"Krone" glacier series

Alpine glaciers are testing grounds for the Arctic

The glacier melt in the Alps, here at the Stubacher Sonnblick, is progressing much faster than was thought just a few years ago.

(Bild: Hölzl Roland)

Many similar ice melting processes make the Alpine glaciers an important testing ground for Arctic research. Polar and ice researchers met in Rauris for a conference.

Rauris welcomed polar and glacier researchers at the beginning of this week in an almost wintry atmosphere. 150 scientists and interested parties, mainly from Austria and Germany, are discussing the similarities and differences between polar and glacier ice at the 29th International Polar Conference, held for the first time in Rauris, until Friday.

In the meantime, the fresh snow has returned to the mountains and the eternal ice dominates the discussions at the conference. Yet there are more connections from the Arctic to the Alpine region than one might think. Both in terms of weather patterns and research. For example, there are similarities in the melting of the perpetual ice. In the Alps, for example, this is currently happening much faster than was believed until recently.

With the observatory on the Sonnblick, Rauris offers many opportunities for polar and glacier research.

(Bild: Hölzl Roland)

"The melting of the Alpine glaciers in the last three or four years has been so enormous that it has exceeded all model calculations," says Wolfgang Schöner, Director of the Austrian Polar Research Institute. "When I go up to the Sonnblick now, it's really pathetic," says the researcher about the extent of the glacier around the Rauris research station.

Weather in Central Europe is influenced by the North Pole
The Alps are an important test area for polar research. "Many processes work in a very similar way. It is very easy to try out things in the Alps that are also much more difficult to implement logistically in the Arctic," explains Abermann from the University of Graz. "Methodological processes can be fully tested in the Alps before going to the Arctic."

There is also a clear connection between the region around the North Pole and the Alps when it comes to the weather. The jet stream over the Atlantic, which influences the weather in Central Europe, is directly dependent on processes in the Arctic. "We need to know the connections that exist between Europe and the Arctic. We can't do this alone in Austria, we have to do it together," says Schöner.