Articles | Volume 20, issue 4
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-2181-2026
© Author(s) 2026. 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-20-2181-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
20 Apr 2026
Research article |
| 20 Apr 2026
| 20 Apr 2026
Rockwall permafrost dynamics evidenced by repeated and Automated Electrical Resistivity Tomography at Aiguille du Midi (3842 m a.s.l., French Alps)
Feras Abdulsamad
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
EDYTEM, CNRS – Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, 73370 Le Bourget du Lac, France
Naga Geophysics, 229 rue Joseph Fontanet 73000 Chambéry, France
Josué Bock
EDYTEM, CNRS – Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, 73370 Le Bourget du Lac, France
Florence Magnin
EDYTEM, CNRS – Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, 73370 Le Bourget du Lac, France
Emmanuel Malet
EDYTEM, CNRS – Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, 73370 Le Bourget du Lac, France
André Revil
EDYTEM, CNRS – Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, 73370 Le Bourget du Lac, France
Matan Ben-Asher
EDYTEM, CNRS – Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, 73370 Le Bourget du Lac, France
Jessy Richard
EDYTEM, CNRS – Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, 73370 Le Bourget du Lac, France
Naga Geophysics, 229 rue Joseph Fontanet 73000 Chambéry, France
Pierre-Allain Duvillard
Naga Geophysics, 229 rue Joseph Fontanet 73000 Chambéry, France
Marios Karaoulis
School of Geology, Geophysics Department, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
Thomas Condom
Univ. Grenoble Alpes, IRD, CNRS, INRAE, Grenoble-INP, IGE, 38000 Grenoble, France
Ludovic Ravanel
EDYTEM, CNRS – Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, 73370 Le Bourget du Lac, France
Philip Deline
EDYTEM, CNRS – Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, 73370 Le Bourget du Lac, France
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Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 30, 1735–1754, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-30-1735-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-30-1735-2026, 2026
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We studied how water moves through fractured rock walls in a high mountain area in the Alps. Using sensors and tracers over two years, in a high-altitude site, we tracked where the water came from and when it flowed. Most of it came from melting snow, but some came from rain and older ice. The results show that heat and water flow can speed up the melting of frozen ground, which may affect mountain stability. This helps us understand how climate change influences these fragile environments.
Simon Filhol, Clément Misset, Noélie Bontemps, Diego Cusicanqui, Emmanuel Paquet, Marie Dumont, Olivier Gagliardini, Pascal Lacroix, Simon Gascoin, Guillaume Thirel, Julien Brondex, Pascal Hagenmuller, Eric Larose, Philipp Schoeneich, Denis Roy, Emmanuel Thibert, Nicolas Eckert, Félix de Montety, Robin Mainieri, Alexandre Hauet, Frédéric Gottardi, Johan Berthet, Alexandre Baratier, Frédéric Liébault, Małgorzata Chmiel, Guillaume Piton, Guillaume Chambon, Guillaume James, Philippe Frey, Philip Deline, Laurent Astrade, Christian Vincent, Dominique Laigle, Alain Recking, Fatima Karbou, Adrien Mauss, Mylène Bonnefoy-Demongeot, Firmin Fontaine, Mickael Langlais, Etienne Berthier, and Antoine Blanc
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-971, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-971, 2026
This preprint is open for discussion and under review for Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences (NHESS).
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On June 21 2024, the village of La Bérarde, in the French Alps, was devastated by a flood destroying centuries old buildings. This study is an interdisciplinary work to decipher the causes and chronology of the event. The flood started with decadal rain falling on a thick snowpack. A lake observed on top of a glacier few days prior, had drained post event. With climate change, should we expect more similar compound events for alpine communities?
Xavier Cailhol, Ludovic Ravanel, and Jacques Mourey
Geogr. Helv., 80, 527–544, https://doi.org/10.5194/gh-80-527-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/gh-80-527-2025, 2025
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This study examines the impact of climate change on Alpine climbing routes in the western European Alps. By identifying the routes most frequented by French mountain guides across various Alpine massifs, the research combines historical comparisons, contemporary surveys and detailed mapping of geomorphological and glaciological processes.
