Fluctuations of Glaciers 1970-1975 (Vol. III)
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FLUCTUATION GLACIERS 1970-1975 (Vol. Ill) contribution to the kmational Hydrological Programme "Compiled for the Permanent Service on the Fluctuations of Glaciers of the IUGG - FAGS/ICSU [S (ICSI)-UNESCO FLUCTUATIONS OF GLACIERS 1970-1975 with addenda from earlier years This volume continues the earlier works published under the titles FLUCTUATIONS OF GLACIERS 1959-1965 Paris, IAHS - UNESCO, 1967 FLUCTUATIONS OF GLACIERS 1965-1970 Paris, lARS - UNESCO, 1973 FLUCTUATIONS OF GLACIERS 1970-1975 (Vol. III) A contribution to the International Hydrological Programme Compiled for the Permanent Service on the Fluctuations of Glaciers of the IUGG-FAGS/ICSU by Fritz Müller Department of Geography Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zürich International Commission on Snow and Ice of the International Association of Hydrological Sciences and UNESCO, Paris 1977 Published jointly by the International Association of Hydrological Sciences 19 rue Eugène-Carrière, 75018 Paris and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization 7 Place de Fontenoy, 75700 Paris Printed by Vontobel Druck AG, Feldmeilen, Switzerland The designations employed and the' presentation of the material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the publishers concerning the legal status of any country or territory, or of its authorities, or concerning the frontiers of any country or territory. CC) IAHS/UNESCO 1977 Printed in Switzerland IAHS UNESCO: ISBN 92-3-101462-5 P R E F A C E Population growth and industrial and agricultural development are lead- ing to constantly increasing demands for water, hence all countries are endeavouring to improve the evaluation of their water resources and to make more rational use of them. The International Hydrological Decade (IHO) 1965-74 was instrumental in promoting this general effort, and UNESCO has now launched a new long-term intergovernmental programme, the International Hydrological Programme (IHP), to follow the Decade. The basic objectives of the IHP are defined as follows: (a) to provide a scientific framework for the general development of hydrological åcti- vities; (b) to improve the study of the hydrological cycle and the sci- entific methodology for the assessment of water resources throughout the world, thus contributing to their rational use; (c) to evaluate the in- fluence of manis activities on th~ water cycle in relation to environ- mental conditions as a whole; (d) to promote the exchange of information on hydrological research and on new developments in hydrology; (e) to promote education and training in hydrology; (f) to assist Member States of UNESCO in the organization and development of their national hydrolo- gical activities. In many countries, glaciers playa significant rôle in the hydrological cycle, and an improved knowledge of their distribution and fluctuation is necessary for long-term planning and rational water use. Their study is, therefore, an important scientific contribution to the IHP programme of snow and ice investigations. The continuity of these essentional ob- servations and their extension to all regions of the world which possess perennial ice masses are fostered by the UNESCO-UNEP Temporary Technical Secretariat for a World Glacier Inventory and the Permanent Service on the Fluctuations of Glaciers (PSFG) of the lUGG. The two organizations work in close collaboration and are both located in the Department of Geography of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zürich, under the directorship of Fritz Müller. The present study constitutes Volume III of liThe Fluctuations of Gla- ciersll and is again published jointly by IAHS and UNESCO although the opinions are, of course, those of the author and do not necessarily re- flect the views of the joint publishers. José A. da Costa Acting Director, Division of Water Sciences, UNESCO Paris, December 1977 I I ' F O R E W O R D The background and history of the Permanent Service on the Fluctuations of Glaciers (PSFG) can be found in the Foreword to the second volume of "Fluctuations of Glaciers" published in 1973. Since that date the PSFG has undergone major changes. Its first director, Professor P. Kasser, was succeeded in 1975 by Professor F. Müller, who established a direct link between the PSFG and the World Glacier Inventory Project of the International Commission on Snow and Ice (ICSI). This presages a shift towards standardized and computer-compatible reports in future volumes of this series. These changes will make it easier to diagnose and to portray the world-wide reaction of glaciers to climatic changes. The present Srd volume of "Fluctuat ions of Glaciers" thus represents a transitional product. Credit for it belongs to Fritz Müller and his team, and to the host of faithful national correspondents whose exploits are reflected in the growing list of thoroughly studied glaciers. Such detailed descriptions are essential for progress in the modelling