In this study, we (1) acquire real-time information on point glacier mass balance with autonomous real-time cameras and (2) assimilate these observations into a mass balance model ensemble driven by meteorological input. For doing so, we use a customized particle filter that we designed for the specific purposes of our study. We find melt rates of up to 0.12 m water equivalent per day and show that our assimilation method has a higher performance than reference mass balance models.

Research into the use of deep learning for pixel-level classification of landscapes containing marine-terminating glaciers is lacking. We adapt a novel and transferable deep learning workflow to classify satellite imagery containing marine-terminating outlet glaciers in Greenland. Our workflow achieves high accuracy and mimics human visual performance, potentially providing a useful tool to monitor glacier change and further understand the impacts of climate change in complex glacial settings.

Landfast ice is sea ice that remains stationary by attaching to Antarctica's coastline and grounded icebergs. Although a variable feature, landfast ice exerts influence on key coastal processes involving pack ice, the ice sheet, ocean, and atmosphere and is of ecological importance. We present a first analysis of change in landfast ice over an 18-year period and quantify trends (−0.19 ± 0.18 % yr⁻¹). This analysis forms a reference of landfast-ice extent and variability for use in other studies.

Dense spatially distributed networks of autonomous instruments for continuously measuring the amount of snow on the ground are needed for operational water resource and flood management and the monitoring of northern climate change. Four new-generation non-invasive sensors are compared. A review of their advantages, drawbacks and accuracy is discussed. This performance analysis is intended to help researchers and decision-makers choose the one system that is best suited to their needs.

The Hadley Centre Global Environment Model version 3 (HadGEM3) is the first coupled climate model to simulate an ice-free summer Arctic during the Last Interglacial (LIG), 127 000 years ago, and yields accurate Arctic surface temperatures. We investigate the causes and impacts of this extreme simulated ice loss and, in particular, the role of melt ponds.

The ICESat-2 laser altimeter can detect the surface and bottom of a supraglacial lake. We introduce the Watta algorithm, automatically calculating lake surface, corrected bottom, and (sub-)surface ice at high resolution adapting to signal strength. ICESat-2 depths constrain full lake depths of 46 lakes over Jakobshavn glacier using multiple sources of imagery, including very high-resolution Planet imagery, used for the first time to extract supraglacial lake depths empirically using ICESat-2.

Glacier-dammed lakes are prone to draining rapidly when the ice dam breaks and constitute a serious threat to populations downstream. Such a lake drainage can proceed through an open-air channel at the glacier surface. In this study, we present what we believe to be the most complete dataset to date of an ice-dammed lake drainage through such an open-air channel. We provide new insights for future glacier-dammed lake drainage modelling studies and hazard assessments.

Our paper presents results of sample collection and subsequent geochemical analyses from the glaciated Isfallsglaciären catchment in Arctic Sweden. The data suggest that material found on the surface of glaciers, cryoconite, is very efficient at accumulating products of nuclear fallout transported in the atmosphere following events such as the Chernobyl disaster. We investigate how this compares with samples in the downstream environment and consider potential environmental implications.

We present and compare different geostatistical methods for underglacial bedrock interpolation. Variogram-based interpolations are compared with a multipoint statistics approach on both test cases and real glaciers. Using the modeled bedrock, the ice volume for the Scex Rouge and Tsanfleuron glaciers (Swiss Alps) was estimated to be 113.9 ± 1.6 million cubic meters. Complex karstic geomorphological features are reproduced and can be used to improve the precision of underglacial flow estimation.

We present a 20-year, satellite-based record of velocity and thickness change on the Thwaites Eastern Ice Shelf (TEIS), the largest remaining floating extension of Thwaites Glacier (TG). TG holds the single greatest control on sea-level rise over the next few centuries, so it is important to understand changes on the TEIS, which controls much of TG's flow into the ocean. Our results suggest that the TEIS is progressively destabilizing and is likely to disintegrate over the next few decades.

We provide novel insight into the temporal evolution of supraglacial lakes across six major Antarctic ice shelves in 2015–2021. For Antarctic Peninsula ice shelves, we observe extensive meltwater ponding during the 2019–2020 and 2020–2021 summers. Over East Antarctica, lakes were widespread during 2016–2019 and at a minimum in 2020–2021. We investigate environmental controls, revealing lake ponding to be coupled to atmospheric modes, the near-surface climate and the local glaciological setting.

Conventional methods used to measure snow have many limitations which hinder our ability to document annual cycles, test predictive models, or analyze the impact of climate change. A modern snow measurement method using in situ cosmic ray neutron sensors demonstrates the capability of continuously measuring spatially variable snowpacks with considerable accuracy. These sensors can provide important data for testing models, validating remote sensing, and water resource management applications.

We present a new digital elevation model (DEM) of Antarctica derived from the TanDEM-X DEM, with new interferometric radar acquisitions incorporated and edited elevations, especially at the coast. A strength of this DEM is its homogeneity and completeness. Extensive validation work shows a vertical accuracy of just -0.3 m ± 2.5 m standard deviation on blue ice surfaces compared to ICESat laser altimeter heights. The new TanDEM-X PolarDEM 90 m of Antarctica is freely available.

We examined the spatiotemporal distribution of stored water in the seasonal snowpack over High Mountain Asia, based on a new snow reanalysis dataset. The dataset was derived utilizing satellite-observed snow information, which spans across 18 water years, at a high spatial (~ 500 m) and temporal (daily) resolution. Snow mass and snow storage distribution over space and time are analyzed in this paper, which brings new insights into understanding the snowpack variability over this region.