Global and Planetary Change 71 (2010) 13–26

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Global and Planetary Change

j o u r n a l h o m e p a g e : w w w. e l s ev i e r. c o m / l o c a t e / g l o p l a c h a

Glaciers and climate change: Interpretation of 50 years of direct mass balance

of Hintereisferner
Andrea Fischer ⁎
Institute of Meteorology and Geophysics, University of Innsbruck, Innrain 52, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Direct mass balance data of Hintereisferner glacier annually measured for fifty years were reanalyzed and
Received 29 April 2009 bias-corrected. The glacier area and the patterns of the spatial distribution of specific mass balance were
Accepted 11 November 2009 homogenized using the measured data and the current methods of modern mass balance analysis on
Available online 24 November 2009
Hintereisferner. The homogenized mass balance shows a good agreement with the geodetic and the
hydrological mass balance. The comparison with modelled mass balance and measured temperature data
Keywords:
glacier monitoring
showed that the homogenized mass balance correlated best with TS sum (R2 = 0.76) followed by the simple
Alpine climate degree-day sum (R2 = 0.60) and the mean summer temperature (R2 = 0.55). From that and from the
glacier mass balance calculation of the effects of albedo changes follows that the frequency and duration of summer snowfalls play
homogenization of glacier data an important role in the summer ablation of the glacier.
The analysis of sub areas shows that at high elevations mass balance is dominated by the influence of winter
precipitation. At low elevations, the increasingly negative mass balance was a result of the increase of the mean
summer temperatures and the decrease of surface elevation. Between 1953 and 2003, the surface of the glacier
tongue lowered by 160 m. This corresponds to a temperature increase of about 1 °C at the surface 2003 compared
to the surface 1953. In the same period, the potential incoming solar radiation during the summer is reduced by
the surface lowering. Comparing the effect of these two factors, the impact of the topographic temperature
change on mass balance is much higher than the impact of increased shading. At higher elevations, the effect of
topographic changes is small compared to changes in the mean surface albedo.
The separation of glacier tributaries has been decreasing the inflow of ice to the main tongue. The mass balance of
the glacier parts connected to the main tongue decreases faster than the mass balance of the total area. Therefore,
the retreat of Hintereisferner is governed by a more negative mass balance than measured for the total area.
© 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction essential. Thus the relationships between different types of glacio-

Glaciers are the most visible indicators of global change. The
documentation of the changing cryosphere includes glacier invento-
ries, records of changes in glacier length and runoff, and mass balance
measurements (Lemke et al., 2007). These data allow the calculation
of the past and current contributions of land ice to the sea level change
(Ohmura, 2004; Cogley, 2005; Dyurgerov and Meier, 2005 Oerlemans
et al., 2007). Additionally, glaciological data are used to reconstruct
former climate states (Oerlemans, 2005; Kerschner and Ivy-Ochs,
2007) and complement other climate proxies for the holocene. Since
the instrumental climate data are biased towards low altitudes, glacier
data offer an archive of high mountain climate that is subject to strong
gradients and improve our knowledge on climate to remote regions
during the instrumental period. For the development of forward and
inverse models, the understanding of the glacier–climate relation is
⁎ Tel.: +43 512 507 5467; fax: +43 512 507 2924.
E-mail address: Andrea.Fischer@uibk.ac.at.
logical data measured worldwide must be studied on test glaciers,
where all kinds of glacier and climate data are available. Hinter-
eisferner may be considered as one of these test glaciers: The
continuous record of mass balance measurements begins in 1952/53
and thus is amongst the longest worldwide. Glacier length change has
been measured annually since 1933. At the same time, the nearby
climate station Vent was installed, together with a number of rain
gauges in the basin and one runoff gauge (Fig. 1).
The mass balance of a glacier is determined by climate, topography
and surface albedo. During long term mass balance series, the methods,
the climate and the glaciers change. To provide mass balance data for
climate change studies, long term mass balance series need careful
reanalysis and bias correction. The long term series of Griesgletscher and
Silvrettagletscher in Switzerland (Huss et al., 2009) and Glacier de
Sarennes (Thibert et al., 2008) were already reanalyzed.
The first aim of this study is the correction of the mass balance series
of Hintereisferner for changes in methods. That includes the homoge-
nization of glacier area and the extrapolation of point measurements to
this area with the help of spatial patterns of accumulation and ablation.

0921-8181/$ – see front matter © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.gloplacha.2009.11.014
14 A. Fischer / Global and Planetary Change 71 (2010) 13–26
Fig. 1. Site map of Hintereisferner and Rofenache basin, Ötztal Alps, Austria.
Within the last 50 years, the surface lowering caused a local
decrease of the direct solar radiation, but an increase of the surface air
temperature. The recession of the firn covered area and the decrease
of the seasonal snow cover reduces the mean summer albedo. The
second aim of this study is to quantify these effects on the mass
balance. Then the homogenized mass balance is compared to (1) the
volume change calculated from DEMs acquired in 1953, 1964,1967,
1969,1979, 1991, 1997 and 2006; (2) the change of glacier length; (3)
the hydrological mass balance of the Rofenache basin; (3) the mass
balance calculated with the TS degree-day model of Hoinkes and
Steinacker (1975a,b); and (4) the time series of meteorological data
measured in Vent.
Studies of glaciers and climate often calculate glacier mass balance
relating the equilibrium line altitude (ELA) to air temperature.
Assuming a relationship between ELA and the vertical profiles of
mass balance the annual glacier mass balance can be modelled
(Oerlemans, 2001, Zemp et al., 2006). To investigate the validity of
these assumptions for Hintereisferner, the shapes of the vertical
profiles of the homogenized mass balance are statistically analyzed.
Several studies present numbers of the sensitivity of mass balance
to temperature changes derived from measurements (Vincent, 2002)
or models (Oerlemans, 2001). These numbers are compared to those
derived from the meteorological data measured in Vent and the
homogenized mass balance of Hintereisferner for different time
periods.
2. Regional setting
Hintereisferner (46° 48′N, 10° 47′E, 7.8 km2 in 2003) is a typical
valley glacier located near the main alpine crest in Austria. The aspect of
the firn area varies clockwise from north to south, the tongue flows
towards northeast. Weißkugel (3739 m a.s.l.) is the highest point of
Hintereisferner, the glacier tongue ended at an elevation of 2379 m a.s.l.
in 1953 and 2430 m in 2004, respectively (Fig. 2). The ice thickness of
the tongue exceeds 200 m (Span et al., 2005), the mean ice thickness in
the higher parts of the glacier is less than 100 m.
Hintereisferner feeds the river Hintereisbach, which joins with the
runoff from Kesselwandferner, Hochjochferner and a few smaller
glaciers to Rofenache, the latter contributing to the rivers of Inn and
Danube. The runoff of Rofenache is measured in Vent (Fig. 1). The
basin contributing to the gauge has an area of 98 km2. Next to the
runoff gauge in Vent, temperature and precipitation are recorded at
an altitude of 1809 m a.s.l., (Hoinkes, 1970; Kuhn et al., 1999). Five
rain gauges are being operated in the in the Rofenache basin (Fig. 1).
Hintereisferner reached its maximum area during the Little Ice Age
(LIA) in 1855 (Hess, 1904). Since then, several tributary glaciers
separated from the main glacier (Table 1, Fig. 1). In 2009, the small
tributary of Im Hintern Eis (HE) was still connected to the main glacier
by a narrow ice band.
3. Materials and methods
3.1. Data base
3.1.1. Mass balance data
The first ablation measurements on Hintereisferner (HEF) were
performed in 1894/95 (Hess, 1904). The continuous mass balance
series started in1952/53 (Schimpp, 1960) with 54 stakes. Since then,
the net mass balance of Hintereisferner has been determined annually
for the hydrological year between 1 October and 30 September. The
 A. Fischer / Global and Planetary Change 71 (2010) 13–26 15

