Mass Balance Factsheet for the Ghiacciaio del Basòdino, Alps
Ghiacciaio del Basòdino is a small north-east facing mountain glacier in the Southern Swiss Alps. The glacier covers an area of 1.64 km2 (2018) and extends from 3,181 to 2,588 m a.s.l. It currently has a length of 1.3 km and ice thickness measurements indicate an ice volume of 0.022 km3 in 2018 corresponding to a mean ice thickness of 14 m, and a maximum thickness of 26 m (Grab et al., 2021). The average annual and summer air temperatures (1991–2020) at the median glacier elevation (2,908 m a.s.l.) is around –3 °C and +5 °C, respectively, and mean annual precipitation at the station Robièi (1,898 m a.s.l., 3 km from the glacier terminus) is 2,400 mm.
Detailed seasonal mass balance investigations have been carried out continuously since 1991. The network of initially six stakes has been gradually extended to 13 stakes that are observed both in spring and fall. The evolution of surface topography is documented by 10 digital elevation models at decadal intervals and volumetric changes have been determined over the period from 1929 to 2018 (Bauder et al., 2007). This data indicates that over the last roughly 90 years, Ghiacciaio del Basòdino has lost 85% of its ice volume. Nevertheless, Ghiacciaio del Basòdino is still the biggest glacier in the Ticino, the southernmost part of Switzerland, and thus is considered as representative for this region.
Mass balance measurements are performed in the frame of the programme GLAMOS (Glacier Monitoring Switzerland, www.glamos.ch). For additional information on the status of the glacier and on data relating to annual mass balance and other measurements, visit the WGMS Fluctuations of Glaciers Browser.
FACTS:
- Political unit: CH
- WGMS ID: 463
- Latitude: 46.42°N
- Longitude: 8.48°E
- Height min: 2588 m a.s.l.
- Height max: 3181 m a.s.l.
- Measurement types: MASS BALANCE, THICKNESS CHANGE & FRONT VARIATION
- Current Principal Investigator: Giovanni Kappenberger, Andreas Bauder & Colleagues
- Current Sponsoring Agency: LABORATORY OF HYDRAULICS, HYDROLOGY AND GLACIOLOGY, VAW – ETH ZURICH (ZURICH, CH)
Ghiacciaio del Basòdino and its proglacial area (photo by G. Kappenberger in July 2022)
Terrestrial and satellite map of Basòdino (Google Maps)
Basòdino Annual Mass Balance (WGMS)
Continuous Mass Balance (MB) measurements since 1992/93:
Additional data available: Front Variation (FV), Thickness Change (TC) and Glacier Outlines:
Selected references:
Bauder, A., Funk, M., & Huss, M. (2007). Ice-volume changes of selected glaciers in the Swiss Alps since the end of the 19th century. Annals of Glaciology, 46, 145-149.
Grab, M., Mattea, E., Bauder, B., Huss, M., Rabenstein, L., Hodel, E., Linsbauer, A., Hellmann, S., Church, G., Langhammer, L., Schmid, L., Deleze, K, Schaer, P., Lathion, P., Farinotti, D. & H. Maurer (2021): Ice thickness distribution of all Swiss glaciers based on extended ground-penetrating radar data and glaciological modeling. Journal of Glaciology 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2021.55