Recent glacier variations at the Aconcagua basin, central Chilean Andes
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2008-06Metadata
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Bown, Francisca
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Recent glacier variations at the Aconcagua basin, central Chilean Andes
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Abstract
The majority of glaciers in central Chile have receded in recent decades, from >50m to
only a few meters per year, mainly in response to an increase in the 08C isotherm altitude. The
Aconcagua river basin (338 S) is one of the major glaciated basins in central Chile, with 121km2 of ice in
2003. An earlier inventory using 1955 aerial photographs yielded a total surface area of 151km2,
implying a reduction in glacier area of 20% (0.63km2 a–1) over the 48 years. Photographic stereo
models, high-resolution satellite images (Landsat, ASTER) and SRTM data have been used to delineate
glacier basins. A focus on Glaciar Juncal Norte, one of the largest glaciers in the basin, allows a more
detailed analysis of changes. The glacier has exhibited a smaller reduction (14%) between 1955 and
2006, and the resulting elevation changes over this smaller period are not significant. The above
reduction rates are lower than in other glaciers of central Chile and Argentina. This trend emphasizes
water runoff availability in a river where most of the water in the dry summers is generated by glaciers
and snowpack, and where most of the superficial water rights are already allocated. Ongoing
hydrological research including modelling of future water runoff will improve our understanding.
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URI: https://repositorio.uchile.cl/handle/2250/117815
ISSN: 0260-3055, Online ISSN: 1727-5644
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Annals of Glaciology, Volume 48, Number 1, pp. 43-48(6), 2008.
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