Fig. 2. Map of Hintereisferner with stake position 2003, contour lines of the DEM 1997, glacier margins 1953 and 2003, and changes of the glacier surface elevation between 1953 and 2006.

maps of spatial distribution of mass balance (Fig. 3) are constructed network was slightly modified and consisted of fifty stakes and five
manually from stake readings, snow pit measurements and maps of snow pits. During the International Hydrological Decade, the stake
the snow covered area collected during the ablation season. For all network and the methods for measurement and analysis were
years of direct measurements, maps of net mass balance are available. developed further (Hoinkes et al., 1968; Hoinkes and Steinacker,
Annual stake and pit data are available for 1952 to 1954 and from 1975a; Kuhn et al., 1987). In the development of a steam drill allowing
1958 to today. Fig. 2 shows the margins of Hintereisferner in 1953 and a drilling depth of more than 10 m compared to about 2 to 4 m of the
in 2003, the elevation change between these years, and the mechanical drilling device used in previous years, the stake number was
distribution of ablation stakes in 2003. increased to 70 stakes in 1964. At the end of the 1970s, the stake
The number and distribution of stakes and snow pits changed network was reduced to 40–50 stakes. After 1962, only stakes situated
during the fifty years of measurements. In 1952/53, accumulation was along the central flow line were repositioned regularly. Changes in stake
measured at 11 stakes (1953/54: 17). distribution caused by downward motion of the ice were compensated
In summer 1957, Schram and Ambach (Ambach, 1961) started a by positioning additional stakes at higher elevations. According to
stake network at the confluence of HEF and the Langtaufererjochferner Hoinkes and Rudolph (1962), the necessary number of ablation stakes
(LJF). In this area, 30 stakes were installed for velocity and mass balance cannot be generalized and does not depend on the total glacier area but
measurements. During the International Geophysical Year 1957/58 the on the size of the ablation area. A number of 16 stakes per km2 ablation
measurements were extended (Hoinkes and Lang, 1962a,b; Hoinkes area were considered to be sufficient for Hintereisferner in 1963/64, the
and Rudolph, 1962; Lang, 1966; Hoinkes, 1970). The observation year with the most negative mass balance year until the end of the 20th
century. For the most positive mass balance year, 1964/65, the ablation
in an area of 1.7 km2 was measured with 34 stakes.
Table 1
Name, year of separation and area at the time of the separation of former tributary
The methods and the position of snow pits have not been changed
glaciers of Hintereisferner shown in Fig. 1. Hintereiswandferner and Vernaglwandfer- since 1964. Between 1973/74 and 2002/2003 field work and analysis
ner lost the connection to the main tongue after 1850 and before 1912; the exact date is were done by the same observer (Kuhn et al, 1999; Fischer and Markl,
not documented in the referenced literature. 2009). The number of snow pits changed from year to year depending
Name Year of seperation Area in km2 on the fraction of accumulation area. The maximum number of pits
was 26 in 1966. In 2002/2003 no snow pit was dug since no net
Hintereiswandferner HEW
Vernaglwandferner VWF accumulation was left at the end of the hydrological year. From 1964
Kesselwandferner KWF 1912 Approx. 4.7 to 2003, on average 10 to 15 pits were dug at the end of September.
Nasoferner NF 1953 0.612 This number corresponds to 3 to 4 pits per km2 accumulation area.
Stationsferner SF 1969 0.549 The spatial variability of snow cover at the end of the ablation season
Langtaufererjochferner LJF 2000 1.343
was determined by snow probings when- and wherever the
16 A. Fischer / Global and Planetary Change 71 (2010) 13–26

Fig. 3. a) Original and b) homogenized mass balance maps 1952/53.

