SWIR imagery with parallax observation, Ieee T. Geosci. Remote, 46, 222–227, https://doi.org/10.1109/Tgrs.2007.907424, 2008.
Unterschultz, K. D., van der Sanden, J., and Hicks, F. E.: Potential of RADARSAT-1 for the monitoring of river ice: Results of a case study on the Athabasca River at Fort McMurray, Canada, Cold Reg. Sci. Technol., 55, 238–248, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coldregions.2008.02.003, 2009.
Viewfinderpanoramas: http://www.viewfinderpanoramas.org, 2013.
Vincent, F., Raucoules, D., Degroeve, T., Edwards, G., and Mostafavi, M. A.: Detection of river/sea ice deformation using satellite interferometry: limits and potential, Int. J. Remote Sens., 25, 3555–3571, https://doi.org/10.1080/01431160410001688303, 2004.
White, K. D. and Beltaos, S.: Development of ice-affected satge-frequency curves, in: River Ice Breakup, edited by: Beltaos, S., Water Resources Rublication, LLC Highlands Ranch, CO, 305–348, 2008.
Yang, D. Q., Kane, D. L., Hinzman, L. D., Zhang, X. B., Zhang, T. J., and Ye, H. C.: Siberian Lena River hydrologic regime and recent change, J. Geophys. Res.-Atmos., 107, 4694, https://doi.org/10.1029/2002jd002542, 2002.
Yang, D. Q., Zhao, Y. Y., Armstrong, R., Robinson, D., and Brodzik, M. J.: Streamflow response to seasonal snow cover mass changes over large Siberian watersheds, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth., 112, F02s22, https://doi.org/10.1029/2006jf000518, 2007.
Ye, B. S., Yang, D. Q., and Kane, D. L.: Changes in Lena River streamflow hydrology: Human impacts versus natural variations, Water Resour. Res., 39, 1200, https://doi.org/10.1029/2003wr001991, 2003.
Ye, B. S., Yang, D. Q., Zhang, Z. L., and Kane, D. L.: Variation of hydrological regime with permafrost coverage over Lena Basin in Siberia, J. Geophys. Res.-Atmos., 114, D07102, https://doi.org/10.1029/2008jd010537, 2009.
