VAW Glaciology
@vaw-glaciology.bsky.social
This is the voice of ETH Zurich's Glaciology group (Prof. Farinotti), jointly affiliated to @wslresearch.bsky.social.
🚨 New paper!
Led by Laura Gabriel, we used Surface NMR to probe liquid water inside #Rhonegletscher 🇨🇭🧊💧
Despite heavy noise, SNMR detected a thin (~1 m) water-rich layer, consistent with GPR. A big step toward mapping englacial hydrology with SNMR!
📄 Paper link: tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/...
Led by Laura Gabriel, we used Surface NMR to probe liquid water inside #Rhonegletscher 🇨🇭🧊💧
Despite heavy noise, SNMR detected a thin (~1 m) water-rich layer, consistent with GPR. A big step toward mapping englacial hydrology with SNMR!
📄 Paper link: tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/...
December 2, 2025 at 7:51 AM
🚨 New paper!
Led by Laura Gabriel, we used Surface NMR to probe liquid water inside #Rhonegletscher 🇨🇭🧊💧
Despite heavy noise, SNMR detected a thin (~1 m) water-rich layer, consistent with GPR. A big step toward mapping englacial hydrology with SNMR!
📄 Paper link: tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/...
Led by Laura Gabriel, we used Surface NMR to probe liquid water inside #Rhonegletscher 🇨🇭🧊💧
Despite heavy noise, SNMR detected a thin (~1 m) water-rich layer, consistent with GPR. A big step toward mapping englacial hydrology with SNMR!
📄 Paper link: tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/...
New paper led by our PhD @alexvdesch.bsky.social ! 🇨🇭🧊
We show how glacio-hydrological model results depend strongly on precipitation forcing and spatial resolution. High-res data = key for reliable #glacier runoff estimates.
Check out the study 📄 hess.copernicus.org/articles/29/...
We show how glacio-hydrological model results depend strongly on precipitation forcing and spatial resolution. High-res data = key for reliable #glacier runoff estimates.
Check out the study 📄 hess.copernicus.org/articles/29/...
Modelling runoff in a glacierized catchment: the role of forcing product and spatial model resolution
Abstract. Glaciers are vital water resources, particularly in alpine regions, sustaining ecosystems and communities during dry summer months. Accurate glacio-hydrological models are essential for unde...
hess.copernicus.org
November 28, 2025 at 8:39 AM
New paper led by our PhD @alexvdesch.bsky.social ! 🇨🇭🧊
We show how glacio-hydrological model results depend strongly on precipitation forcing and spatial resolution. High-res data = key for reliable #glacier runoff estimates.
Check out the study 📄 hess.copernicus.org/articles/29/...
We show how glacio-hydrological model results depend strongly on precipitation forcing and spatial resolution. High-res data = key for reliable #glacier runoff estimates.
Check out the study 📄 hess.copernicus.org/articles/29/...
📢 New paper!
Our colleague Marin Kneib shows that #avalanches are key for glacier survival worldwide.
💡 First global estimate of avalanche contribution to glacier mass balance:
• 11% in the Alps
• 22% in New Zealand
• Negative in the Andes
🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Our colleague Marin Kneib shows that #avalanches are key for glacier survival worldwide.
💡 First global estimate of avalanche contribution to glacier mass balance:
• 11% in the Alps
• 22% in New Zealand
• Negative in the Andes
🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
November 26, 2025 at 2:21 PM
📢 New paper!
Our colleague Marin Kneib shows that #avalanches are key for glacier survival worldwide.
💡 First global estimate of avalanche contribution to glacier mass balance:
• 11% in the Alps
• 22% in New Zealand
• Negative in the Andes
🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Our colleague Marin Kneib shows that #avalanches are key for glacier survival worldwide.
💡 First global estimate of avalanche contribution to glacier mass balance:
• 11% in the Alps
• 22% in New Zealand
• Negative in the Andes
🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
What does glacier fieldwork look like for @matthias-huss.bsky.social , head of #GLAMOS? 🧊📏
Politiken followed him on #PlaineMorte, where he documents the beauty, and rapid loss, of Swiss ice.
📄 politiken.dk/edition/news...
Politiken followed him on #PlaineMorte, where he documents the beauty, and rapid loss, of Swiss ice.
📄 politiken.dk/edition/news...
November 25, 2025 at 12:28 PM
What does glacier fieldwork look like for @matthias-huss.bsky.social , head of #GLAMOS? 🧊📏
Politiken followed him on #PlaineMorte, where he documents the beauty, and rapid loss, of Swiss ice.