stratigraphy of the accumulated snow allowed it. These sample sizes
are within the limits necessary for achieving good accuracy given by
Fountain and Vecchia (1999), Pelto (2000) and Cogley (1999).
The spatial distribution of the mass balance is interpolated
manually from the point measurements. Contour lines with a distance
of 20 mm w.e. in the accumulation area and 50 mm w.e. in the
ablation area are drawn. The calculation of the total mass balance is
based on the area between these lines, to which the mean value of net
specific mass balance of the adjacent contour lines is assigned.
Comparing mass balance maps from different years, the most
significant difference in the interpretation of field data is found in
the accumulation area, where measurements are sparse. Whereas the
maps of Rudolph in the 1950s assume a linear increase of precipitation
with altitude, the maps of Schimpp show a pronounced accumulation
and ablation pattern in the firn area for the same years. In the first
decade of measurements, the accumulation pattern assigned to the
firn area developed from a rather arbitrary distribution of adjacent
zones with sharp changes between high and low accumulation
(Fig. 3a). During the 1960s, extensive field work was carried out in
order to investigate the distribution of the accumulated snow. The
accumulation patterns derived from that data show a decrease in
accumulation in the uppermost, steep parts of Hintereisferner and
high accumulation in the surface depressions. The spatial gradients of
this topography related distribution are smooth. The comparison of
the accumulation measured at the snow pits shows that the spatial
patterns of accumulation are similar for all years.
 A. Fischer / Global and Planetary Change 71 (2010) 13–26
Before 1960, the equilibrium line altitude (ELA) was defined as the
average altitude of the lines of zero net balance determined from all
intersection points with the contour lines of elevation. Later, the ELA
has been defined as the lowest altitude where the net specific mass
balance of an altitude zone is equal to zero. Whereas the ELA
according to the early definition was indicated in the mass balance
map, the later defined ELA is not directly related to features in the map
of spatial distribution of specific mass balance. The later ELA depends
not only on the mass balance, but also on the area altitude distribution
used for the evaluation.
In the mass balance maps of the first decade, the position of the firn
line is indicated. Later, the maps of specific mass balance show
contour lines of water equivalent without distinguishing snow, firn or
ice ablation.
3.1.2. Geodetic data and other documentation
Digital elevation models (DEMs) were acquired regularly, in the
first decade by terrestrial photogrammetry, from 1969 (Patzelt, 1980)
to 1997 (Lambrecht and Kuhn, 2007) by airborne photogrammetry
and recently by airborne laser scanning (Geist and Stötter, 2007).
DEMs were acquired in 1953, 1962, 1964, 1969, 1979, 1991, 1997, and
annually from 2001 to 2008. Between 1953 and 2006, the surface
elevation decreased by up to 160 m at the tongue (Fig. 2).
The extent of the firn area, area changes, terminus positions of
tributary glaciers, and the distribution of crevasses are documented in
numerous photographs and orthophotos. From these data is evident
that the number of crevasses and the firn cover decreased between
1953 and 2003.
3.1.3. Climate, glacier length changes and runoff data
The climate station in Vent has been operated since 1935. Air
temperature, relative humidity, and pressure have been recorded in a
Stevenson hut, precipitation in a wind shielded weight operated chart
recording gauge. The precipitation in the Rofenache basin is recorded
by six wind shielded manual gauges installed at a height of about 3 m
above the ground. The manual gauges are read on 1 April, 1 June, 1
August and 1 October.
The runoff from Rofenache basin has been measured since 1929.
Quality controlled digital daily means of the runoff are available since
1967. The glacier length changes have been recorded annually since
1933 and published by the glacier survey of the Austrian Alpine Club
(Patzelt, 1970, 1977).
3.2. Methods
3.2.1. Homogenization of mass balance
Some authors (Huss et al., 2009) combine the directly measured
data with measured meteorological data and volume changes to a best
guess for mass balance. This clearly has advantages, but at the price
that the data used in the homogenization process cannot be used for
an independent quality control of the homogenized data. In this study,
the homogenization was exclusively based on the reinterpretation of
measured surface mass balance data and the observed accumulation
and ablation patterns:
i) The comparison and adjustment of the glacier boundaries.
ii) The reanalysis of the accumulation by applying the stable
accumulation patterns to measured snow pit data.
iii) The adjustment of the contour lines of ablation in unmeasured
areas to the ablation patterns used for the analysis in the last
three decades.
3.2.1.1. Homogenization of glacier area. In the firn area, different
interpretations of ice divides and snow patches connected to the
glacier at the time of the acquisition of the maps caused variation of
the glacier boundaries which are not related to real glacier changes. In
17
the 1950s, it was not clear if for example Nasoferner (NF) would
advance again towards the tongue of Hintereisferner. Also since the
focus of the first program was on hydrology, tributary glaciers which
were not directly contributing ice to the glacier tongue were included
in the analysis.
In course of the homogenization, the tributary glaciers Vernagl-
wandferner (VWF) and Nasoferner were completely excluded from
the analysis. The ice divides were adapted to the ones defined in the
map of 1997 and kept constant between 1953 and 2003. Snow patches
connected to the glacier only in some years were excluded from the
glacier area in order to avoid oscillations of glacier area not related to
the advance or recession of glacier ice.
3.2.1.2. Homogenization of spatial patterns. During and after the
International Hydrological Decade, extensive field work improved the
knowledge on the spatial distributions of mass balance. The mass
balance maps of the first decade were based on few pits and different
interpretations of the spatial distribution of mass balance. For 1952/53,
the original and the homogenized mass balance maps are shown in
Fig. 3. Whereas the original map contains areas with a water equivalent
of +1350 mm w.e. directly adjacent to areas with net ablation, the mass
balance gradients of the homogenized map are smoother. The relations
between the accumulations measured at the snow pits during the last
decades were used to extrapolate the measured data to unmeasured
areas. This procedure ensures that the homogenized data then fulfils the
criteria that similar measured values lead to similar results.
3.2.1.3. Definition of sub areas. To investigate glacier related controls
on local mass balance three sub areas SE, HI an LE are defined. The sub
areas were defined by the minimum (SE) and maximum (LE)
elevation change between 1953 and 2003 and high ice thickness in
1997 (HI).
- SE (Fig. 2, green area): The surface elevation change between 1953
and 2003 is lower than 10 m. In this sub area the topographic
shading of the glacier surface did not change between 1953 and
2003. As evident from time series of photographs at the end of the
ablation season, the surface is still covered by firn in 2003, so the
albedo change is smaller compared to lower parts of the glacier
where the firn layer melted between 1953 and 2003.
- HI (Fig. 2, white area): This area was defined as the ‘remaining’
central part of Hintereisferner after removing glacier margins,
tributaries, which are likely to lose the connection to the tongue in
the next years, and areas with ice thicknesses in the same order as
the ice thickness change in the last decades. The sub area HI is
defined to calculate a mass balance which is independent of
changes in glacier area for the existing time series and at least the
next decade.
- LE (Fig. 2, dark grey area): In this part of the glacier near the
terminus 2003, the lowering of the surface reached the maximum.
LE was ice covered all years between 1953 and 2003 so that the
area did not change. The topographic shading of LE changed during
the years. A change in mean albedo results from the mean duration
of snow cover and the albedo of the surface layer at the end of the
ablation season. The surface had not been covered by firn since
1953. As evident from the analysis of stake data this part of the
glacier is seldom covered by summer snow falls compared to
higher parts of the glacier (Fischer and Markl, 2009). Therefore,
the change in mean albedo between 1953 and 2006 is estimated to
be about 0.1.
The homogenized mass balance of these sub areas is calculated and
interpreted in Section 4.2.
3.2.2. Geodetic mass balance
The geodetic mass balance is calculated from the volume
difference between two DEMs of the glacier surface and assumptions
18 A. Fischer / Global and Planetary Change 71 (2010) 13–26
or measurements of the mean density of the glacier surface layers at
the time of the DEM acquisition. The geodetic mass balance includes
also internal and basal mass and density changes, if their effect
propagates to the surface, and is therefore not exactly the same as the
directly measured surface mass balance. For areas covered with firn
(ice), the density of the surface layer was estimated to be 700 (900)
kg/m3.
3.2.3. Hydrological mass balance
The hydrological mass balance BHYDRO for all the glaciers in a basin
