Articles | Volume 18, issue 2
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-719-2024
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-719-2024
Research article
 | 
19 Feb 2024
Research article |  | 19 Feb 2024

A low-cost and open-source approach for supraglacial debris thickness mapping using UAV-based infrared thermography

Jérôme Messmer and Alexander Raphael Groos

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Cited articles

Anderson, L. S., Armstrong, W. H., Anderson, R. S., and Buri, P.: Debris cover and the thinning of Kennicott Glacier, Alaska: in situ measurements, automated ice cliff delineation and distributed melt estimates, The Cryosphere, 15, 265–282, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-265-2021, 2021. a
Anderson, R. S., Anderson, L. S., Armstrong, W. H., Rossi, M. W., and Crump, S. E.: Glaciation of alpine valleys: The glacier – debris-covered glacier – rock glacier continuum, Geomorphology, 311, 127–142, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2018.03.015, 2018. a, b
Aubry-Wake, C., Baraër, M., McKenzie, J. M., Mark, B. G., Wigmore, O., Hellström, R. Å., Lautz, L., and Somers, L.: Measuring Glacier Surface Temperatures with Ground-Based Thermal Infrared Imaging, Geophys. Res. Lett., 42, 8489–8497, https://doi.org/10.1002/2015GL065321, 2015. a, b
Aubry-Wake, C., Zéphir, D., Baraër, M., McKenzie, J. M., and Mark, B. G.: Importance of Longwave Emissions from Adjacent Terrain on Patterns of Tropical Glacier Melt and Recession, J. Glaciol., 64, 49–60, https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2017.85, 2018. a, b
Aubry-Wake, C., Lamontagne-Hallé, P., Baraër, M., McKenzie, J. M., and Pomeroy, J. W.: Using ground-based thermal imagery to estimate debris thickness over glacial ice: fieldwork considerations to improve the effectiveness, J. Glaciol., 69, 353–369, https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2022.67, 2023. a, b, c, d, e
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Short summary
The lower part of mountain glaciers is often covered with debris. Knowing the thickness of the debris is important as it influences the melting and future evolution of the affected glaciers. We have developed an open-source approach to map variations in debris thickness on glaciers using a low-cost drone equipped with a thermal infrared camera. The resulting high-resolution maps of debris surface temperature and thickness enable more accurate monitoring and modelling of debris-covered glaciers.
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