Juliette Bazin, Ludovic Ravanel, and Sandrine Caroly
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-5614, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-5614, 2025
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Through a geo-historical study, we compile an inventory of glacial and periglacial events that have prompted risk management actions in the Alps. Analysed through seven guiding principles, this research examines how methods have evolved across Alpine countries. Certain events mark turning points in risk perception. Today, management benefits from improved understanding of both hazards and vulnerabilities.
Ludovic Ravanel, Romain Duphil, Emmanuel Malet, Christine Piot, Olivier Alemany, Xavier Cailhol, and Michel Fauquet
Geogr. Helv., 80, 455–465, https://doi.org/10.5194/gh-80-455-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/gh-80-455-2025, 2025
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Ice aprons are little-known ice masses on steep Alpine rock faces. They are also paleo-environmental archives as their ice is several thousand years old. A special corer has been developed to sample the ice before analysing it.
Léa Courtial-Manent, Jean-Louis Mugnier, Anta-Clarisse Sarr, Ludovic Ravanel, Julien Carcaillet, Riccardo Vassallo, and Arthur Schwing
Geogr. Helv., 80, 339–362, https://doi.org/10.5194/gh-80-339-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/gh-80-339-2025, 2025
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This study explores how rocks on glacier surfaces originating from rockfalls help measure erosion rates using a chemical marker called 10Be. By analyzing data from 31 glaciers we found that erosion rates vary widely but can be accurately estimated and reveal links to rock exposure, glacier movement, and climate effects. Comparing 10Be erosion rates to other exhumation rates shows cases of balance, slower erosion, or faster erosion, offering insights into the complex drivers of rockwall erosion.
Nilo Lima-Quispe, Denis Ruelland, Antoine Rabatel, Waldo Lavado-Casimiro, and Thomas Condom
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 29, 655–682, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-655-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-655-2025, 2025
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This study estimated the water balance of Lake Titicaca using an integrated modeling framework that considers natural hydrological processes and net irrigation consumption. The proposed approach was implemented at a daily scale for a period of 35 years. This framework is able to simulate lake water levels with good accuracy over a wide range of hydroclimatic conditions. The findings demonstrate that a simple representation of hydrological processes is suitable for use in poorly gauged regions.
Alexis Caro, Thomas Condom, Antoine Rabatel, Nicolas Champollion, Nicolás García, and Freddy Saavedra
The Cryosphere, 18, 2487–2507, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-2487-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-2487-2024, 2024
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The glacier runoff changes are still unknown in most of the Andean catchments, thereby increasing uncertainties in estimating water availability, especially during the dry season. Here, we simulate glacier evolution and related glacier runoff changes across the Andes between 2000 and 2019. Our results indicate a glacier reduction in 93 % of the catchments, leading to a 12 % increase in glacier melt. These results can be downloaded and integrated with discharge measurements in each catchment.
Marco Marcer, Pierre-Allain Duvillard, Soňa Tomaškovičová, Steffen Ringsø Nielsen, André Revil, and Thomas Ingeman-Nielsen
The Cryosphere, 18, 1753–1771, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-1753-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-1753-2024, 2024
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This study models present and future rock wall temperatures in the mountains near Sisimiut, creating knowledge on mountain permafrost in Greenland for the first time. Bedrock is mostly frozen but also has temperatures near 0 oC, making it very sensitive to climate changes. Future climatic scenarios indicate a reduction in frozen rock wall areas. Since mountain permafrost thaw is linked to an increase in landslides, these results call for more efforts addressing mountain permafrost in Greenland.
Matan Ben-Asher, Florence Magnin, Sebastian Westermann, Josué Bock, Emmanuel Malet, Johan Berthet, Ludovic Ravanel, and Philip Deline
Earth Surf. Dynam., 11, 899–915, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-899-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-899-2023, 2023
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Quantitative knowledge of water availability on high mountain rock slopes is very limited. We use a numerical model and field measurements to estimate the water balance at a steep rock wall site. We show that snowmelt is the main source of water at elevations >3600 m and that snowpack hydrology and sublimation are key factors. The new information presented here can be used to improve the understanding of thermal, hydrogeological, and mechanical processes on steep mountain rock slopes.