contributing water to a specific runoff gauge is defined as the
difference between the basin precipitation p, runoff Q measured at
this gauge and evaporation E
BHYDRO = p−Q−E: ð1Þ
The specific mass balance bHYDRO is calculated from the hydrolog-
ical mass balance divided by the glacierized area in the basin A:
bHYDRO = BHYDRO = A: ð2Þ
Based on more than 70 years of precipitation data at 6 locations in the
Rofenache basin, basin precipitation p was estimated to be 1.7 times the
precipitation in Vent. The evaporation E was assumed to be 0.5 mm/d
above snow and ice and 1.0 mm/d over other surfaces (Kuhn, 2000). It
was further assumed that non-glaciated areas are covered by a seasonal
snow cover half of the year. The glaciated fraction of the basin was
specified in the Austrian glacier inventories 1969 (Patzelt, 1980), 1997
(Lambrecht and Kuhn, 2007) and 2006 (Abermann et al., 2009). For the
calculation of the specific hydrological mass balance (bHYDRO), the glacier
area (A) in the basin was interpolated according to the area decrease of
Hintereisferner. The error in the ice covered fraction of the basin area is
1%, as the comparison of measured to calculated areas for 1969, 1997 and
2006 showed.
3.2.4. TS model of mass balance
Temperature index, degree-day or TS melt models are based on the
close relationship between air temperatures measured nearby the
glacier and melt rates. These models are widely used for more than
120 years (Finsterwalder and Schunk, 1887) in hydrological models
(Martinec and Rango, 1986; Zappa et al., 2003) and glaciology to
calculate the melt rates of unmeasured glaciers and ice caps
(Braithwaite and Olesen, 1990) or mass balance sensitivities (Bøggild
et al., 1994). In contrast to physically based energy balance models,
the empirical temperature based melt models can be driven with
temperature and in some cases precipitation data only. This might be
one reason for the widespread usage of these types of models.
The glacier melt is governed by irradiative fluxes, conductive heat
flux in the subsurface and sensible and latent heat fluxes. Thus not
only air temperature, but also parameters as radiation, wind speed,
vapour pressure, surface and subsurface temperature and albedo
determine the melt rate. As measurements of Lang (1968) and
theoretical considerations of Ohmura (2001) showed, the correlation
of air temperatures and the parameters governing the heat fluxes
summarized above is sufficient to calculate glacier melt with an
empirical parameterization of air temperature.
Some formulations of temperature based melt models are discussed
by Hock (2003). The simplest formulation of the calculation of melt M
for i days is given by the sum of deviation of the temperature Ti from the
melt temperature T0 multiplied with a melt factor fm.
M = ∑ Mi with Mi = fm ðTi −T0 Þ if Ti N T0 and Mi = 0 if Ti ≤T0 : ð3Þ
i
Many formulations of degree-day or temperature index melt
models also consider parameterizations of the variation of the surface
albedo during the ablation period and/or incoming radiation in a more
explicit way (Pellicciotti et al., 2005).
The TS mass balance model was developed to calculate the specific
mass balance of Hintereisferner from meteorological data measured in
Vent (Hoinkes et al, 1968; Hoinkes and Steinacker, 1975a, 1975b;
Steinacker, 1979). The mass balance was modelled with a multiple
linear regression of the (1) sum of positive degree-days (TST); (2)
deviation of the winter precipitation of the current year from the long
term mean (WI); and (3) albedo changes related to summer snow falls
(TSp) calculated from hourly temperature and precipitation data (Fig. 4).
The hydrological year is partitioned in an accumulation period (1.10
to 30.04) and an ablation period (01.05 to 30.09). The accumulation is
calculated from the deviation of the precipitation in the accumulation
period pW from the long term mean (i.e. 250 mm) weighted by a factor
fW (Hoinkes and Steinacker, 1975b). The factor accounts for altitude
gradients of precipitation and wind drift causing the accumulation on
the glacier to be 200% of the measured precipitation.
Hoinkes and Steinacker improved the result of the simple sum of
positive degree-days calculated from the daily means of temperature
measured in Vent assuming an altitude gradient of 0.6 °C/100 m by
two corrections:
(1) So far, all calculations were made for the elevation of the glacier
tongue. In higher parts of Hintereisferner, the ablation period is
shorter. Therefore, Hoinkes and Steinacker distinguished five
periods and weighted the degree-day sums in these periods
with three different factors (1/3, 2/3, and 1).
(2) The energy balance of a glacier and therefore the melt rate is
significantly changed in the case that snow covers the ice. The
correction TSp is based on the observation, that a precipitation
event resulting in at least 5 cm snow covering the glacier delays
the ablation. Hoinkes and Steinacker (1975b) analyzed the mass
balance of Hintereisferner and found that at least two positive
degree-days are necessary until the ablation starts again. For the
case that not the snow fall does not affect all elevation zones they
distinguished another three cases with different snow lines based
on a temperature in Vent below 3 °C, 6 °C or 9 °C (Fig. 4).
For the period 1952/53 to 1972/73, these corrections improved the
correlation of the linear regression from R2 = 0.74 for the sum of
positive degree-days to R2 = 0.94.
j
TS = −Wi + ∑ ðTST ðjÞ + TSp ðjÞÞ: ð4Þ
The specific mass balance bTS is then calculated with a multiple
regression analysis resulting in
bTS = 3225−6:06⁎TS: ð5Þ
3.3. Measurements of glacier length
Since 1933, glacier length changes of Hintereisferner are annually
measured on the main tongue of Hintereisferner. The positions of the
glacier margins near the tongue are determined with a theodolite from a
number of fixed points with known coordinates. The glacier length
change is calculated as the mean difference of the distance between the
points at the glacier margin and the fixed point between two years.
4. Results
4.1. Homogenized mass balance data
During the data reanalysis, the glacier area was corrected in nearly
all years (Fig. 5a). The location of ice divides and glacier outlines
 A. Fischer / Global and Planetary Change 71 (2010) 13–26
Fig. 4. Flow diagram of the calculation of specific mass balance according to the TS model of Hoinkes and Steinacker (1975a,b).
which differed in maps was adjusted. The tributary glaciers
Nasoferner and Vernaglwandferner were included in the original
analysis for the first decade, but not in the following years. This
artificial reduction of accumulation area at high elevations caused a
bias of the total mass balance towards more negative values and was
corrected by excluding these tributaries.
Frequent discontinuities were caused by the delayed availability of
orthophotos, DEMs and maps. Glacier boundaries were not always
corrected annually. In the homogenized mass balance series, the
glacier boundaries documented in DEMs and orthophotos were used
to correct the area. The minimum area correction was −0.32 km2, the
maximum +0.48 km2. In the accumulation zone, the mean/maximum
area corrections were 0.06 km2/0.93 km2 and thus considerably larger
than in the ablation area.
The maximum loss of area on Hintereisferner neither takes place at
the glacier tongue where ablation is highest, nor near the summits,
where the ice is thinnest, but in altitudes between 2850 and 3350 m.
In these altitude zones, the major part of the area of Hintereisferner is
located (Fig. 5b). The long term ELA (3016 m) is located in the centre
of these elevation bands, the long term mean of the zero degree
summer temperature (3220 m) is located near the upper margin.
Changes in the zero degree level therefore affect the mass balance of a
high percentage of glacier area. Although the absolute values of
measured mass balance and their changes with time are small near
the long term ELA, they have strong impact on the total mass balance.
19
Thus the zone near the long term ELA of Hintereisferner can be
considered as the one which is most sensitive to climate change in
terms of area loss and mass balance.
Only part of the glacier area included in the homogenized mass
balance contributes ice to the glacier tongue. Thus, these mass balance
data are not the mass balance governing glacier length. The area
contributing mass to the tongue differs from the area for which mass
balance is analyzed by up to about 4 km2 in 1933. For 1953 to 2003 the
areas are listed in Table 1. Fig. 5b shows the altitude distribution of the
difference between the total area included in the mass balance
analysis and the portion of it contributing to the tongue for 1953, 1969
and 2003. Most of the loss of glacier area contributing to the tongue is
observed above the long term ELA. The recession of the glacier tongue
therefore is governed by a more negative mass balance compared to
the one calculated for the total area (Fig. 6).
For the year 1957, the difference between the original and the
homogenization mass balance was the largest (215 mm w.e.). The
average effect was 30 mm w.e. Between 1953 and 1960, the mean
difference between original and homogenized mass balance was
65 mm w.e. The difference between not homogenized and homoge-
nized cumulative specific mass balance is 789 mm w.e. (1953–2003).
Calculating specific balance for the total glacier area, both the area
changes and the changes in ablation and accumulation pattern are
cumulated and might seem small, although the maximum difference
reaches 490 mm w.e. in the ablation area. The effect of homogenization
20 A. Fischer / Global and Planetary Change 71 (2010) 13–26

