Preprints
https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2024-323
https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2024-323
12 Aug 2024
 | 12 Aug 2024
Status: this preprint is currently under review for the journal ESSD.

Annual mass changes for each glacier in the world from 1976 to 2023

Ines Dussaillant, Romain Hugonnet, Matthias Huss, Etienne Berthier, Jacqueline Bannwart, Frank Paul, and Michael Zemp

Abstract. Glaciers, distinct from the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, play a crucial role in Earth's climate system by affecting global sea levels, freshwater availability, nutrient and energy budgets and regional climate patterns. Accurate measurements of glacier mass changes are needed to understand and project glacier evolution and its related impacts on the climate system. Two distinct methods allow to measure glacier mass changes at high spatial resolution. Remotely sensed surface elevation data provides volume change estimates over large glacierized regions for multi-annual to decadal time periods. Field glaciological measurements provide annually to seasonally resolved information on glacier mass change for a small sample of the world’s glaciers. By combining the two methods we provide annual time series of individual glacier mass changes and related uncertainties spanning the hydrological years from 1976 to 2023. The per-glacier time series can then be seamlessly integrated into annually resolved global regular grids of glacier mass changes at user-specified spatial resolution. Our results undergo a leave-one-out cross-validation confirming uncertainty estimates at the glacier level to be in the conservative side. Our dataset provides a new baseline for future glacier change modelling assessments and their impact on the world's energy, water, and sea-level budget. The present annual mass change time-series for the individual glaciers and the derived global gridded annual mass change product at a spatial resolution of 0.5° latitude and longitude will be made available from the WGMS webpage. During the review process, the dataset is temporarily available from URL: https://user.geo.uzh.ch/idussa/Dussaillant_etal_ESSD_data/.

Publisher's note: Copernicus Publications remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims made in the text, published maps, institutional affiliations, or any other geographical representation in this preprint. The responsibility to include appropriate place names lies with the authors.
Ines Dussaillant, Romain Hugonnet, Matthias Huss, Etienne Berthier, Jacqueline Bannwart, Frank Paul, and Michael Zemp

Status: open (until 11 Oct 2024)

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Comment on essd-2024-323', Anonymous Referee #1, 13 Sep 2024 reply
  • RC2: 'Comment on essd-2024-323', Anonymous Referee #2, 04 Oct 2024 reply
Ines Dussaillant, Romain Hugonnet, Matthias Huss, Etienne Berthier, Jacqueline Bannwart, Frank Paul, and Michael Zemp

Data sets

Fluctuations of glaciers database World Glacier Monitoring Service (WGMS) https://doi.org/10.5904/wgms-fog-2024-01

Randolph glacier inventory version 6 RGI consortium 2017 https://doi.org/10.7265/4m1f-gd79

Ines Dussaillant, Romain Hugonnet, Matthias Huss, Etienne Berthier, Jacqueline Bannwart, Frank Paul, and Michael Zemp

Viewed

Total article views: 1,079 (including HTML, PDF, and XML)
HTML PDF XML Total BibTeX EndNote
760 294 25 1,079 12 13
  • HTML: 760
  • PDF: 294
  • XML: 25
  • Total: 1,079
  • BibTeX: 12
  • EndNote: 13
Views and downloads (calculated since 12 Aug 2024)
Cumulative views and downloads (calculated since 12 Aug 2024)

Viewed (geographical distribution)

Total article views: 1,018 (including HTML, PDF, and XML) Thereof 1,018 with geography defined and 0 with unknown origin.
Country # Views %
  • 1
1
 
 
 
 
Latest update: 09 Oct 2024
Download
Short summary
Our research observes glacier mass changes worldwide from 1976 to 2023, revealing an alarming increase in melt, especially in the last decade and a record year 2023. By combining field and satellite observations, we provide annual mass changes for all glaciers in the world, showing significant contributing to global sea level rise. This work underscores the need for ongoing local monitoring and global climate action to mitigate the effects of glacier loss and its broader environmental impacts​.
Altmetrics