Schneeferner
Encyclopedia
The Schneeferner in the Bavarian Alps is Germany's highest and largest glacier
. It is located on the Zugspitzplatt, a plateau south of the country's highest peak, the Zugspitze
, that descends from west to east and forms the head of the Reintal
valley. The meltwater
s from the glacier seep away into the karst
ified plateau and surface again in the Reintal, where they feed the River Partnach
. The Schneeferner is one of the northernmost glaciers in the Alps
.
, a large glacier, the Plattachferner, covered almost the entire Zugspitzplatt between the Jubiläumsgrat
arête and the Plattspitzen
peaks. It covered an area of about 300 hectares (1.2 sq mi) and left behind large moraine
s during its subsequent retreat that are still visible today.
From about 1860 until the 1950s the glacier lost roughly 23000 square metres (5.7 acre) of area each year and by the end of that period had shrunk
to about 60 hectares (148.3 acre). During its retreat, the glacier split into a northern and a southern section towards the end of the 19th century. Later, the so-called Eastern or Little Schneeferner below the summit of the Zugspitze
broke away from the northern section and has since totally disappeared.
Thereafter the glacier's retreat was less drastic and the remaining sections of the Northern Schneeferner tended to just shrink in thickness due to their location in a basin. In the 1960s and 1970s, favourable conditions even led to a growth in the thickness of the glacier.
Since 1980 the glaciers on the Zugspitzplatt have again been on the retreat. In 2006 the two remaining parts of the glacier still covered an area of 39 hectares (96.4 acre); in addition there were a couple of smaller firn
fields.
Since 1990, global warming
has seen consistently above-average summer temperatures recorded on the Zugspitze. Summer snowfalls have become increasingly rare, which damages glaciers, because such snowfalls decrease the energy absorbed by glaciers and interrupt melting processes by increasing their albedo
. About 80 centimetres (31.5 in) of ice melted has melted annually, on average. If this rate of melting continues, the glaciers on the Zugspitze will disappear between 2015 and 2030, although a few small remnants of ice may survive longer.
, Watzmann Glacier
and Blaueis
. It flows from west to east with a gentle gradient, especially in its lower reaches. North of the glacier is the arête
running from the Zugspitze
to the Zugspitzeck; in the west it almost reaches the wide Schneefernerscharte (Schneeferner wind gap). To the east and south it is open; even the Schneefernerkopf
mountain to the southwest offers very little shade.
The glacier is mainly fed by precipitation
falling directly onto its surface; it is also supplied with snow from avalanche
s that sweep down from the rocks of the Zugspitzeck and the Schneefernerkopf. The velocity at which the glacier moves is only about 25 centimetre per year in its central section and there is hardly any movement of glacial mass at lower altitudes. On the steep flanks of the Schneefernerkopf the flow rate can be several metres per year, but here the glacier has all but disappeared in recent years; its remnants are covered by gravel and very little accumulation
takes place.
s area. Since 1955, five ski lifts have been built on the ice sheet, making it the only German glacier skiing area. At one time summer skiing
was also possible here. In order to better support winter sports, the natural evolution of the glacier has been counteracted by transporting snow from surrounding areas. As a result, since 1990 the ice thickness has occasionally increased.
Since 1993, certain areas of the glacier have been covered with tarpaulins during the summer to protect the winter ice and snow from sunshine and rain. In 2007, 9000 m² (10,763.9 sq yd) covered 2.6% of the glacier compared to 6000 m² (7,175.9 sq yd) previously. By doing so it is hoped that the exposure of rocks that could hamper winter sports can be delayed as long as possible. Although preference is given to covering the areas in which glacial melting under natural conditions would be the fastest, these measures have had little effect on the life of the glacier to date. The ice obtained only compensates for about 1% of the loss that is expected in the unprotected areas of the glacier. In 2010, an area 50000 m² (59,799.5 sq yd) was covered by the Bavarian Zugspitze Railway Company, primarily to protect the winter sports areas.
, which later divided into the last remaining large sheet of ice and several smaller firn
fields. These remnants can no longer be described as a glacier and they may melt completely within a few years.