Fig. 5. Original and homogenized glacier areas for 1953 to 2003 (a) and area altitude distribution 1953, 1969 and 2003 (b). The glacier areas contributing to the glacier tongue are
indicated by the broken lines.

Fig. 6. a) Difference in specific mass balance Δb between the homogenized and original mass balance bh and b and the mass balance of the area contributing to the tongue bt.
b) specific mass balance in area SE (bSE), HI (bHI) and LE (bLE) compared to the homogenized mass balance of the total area bh for the years 1953 to 2003.
 A. Fischer / Global and Planetary Change 71 (2010) 13–26 21

Table 2 cumulative sum, and extrema are summarized in Table 2. The mass
Statistics of homogenized and original mass balance in sub areas and the total glacier balance of the area HI which is considered to remain glacierized and
area.
contribute ice to the tongue for at least the next decade is about 1.4
Mean b Standard Cumulative Minimum b Maximum b times as negative as for the actual are contributing to the tongue.
deviation sum of b The interannual variability of the mass balance curves increases
Sub area mm w.e. mm w.e. mm w.e. mm w.e. mm w.e. with decreasing altitude. The total area and the LE show about the
SE 734 476 37436 − 374 2261 same variability. The comparison of LE, HI and SE for the years 1972
HI −700 729 − 35698 − 2683 924 and 1977 shows that one of the lowest melt rates at the tongue not
LE − 3898 1053 − 198812 − 7035 − 1753 necessarily coincides with high mass gain in the accumulation area or
Contributing mass −511 568 − 26050 − 1968 936 significantly positive mass balances for the total glacier. This is also
to the tongue
Original −475 549 − 24242 − 1814 925
shown for stake data by Fischer and Markl (2009) and implies that the
Total −491 554 − 25031 − 1836 936 vertical profile of the mass balances in different years is not just
shifted along the x axis.

4.3. Geodetic, hydrological and TS mass balance

Table 3
Cumulated original (bo), homogenized (bh), geodetical (bg), density corrected The geodetic and hydrological mass balances are calculated as
geodetical (bgd), TS modelled (bTS) and hydrological (bHYDRO) specific mass balance
in different periods.
described in Sections 3.2.2 to 3.2.4. Table 3 summarizes the results of
the specific mass balance. The cumulated directly measured mass
bo bh bg bgd bTS bHYDRO balances bo and bh are close to the density corrected geodetic mass
mm w.e. mm w.e. mm w.e. mm w.e. mm w.e. mm w.e. balances bgd for the periods 1953–1964, 1964–1967 and 1997 to 2006
1953 – 1964 −6329 − 6452 − 8400 − 7523 − 5217 and for the total period. Deviations of up to 5129 mm. w.e. (1979–
1964 – 1967 1270 1331 1800 1275 1419 1991) occur in the period from 1967 to 1977. The most likely reason
1967 – 1969 −103 −69 −5100 − 3925 − 210 for the high differences between direct and geodetic methods in this
1969 – 1979 −1697 − 1785 5100 2710 − 1274 963 period is the errors in the surface elevation of the DEMs.
1979 – 1991 −7767 − 7984 − 15600 − 13113 − 7653 −8143
1991 – 1997 −4630 − 4745 −5300 − 4410 − 3371 − 654
The density corrected geodetic mass balance and the homoge-
1997 – 2006 − 8456 − 8571 −11200 − 10080 − 6773 −2847 nized mass balance show the closest fit, and the TS modelled mass
1969 – 2006 −10153 −10356 −6100,0 − 7370 − 8047 −10681 balance agrees well to the homogenized mass balance, but is slightly
1953 – 2006 −27711 − 28275 − 38700 −35066 − 23079 less negative. The discrepancy between the mass balances calculated
with different methods is largest in the last period which also shows
the most negative mass balance. The hydrological mass balance
on mass change reaches up to 2.0/0.7/1.1–4.3 106 m3 for the total/ calculated from a basin precipitation of 1.7 times the precipitation of
accumulation/ablation area, which is up to 40% of the long term mean Vent is far too negative (− 4176 mm. w.e.). A factor of 2.3 results in a
balance of −4.3 106 m3. fairly good agreement to the homogenized mass balance of
Hintereisferner, and the higher factor can be justified by redistribu-
4.2. Mass balance of sub areas tion of snow from the slopes to the glacier. The mean mass balance of
all glaciers in the basin can of course differ from this hydrological
Annual and cumulative values, the variability, and the trends of the mass balance fitted to Hintereisferner. For the discussion of the
mass balance of all sub areas differ. Mean, standard deviation, results of the homogenized mass balance the bulk model used should

Fig. 7. Hydrological mass balance bHYDRO compared to the directly measured homogenized mass balance b and the specific mass balance calculated with the TS method bTS.
22 A. Fischer / Global and Planetary Change 71 (2010) 13–26

be sufficient. The annual values of the homogenized direct mass 5. Discussion

balance, the hydrological mass balance, and the TS modelled mass
balance agree well (Fig. 7).
The TS modelled mass balance is calculated from temperature and
precipitation recorded at Vent (Fig. 8). The temperature related
component TST dominates the TS sum (mean: 609) with a mean
contribution of 749, the precipitation TSp − 111. The winter
accumulation component Wi changes the TS sum by 44 on average.
In Fig. 9, the calculated mass balance bTS is compared to the length
change and to the change of glacier area contributing to the tongue. In
the 1940s, the rate of mass and length loss was close to that after
2000. In the mid 1950s, end of the 1960s and 1970s the rates of
change were small. The positive mass balances in the early 1940s do
not coincide with small length losses, since the flow of ice to the
glacier tongue significantly decreased as a result of the separation of
Hintereisferner and Kesselwandferner.
The homogenized mass balances in the sub areas provide
information on different controls of mass balance. For the analysis,
two periods are distinguished by a change in the steepness of the
10 year running average of the mass balance curves for all areas. Until
1979, the specific mass balance slowly changed between +8 mm w.e./
year (SE) and +12 mm w.e./year (LE). In this period, the mass balance
of HI is close to the mass balance of the total area. After 1979, mass
balances decreased at a rate of − 25 mm w.e./year (SE), −35 mm w.e./
year (total area), − 60 mm w.e./year (HI) and −100 mm w.e./year
(LE).
The difference between the mass balances of the sub areas is
increasing in the second period. If these data were not collected on the
same, but different glaciers, the measured mass balance sensitivity to
climate change would differ for each of these glaciers.

