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Article Dans Une Revue Journal of Glaciology Année : 2023

Exceptional thinning through the entire altitudinal range of Mont-Blanc glaciers during the 2021/22 mass balance year

Résumé

Widespread glacier losses have been observed in most glaciated regions on Earth during recent decades, with a typical pattern of strong thinning in their lower reaches and limited elevation changes in their accumulation areas. Here, we use Pléiades satellite stereo-images of the Mont-Blanc massif (Alps) to reveal that thinning took place through the entire elevation range during the exceptional 2021/22 mass-balance year. Above 3000 m a.s.l. on Argentière glacier and Mer de Glace, thinning rates exceeded 3.5 m a −1 while almost no change occurred during the previous 9 years. Below 3000 m a.s.l., these anomalous thinning rates are essentially explained by changes in surface mass balance. At higher altitudes, other processes such as firn densification may play a role. Our analysis shows that high altitude glaciers, mostly stable during the last 100 years, are now responding to the impact of climate change.
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Dates et versions

hal-04405804 , version 1 (20-01-2024)

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Etienne Berthier, Christian Vincent, Delphine Six. Exceptional thinning through the entire altitudinal range of Mont-Blanc glaciers during the 2021/22 mass balance year. Journal of Glaciology, 2023, pp.1-6. ⟨10.1017/jog.2023.100⟩. ⟨hal-04405804⟩
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