Articles | Volume 19, issue 5
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-1897-2025
© Author(s) 2025. 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-19-1897-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
19 May 2025
Research article |
| 19 May 2025
| 19 May 2025
An unseasonal atmospheric river drives anomalous summer snow accumulation on glaciers of the subtropical Andes
Centro de Estudios Científicos, Valdivia, Chile
Sebastián Cisternas
School of Geography, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom
Maximiliano Viale
Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales CCT-CONICET, Mendoza, Argentina
Pablo Paredes
MSc. Program in Water Resources, Universidad Austral de Chile, Valdivia, Chile
Deniz Bozkurt
Departamento de Meteorología, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
Centro de Ciencia del Clima y Resiliencia (CR)2, Santiago, Chile
Center for Oceanographic Research COPAS COASTAL, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
Nicolás García-Lee
Centro de Estudios Científicos, Valdivia, Chile
MSc. Program in Water Resources, Universidad Austral de Chile, Valdivia, Chile
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Short summary
We analysed the impact of a summer snow accumulation event linked to an atmospheric river in central Chile. Using observational and remote sensing data, we show that accumulation prevails in all the glaciers of the Maipo River basin, and this sole event defines the fact that the Olivares Alfa glacier mass balance was close to equilibrium despite it being a dry year. This demonstrates that an unseasonal accumulation event can counteract the seasonal trends affecting subtropical Andean glaciers.
We analysed the impact of a summer snow accumulation event linked to an atmospheric river in...