Glacier
A glacier is a large persistent body of ice that forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. At least 0.1 km² in area and 50 m thick, but often much larger, a glacier slowly deforms and flows due to stresses induced by its weight...
. It is located on the Zugspitzplatt, a plateau south of the country's highest peak, the Zugspitze
Zugspitze
The Zugspitze, at 2,962 metres above sea level, is the highest peak of the Wetterstein Mountains as well as the highest mountain in Germany. It lies south of the town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, and the border between Germany and Austria runs over its western summit. South of the mountain is...
, that descends from west to east and forms the head of the Reintal
Reintal (Wetterstein)
The Reintal is the name given to the upper and lower valleys of the River Partnach between the Zugspitzplatt plateau and the Partnachklamm gorge...
valley. The meltwater
Meltwater
Meltwater is the water released by the melting of snow or ice, including glacial ice and ice shelfs over oceans. Meltwater is often found in the ablation zone of glaciers, where the rate of snow cover is reducing...
s from the glacier seep away into the karst
KARST
Kilometer-square Area Radio Synthesis Telescope is a Chinese telescope project to which FAST is a forerunner. KARST is a set of large spherical reflectors on karst landforms, which are bowlshaped limestone sinkholes named after the Kras region in Slovenia and Northern Italy. It will consist of...
ified plateau and surface again in the Reintal, where they feed the River Partnach
Partnach
The Partnach is a 16.5 km long Bavarian mountain river. It rises at a height of on the Zugspitze Massif. The Partnach is fed by meltwaters from the Schneeferner glacier some 1100 m higher up. The glacier’s meltwaters seep into the karsty bedrock and reach the surface again near the source of the...
. The Schneeferner is one of the northernmost glaciers in the Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
.
History
In the 19th century, towards the end of the Little Ice AgeLittle Ice Age
The Little Ice Age was a period of cooling that occurred after the Medieval Warm Period . While not a true ice age, the term was introduced into the scientific literature by François E. Matthes in 1939...
, a large glacier, the Plattachferner, covered almost the entire Zugspitzplatt between the Jubiläumsgrat
Jubiläumsgrat
The Jubiläumsgrat or Jubiläumsweg , also nicknamed Jubi in climbing circles, is the name given to the climbing route along the arête between the Zugspitze and the Hochblassen...
arête and the Plattspitzen
Plattspitzen
The Plattspitzen is a 2,680 metre high mountain in the Wetterstein Mountains on the border between Germany and Austria. It is a very striking mountain and the southern companion of the Germany's highest peak, the Zugspitze, located at the opposite end of the ledge known as the Plattumrahmung...
peaks. It covered an area of about 300 hectares (1.2 sq mi) and left behind large moraine
Moraine
A moraine is any glacially formed accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris which can occur in currently glaciated and formerly glaciated regions, such as those areas acted upon by a past glacial maximum. This debris may have been plucked off a valley floor as a glacier advanced or it may have...
s during its subsequent retreat that are still visible today.
From about 1860 until the 1950s the glacier lost roughly 23000 square metres (5.7 acre) of area each year and by the end of that period had shrunk
Retreat of glaciers since 1850
The retreat of glaciers since 1850 affects the availability of fresh water for irrigation and domestic use, mountain recreation, animals and plants that depend on glacier-melt, and in the longer term, the level of the oceans...
to about 60 hectares (148.3 acre). During its retreat, the glacier split into a northern and a southern section towards the end of the 19th century. Later, the so-called Eastern or Little Schneeferner below the summit of the Zugspitze
Zugspitze
The Zugspitze, at 2,962 metres above sea level, is the highest peak of the Wetterstein Mountains as well as the highest mountain in Germany. It lies south of the town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, and the border between Germany and Austria runs over its western summit. South of the mountain is...
broke away from the northern section and has since totally disappeared.
Thereafter the glacier's retreat was less drastic and the remaining sections of the Northern Schneeferner tended to just shrink in thickness due to their location in a basin. In the 1960s and 1970s, favourable conditions even led to a growth in the thickness of the glacier.
