Using atmospherically-corrected Landsat imagery to measure glacier area change in the Cordillera Blanca, Peru from 1987 to 2010

Burns, Patrick J.; Nolin, A. W.

doi:10.1016/j.rse.2013.08.026

Cited by 168 publications

(135 citation statements)

References 40 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

130

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…These glaciers are rapidly retreating primarily as a result of warming temperatures (Vuille et al, 2008(Vuille et al, , 2003. Most recently Burns and Nolin (2014) calculated a 25 % reduction in glacier area from 1987 to 2010. Similarly, Racoviteanu et al (2008) calculated a 22.4 % glacier area reduction from 1970 to 2003, during which time the mean glacier terminus elevation increased by 113 m. Glacier changes are altering downstream hydrology, changing water supply in terms of quantity, quality and timing (Baraer et al, 2009(Baraer et al, , 2012Chevallier et al, 2011;Condom et al, 2011;Juen et al, 2007;Kaser et al, 2003;Rabatel et al, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Similarly, Racoviteanu et al (2008) calculated a 22.4 % glacier area reduction from 1970 to 2003, during which time the mean glacier terminus elevation increased by 113 m. Glacier changes are altering downstream hydrology, changing water supply in terms of quantity, quality and timing (Baraer et al, 2009(Baraer et al, , 2012Chevallier et al, 2011;Condom et al, 2011;Juen et al, 2007;Kaser et al, 2003;Rabatel et al, 2013). These changes have profound impacts on downstream communities, livelihoods and ecology (Bury et al, 2013(Bury et al, , 2011Carey et al, 2014;Mark et al, 2010;Postigo et al, 2008;Young, 2009Young, , 2014. Additionally, rapidly melting glaciers are increasing the number and volume of unstable proglacial lakes that present a serious natural hazard through potential glacier lake outburst floods (GLOFs) (Carey, 2008;Carey et al, 2012;Huggel et al, 2002;Lliboutry et al, 1977; O.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, few detailed studies of these processes have focussed on the Cordillera Blanca. Remote sensing (satellite and airborne) has been widely used to quantify aerial changes in glacier extent for the Cordillera Blanca and is routinely applied in national-level inventories (ANA, 2014;Burns and Nolin, 2014). However, detailed studies of glacier melt processes and volumetric changes have been limited in the Cordillera Blanca due in part to the extreme topographic variation, generally small glacier size (typically less than 0.5 km 2 ) and paucity of suitable datasets.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Monitoring tropical debris-covered glacier dynamics from high-resolution unmanned aerial vehicle photogrammetry, Cordillera Blanca, Peru

Wigmore

Mark

2017

The Cryosphere

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. The glaciers of the Cordillera Blanca, Peru, are rapidly retreating and thinning as a result of climate change, altering the timing, quantity and quality of water available to downstream users. Furthermore, increases in the number and size of proglacial lakes associated with these melting glaciers is increasing potential exposure to glacier lake outburst floods (GLOFs). Understanding how these glaciers are changing and their connection to proglacial lake systems is thus of critical importance. Most satellite data are too coarse for studying small mountain glaciers and are often affected by cloud cover, while traditional airborne photogrammetry and lidar are costly. Recent developments have made unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) a viable and potentially transformative method for studying glacier change at high spatial resolution, on demand and at relatively low cost.Using a custom designed hexacopter built for high-altitude (4000-6000 m a.s.l.) operation, we completed repeat aerial surveys (2014 and 2015) of the debris-covered Llaca Glacier tongue and proglacial lake system. High-resolution orthomosaics (5 cm) and digital elevation models (DEMs) (10 cm) were produced and their accuracy assessed. Analysis of these datasets reveals highly heterogeneous patterns of glacier change. The most rapid areas of ice loss were associated with exposed ice cliffs and meltwater ponds on the glacier surface. Considerable subsidence and low surface velocities were also measured on the sediments within the pro-glacial lake, indicating the presence of extensive regions of buried ice and continued connection to the glacier tongue. Only limited horizontal retreat of the glacier tongue was observed, indicating that measurements of changes in aerial extent alone are inadequate for monitoring changes in glacier ice quantity.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Monitoring tropical debris-covered glacier dynamics from high-resolution unmanned aerial vehicle photogrammetry, Cordillera Blanca, Peru

Wigmore

Mark

2017

The Cryosphere

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Attempts at automated mapping of DCGs from remotely-sensed multispectral data have met with limited success due to the spectral similarity of supraglacial debris to nearby bedrock, moraines, and fluvial deposition features (Racoviteanu, Williams and Barry 2008, Burns and Nolin 2014. Data-fusion approaches that leverage terrain and/or thermal data alongside multispectral data have yielded improved results in certain geographic regions, but remain unproven in others Arora 2010, Bolch et al 2007).…”

Section: List Of Tablesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recent research has demonstrated the value of performing atmospheric corrections of satellite data before use in glaciological applications (Burns and Nolin 2014). For the present research, the Landsat OLI scene was first converted from raw digital numbers (DNs) to at-sensor radiance using the Radiometric Calibration tool in the Environment for Visualization of Imagery (ENVI) v5.1 software package (Exelis Visual Information Solutions, Boulder, Colorado).…”

Section: Image Preprocessingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mapping debris-covered glaciers in the Cordillera Blanca, Peru : an object-based image analysis approach.