Catharina Dieleman, Philip Deline, Susan Ivy Ochs, Patricia Hug, Jordan Aaron, Marcus Christl, and Naki Akçar
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-1873, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-1873, 2023
Preprint withdrawn
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Valleys in the Alps are shaped by glaciers, rivers, mass movements, and slope processes. An understanding of such processes is of great importance in hazard mitigation. We focused on the evolution of the Frébouge cone, which is composed of glacial, debris flow, rock avalanche, and snow avalanche deposits. Debris flows started to form the cone prior to ca. 2 ka ago. In addition, the cone was overrun by a 10 Mm3 large rock avalanche at 1.3 ± 0.1 ka and by the Frébouge glacier at 300 ± 40 a.
Justyna Czekirda, Bernd Etzelmüller, Sebastian Westermann, Ketil Isaksen, and Florence Magnin
The Cryosphere, 17, 2725–2754, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-2725-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-2725-2023, 2023
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We assess spatio-temporal permafrost variations in selected rock walls in Norway over the last 120 years. Ground temperature is modelled using the two-dimensional ground heat flux model CryoGrid 2D along nine profiles. Permafrost probably occurs at most sites. All simulations show increasing ground temperature from the 1980s. Our simulations show that rock wall permafrost with a temperature of −1 °C at 20 m depth could thaw at this depth within 50 years.
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Geosci. Model Dev., 16, 2607–2647, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-2607-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-2607-2023, 2023
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The CryoGrid community model is a new tool for simulating ground temperatures and the water and ice balance in cold regions. It is a modular design, which makes it possible to test different schemes to simulate, for example, permafrost ground in an efficient way. The model contains tools to simulate frozen and unfrozen ground, snow, glaciers, and other massive ice bodies, as well as water bodies.
Rubén Basantes-Serrano, Antoine Rabatel, Bernard Francou, Christian Vincent, Alvaro Soruco, Thomas Condom, and Jean Carlo Ruíz
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Suvrat Kaushik, Ludovic Ravanel, Florence Magnin, Yajing Yan, Emmanuel Trouve, and Diego Cusicanqui
The Cryosphere, 16, 4251–4271, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4251-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4251-2022, 2022
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Climate change impacts all parts of the cryosphere but most importantly the smaller ice bodies like ice aprons (IAs). This study is the first attempt on a regional scale to assess the impacts of the changing climate on these small but very important ice bodies. Our study shows that IAs have consistently lost mass over the past decades. The effects of climate variables, particularly temperature and precipitation and topographic factors, were analysed on the loss of IA area.
Josué Bock, Jan Kaiser, Max Thomas, Andreas Bott, and Roland von Glasow
Geosci. Model Dev., 15, 5807–5828, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-5807-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-5807-2022, 2022
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MISTRA-v9.0 is an atmospheric boundary layer chemistry model. The model includes a detailed particle description with regards to the microphysics, gas–particle interactions, and liquid phase chemistry within particles. Version 9.0 is the first release of MISTRA as an open-source community model. This paper presents a thorough description of the model characteristics and components. We show some examples of simulations reproducing previous studies with MISTRA with good consistency.
Emilio I. Mateo, Bryan G. Mark, Robert Å. Hellström, Michel Baraer, Jeffrey M. McKenzie, Thomas Condom, Alejo Cochachín Rapre, Gilber Gonzales, Joe Quijano Gómez, and Rolando Cesai Crúz Encarnación
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 14, 2865–2882, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-2865-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-2865-2022, 2022
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This article presents detailed and comprehensive hydrological and meteorological datasets collected over the past two decades throughout the Cordillera Blanca, Peru. With four weather stations and six streamflow gauges ranging from 3738 to 4750 m above sea level, this network displays a vertical breadth of data and enables detailed research of atmospheric and hydrological processes in a tropical high mountain region.
S. Kaushik, S. Leinss, L. Ravanel, E. Trouvé, Y. Yan, and F. Magnin
ISPRS Ann. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., V-3-2022, 325–332, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-annals-V-3-2022-325-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-annals-V-3-2022-325-2022, 2022
Romina Llanos, Patricia Moreira-Turcq, Bruno Turcq, Raúl Espinoza Villar, Yizet Huaman, Thomas Condom, and Bram Willems
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2022-47, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2022-47, 2022
Manuscript not accepted for further review
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Our results highlight a marked decrease of high carbon accumulation rates in Andean peatlands over the last decades due to the diminution in melt water inflow generated by the retreat of glaciers as a consequence of regional warming. These marked changes stress the high ecological sensitivity of these peatlands, endangering their outstanding role in the regional (and even global) C cycle as large C sinks that contribute to the mitigation of global climate change.