Since 1980 the glaciers on the Zugspitzplatt have again been on the retreat. In 2006 the two remaining parts of the glacier still covered an area of 39 hectares (96.4 acre); in addition there were a couple of smaller firn
Firn
Firn is partially-compacted névé, a type of snow that has been left over from past seasons and has been recrystallized into a substance denser than névé. It is ice that is at an intermediate stage between snow and glacial ice...
fields.
Since 1990, global warming
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...
has seen consistently above-average summer temperatures recorded on the Zugspitze. Summer snowfalls have become increasingly rare, which damages glaciers, because such snowfalls decrease the energy absorbed by glaciers and interrupt melting processes by increasing their albedo
Albedo
Albedo , or reflection coefficient, is the diffuse reflectivity or reflecting power of a surface. It is defined as the ratio of reflected radiation from the surface to incident radiation upon it...
. About 80 centimetres (31.5 in) of ice melted has melted annually, on average. If this rate of melting continues, the glaciers on the Zugspitze will disappear between 2015 and 2030, although a few small remnants of ice may survive longer.
Northern Schneeferner
With an area of 31 hectares (76.6 acre) (as at 2006) the Northern Schneeferner (Nördlicher Schneeferner) alone would be the largest glacier in Germany. Its ice sheet is an average of about 17 metres (55.8 ft) thick and 52 metres (170.6 ft) at the deepest point. It lies at an average elevation of 2640 metres (8,661.4 ft) above sea level and is therefore higher than the other German glaciers: the HöllentalfernerHöllentalferner
The Höllentalferner is a glacier in the western Wetterstein Mountains. It is a cirque glacier that covers the upper part of the Höllental valley and its location in a rocky bowl between the Riffelwandspitzen and Germany's highest mountain, the Zugspitze, means that it is well-protected from direct...
, Watzmann Glacier
Watzmann Glacier
The Watzmann Glacier is one of the five recognised glaciers in Germany. It is located below the famous east face of the Watzmann in the Watzmann cirque and is surrounded by the Watzmanngrat arête, the Watzmannkindern and the Kleiner Watzmann....
and Blaueis
Blaueis
The Blaueis is the northernmost glacier in the Alps and lies within the municipality of Ramsau in the Bavarian part of the Berchtesgaden Alps...
. It flows from west to east with a gentle gradient, especially in its lower reaches. North of the glacier is the arête
Arete
Areté is the term meaning "virtue" or "excellence", from Greek ἈρετήArete may also be used:*as a given name of persons or things:**Queen Arete , a character in Homer's Odyssey.***197 Arete, an asteroid....
running from the Zugspitze
Zugspitze
The Zugspitze, at 2,962 metres above sea level, is the highest peak of the Wetterstein Mountains as well as the highest mountain in Germany. It lies south of the town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, and the border between Germany and Austria runs over its western summit. South of the mountain is...
to the Zugspitzeck; in the west it almost reaches the wide Schneefernerscharte (Schneeferner wind gap). To the east and south it is open; even the Schneefernerkopf
Schneefernerkopf
The Schneefernerkopf is a high peak in the Zugspitze massif in the Alps. It lies at the western end of the Wetterstein chain in the Alps on the border between the German state of Bavaria and the Austrian state of Tyrol...
mountain to the southwest offers very little shade.
The glacier is mainly fed by precipitation
Precipitation (meteorology)
In meteorology, precipitation In meteorology, precipitation In meteorology, precipitation (also known as one of the classes of hydrometeors, which are atmospheric water phenomena is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravity. The main forms of precipitation...
falling directly onto its surface; it is also supplied with snow from avalanche
Avalanche
An avalanche is a sudden rapid flow of snow down a slope, occurring when either natural triggers or human activity causes a critical escalating transition from the slow equilibrium evolution of the snow pack. Typically occurring in mountainous terrain, an avalanche can mix air and water with the...
s that sweep down from the rocks of the Zugspitzeck and the Schneefernerkopf. The velocity at which the glacier moves is only about 25 centimetre per year in its central section and there is hardly any movement of glacial mass at lower altitudes. On the steep flanks of the Schneefernerkopf the flow rate can be several metres per year, but here the glacier has all but disappeared in recent years; its remnants are covered by gravel and very little accumulation
Accumulation zone
On a glacier, the accumulation zone is the area above the firn line, where snowfall accumulates and exceeds the losses from ablation, . The annual Glacier equilibrium line separates the accumulation and ablation zone annually...
takes place.
