We studied snow processes in the accumulation area of Mera Glacier (central Himalaya, Nepal) by deploying a cosmic ray counting sensor that allows one to track the evolution of snow water equivalent. We suspect significant surface melting, water percolation, and refreezing within the snowpack, which might be missed by traditional mass balance surveys.

This paper introduces the AtsMOS workflow, a new tool for improving weather forecasts in mountainous areas. By combining advanced statistical techniques with local weather data, AtsMOS can provide more accurate predictions of weather conditions. Using data from Mount Everest as an example, AtsMOS has shown promise in better forecasting hazardous weather conditions, making it a valuable tool for communities in mountainous regions and beyond.

This study analyses the basal sliding and the hydrological drainage of Baltoro Glacier, Pakistan. The surface velocity was characterized by a spring speed-up, summer peak, and autumn speed-up. Snow melt has the largest impact on the spring speed-up, summer velocity peak, and the transition from inefficient to efficient drainage. Drainage from supraglacial lakes contributed to the fall speed-up. Increased summer temperatures will intensify the magnitude of meltwater and thus surface velocities.

This study presents a database compiling 95 ice temperature profiles from the Greenland ice sheet and peripheral ice caps. Ice viscosity and hence ice flow are highly sensitive to ice temperature. To highlight the value of the database in evaluating ice flow simulations, profiles from the Greenland ice sheet are compared to a modeled temperature field. Reoccurring discrepancies between modeled and observed temperatures provide insight on the difficulties faced when simulating ice temperatures.

Kyagar Glacier in the Karakoram is well known for its surge history and its frequent blocking of the downstream valley, leading to a series of high-magnitude glacial lake outburst floods. Using it as a test bed, we develop a new approach for quantifying surge behaviour using successive digital elevation models. This method could be applied to other surge studies. Combined with the results from optical satellite images, we also reconstruct the surge process in unprecedented detail.

Hazards from glaciers are becoming more likely as the climate warms, which poses a threat to communities living beneath them. We have developed a new camera system which can capture regular, high-quality 3D models to monitor small changes in glaciers which could be indicative of a future hazard. This system is far cheaper than more typical camera sensors yet produces very similar quality data. We suggest that deploying these cameras near glaciers could assist in warning communities of hazards.

Glaciers in Antarctica have been decreasing in size at a fast rate, leading to the expansion of proglacial areas, with wide-ranging ecological implications. Several global land-cover maps exist, but they do not include Antarctica. We map land cover types across West Antarctica and the McMurdo Dry Valleys to a high degree of accuracy (77.0 %). We highlight the spatial variation in land cover and emphasise the need for more field data.

Surging glaciers show cyclical changes in flow behavior – between slow and fast flow – and can have drastic impacts on settlements in their vicinity. One of the clusters of surging glaciers worldwide is High Mountain Asia (HMA). We present an inventory of surging glaciers in HMA, identified from satellite imagery. We show that the number of surging glaciers was underestimated and that they represent 20 % of the area covered by glaciers in HMA, before discussing new physics for glacier surges.