Jan Beutel
@janbeutel.bsky.social
Passionate about mountains, cryosphere, natural hazards and technology to help with all that adaptation before us, professor
@uniinnsbruck, UIAGM mountain guide
@uniinnsbruck, UIAGM mountain guide
Check out the video abstract
November 14, 2025 at 4:47 PM
Check out the video abstract
Of course this is many magnitudes smaller than #Blatten and the Klein Nesthorn ridge collapse. But hey, the GNSS monitoring technology developed here truly delivered and consequently lives were saved.
Congrats team: @uniinnsbruck.bsky.social @slfdavos.bsky.social @rwth.bsky.social @tum.de
Congrats team: @uniinnsbruck.bsky.social @slfdavos.bsky.social @rwth.bsky.social @tum.de
November 14, 2025 at 4:47 PM
Of course this is many magnitudes smaller than #Blatten and the Klein Nesthorn ridge collapse. But hey, the GNSS monitoring technology developed here truly delivered and consequently lives were saved.
Congrats team: @uniinnsbruck.bsky.social @slfdavos.bsky.social @rwth.bsky.social @tum.de
Congrats team: @uniinnsbruck.bsky.social @slfdavos.bsky.social @rwth.bsky.social @tum.de
Super stoked our Matterhorn-Tower-Collapse paper is finally out @egu-esurf.bsky.social. Read all about what it takes to be able to now compute in simulation how thawing and fluid water availability influences real rock slope instabilities at high altitude:
doi.org/10.5194/esur...
doi.org/10.5194/esur...
November 14, 2025 at 4:47 PM
Super stoked our Matterhorn-Tower-Collapse paper is finally out @egu-esurf.bsky.social. Read all about what it takes to be able to now compute in simulation how thawing and fluid water availability influences real rock slope instabilities at high altitude:
doi.org/10.5194/esur...
doi.org/10.5194/esur...
The evac was based on pre-failure analysis of an imminent, very large rockfall. An in-situ GNSS sensor installed on friday 16th on the ridge as well as a first large rockfall caused the evac decision monday. Fun fact, the GNSS fell with one of the first rockfall events monday afternoon.
May 30, 2025 at 8:24 PM
The evac was based on pre-failure analysis of an imminent, very large rockfall. An in-situ GNSS sensor installed on friday 16th on the ridge as well as a first large rockfall caused the evac decision monday. Fun fact, the GNSS fell with one of the first rockfall events monday afternoon.
After a full day of non stop interviews on rockfall, glaciers, permafrost and Valais natural hazard management it’s nice to end the day in a peaceful mountain setting. Why is it that despite how many times you explain that rocks fall because of this climate thingy they still put it in the headlines?
May 30, 2025 at 6:04 PM
After a full day of non stop interviews on rockfall, glaciers, permafrost and Valais natural hazard management it’s nice to end the day in a peaceful mountain setting. Why is it that despite how many times you explain that rocks fall because of this climate thingy they still put it in the headlines?
All these events register nicely on the map. This is the biggest rockfall event and the seismic signal geolocates just at the base of the ridge. Also the geological situation and the permafrost question is illustrated (darker violet/blue means permafrost is more likely than yellow).
May 30, 2025 at 6:24 AM
All these events register nicely on the map. This is the biggest rockfall event and the seismic signal geolocates just at the base of the ridge. Also the geological situation and the permafrost question is illustrated (darker violet/blue means permafrost is more likely than yellow).
Another magnitude 1.0 event was registered yesterday at 2025-05-29 12:34 in #Blatten. In the line of the 15 events registered over the past two weeks this one parks in at a moderate scale. And just another reminder that the mountain has not yet reached an equilibrium state yet.
May 30, 2025 at 6:10 AM
Another magnitude 1.0 event was registered yesterday at 2025-05-29 12:34 in #Blatten. In the line of the 15 events registered over the past two weeks this one parks in at a moderate scale. And just another reminder that the mountain has not yet reached an equilibrium state yet.
Swiss Seismological Survey published a nice overview plot of the earth shaking and wobbling as response to first a series of rockfalls/rockslides onto the Birchgletscher and then finally more and more mumbling and rumbling leading to the final break-off.
May 29, 2025 at 9:23 AM
Swiss Seismological Survey published a nice overview plot of the earth shaking and wobbling as response to first a series of rockfalls/rockslides onto the Birchgletscher and then finally more and more mumbling and rumbling leading to the final break-off.
The Birchgletscher collapse shook the Matterhorn!
Not really a surprise but a fun fact that the collapse of the Birchgletscher is clearly visible at our high-altitude seismic station Solvay 4003 m a.s.l. up on the Hörnliridge (bottom left).
Not really a surprise but a fun fact that the collapse of the Birchgletscher is clearly visible at our high-altitude seismic station Solvay 4003 m a.s.l. up on the Hörnliridge (bottom left).
May 29, 2025 at 7:02 AM
The Birchgletscher collapse shook the Matterhorn!
Not really a surprise but a fun fact that the collapse of the Birchgletscher is clearly visible at our high-altitude seismic station Solvay 4003 m a.s.l. up on the Hörnliridge (bottom left).
Not really a surprise but a fun fact that the collapse of the Birchgletscher is clearly visible at our high-altitude seismic station Solvay 4003 m a.s.l. up on the Hörnliridge (bottom left).
So what you are describing is the start of the failure process, then it takes some time until the sliding and tumbling creates enough energy for the big signal (the impacts downstream). This is the details from SED
May 29, 2025 at 6:43 AM
So what you are describing is the start of the failure process, then it takes some time until the sliding and tumbling creates enough energy for the big signal (the impacts downstream). This is the details from SED
A long series of similar rockfall/rockslide events in Switzerland now has another BIG dot in the upper right hand corner:
May 28, 2025 at 3:30 PM
A long series of similar rockfall/rockslide events in Switzerland now has another BIG dot in the upper right hand corner:
Birchgletscher collapse, before and after.
May 28, 2025 at 3:30 PM
Birchgletscher collapse, before and after.
A huge scar is visible in the landscape after the clouds clear a bit
May 28, 2025 at 2:46 PM
A huge scar is visible in the landscape after the clouds clear a bit
Swiss Seimological service reports this event as M=3.1 in a very quick first analysis, Cengalo was M=3.0...
May 28, 2025 at 1:54 PM
Swiss Seimological service reports this event as M=3.1 in a very quick first analysis, Cengalo was M=3.0...
The Loetschen valley appears top be clogged up.
May 28, 2025 at 1:54 PM
The Loetschen valley appears top be clogged up.
The white cloud from the bottom is a result of the impact.
May 28, 2025 at 1:27 PM
The white cloud from the bottom is a result of the impact.
Phew. Birchgletscher/Kleines Nesthorn unloading with a live webcam stream.
May 28, 2025 at 1:26 PM
Phew. Birchgletscher/Kleines Nesthorn unloading with a live webcam stream.