Fig. 8. Comparison of meteorological data and the related TS sums for 1933 to 2003. a) Annual mean summer temperature and sum of winter precipitation b) deviation to mean
winter precipitation p̄w − pw, TS sum related to precipitation TSp c) total annual TS sum and TST related to air temperature.
 A. Fischer / Global and Planetary Change 71 (2010) 13–26 23

Fig. 9. Changes of a) glacier length compared to changes of b) area contributing ice to tongue and c) the TS modelled mass balance averaged with a 10 year running mean and the
cumulated length change.

At the climate station in Vent, the mean summer temperature
decreased at a rate of 0.03 °C/year between 1953 and 1979, and
increased by 0.07 ° C/year afterwards. The zero degree level shifted
from 3260 in 1953 to 3150 in 1979 to 3350 in 2003, corresponding to
change rates of − 4 m/year and +10 m/year, respectively. This affects
the limits of summer snow falls as well as snow and ice melt. These
changes occur in elevation zones where the main portion of the area is
located. This implies a large effect on the total mass balance.
For 1953–1979, the sensitivity of the mass balance to temperature
change is between 285 mm w.e./°C and 375 mm w.e./°C. After 1979, the
mass balance changes between 384 mm w.e./°C and 1538 mm w.e./°C. So
the mass balance sensitivity changes with time even in the same sub area.
If the glacier area of Hintereisferner did not change, the specific mass
balance had been15% more negative. If the glacier in summer 2003 had
the same area as in 1953, the mass balance was about −2500 mm. w.e.
and not −1836 mm. w.e.

Fig. 10. Mean, .maximum, minimum, 25% and 75% quartiles and range of the vertical profile of the specific mass balance.
24 A. Fischer / Global and Planetary Change 71 (2010) 13–26
Comparing Figs. 6 and 8, the temporal evolution of the mass
balance curves for LE are more similar to the temperature change, the
mass balance in the higher area SE seems to be governed by snow falls.
To proof that, the effects of surface lowering and shading must be
calculated. Between 1953 and 2006, the surface at SE lowered by
160 m. This increased the shading and reduced the energy provided
by direct solar radiation by about 20 kWh/m2 between summer 1953
and summer 2006 (Rich et al., 1994 ;Fu and Rich, 2002) Assuming a
surface albedo of 0.3, this corresponds to a melt reduction of
66 mm w.e./year. Assuming a vertical gradient of 0.6 °C/100 m, the
air temperature in LE changes by 1 °C resulting in an increase of
the degree-day sum by about 100 assuming 100 days of melt. The
additional ablation calculated with Eq. (5) is 606 mm w.e. The
decrease of the average albedo from 0.3 to 0.2 would allow additional
melt of 667 mm w.e./year. For SE, additional shading causes only a
melt reduction of 30 mm. w.e. In this sub area, the recession of the firn
area is observed. Assuming an average change of surface albedo from
0.8 to 0.6, the energy available for melt increases by 174 kWh/m2. This
increase of energy would allow the melt of 1885 mm. w.e. per year.
Fig. 11. Correlation of homogenized directly measured specific mass balance with mean summer temperature, basic degree-day sums and TS sums.
Changes of surface albedo therefore have the most impact on mass
balance, followed by surface lowering. The positive effect of increased
shading is very small. A possible change in average albedo results from
accumulation of dust and debris on the glacier surface and in case the
duration of the summer snow cover and the number of snow falls are
reduced.
The mass balance gradient observed for LE would correspond to a
change of average albedo from 0.80 to 0.65. The observed mass
balance change rate at LE is higher than the sum of topographically
induced surface temperature rise and reduction of average albedo. But
together with the TS modelled mass balance change resulting from
the increase of air temperature and the prolongation of the ablation
period, the rate of mass balance change in LE can be explained.
The altitudinal profile of the specific mass balance often is used in
hydrological and glaciological modelling. To model climate change,
the ELA is often coupled to the air temperature, and the vertical
balance profile is shifted according to the calculated ELA. The mean,
the first and the third quartile, minimum and maximum balance
profiles are shown in Fig. 10. The range indicates that the range of
 A. Fischer / Global and Planetary Change 71 (2010) 13–26 25

values below 3000 m altitude is about twice the range in higher
elevations. A linear shift of mass balance along the x axis will result in
large errors of a mass balance calculated as described above.
All methods used to calculate mass balance in this study showed
good agreement. Fig. 11 shows the correlation of mean summer
temperatures, simple degree-day sum and the TS degree-day sum.
Including the extreme years of 2003 and 1965, the TS sum shows the
best correlation with an R2 of 0.76. The correlation of the simple degree-
day sum is with an R2 of 0.60 slightly higher than for the mean summer
temperature (R2 = 0.55). The parameterization of the TS method was
not changed and used as adjusted to the 1953 to 1973 mass balance data.
This gives confidence that this empirical formula is reliable to model
longer periods even in case climate and glacier change. The TS modelled
mass balance and the length measurements show that the glacier
recession in the in the 1940s were quite similar to the years after 2000.
Division for Water Resource Management of the Federal Government
of Tyrol, who also provided the runoff data of Rofenache. The DEM
2006 was provided by the Federal Government of Tyrol, the length
variation data by the Glacier Survey of the Austrian Alpine Club. This
study was supported by the Austrian Science Foundation FWF (grant
ZFT 3290).
The author thanks Ekkehard Dreiseitl, Gerhard Markl and Herbert
Lang for providing valuable information on the first decades of the
mass balance measurements. Gabi Bippus, Svea List and Fritz Pellet
are acknowledged for their contributions to digitizing the data. The
comments of three anonymous reviewers helped to improve the
manuscript substantially.
Appendix A

6. Conclusions
Table A
Original (b and S) and homogenized (bh and Sh) specific mass balance and area of
The homogenization of direct mass balance improved the agreement Hintereisferner.
with geodetical, hydrological and modelled mass balance data. The
Year b bh S Sh
geodetic and the TS modelled cumulated mass balance deviate between
2
29% and 18% from the homogenized direct mass balance, the mm w.e. mm w.e. km km2