Jacques Mourey, Pascal Lacroix, Pierre-Allain Duvillard, Guilhem Marsy, Marco Marcer, Emmanuel Malet, and Ludovic Ravanel
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 445–460, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-22-445-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-22-445-2022, 2022
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More frequent rockfalls in high alpine environments due to climate change are a growing threat to mountaineers. This hazard is particularly important on the classic route up Mont Blanc. Our results show that rockfalls are most frequent during snowmelt periods and the warmest hours of the day, and that mountaineers do not adapt to the local rockfall hazard when planning their ascent. Disseminating the knowledge acquired from our study caused management measures to be implemented for the route.
Bernd Etzelmüller, Justyna Czekirda, Florence Magnin, Pierre-Allain Duvillard, Ludovic Ravanel, Emanuelle Malet, Andreas Aspaas, Lene Kristensen, Ingrid Skrede, Gudrun D. Majala, Benjamin Jacobs, Johannes Leinauer, Christian Hauck, Christin Hilbich, Martina Böhme, Reginald Hermanns, Harald Ø. Eriksen, Tom Rune Lauknes, Michael Krautblatter, and Sebastian Westermann
Earth Surf. Dynam., 10, 97–129, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-97-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-97-2022, 2022
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This paper is a multi-authored study documenting the possible existence of permafrost in permanently monitored rockslides in Norway for the first time by combining a multitude of field data, including geophysical surveys in rock walls. The paper discusses the possible role of thermal regime and rockslide movement, and it evaluates the possible impact of atmospheric warming on rockslide dynamics in Norwegian mountains.
Josué Bock, Martine Michou, Pierre Nabat, Manabu Abe, Jane P. Mulcahy, Dirk J. L. Olivié, Jörg Schwinger, Parvadha Suntharalingam, Jerry Tjiputra, Marco van Hulten, Michio Watanabe, Andrew Yool, and Roland Séférian
Biogeosciences, 18, 3823–3860, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-3823-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-3823-2021, 2021
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In this study we analyse surface ocean dimethylsulfide (DMS) concentration and flux to the atmosphere from four CMIP6 Earth system models over the historical and ssp585 simulations.
Our analysis of contemporary (1980–2009) climatologies shows that models better reproduce observations in mid to high latitudes. The models disagree on the sign of the trend of the global DMS flux from 1980 onwards. The models agree on a positive trend of DMS over polar latitudes following sea-ice retreat dynamics.
S. Kaushik, L. Ravanel, F. Magnin, Y. Yan, E. Trouve, and D. Cusicanqui
Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., XLIII-B3-2021, 469–475, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLIII-B3-2021-469-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLIII-B3-2021-469-2021, 2021
Juditha Undine Schmidt, Bernd Etzelmüller, Thomas Vikhamar Schuler, Florence Magnin, Julia Boike, Moritz Langer, and Sebastian Westermann
The Cryosphere, 15, 2491–2509, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-2491-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-2491-2021, 2021
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This study presents rock surface temperatures (RSTs) of steep high-Arctic rock walls on Svalbard from 2016 to 2020. The field data show that coastal cliffs are characterized by warmer RSTs than inland locations during winter seasons. By running model simulations, we analyze factors leading to that effect, calculate the surface energy balance and simulate different future scenarios. Both field data and model results can contribute to a further understanding of RST in high-Arctic rock walls.
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Short summary
Permafrost dynamics at Aiguille du Midi in the French Alps was investigated using Automated Electrical Resistivity Tomography (A-ERT) during four years. A-ERT reveals seasonal and multi-year permafrost changes. Temperatures estimated using resistivity measurements provide a good agreement with measured temperature in borehole in frozen zone. Variations in active layer thickness across different faces were observed, along with a slight decrease in permafrost resistivity suggesting warming.
Permafrost dynamics at Aiguille du Midi in the French Alps was investigated using Automated...
