Articles | Volume 16, issue 8
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3071-2022
© Author(s) 2022. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3071-2022
© Author(s) 2022. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Modelling glacier mass balance and climate sensitivity in the context of sparse observations: application to Saskatchewan Glacier, western Canada
Christophe Kinnard
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Centre de Recherche sur les Interactions Bassins
Versants – Écosystèmes Aquatiques (RIVE), Département des
Sciences de l'Environnement, Université du Québec à
Trois-Rivières, Trois-Rivières, Quebec, G8Z 4M3, Canada
Centre d'Études Nordiques (CEN), Québec, Quebec, G1V 0A6, Canada
Olivier Larouche
Centre de Recherche sur les Interactions Bassins
Versants – Écosystèmes Aquatiques (RIVE), Département des
Sciences de l'Environnement, Université du Québec à
Trois-Rivières, Trois-Rivières, Quebec, G8Z 4M3, Canada
Centre d'Études Nordiques (CEN), Québec, Quebec, G1V 0A6, Canada
Michael N. Demuth
Coldwater Laboratory, University of Saskatchewan, Canmore, Saskatchewan, T1W 3G1, Canada
Brian Menounos
Department of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Northern British Columbia, Prince George, British Columbia, V2N 4Z9, Canada
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- Measuring glacial sustainability using glacial mass balance at Baspa Basin, India A. Arya & H. Santhanam https://doi.org/10.1007/s00704-026-06548-6
- Interpretation of glacier mass change within the Upper Yukon Watershed from GRACE using Explainable Automated Machine Learning Algorithms C. Doumbia et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2024.132519
14 citations as recorded by crossref.
- Meteorological control on snow depth evolution and snowpack energy exchanges in an agro-forested environment by a measurement-based approach: A case study in Sainte-Marthe, Eastern Canada V. Dharmadasa et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2024.109915
- Satellite telemetry of surface ablation to inform spatial melt modelling and event-scale monitoring, Place Glacier, Canada A. Bevington et al. https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-811-2026
- Sentinel 1A data-based glacier facies identification, mass balance and its response to climate change: A focus on benchmark glaciers of the North Western Himalaya A. Taloor et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rcar.2025.06.001
- Multi-Objective Validation of the Runoff Formation Model in the High-Mountain River Basin of the Central Caucasus E. Pavlyukevich et al. https://doi.org/10.24057/2071-9388-2025-3887
- Modern air, englacial and permafrost temperatures at high altitude on Mt Ortles (3905 m a.s.l.), in the eastern European Alps L. Carturan et al. https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-4661-2023
- Helm Glacier projected to vanish within a decade J. Crompton et al. https://doi.org/10.1017/aog.2026.10043
- Applying a distributed mass-balance model to identify uncertainties in glaciological mass balance on Brewster Glacier, New Zealand B. Abrahim et al. https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2022.123
- The new fashion for sustainable consumption: would you buy carbon label textiles?: Innovative conceptual model based on the theory of planned behavior and signaling theory D. Zhang et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-025-06252-x
- Multiproxy tree ring reconstruction of glacier mass balance: insights from Pinus cembra trees growing near Silvretta Glacier (Swiss Alps) J. Lopez-Saez et al. https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-1251-2024
- Multidecadal estimation of hydrological contribution and glacier mass balance in the semi-arid Andes based on physically based modeling and geodetic mass balance A. Mejías et al. https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2025.1517081
- Evaluation of reanalysis data and dynamical downscaling for surface energy balance modeling at mountain glaciers in western Canada C. Draeger et al. https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-17-2024
- Do changes in land use and climate change overlap? An analysis of the World Bank Data V. Spalevic et al. https://doi.org/10.1002/ldr.5259
- Measuring glacial sustainability using glacial mass balance at Baspa Basin, India A. Arya & H. Santhanam https://doi.org/10.1007/s00704-026-06548-6
- Interpretation of glacier mass change within the Upper Yukon Watershed from GRACE using Explainable Automated Machine Learning Algorithms C. Doumbia et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2024.132519
Saved (final revised paper)
Latest update: 26 Oct 2026
Short summary
This study implements a physically based, distributed glacier mass balance model in a context of sparse direct observations. Carefully constraining model parameters with ancillary data allowed for accurately reconstructing the mass balance of Saskatchewan Glacier over a 37-year period. We show that the mass balance sensitivity to warming is dominated by increased melting and that changes in glacier albedo and air humidity are the leading causes of increased glacier melt under warming scenarios.
This study implements a physically based, distributed glacier mass balance model in a context of...