GIS for Glaciology
Tatyana Khromova
Institute of Geography Russian Academy of Sciences
Moscow
Background
Interaction between natural environment and society is one of the most actual problems of
present time. In this problem along with atmosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere of the Earth
an important place belongs to glaciosphere. This mantle of our planet takes part in formation
of weather and climate, effects considerably the Earth's relief, water balance as well as human
economic activities. Total ice reserves on the Earth make 30m km3 or about two thirds of
fresh water on the planet. Glaciers cover 11% of land surface, and winter snow cover in the
Northern Hemisphere falls on 66% of land surface. Soil humidification and, consequently,
harvest depend on the amount of fallen snow; problems of transport, heat supply etc. are
connected with snow. Study of natural ice is necessary for forecast of climate, river runoff,
study of fluctuations of world ocean level, prevention of natural calamities in mountains,
development of transport and building of constructions in polar and high mountain regions,
development of mountain sports for solving many ecological problems.
The World Atlas of Snow and Ice Resources
The Institute of Geography RAS in Moscow, Russia has a unique collection of nival-glacial
information presented in Atlas of Snow and Ice Resources of the World. The Atlas is the
national contribution of Russia to International Hydrological Programme sponsored by the
UNESCO, and to the International Geosphere-Biosphere programme of the International
Council of Scientific Unions. Numerous maps, diagrams and graphs of the Atlas cover the
regions with snow and ice, including their peculiarities related to glacio-nival phenomena, as
well as the changes of physical-geographical conditions of such regions in the past, their
present regime and future developments.
The Atlas consists of three parts - Introductory, regional and Applied. The Introductory Part
contains the world maps depicting the spreading of all kinds of natural ice on the Earth. The
Regional Part presents the maps of continents, natural regions, mountain-glacier areas, glacier
systems and individual glaciers. In order to illustrate the diversity of snow and ice
phenomena, the maps have been compiled on different scales of common scale system.
Applied Part deals with the possible utilization of snow and ice and the ways for preventing of
certain natural hazards. The World Atlas of Snow and Ice Resources includes about 1000
maps of different scales - from 1: 90 000 000 to 1:25 000.
The Atlas contains maps of 17 subject sections covering all kinds of natural ice: solid
precipitation, snow cover, avalanches, mountain glaciers and polar ice sheets, sea and river
ice, ground ice and aufeises, as well as climatic conditions of snow and ice areas, melt snow
an ice runoff, former glaciation and ice resources. The maps of majority of sections are
closely interrelated and correspond to one another. Topographic maps, glacier inventories and
results of field studies, standard hydro-meteorological information, as well as space images
were used for compiling the maps of the Atlas. For insufficiently studied areas, special
methods and techniques were developed on the basis of comprehensive research, specially
conducted for this purpose. With the help of these methods, it became possible to compile, for
the first time, the maps, covering solid precipitation, temperature conditions, snow cover and
run-off in Alpine areas. The maps were compiled with due regards to the indicative role of
glacio-nival phenomena. A set of photographs of glacier types and glacio-nival phenomena in
different regions of the World is presented in the final section of the Atlas.
The World Atlas of Snow and Ice Resources is the result of a joint effort of teams of scholars
from many research and technical institutions of Russia and other countries, former members
of the USSR. The Institute of Geography was the principal institution responsible for Atlas.
More than 30 institutions of the USSR Academy of Sciences and Academies of Sciences of
the Union Republics, and other organizations conducted the Atlas compilation. In 1998 the
World Atlas of Snow and Ice Resources prepared at the Institute of Geography of the Russian
Academy of Sciences was published. In the Atlas the glaciological information at various
levels of investigation is accumulated. In the process of the Atlas compilation the
accumulated glaciological information was systematized and presented as the cartographic
models.
Glaciological GIS
Using geoinformation technologies make it possible to develop an open system organizing
glaciological information at different levels of investigation. It gives an opportunity to renew
and expand the information base. Glaciology, the part of geography, concerning the science
about nature ice, proved to be one of the branches of geographical science most prepared to
incorporate modern geoinformation methods. Now Institute of Geography RAN is working on
glaciology data base creation. Maps of World Atlas of Snow and Ice Resources showing
medium perennial characteristics constitute the main part of this database. The above
characteristics in their turn form the base for snow and ice phenomena monitoring. Now, a
number of maps have been entered into computer. Thus, traditional Atlas is being transformed
into a new digital version as a part of glaciological GIS "Snow and Ice on the Earth" intended
for general users.
The main tasks of glaciological GIS "Snow and Ice on the Earth" creation are to present the
main information on global and regional glacio-nival systems of the Earth; to make
glaciological information compatible with other data base to make the form of presenting
material available for general users so as it could also be used in educational process
(Khromova, T.E., 1997).
Levels and subjects
In the glaciological GIS three main levels are determined: global (including continental one),
regional and local (including medium- and large-scale maps of glaciers). Each new level of
investigation gives new information on the object under consideration.
Global level including the continental one, presents glaciosphere of the Earth. In the
cartographic database there are two sublevels: maps of the world and continents, which are
mostly of illustrative character. Projections of these maps are conical equigraphic with
standard parallels for each continent, and azimuthal – for Polar Regions. Subject load
distributed over surfaces on maps of the world and continents is as follows: glaciological
regionalization; storage of snow and ice with regard to belts, zones and provinces; limits of
sea ice and icebergs, permanent and seasonal; limits of perennially frozen ground; limits of
the dynamics of snow cover by months; precipitation; solid precipitation, etc.
Regional level gives the best opportunity to study regularities and interconnections in glacier
systems; the main way of imaging is through isolines (fields of characteristics), which makes
it possible to carry out joint analysis easily. Typical basis maps of 1:1.500.000 – 1:3.000.000
scale have geographic reticule, shoreline, hydrography, relief, glacier contours. The subject
content is presented by a standard set of average multi-year characteristics of glacier regime,
climate of cold and warm periods, precipitation, snow storage, etc., as well as maps of
glaciological regionalization of territory and snow and ice storage. For each region additional
presenting of information on the most investigated snow-and-ice objects is possible.
Preference is given to the objects that are included into the international system of
observations or those of considerable importance for national and international scientific and
economic interests. The following regions include in regional part of the GIS database:

Europe: The Greater Caucasus, The Russian Arctic, Spitsbergen, Iceland, Northwest
of Scandinavia, Southwest of Scandinavia, The Alps and Pyrenees, The Apennines,
Balkans, Carpathians.