Biddle¹

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Biddle,, Donald J. 1982-, "Mapping debris-covered glaciers in the Cordillera Blanca, Peru : an object-based image analysis approach." (2015). ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSThere are so many people without whose guidance and support this thesis would not have come to fruition. To thank them all by name would be major work in its own right! If I must pare the list for this limited space it should begin with my advisors, Dr. Keith Mountain and Dr. Andrea Gaughan. They challenged me to be the best version of myself, even -nay -especially when it was not the easiest way forward. Thank you also to Dr.Michael Croasdaile for putting his geographer's hat back on to see me through this process, and providing an invaluable outside perspective. A very special thank you to Dr.Carol Hanchette, for her patient encouragement over the (many) years it has taken to reach this point. She reminded me that yes, I can do this. Thanks to Forrest Stevens for the crash course in R coding and machine learning that led to a major breakthrough that helped push me over the hump with this project. My brain still hurts. To my lovely wife Nicole, thank you for putting up with me through the deepest moments of frustration, and being a constant companion, confidante, and comedy sidekick…not just now, but always. Accurate remote-sensing based inventories of glacial ice are often hindered by the presence of supraglacial debris cover. Attempts at automated mapping of debris-covered glacier areas from remotely-sensed multispectral data have met with limited success due to the spectral similarity of supraglacial debris to nearby bedrock, moraines, and fluvial deposition features. Data-fusion approaches leveraging terrain and/or thermal data with multispectral data have yielded improved results in certain geographic regions, but remain unproven in others. This research builds on the data-fusion approaches from the literature and explores the efficacy of object-based image analysis (OBIA) and tree-based machine learning classifiers using Landsat OLI imagery and SRTM elevation data, in effort to map debris-covered glaciers in the Cordillera Blanca range of Peru. Results suggest that the OBIA and machine learning methods render advantages over traditional methods given the unique morphological settings associated with debris-covered glaciers.

show abstract

Forecasting the response of Earth's surface to future climatic and land use changes: A review of methods and research needs

et al. 2015

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In the future, Earth will be warmer, precipitation events will be more extreme, global mean sea level will rise, and many arid and semiarid regions will be drier. Human modifications of landscapes will also occur at an accelerated rate as developed areas increase in size and population density. We now have gridded global forecasts, being continually improved, of the climatic and land use changes (C&LUC) that are likely to occur in the coming decades. However, besides a few exceptions, consensus forecasts do not exist for how these C&LUC will likely impact Earth-surface processes and hazards. In some cases, we have the tools to forecast the geomorphic responses to likely future C&LUC. Fully exploiting these models and utilizing these tools will require close collaboration among Earth-surface scientists and Earth-system modelers. This paper assesses the state-of-the-art tools and data that are being used or could be used to forecast changes in the state of Earth's surface as a result of likely future C&LUC. We also propose strategies for filling key knowledge gaps, emphasizing where additional basic research and/or collaboration across disciplines are necessary. The main body of the paper addresses cross-cutting issues, including the importance of nonlinear/threshold-dominated interactions among topography, vegetation, and sediment transport, as well as the importance of alternate stable states and extreme, rare events for understanding and forecasting Earth-surface response to C&LUC. Five supplements delve into different scales or process zones (global-scale assessments and fluvial, aeolian, glacial/periglacial, and coastal process zones) in detail.

show abstract

Using atmospherically-corrected Landsat imagery to measure glacier area change in the Cordillera Blanca, Peru from 1987 to 2010

Cited by 168 publications

References 40 publications

Monitoring tropical debris-covered glacier dynamics from high-resolution unmanned aerial vehicle photogrammetry, Cordillera Blanca, Peru

Monitoring tropical debris-covered glacier dynamics from high-resolution unmanned aerial vehicle photogrammetry, Cordillera Blanca, Peru

Mapping debris-covered glaciers in the Cordillera Blanca, Peru : an object-based image analysis approach.

Forecasting the response of Earth's surface to future climatic and land use changes: A review of methods and research needs

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About