Adrian Martinez Fernandeztechnical director of the Digital Cartography and 3D Analysis Laboratory of the National Center for Research on Human Evolution (CENIEH), leads an article published in the journal Remote sensing on the surface development of the active rock glacier of La Paúl, Posets massif, in the Aragonese Pyrenees, the results of which show a slope displacement of almost 100% 40 cm per year between 2013 and 2020on a large part of its surface.
Distributed in several mountainous regions around the world, these lobe- or tongue-shaped masses of debris that move downhill due to the deformation of the ice inside can provide information about the situation Permafrost behavior and the climatic and paleoclimatic development of mountain regions. Permafrost refers to permanently frozen ground, one of the basic components of the cryosphere, which is an integral part of the global climate system.
These techniques have allowed us to precisely control the rock glacier and define the evolution of its surface with unprecedented detail and periodicity in the region.
Thanks to the application of several Geomatic techniques (Drones, 3D laser scanners and satellite positioning systems) when studying rock glaciers can better understand the behavior of these geoforms.
As Martínez Fernández explains, the synergy of these techniques “has allowed us to precisely control the rock glacier and define the evolution of its surface with unprecedented detail and periodicity in the region.”
Reference:
Martínez-Fernández, A. et al. “Several short-range geomatic techniques for the kinematic study of the La Paúl rock glacier in the southern Pyrenees.” Remote sensing