{"id":231,"date":"2021-11-06T05:00:15","date_gmt":"2021-11-06T04:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sciencefocus.com\/?p=104313"},"modified":"2021-11-06T05:12:13","modified_gmt":"2021-11-06T04:12:13","slug":"in-pictures-documenting-melting-alpine-glaciers-in-the-forni-valley","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/rss_feed\/in-pictures-documenting-melting-alpine-glaciers-in-the-forni-valley\/","title":{"rendered":"In pictures: Documenting melting Alpine glaciers in the Forni Valley"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By James Cutmore\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Saturday, 06 November 2021 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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The mountain ranges of the Lombardy region hold the largest number of glaciers in Italy, many of which are classified as extinct or in danger of extinction.<\/p>\n

The Forni valley glacier, in Altal Valtellina, has become of particular interest to tourists and scientists a like. Its size and the beauty of the Forni Valley and the gigantic glacial tongue (a\u00a0long and narrow sheet of ice) that made it accessible to anyone transformed it into a popular destination for mountaineers and tourists during the early 20th Century.<\/p>\n

The unusually high heat of the summer of 2015 radically changed the structure of the glacier. By the end of August 2015 the entire mass had split into three sections. Scientific studies have shown that this rate of change is set to increase over the next two decades.<\/p>\n

Photographer Luigi Avantaggiato has been photographing the changing face of one of the world\u2019s most studied glaciers, demonstrating the speed at which climate change is affecting our landscape.<\/p>\n

The accumulation area<\/h2>\n
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The accumulation area of \u200b\u200bthe Central Forni glacier, Valfurva, Lombardy, Italy. The regression of the glacial front from the point of its maximum expansion in the first half of the 19th Century was 3.3 km\u00b2, while the loss of the area occupied by the glacier was about 8 km\u00b2. In 1867, the year of the first accurate mapping, the total area measured 19 km\u00b2: today it is just over 11 km\u00b2. Photo by Luigi Avantaggiato<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

The structure of a glacier<\/h2>\n
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The areas of an Alpine glacier. Illustration by Kelvinsong\/Wikipedia<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Debris-covered glacier<\/h2>\n
\""Rocky\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
Rocky debris begins to cover an area of the Eastern front of the Forni glacier, Valfurva, Lombardy, Italy. One of the consequences of the melting of the glacier is the transition from \u2018white\u2019 or \u2018debris-free\u2019 glaciers to black or \u2018debris-covered\u2019 glaciers. The thickness and grain size of the debris affect the melting rate. Photo by Luigi Avantaggiato<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Documenting the change<\/h2>\n
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The glaciologist Giuseppe Cola, who has been monitoring the state of health of the glacier for over 40 years, takes a picture on the Eastern Forni glacier. Photo by Luigi Avantaggiato<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Meltwater stream<\/h2>\n
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The glaciologist Giuseppe Cola inside an endoglacial stream in the Eastern Forni glacier, Valfurva, Lombardy, Italy. Photo by Luigi Avantaggiato.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n