Université de Fribourg

Modelling glacier-bed overdeepenings and possible future lakes for the glaciers in the Himalaya—Karakoram region

Linsbauer, Andreas ; Frey, H. ; Haeberli, Winfried ; Machguth, Horst ; Azam, M. F. ; Allen, S.

In: Annals of Glaciology, 2016, vol. 57, no. 71, p. 119–130

Surface digital elevation models (DEMs) and slope-related estimates of glacier thickness enable modelling of glacier-bed topographies over large ice-covered areas. Due to the erosive power of glaciers, such bed topographies can contain numerous overdeepenings, which when exposed following glacier retreat may fill with water and form new lakes. In this study, the bed overdeepenings for ~28 000...

Université de Fribourg

Recent and future warm extreme events and high-mountain slope stability

Huggel, C. ; Salzmann, Nadine ; Allen, S. ; Caplan-Auerbach, J. ; Fischer, L. ; Haeberli, W. ; Larsen, C. ; Schneider, D. ; Wessels, R.

In: Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences, 2010, vol. 368, no. 1919, p. 2435-2459

The number of large slope failures in some high-mountain regions such as the European Alps has increased during the past two to three decades. There is concern that recent climate change is driving this increase in slope failures, thus possibly further exacerbating the hazard in the future. Although the effects of a gradual temperature rise on glaciers and permafrost have been extensively...