Vorabgletscher
Past extents come from the Swiss Glacier Inventories of 1850, 1931, 1973 and 2016. Future extents are illustrative: each glacier’s projected area (OGGM, median of CMIP6 climate models) is removed from its lowest ice upward. About the scenarios.
Vorabgletscher is one of 1,400 glaciers in Switzerland, covering 1.20 km² in the canton of Graubünden. Its ice spans 2,621 to 2,970 m and faces east. Its meltwater drains to the Rhine and on to the North Sea. In 1850 it was part of a larger ice body of 4.5 km², which has since split into 2 glaciers covering 1.2 km² in 2016 (−73%). Its tongue has been measured 95 times since 1882. In total it has retreated 1,491 m, about 10.5 m a year. Its mass balance has been measured since 2012: on average −1.47 m of water equivalent per year, with the most negative year in 2015 (−2.02 m). Between 1985 and 2022 its surface dropped by 29 m on average. With strong climate protection (SSP1-2.6), about 0% of its 2020 ice would remain in 2100. With very high emissions (SSP5-8.5) it would be gone around 2042. Its meltwater is projected to peak around 2026.
In pictures
What remains in 2100
Meltwater
Million m³ of water per year, 11-year mean
The record
Length change since 1882
Position of the glacier tongue, measured in the field almost every year. Hover for each measurement.
Mass balance 2012–2016
Ice gained (blue) or lost (red) over the whole glacier each year, in metres of water equivalent. Measured with stakes drilled into the ice.
Thinning since 1985
Average change in surface height, from comparing elevation models made from maps, aerial images and laser scans.
Facts
Area over time
Past areas are the ice body this glacier belonged to at the time. Projections: OGGM median, SSP2-4.5.
- SGI id
- A14p-01
- Canton
- Graubünden
- River
- Rhine → North Sea
- Basin
- Alpine Rhine
- Location
- 46.8768° N, 9.1679° E · swisstopo map
- Elevation
- 2,621–2,970 m, median 2,701 m
- Slope, aspect
- 12°, east
- Debris cover
- 0.04 km² (3% of the area)
- Inventory image
- 2014
- Ice volume (model)
- ≈ 0.058 km³ in 2020 (OGGM)
- RGI ids
- RGI60-11.00752
- In 1850 joined with
- Unnamed glacier A50h-11
More in the Alpine Rhine basin
- Silvrettagletscher2.67 km²
- Paradiesgletscher1.88 km²
- Glatscher da Medel Zentral1.78 km²
- Vadret da Porchabella W1.43 km²
- Zapportgletscher1.31 km²
- Glatscher da Gavirolas1.27 km²
- Glatscher da Medel E1.16 km²
- Güfergletscher N1.14 km²
- Glatscher da Medel W1.07 km²
- Fanellgletscher0.87 km²
- Läntagletscher0.77 km²
- Verstanclagletscher0.75 km²
Sources
- Linsbauer et al. (2021). The new Swiss Glacier Inventory SGI2016. Frontiers in Earth Science 9. doi.org/10.3389/feart.2021.704189
- Mannerfelt et al. (2022). Halving of Swiss glacier volume since 1931 observed from terrestrial image photogrammetry. The Cryosphere 16. doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3249-2022
- GLAMOS – Glacier Monitoring Switzerland. www.glamos.ch
- Zekollari et al. (2024). Twenty-first century global glacier evolution under CMIP6 scenarios and the role of glacier-specific observations. The Cryosphere 18 (OGGM v1.6 projections). tc.copernicus.org/articles/18/5045/2024/
Relief: swisstopo swissALTIRegio. 1850 and 1973 outlines: Maisch et al. (2000), Müller et al. (1976), Paul (2004). Length, mass balance and volume change: GLAMOS releases 2025. All sources and methods.