Austre Lovénbreen – Snow and Ice

The ALSI project is aiming at consolidating the basin of the Austre Lovén glacier as a long-term observatory. Such observatories are scarce in the Arctic and the data they provide are therefore all the more valuable. While the first observations in this basin were conducted in the 1960’s, a renewed effort has been undertaken by our team amounting this year to a decade of data. This work consisted for some part in applying standardized protocols for glacier mass balance measurements, and for another part in instrumental experimentations and developments such as automatic cameras. As of today, recurrent measurements led on the glacier are now part of the national SOERE CRYOBS-CLIM, recently integrated in the newly created IR OZCAR, and at the international level part of the World Glacier Monitoring Service (WGMS) database.

The observation network is now operational in the field and benefits of the 10 years of experience our team holds. We are encouraged by our international scientific community to continue our efforts as the Austre Lovén glacier basin holds specific characteristics that makes it of particular interest in a global glaciological and hydrological approach.