Inventory and classification of the post Little Ice Age glacial lakes in Svalbard

Abstract

Abstract. Rapid changes of glacial lakes are among the most visible indicators of global warming in glacierized areas around the world. The general trend is that the area and number of glacial lakes increase significantly in high mountain areas and polar latitudes. However, there is a lack of knowledge about the current state of glacial lakes in the High Arctic. This study aims to address this issue by providing the first glacial lake inventory from Svalbard, with focus on the genesis and evolution of glacial lakes since the end of the Little Ice Age. We use aerial photographs and topographic data from 1936 to 2012 and satellite imagery from 2013 to 2020. The inventory includes the development of 566 glacial lakes (total area of 145.91 km2) that were in direct contact with glaciers in 2008–2012. From the 1990s to the end of the 2000s, the total glacial lake area increased by nearly a factor of six. A decrease in the number of lakes between 2012 and 2020 is related to two main processes: the drainage of 197 lakes and the merger of smaller reservoirs into larger ones. The changes of glacial lakes show how climate change in the High Arctic affect proglacial geomorphology by enhanced formation of glacial lakes, leading to higher risks associated with glacier lake outburst floods in Svalbard.

Lakes expansion and emergence of potentially dangerous glacier lakes in Astore River Basin, Western Himalaya during 1993-2021

“…Small lakes were discovered with a signi cant increase in number and area seasonally, almost doubling in the last decade (2014-2021). This nding is consistent with prior research, which shows that glacier lakes are visible markers of global warming, with their extent and number growing dramatically in high mountain areas(Wieczorek et al, 2022).…”

Estimating Suspended Sediment Fluxes from the Largest Glacial Lake in Svalbard to Fjord System Using Sentinel-2 Data: Trebrevatnet Case Study

“…In the following decades it developed very rapidly, due to the intensive recession of the nearby glaciers, meaning that by the 1990s its surface area was already 0.99 km 2 (perimeter 10.06 km). The largest lake area was observed in 2013 (August) and was 20.87 km 2 (36 km perimeter) [25]. These data therefore indicate a very extensive lake shoreline that is subject to seasonal fluctuations with an indication of July-August as the period where there is a peak in lake water extent.…”

“…However, sediment deposition in the lake basin might be interrupted by abrupt drainage due to instability and continuous melt of the frontal ice-cored moraine [26]. These kind of lake dams are considered to be the most vulnerable to GLOF events [25].…”

“…Overall, the glacierized area of Svalbard has decreased by about 14.8% [24]. Retreating glaciers leave space in the proglacial area for the development of glacial lakes, the largest number of which on Svalbard are moraine-dammed lakes (52%) [25]. Moraine dams, due to their unconsolidated structure, are dams that are often subject to seasonal changes.…”

Glacial Outburst Floods Responsible for Major Environmental Shift in Arctic Coastal Catchment, Rekvedbukta, Albert I Land, Svalbard

“…Occurring almost simultaneously with changes in the Arctic coastal geomorphology, proglacial zones of rapidly retreating glaciers have experienced severe modification, with the accelerated formation of new glacial lakes and associated glacial outburst floods (GLOFs) [21][22][23][24][25]. As recent studies have shown, the Svalbard Archipelago also follows the global trend of rapid glacial lake development since the end of the Little Ice Age (LIA) [22] and the occurrence of glacial floods [22,26].…”