📄 politiken.dk/edition/news...
Politiken followed him on #PlaineMorte, where he documents the beauty, and rapid loss, of Swiss ice.
📄 politiken.dk/edition/news...
🚨 New paper! ❄️📄
New paper by @matthias-huss.bsky.social Huss, Andreas Bauder & colleagues document the extinction of #Pizolgletscher, using 130+ years of observations 📊🏔️. A rare chance to follow a glacier from a healthy state to its final disappearance.
🔗 doi.org/10.1017/aog.2025.10024
New paper by @matthias-huss.bsky.social Huss, Andreas Bauder & colleagues document the extinction of #Pizolgletscher, using 130+ years of observations 📊🏔️. A rare chance to follow a glacier from a healthy state to its final disappearance.
🔗 doi.org/10.1017/aog.2025.10024
November 20, 2025 at 1:23 PM
🚨 New paper! ❄️📄
New paper by @matthias-huss.bsky.social Huss, Andreas Bauder & colleagues document the extinction of #Pizolgletscher, using 130+ years of observations 📊🏔️. A rare chance to follow a glacier from a healthy state to its final disappearance.
🔗 doi.org/10.1017/aog.2025.10024
New paper by @matthias-huss.bsky.social Huss, Andreas Bauder & colleagues document the extinction of #Pizolgletscher, using 130+ years of observations 📊🏔️. A rare chance to follow a glacier from a healthy state to its final disappearance.
🔗 doi.org/10.1017/aog.2025.10024
Reposted by VAW Glaciology
#OpenCall The Polar Access Fund for early-career researchers in polar science is now open!
Applications welcome by 20 January 2026, 12:00 (noon, Swiss time)
Access the call documents: swisspolar.ch/spi-funding-...
We look forward to your applications!
#fieldwork #Arctic #Antarctica
Applications welcome by 20 January 2026, 12:00 (noon, Swiss time)
Access the call documents: swisspolar.ch/spi-funding-...
We look forward to your applications!
#fieldwork #Arctic #Antarctica
November 19, 2025 at 6:29 AM
#OpenCall The Polar Access Fund for early-career researchers in polar science is now open!
Applications welcome by 20 January 2026, 12:00 (noon, Swiss time)
Access the call documents: swisspolar.ch/spi-funding-...
We look forward to your applications!
#fieldwork #Arctic #Antarctica
Applications welcome by 20 January 2026, 12:00 (noon, Swiss time)
Access the call documents: swisspolar.ch/spi-funding-...
We look forward to your applications!
#fieldwork #Arctic #Antarctica
🚨 New paper!
Co-authored by VAW colleagues Marijn van der Meer & @matthias-huss.bsky.social , this new paper present the Mass Balance Machine (MBM), an XGBoost model that predicts seasonal glacier mass balance from sparse data and often beats traditional models.
🔗 tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/...
Co-authored by VAW colleagues Marijn van der Meer & @matthias-huss.bsky.social , this new paper present the Mass Balance Machine (MBM), an XGBoost model that predicts seasonal glacier mass balance from sparse data and often beats traditional models.
🔗 tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/...
November 19, 2025 at 6:59 AM
🚨 New paper!
Co-authored by VAW colleagues Marijn van der Meer & @matthias-huss.bsky.social , this new paper present the Mass Balance Machine (MBM), an XGBoost model that predicts seasonal glacier mass balance from sparse data and often beats traditional models.
🔗 tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/...
Co-authored by VAW colleagues Marijn van der Meer & @matthias-huss.bsky.social , this new paper present the Mass Balance Machine (MBM), an XGBoost model that predicts seasonal glacier mass balance from sparse data and often beats traditional models.
🔗 tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/...
🌟 Hoeraa! Great news from VAW Glaciology!
Both Prof. Daniel Farinotti and @matthias-huss.bsky.social Huss made it onto Clarivate’s Highly Cited Researchers list, the top 1% most cited scientists worldwide over the past decade. A fantastic achievement! ❄️📚
Both Prof. Daniel Farinotti and @matthias-huss.bsky.social Huss made it onto Clarivate’s Highly Cited Researchers list, the top 1% most cited scientists worldwide over the past decade. A fantastic achievement! ❄️📚
November 17, 2025 at 7:41 PM
🌟 Hoeraa! Great news from VAW Glaciology!