Exploitation of the glacier
Today, the Northern Schneeferner is a winter sportWinter sport
A winter sport is a sport which is played on snow or ice. Most such sports are variations of skiing, ice skating and sledding. Traditionally such sports were only played in cold areas during winter, but artificial snow and ice allow more flexibility...
s area. Since 1955, five ski lifts have been built on the ice sheet, making it the only German glacier skiing area. At one time summer skiing
Skiing
Skiing is a recreational activity using skis as equipment for traveling over snow. Skis are used in conjunction with boots that connect to the ski with use of a binding....
was also possible here. In order to better support winter sports, the natural evolution of the glacier has been counteracted by transporting snow from surrounding areas. As a result, since 1990 the ice thickness has occasionally increased.
Since 1993, certain areas of the glacier have been covered with tarpaulins during the summer to protect the winter ice and snow from sunshine and rain. In 2007, 9000 m² (10,763.9 sq yd) covered 2.6% of the glacier compared to 6000 m² (7,175.9 sq yd) previously. By doing so it is hoped that the exposure of rocks that could hamper winter sports can be delayed as long as possible. Although preference is given to covering the areas in which glacial melting under natural conditions would be the fastest, these measures have had little effect on the life of the glacier to date. The ice obtained only compensates for about 1% of the loss that is expected in the unprotected areas of the glacier. In 2010, an area 50000 m² (59,799.5 sq yd) was covered by the Bavarian Zugspitze Railway Company, primarily to protect the winter sports areas.
Record summer of 2003
On warm days the ice sheet of the Northern Schneeferner reduces by up to 11 cm (4.3 in). In August 2003 the melting of the glacier produced 35000 m³ (1,236,013.3 cu ft) of water daily, roughly one tenth of the average water consumption of the Munich region. Experts describe this melting of ice as Gletscherrauschen ("glacier rushing"), which produces meltwater streams.Northern Schneeferner in figures
- Area: 30.7 ha (75.9 acre) (as at 2006)
- Elevation: 2798 metre, average 2635 m (8,645 ft) (as at 2006)
- Average ice thickness: 16.8 m (55.1 ft) (as at November 2006)
- Maximum ice thickness: 52 m (170.6 ft)52 m (as at November 2006)
- Volume: 5160000 m³ (182,223,677.7 cu ft) (as at November 2006)
- Maximum length: 850 m (2,788.7 ft)
- Average gradient: 14°
Southern Schneeferner
The Southern Schneeferner (Südlicher Schneeferner) once covered the entire southwestern part of the Zugspitzplatt. By 2006 only an area of some 8 ha (19.8 acre) was left and its ice sheet, with an average thickness of less than 5 m (16.4 ft), was thin. At the end of the 20th century the glacier had split up into a southeastern part below the Wetterwandeck and a northwestern area below the WetterspitzenWetterspitzen
The Wetterspitzen are three of the rocky peaks on a mountain ridge in the Wetterstein mountains in the central part of the Eastern Alps in Germany. The lie two kilometres, as the crow flies, southwest of Germany's highest peak, the Zugspitze, on the border between the Austrian province of Tyrol and...
, which later divided into the last remaining large sheet of ice and several smaller firn
Firn
Firn is partially-compacted névé, a type of snow that has been left over from past seasons and has been recrystallized into a substance denser than névé. It is ice that is at an intermediate stage between snow and glacial ice...
fields. These remnants can no longer be described as a glacier and they may melt completely within a few years.
The Southern Schneeferner in figures
- Area: 8.4 ha (20.8 acre) (as at 2006)
- Elevation: 2664 metre, average 2587 m (8,487.5 ft) (as at 2006)
- Average ice thickness: 4.6 m (15.1 ft) (as at November 2006)
- Maximum ice thickness: 16 m (52.5 ft) (as at November 2006)
- Volume: 400000 m³ (14,125,866.5 cu ft) (as at November 2006)
External links
- Archive of Bavarian glaciers
- Webcams of the Zugspitze (which periodically scan the glacier)