hydrological mass balance deviates by 3%. The analysis of the mass 1953 −540 − 659 10.24 9.76
balance in sub areas showed that in different altitudes not only the 1954 − 286 − 413 10.20 9.74
1955 76 − 40 10.15 9.74
magnitude of mass balance differs, but also the rate of mass balance
1956 −275 − 175 10.11 9.74
change with time. At higher elevations, the mass balance on 1957 − 189 − 404 10.06 9.71
Hintereisferner is dominated by precipitation. Near the tongue, the 1958 − 981 − 1004 10.02 9.66
duration and magnitude of ablation related to temperature and 1959 − 763 − 902 9.97 9.61
topographic effects play a dominant role. Therefore, the average surface 1960 − 62 − 66 9.92 9.53
1961 − 205 − 147 9.88 9.49
albedo should be recorded in course of mass balance programs.
1962 −696 − 683 9.21 9.48
The results of the analysis of the sub areas suggest demands on the 1963 − 603 − 620 9.16 9.48
choice of mass balance glaciers if the data should reflect all climatic 1964 −1244 − 1339 9.06 9.32
elements and/or allow an extrapolation of the data to other glaciers: 1965 925 936 9.05 9.31
1966 344 363 9.05 9.32
(1) Mass balance glaciers should extend over the maximum 1967 20 32 9.03 9.28
elevation zones possible, in order to cover a broad bandwidth 1968 338 350 9.03 9.27
1969 −431 − 419 9.01 9.26
of mass balance measurable on these glacier. The mass balance of
1970 − 552 − 570 9.01 9.29
small glaciers is dominated either by temperature or precipita- 1971 − 600 − 604 9.00 9.24
tion. Additionally, a small glacier can switch the regime if the ELA 1972 − 74 − 80 8.99 9.23
changes. 1973 −1229 − 1234 8.99 9.20
(2) Measured mass balances can only be extrapolated with sufficient 1974 55 46 8.99 9.20
1975 65 50 8.97 9.20
accuracy to areas governed by similar processes. This is likely to 1976 − 314 − 315 8.96 9.15
be the case for glaciers with similar aspects and elevations, if the 1977 760 749 8.88 9.10
glaciers experience the same accumulation from precipitation, 1978 411 401 8.88 9.09
wind drift of avalanches. In regions with strong gradients of 1979 − 219 − 228 9.08 9.13
1980 − 50 − 47 9.08 9.12
precipitation, the same altitude zone might be governed by
1981 − 173 − 177 9.08 9.12
accumulation on one glacier and by temperature on the other. 1982 − 1240 − 1244 9.07 9.13
(3) Albedo and elevation changes should be recorded in order to 1983 −580 − 558 9.07 8.96
separate their effects on mass balance from the changes in 1984 32 33 9.07 8.96
atmospheric parameters. 1985 − 574 − 586 9.07 8.96
1986 −732 − 743 9.06 8.96
From the analysis of the components of the TS modelled mass 1987 − 717 − 728 9.05 8.92
1988 − 945 − 954 9.03 8.81
follows that summer snow fall plays a key role in the reaction of the
1989 −637 − 647 8.99 8.79
glacier to climate change. Thus temperature and precipitation must be 1990 − 995 − 1006 8.98 8.78
considered for projections of glacier extent or sea level rise. Sensitivities 1991 −1325 − 1327 8.88 8.71
of mass balance to climate change do not seem to be valid for other 1992 −1120 − 1124 8.88 8.67
periods or glaciers. 1993 −573 − 593 8.75 8.63
1994 −1107 − 1139 8.74 8.58
The mass balance of the areas contributing to the tongue is more
1995 − 461 − 478 8.73 8.52
negative than the one for the total area. Therefore the disintegration 1996 − 827 − 834 8.72 8.48
of glacier tributaries accelerates the retreat additionally to climate 1997 −591 − 577 8.70 8.25
forcing. Thus models relating length changes to climate or vice versa 1998 − 1230 − 1208 8.30 8.15
therefore should include the disintegration of glacier tributaries. 1999 − 861 − 808 8.22 8.01
2000 −633 − 627 8.11 8.01
2001 − 173 − 198 7.96 7.98
Acknowledgements 2002 − 647 − 650 7.91 7.91
2003 −1814 − 1836 7.82 7.81
During the last decades, the mass balance measurements on Mean − 475 − 491 9.06 9.01
Cumulated sum − 24242 − 25031
Hintereisferner are supported by the Hydrographical Survey of the
26 A. Fischer / Global and Planetary Change 71 (2010) 13–26
References
Abermann, J., Lambrecht, A., Fischer, A., Kuhn, M., 2009. Quantifying changes and trends
in glacier area and volume in the Austrian Ötztal Alps (1969–1997–2006). The
Cryosphere Discussion 3, 415–441.
Ambach, W., 1961. Die Bedeutung des aufgefrorenen Eises für den Massen- und
Energiehaushalt der Gletscher. Zeitschrift für Gletscherkunde und Glazialgeologie
4, 169–189.
Bøggild, C.E., Reeh, N., Oerter, H., 1994. Modelling ablation and mass-balance sensitivity
to climate change of Storströmmen, northeast Greenland. Global and Planetary
Change 9 (1–2), 79–90.
Braithwaite, R.J., Olesen, O.B., 1990. A simple energy-balance model to calculate ice
ablation at the margin of the Greenland ice sheet. Journal of Glaciology 36 (123),
222–228.
Cogley, J.G., 1999. Effective sample size for glacier mass balance. Geographical Annals
81, 79–86.
Cogley, J.G., 2005. In: Anderson, M.G. (Ed.), Mass and energy balances of glaciers and ice
sheets. Encyclopaedia of Hydrological Sciences, vol. 4. Wiley, New York, pp. 2555–2573.
Dyurgerov, M.B., Meier, M.F., 2005. Glaciers and the Changing Earth system: A 2004
snapshot. Occasional Paper No. 58. Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research,
University of Boulder, CO. 118 pp.
Finsterwalder, S., Schunk, H., 1887. Der Suldenferner. Zeitschrift des Deutschen und
Österreichischen Alpenvereins 18, 70–89.
Fischer, A., Markl, G., 2009. Mass balance measurements on Hintereisferner,
Kesselwandferner and Jamtalferner 2003 to 2006: database and results. Zeitschrift
für Gletscherkunde und Glazialgeologie 42 (1), 47–83.
Fountain, A., Vecchia, A., 1999. How many stakes are required to measure the mass
balance of a glacier? Geographical Annals 81A, 563–568.
Fu, P., Rich, P.M., 2002. A geometric solar radiation model with applications in
agriculture and forestry. Computers and Electronics in Agriculture 37, 25–35.
Geist, T., Stötter J., 2007. Documentation of glacier surface elevation change with
multitemporal airborne laser scanner data-case study: Hintereisferner and Kessel-
wandferner, Tyrol, Austria, Zeitschrift für Gletscherkunde und Glazialgeologie, 40.
Hess, H., 1904. Die Gletscher, Friedrich Vieweg und Sohn, Braunschweig.
Hock, R., 2003. Temperature index melt modelling in mountain regions. Journal of
Hydrology 282 (1–4), 104–115. doi:10.1016/S0022-1694(03)00257-9.
Hoinkes, H., Lang, H., 1962a. Der Massenhaushalt von Hintereis- und Kesselwandferner