Both Prof. Daniel Farinotti and @matthias-huss.bsky.social Huss made it onto Clarivate’s Highly Cited Researchers list, the top 1% most cited scientists worldwide over the past decade. A fantastic achievement! ❄️📚
Both Prof. Daniel Farinotti and @matthias-huss.bsky.social Huss made it onto Clarivate’s Highly Cited Researchers list, the top 1% most cited scientists worldwide over the past decade. A fantastic achievement! ❄️📚
Aurora over the Alps! 🌌❄️ A powerful solar storm hit Earth, and the northern lights reached far south. Thanks to the long-exposure capabilities of several Alpine webcams, this rare phenomenon was beautifully captured above our #glaciers. The purple glow created magical scenes.
November 14, 2025 at 2:48 PM
Aurora over the Alps! 🌌❄️ A powerful solar storm hit Earth, and the northern lights reached far south. Thanks to the long-exposure capabilities of several Alpine webcams, this rare phenomenon was beautifully captured above our #glaciers. The purple glow created magical scenes.
What a blast! 🚀 At ETH Zurich’s Treffpunkt Science City, our VAW Glaciology member Dr. Mylène Jacquemart shared insights on alpine hazards, rock–ice avalanches & the forces shaping our mountains. A packed hall. Great to see so many young minds interested in climate change! ❄️
November 12, 2025 at 7:04 AM
What a blast! 🚀 At ETH Zurich’s Treffpunkt Science City, our VAW Glaciology member Dr. Mylène Jacquemart shared insights on alpine hazards, rock–ice avalanches & the forces shaping our mountains. A packed hall. Great to see so many young minds interested in climate change! ❄️
🧊 A new mass-balance season is in its second month. How are Swiss glaciers doing so far? Time for a check! Real-time #observations and #modelling for 12 #glaciers show nothing exceptional so far: snow cover remains thin (25–100 cm). Conditions have returned to average or slightly below. Data: GLAMOS
November 10, 2025 at 6:58 PM
🧊 A new mass-balance season is in its second month. How are Swiss glaciers doing so far? Time for a check! Real-time #observations and #modelling for 12 #glaciers show nothing exceptional so far: snow cover remains thin (25–100 cm). Conditions have returned to average or slightly below. Data: GLAMOS
🌍 When nature shows its force
Rockfalls, glacier collapses & debris flows are becoming more intense in a warming world. Join our VAW-glaciology group member Mylène Jacquemart at Treffpunkt Science City for her talk “Es rumort am Berg, Klimawandel und alpine Naturgefahren”
ethz.ch/de/news-und-...
Rockfalls, glacier collapses & debris flows are becoming more intense in a warming world. Join our VAW-glaciology group member Mylène Jacquemart at Treffpunkt Science City for her talk “Es rumort am Berg, Klimawandel und alpine Naturgefahren”
ethz.ch/de/news-und-...
November 3, 2025 at 1:40 PM
🌍 When nature shows its force
Rockfalls, glacier collapses & debris flows are becoming more intense in a warming world. Join our VAW-glaciology group member Mylène Jacquemart at Treffpunkt Science City for her talk “Es rumort am Berg, Klimawandel und alpine Naturgefahren”
ethz.ch/de/news-und-...
Rockfalls, glacier collapses & debris flows are becoming more intense in a warming world. Join our VAW-glaciology group member Mylène Jacquemart at Treffpunkt Science City for her talk “Es rumort am Berg, Klimawandel und alpine Naturgefahren”
ethz.ch/de/news-und-...
A New study by Léon Russel et al. (with #VAW member Marin Kneib) shows Saharan dust boosted melt on Argentière Glacier 🇫🇷 by ~10%, and up to 13% in 2022. Desert dust darkens the ice, lowers albedo, and can thereby accelerate glacier loss. ❄️
tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/...
@meteofrance.com
tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/...
@meteofrance.com
October 31, 2025 at 12:58 PM
A New study by Léon Russel et al. (with #VAW member Marin Kneib) shows Saharan dust boosted melt on Argentière Glacier 🇫🇷 by ~10%, and up to 13% in 2022. Desert dust darkens the ice, lowers albedo, and can thereby accelerate glacier loss. ❄️
tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/...
@meteofrance.com
tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/...
@meteofrance.com
Each summer, our students head to the Rhône Glacier to study a vanishing world. Hands-on work with GPR, drones, and ice drilling turns theory into practice! This year's course was beautifully captured in Terre & Nature!
www.terrenature.ch/nature/sur-l...
www.terrenature.ch/nature/sur-l...