of glaciers as physical systems. We hope that they will also elicit inter- est and responses from earth scientists working in related fields, espe- cially in regions where the network of glacier surveillance remains in- adequate - allover Asia outside the USSR, in parts of South America, on the islands of the Southern Ocean, and on the Antarctic continent. Directing Board of the Permanent Service on the Fluctuations of Glaciers International Commission on Snow and Ice (IAHS) Past Chairman Chairman John F. Nye Uwe Radok Bristol and Boulder, 1977 III PROLOGUE AND THANKS In December 1964, on the initiative of the late Professor Herfried C. Hoinkes who was then President of the International Commission on Snow and Ice, a contract was signed between UNESCO and FAGS (Federation of Astronomical and Geophysical Services) to undertake a pilot study of re- cent fluctuations of glaciers. This contract, based on a recommendation prepared in 1960 at the lUGG General Assembly in Helsinki and approved in 1964 by the General Assembly of Berkeley, lead finally to the esta- blishment of the PSFG in 1968. The Pilot Study for the PSFG was carried out by Ing. P. Kasser, Zürich, and resulted in the publication of "Fluctuations of Glaciers 1959-65", Volume I of the present series. The objectives of the periodic PSFG publication series were laid down as: to reproduce a global set of data on the fluctuations of glaciers which would - afford a general view of the changes; - encourage more extensive measurements; - invite further processing of the results; - facilitate consultation of the further sources; - serve as a basis for research. The participation of UNESCO in this endeavour was from the beginning very important. Based on Resolutions 1-13 to 1-15 of the first session of the UNESCO Co-ordinating Council of the IHD, UNESCO published jointly with lASH and ICSI a series of "Technical Papers in Hydrology" aimed at a study of snow and ice as natural resources and of the mechanism of glacier variations and their relationship to climatic variations. Some of these "Guidesll are still in force, others have been slightly changed and adjusted to new experience. Relevant for the present Volume III of "Fluctuations of GlaciersII are: l. Perennial Ice and Snow Masses. A Guide for Compilation and Assem- blage of Data for a World Inventory. Technical Papers in Hydrology No.1, UNESCO 1970, which is in part superseded by: F. Müller, T. Caflisch and G. Müller, 1977: Instructions for Compi- lation and Assemblage of Data for a World Glacier Inventory issued IV by the Temporary Technical Secretariat for World Glacier Inventory of ICSI at the Department of Geography, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zürich. 2. Variations of Existing Glaciers. A Guide to International Practices for their Measurement. Technical Papeß in Hydrology No.3, UNESCO 1969, which is in part superseded and made more specific by: Instructions for Submission of Data for IIFluctuations of Glaciers 11 1970-75 , issued by the PSFG on l February 1977. 3. Combined Heat, Ice and Water Balances at Selected Glacier Basins, Part I: A Guide for Compilation and Assemblage of Data for Glacier Mass Balance Measurements. Part II: Specifications, Standards and Data Exchange. Technical Pape~ in Hydrology No.5, UNESCO 1970 and 1973, which remains unchanged. After the completion of Volume II of "Fluctuations of Glaciersii (1965- 1970) in 1973 Professor P. Kasser, the first director of the PSFG, re- signed as of June 1974. However, for various reasons, the appointment of the new director became effective only in January 1976, a fact which accounts for some of the shortcomings in the continuity of the contacts with the National Correspondents and Collaborators, who all responded extremely quickly and well to urgent requests for data for Volume III (1970-1975). Without this very cooperative attitude this volume could not have been completed in the short time available. Appreciation is also expressed to the parent agency, FAGS, and its pre- sident at the time, Professor G. Garland, who in 1977 made a small supp- lementary grant available to the PSFG office. UNESCO also provided an operating grant in addition to a contract which guaranteed the printing costs for the first 1000 copies of this volume. IAHS underwrote the printing costs of 200 of the 1700 copies of the total edition. In spite of the generous financial help of these agencies, more than half of the burden of the operation had to be borne by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zürich. Several members of the scientific and technical staff of the Department of Geography participated in the running of the PSFG and in particular in the preparation of this publication. V Most sincere thanks go to Roger Braithwaite who from early October to the end of this year, during the most demanding phase of this work, spent far more thought, time and care on this project than was his duty. He planned and carried out most of the computerization of the data ta- bles and supervised all the data control.