(Ötztaler Alpen), 1957/58 und 1958/59. Archiv für Meteorologie, Geophysik und
Bioklimatologie, B. 12, 284–320.
Hoinkes, H., Lang, H., 1962b. Winterschneedecke und Gebietsniederschlag 1957/58 und
1958/59 im Bereich des Hintereis- und Kesselwandferners (Ötztaler Alpen). Archiv
für Meteorologie, Geophysik und Bioklimatologie, Serie B 11, 424–446.
Hoinkes, H., Rudolph, R., 1962. Mass-balance studies on the Hintereisferner, Oetztal
Alps, 1952–961. Journal of Glaciology 4 (33), 266–278.
Hoinkes, H., Howorka, F., Schneider, W., 1968. Glacier mass budget and mesoscale
weather in the Austrian Alps 1964 to 1966. IUGG General Assembly, Bern, IAHS 79,
241–254.
Hoinkes, H., 1970. Methoden und Möglichkeiten von Massenhaushaltsstudien auf
Gletschern. Zeitschrift für Gletscherkunde und Glazialgeologie 6, 37–90.
Hoinkes, H., Steinacker, A., 1975a. Hydrometeorological implications of the mass balance
of Hintereisferner, 1952–53 to 1968/69. IAHS-AISH Publ. No.104, pp. 144–149.
Hoinkes, H., Steinacker, R., 1975b. Zur Parametrisierung der Beziehung Klima –
Gletscher. Rivista Italiana di Geofisica 1, 97–104.
Huss, M., Bauder, A., Funk, M., 2009. Homogenization of long-term mass-balance time
series. Annals of Glaciology 50, 198–206.
Kerschner, H., Ivy-Ochs, S., 2007. Palaeoclimate from glaciers: examples from the
Eastern Alps during the Alpine Lateglacial and early Holocene. Global and Planetary
Change 60 (1–2), 58–71. doi:10.1016/j.gloplacha.2006.07.034.
Kuhn, M., Dreiseitl, E., Kaser, G., Markl, G., Nickus, U., Obleitner, F., Pellet, F., Rott, H.,
Schneider, H., Wagner, H.P., 1987. Arbeiten des Institutes für Meteorologie und
Geophysik der Universität Innsbruck im IHP 1975–1980. Eis- Wasser- und
Wärmehaushalt des Hintereisferners im Rofental bei Vent in Tirol während der
Jahre 1975–1980. Archiv für Lagerstättenforschung der geologischen Bundesan-
stalt. Band 8, 43–55.
Kuhn, M., Dreiseitl, E., Hofinger, S., Markl, G., Span, N., Kaser, G., 1999. Measurements
and models of the mass balance of Hintereisferner. Geografiska Annaler: Series A,
Physical Geography 81 (4), 659–670.
Kuhn, M., 2000. Redistribution of snow and glacier mass balance from a hydromete-
orological model. Annals of Glaciology 31, 15–18.
Lambrecht, A., Kuhn, M., 2007. Glacier changes in the Austrian Alps during the last three
decades, derived from the new Austrian glacier inventory. Annals of Glaciology 46,
177–184.
Lang, H., 1966. Hydrometeorologische Ergebnisse aus Abflußmessungen im Bereich des
Hintereisferners (Ötztaler Alpen) in den Jahren 1957–1959. Archiv für Meteorologie,
Geophysik und Bioklimatologie, Serie B 14, 280–302.
Lang, H., 1968. Relations between glacier runoff and meteorological factors observed on
and outside the glacier. IAHS Publication 79, 429–439.
Lemke, P., Ren, J., Alley, R.B., Allison, I., Carrasco, J., Flato, G., Fujii, Y., Kaser, G., Mote, P.,
Thomas, R.H., Zhang, T., 2007. Observations: Changes in snow, ice and frozen ground.
In: Solomon, S., Qin, D., Manning, M., Chen, Z., Marquis, M., Averyt, K.B., Tignor, M.,
Miller, H.L. (Eds.), Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of
Working Group I to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Martinec, J., Rango, A., 1986. Parameter values for snowmelt runoff modelling. Journal
of Hydrology 84 (3–4), 197–219.
Oerlemans, J., 2001. Glaciers and Climate Change. A. A. Balkema Publishers, Rotterdam,
Netherlands. 148 pp.
Oerlemans, J., 2005. Extracting a Climate Signal from 169 Glacier Records Science Vol.
308, No. 5722, pp. 675–677.
Oerlemans, J., Dyurgerov, M., van de Wal, R.S.W., 2007. Reconstructing the glacier
contribution to sea-level rise back to 1850. The Cryosphere 1, 59–65.
Ohmura, A., 2001. A physical basis for the temperature/melt-index method. Journal of
Applied Meteorology 40, 753–761.
Ohmura, A., 2004. Cryosphere during the Twentieth Century. Geophysical Monograph
150, 239–257.
Patzelt, G., 1970. Die Längenmessungen an den Gletschern der österreichischen
Ostalpen 1890–1969. Zeitschrift für Gletscherkunde und Glazialgeologie 6 (1–2),
151–159.
Patzelt, G., 1977. Statistik der Längenmessungen an den österreichischen Gletschern
1960 bis 1975. Zeitschrift für Gletscherkunde und Glazialgeologie 12 (1), 91–94.
Patzelt, G., 1980. The Austrian glacier inventory. Status and first results. IAHS
Publication 126, 181–183.
Pellicciotti, F., Brock, B., Strasser, U., Burlando, P., Funk, M., Corripio, J., 2005. An
enhanced temperature-index glacier melt model including the shortwave radiation
balance: development and testing for Haut Glacier d'Arolla, Switzerland. Journal of
Glaciology 51 (175), 573–587.
Pelto, M.S., 2000. The impact of sampling density on glacier mass balance
determination. Hydrological Processes 14 (18), 3215–3225.
Rich, P.M., Dubayah, R., Hetrick, W.A., Saving, S.C., 1994. Using Viewshed models to
calculate intercepted solar radiation: applications in ecology. American Society for
Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing Technical Papers, pp. 524–529.
Schimpp, O., 1960. Der Haushalt des Hintereisferners (Ötztal). Akkumulation, Ablation
und Gletscherbewegung in den Jahren 1952/53, 1953/54. Veröffentlichungen des
Museum Ferdinandeum in Innsbruck 39, 66–138.
Span, N., Fischer, A., Kuhn, M., Massimo, M., Butschek, M., 2005. Radarmessungen der
Eisdicke Österreichischer Gletscher. Band I: Messungen 1995 bis 1998. Österrei-
chische Beiträge zu Meteorologie und Geophysik 33, 145.
Steinacker, R., 1979. Rückrechnung des Massenhaushaltes des Hintereisferners mit
Hilfe von Klimadaten. Zeitschrift für Gletscherkunde und Glazialgeologie 15 (1),
101–104.
Thibert, E., Blanc, R., Vincent, C., Eckert, N., 2008. Glaciological and volumetric mass-
balance measurements: error analysis over 51 years for Glacier de Sarennes, French
Alps. Journal of Glaciology 54/186, 522–532. doi:10.3189/002214308785837093
July.
Vincent, C., 2002. Influence of climate change over the 20th Century on four French
glacier mass balances. Journal of Geophysical Research 107 (D19), ACL 4-1.
doi:10.1029/2001JD000832.
Zappa, M., Pos, F., Strasser, U., Warmerdam, P., Gurtz, J., 2003. Seasonal water balance of
an alpine catchment as evaluated by different methods for spatially distributed
snow melt modelling. Nordic Hydrology 34 (3), 179–202.
Zemp, M., Haeberli, W., Hoelzle, M., Paul, F., 2006. Alpine glaciers to disappear within
decades? Geophysical Research Letters 33, L13504. doi:10.1029/2006GL026319.