Sur le glacier du Rhône, ils étudient un monde qui s'évanouit
Les chercheurs de l'EPFZ suivent de très près l'évolution du glacier du Rhône. Les accompagner sur le terrain, c'est entendre la glace qui craque, voir l'eau qui partout surgit, ressentir un monde viv...
www.terrenature.ch
October 21, 2025 at 8:59 AM
Each summer, our students head to the Rhône Glacier to study a vanishing world. Hands-on work with GPR, drones, and ice drilling turns theory into practice! This year's course was beautifully captured in Terre & Nature!
www.terrenature.ch/nature/sur-l...
www.terrenature.ch/nature/sur-l...
MSc Topics 2025/2026 🌍❄️
Curious about glaciers, snow, or ice sheets? We’ve got 14 exciting MSc projects. From fieldwork on Swiss glaciers to modelling subglacial drainage beneath the West Antarctic Ice Sheet.
👉 Explore & apply:
🔗 sirop.org/app/searchOp...
Join us and dive into the cryosphere! 🧊
Curious about glaciers, snow, or ice sheets? We’ve got 14 exciting MSc projects. From fieldwork on Swiss glaciers to modelling subglacial drainage beneath the West Antarctic Ice Sheet.
👉 Explore & apply:
🔗 sirop.org/app/searchOp...
Join us and dive into the cryosphere! 🧊
October 17, 2025 at 6:37 AM
MSc Topics 2025/2026 🌍❄️
Curious about glaciers, snow, or ice sheets? We’ve got 14 exciting MSc projects. From fieldwork on Swiss glaciers to modelling subglacial drainage beneath the West Antarctic Ice Sheet.
👉 Explore & apply:
🔗 sirop.org/app/searchOp...
Join us and dive into the cryosphere! 🧊
Curious about glaciers, snow, or ice sheets? We’ve got 14 exciting MSc projects. From fieldwork on Swiss glaciers to modelling subglacial drainage beneath the West Antarctic Ice Sheet.
👉 Explore & apply:
🔗 sirop.org/app/searchOp...
Join us and dive into the cryosphere! 🧊
How do glaciologists turn into astronauts? 🌏🛰️
Jokes aside we're not heading into space just yet. A new #IACS #ContinuIX working group, co-chaired by #VAW's @marinkneib.bsky.social, uses satellite data to study ice thickness, velocities & more.
Image credits: Russ Mitchell
Jokes aside we're not heading into space just yet. A new #IACS #ContinuIX working group, co-chaired by #VAW's @marinkneib.bsky.social, uses satellite data to study ice thickness, velocities & more.
Image credits: Russ Mitchell
October 14, 2025 at 5:47 PM
How do glaciologists turn into astronauts? 🌏🛰️
Jokes aside we're not heading into space just yet. A new #IACS #ContinuIX working group, co-chaired by #VAW's @marinkneib.bsky.social, uses satellite data to study ice thickness, velocities & more.
Image credits: Russ Mitchell
Jokes aside we're not heading into space just yet. A new #IACS #ContinuIX working group, co-chaired by #VAW's @marinkneib.bsky.social, uses satellite data to study ice thickness, velocities & more.
Image credits: Russ Mitchell
Exploring the hidden world beneath the #PersGlacier. Scanning the ice cave in 3D with a LiDAR system to reveal its shapes and layers.
October 10, 2025 at 6:49 AM
Exploring the hidden world beneath the #PersGlacier. Scanning the ice cave in 3D with a LiDAR system to reveal its shapes and layers.
The world beneath the ice is a magical place, full of light reflections and twinkling frozen crystals. ❄️
Read about #VAW PhD student Leo Hösli’s ice cave research in #SAC Die Alpen: www.sac-cas.ch/de/die-alpen...
⚠️ Ice caves are temporary and collapse.
Read about #VAW PhD student Leo Hösli’s ice cave research in #SAC Die Alpen: www.sac-cas.ch/de/die-alpen...
⚠️ Ice caves are temporary and collapse.
October 6, 2025 at 8:24 AM
The world beneath the ice is a magical place, full of light reflections and twinkling frozen crystals. ❄️
Read about #VAW PhD student Leo Hösli’s ice cave research in #SAC Die Alpen: www.sac-cas.ch/de/die-alpen...
⚠️ Ice caves are temporary and collapse.
Read about #VAW PhD student Leo Hösli’s ice cave research in #SAC Die Alpen: www.sac-cas.ch/de/die-alpen...
