Mass Balance of Austre Gronfjordbreen, Svalbard, 2006-2020, Estimated by Glaciological, Geodetic and Modeling Aproaches

Glacier mass balance measurements, reconstructions and modeling are the precondition for assessing glacier sensitivity to regional climatic fluctuations. This paper presents new glaciological and geodetic mass balance data of Austre Gronfjordbreen located in the western part of Nordenskiold Land in Central Spitsbergen. The average annual mass balance from 2014 to 2019 was -1.59 m w.e. The geodetic mass balance from 2008 to 2017 was -1.34 m w.e. The mass balance was also reconstructed by the temperature-index model from 2006 to 2020 and by spatially-distributed energy-balance models for 2011-2015 and 2019. We found a cumulative mass balance of -21.62 m w.e. over 2006-2020. The calculated mass-balance sensitivity to temperature was -1.04 m w.e. degrees C-1, which corresponds to the highest glacier mass balance sensitivity among Svalbard glaciers. Sensitivity to precipitation change was 0.10 m w.e. for a 10% increase in precipitation throughout the balance year. Comparing the results of the current study with other glacier mass balance assessments in Svalbard, we found that Austre Gronfjordbreen loses mass most rapidly due to its location, which is mostly influenced by the warm West Spitsbergen Current, small area and low elevation range.

Automated summary

The study presents new mass balance data of Austre Gronfjordbreen glacier, showing its sensitivity to climate change. Through measurements, reconstructions, and modeling, it was found that the glacier mass balance is highly sensitive to temperature changes, while the impact of precipitation changes is relatively small.