⚠️ Ice caves are temporary and collapse.
Behind the scenes of our 1925–2025 repeat photography at Birchgletscher! 🎥
Check out the #SRF #Einstein documentary “Bergsturz Blatten VS” (aired yesterday), revisiting Blatten months after the tragic rock–ice avalanche.
👉 www.srf.ch/play/tv/eins...
Check out the #SRF #Einstein documentary “Bergsturz Blatten VS” (aired yesterday), revisiting Blatten months after the tragic rock–ice avalanche.
👉 www.srf.ch/play/tv/eins...
Bergsturz Blatten VS – Zurück im Katastrophengebiet - Einstein - Play SRF
Wie steht es um die Gefahren in Blatten VS Monate nach dem Bergsturz? Wie geht es den Menschen, die alles verloren haben? Und was zeigt Blatten für andere gefährdete Bergdörfer? «Einstein» ist zurück ...
www.srf.ch
October 3, 2025 at 1:41 PM
Behind the scenes of our 1925–2025 repeat photography at Birchgletscher! 🎥
Check out the #SRF #Einstein documentary “Bergsturz Blatten VS” (aired yesterday), revisiting Blatten months after the tragic rock–ice avalanche.
👉 www.srf.ch/play/tv/eins...
Check out the #SRF #Einstein documentary “Bergsturz Blatten VS” (aired yesterday), revisiting Blatten months after the tragic rock–ice avalanche.
👉 www.srf.ch/play/tv/eins...
[1/2] 📢 GLAMOS @scnat.ch press release out today: Swiss glaciers lost another 3% of their volume in 2025, the 4th-largest decline ever measured. In just 10 years, they’ve lost a quarter of their ice mass. Over 1k small glaciers have already vanished.
🔗 to press release: scnat.ch/en/uuid/i/9d...
🔗 to press release: scnat.ch/en/uuid/i/9d...
October 1, 2025 at 7:26 AM
[1/2] 📢 GLAMOS @scnat.ch press release out today: Swiss glaciers lost another 3% of their volume in 2025, the 4th-largest decline ever measured. In just 10 years, they’ve lost a quarter of their ice mass. Over 1k small glaciers have already vanished.
🔗 to press release: scnat.ch/en/uuid/i/9d...
🔗 to press release: scnat.ch/en/uuid/i/9d...
[1/2] Sometimes pictures say more than 1,000 words.
This repeat photography of Birchgletscher (1927–2025) shows a century of change, ending in this year’s tragic collapse that destroyed Blatten and claimed one life.
📷 1927 vs 2025
This repeat photography of Birchgletscher (1927–2025) shows a century of change, ending in this year’s tragic collapse that destroyed Blatten and claimed one life.
📷 1927 vs 2025
September 30, 2025 at 9:39 AM
[1/2] Sometimes pictures say more than 1,000 words.
This repeat photography of Birchgletscher (1927–2025) shows a century of change, ending in this year’s tragic collapse that destroyed Blatten and claimed one life.
📷 1927 vs 2025
This repeat photography of Birchgletscher (1927–2025) shows a century of change, ending in this year’s tragic collapse that destroyed Blatten and claimed one life.
📷 1927 vs 2025
New paper by colleagues at @unil.bsky.social (with our participation): 4D GPR imaging of a near-terminus glacier collapse feature. Drone-based radar reveals how cavities & subglacial channels evolve at the Rhône Glacier. 📖
tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/...
tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/...
September 26, 2025 at 3:53 PM
New paper by colleagues at @unil.bsky.social (with our participation): 4D GPR imaging of a near-terminus glacier collapse feature. Drone-based radar reveals how cavities & subglacial channels evolve at the Rhône Glacier. 📖
tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/...
tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/...
Incredible ice loss measured again at #Konkordiaplatz on the #Aletsch #Glacier, home to the thickest ice in the #Alps (still about 800 m!). Yesterday’s survey revealed another –4.6 m of ice gone in just one year. :(
Measurements by @matthias-huss.bsky.social for GLAMOS
Measurements by @matthias-huss.bsky.social for GLAMOS
September 16, 2025 at 1:19 PM
Incredible ice loss measured again at #Konkordiaplatz on the #Aletsch #Glacier, home to the thickest ice in the #Alps (still about 800 m!). Yesterday’s survey revealed another –4.6 m of ice gone in just one year. :(
Measurements by @matthias-huss.bsky.social for GLAMOS
Measurements by @matthias-huss.bsky.social for GLAMOS