Asia: Tien Shan, Pamirs-Alay, The Altai and Sayany, Eastern Tien Shan and
Mongolian Altai, Nanshan, The Hindu-Kush and Karakorum, The Kuen-Lun, Tibet
highland, Himaalaya, Kamchatka, Japanese Islands.

North America: Greenland, Canadian arctic archipelago, South-Eastern Alaska,
Northern part of Coast Range, Southern part of Coast Range and the Rocky
Mountains.

South America: Patagonia glacial plateau.

New Zealand: South Iceland, Antarctica.
All types of information as well as levels of presenting information are interconnected by a
system of references and inquiries. This system is through for all levels, and is organized in
two main directions: thematic and territorial. All basic cartographic information exists in
unitary geographic coordinates expressed in decimal degrees. All additional information is
related to the basic cartographic data by use of geographic coordinates. It lets users
manipulate the cartographic image, combine it with any cartographic or other material having
geographic orientation, and get cartographic images of any projection and scale. Using
attributive data it is possible to develop somebody's own versions of digital maps (Khromova
et al, 1998).
Glacier dynamics
The World Atlas of Snow and Ice Resources has summarized in present-day scientific
knowledge of the formation, spreading and regime of snow and ice phenomena in the 19601980’s and may serve for the comparison with their future change under the impacts of both
natural and man-made factors. The next step is to organize glacier changes information
gathering. The mapping and measurement of glaciers and their changes are useful in
predicting sea-level and regional water supply, studying hazards and climate change (Haeberli
et al., 1998), and in the hydropower industry. Existing inventories cover only about 67,000 of
the world's estimated 160,000 glaciers and are based on data collected over 50 years or more
(Haeberli et al., 1998). The data available have proven that small ice bodies are disappearing
at an accelerating rate and that the Antarctic ice sheet and its fringing ice shelves are
undergoing unexpected, rapid change. According to many glaciologists, much larger
fluctuations in land ice with vast implications for society are possible in the coming decades
and centuries due to natural and anthropogenic climate change (Oppenheimer, 1998). Before
glacier data can be used to address critical problems pertinent to the world's economic and
environmental health, the data must become more comprehensive, more homogenous in detail
and quality, and managed within Geographic Information Systems (GIS). A synchronous,
GIS-based, uniform baseline inventory must be established to track global glacier changes;
ground-validated satellite measurements are crucial to extend coverage to a representative
sample of the world's land ice (Haeberli, 1998).
The launch by NASA of two new environmental satellites (Landsat 7 and Terra) in 1999
marks a leap in capabilities for global mapping and measurements of glaciers and ice sheets.
NASA has funded an international glaciological consortium, Global Land Ice Measurements
from Space (GLIMS) as a "Pathfinder" project to assess the status and vigour of the world's
glaciers using remote sensing and field data. GLIMS and similar projects are using satellite
imaging to provide our first comprehensive and uniform look at the world's land ice and will
be the main source of “on-line” data for glaciological GIS.
Software
Commercial product ARC/INFO (producer ESRI) intended for development of GI systems is
used as main software. This product is one of the most widespread in the world. Format
ARC/INFO can be converted into any other GIS format. Besides commercial versions there
are free-of-charge products that makes it possible to visualize information in format
ARC/INFO.
In ARC/INFO format there is world atlas “World and Man” compiled jointly by ESRI and the
Institute of Geography of the Russian Academy of Sciences; it is an electronic version
fundamental general geographic world atlas. Using single format will make it possible to
carry out joint analysis of general geographic and glaciological information at global
continental level. The proposed atlas “Snow and Ice on the Earth” is the next step on the way
to organization of geographic information into a single international GI system.
Scientific and technical provision
Fulfilment of the project is supposed on the basis of Department of glaciology of the Institute
of Geography of the Russian Academy of Sciences. In the Department there are ideological
prerequisites, technical and manpower resources for fulfilment of the project. Collaborators of
the Department carried out the main work on compilation of the World Atlas of Snow and Ice
Resources, and elaborated the concept of GIS simulation of glacio-nival systems. Work on
formation of the glaciological database is being carried out, and experience of work in the
geoinformation sphere has been gained in the process of fulfilment of small-scale projects
supported by RFFI, Soros Scientific Fund, World Centre on Glaciology, Scientific
Department of NATO, as well as in the process of compilation of the electronic atlas “World
and Man” jointly with ESRI.
Conclusions
Thus, the glaciological GIS is a source, accessible to the user, of on-line information on
glaciological processes in numerous regions where the glacio-nival complex exerts a
substantial influence on people, the economy, and the environment, and where problems in
regional planning, development of natural resources, and environmental protection cannot be
solved without tacking such information into account. A database, constituting a set of layers
of thematic information at a single scale level, referenced to the very same territory, will make
possible a comprehensive assessment of those regions where natural ice plays a decisive role.
The glaciological GIS "Snow and Ice on the Earth" is the next step on the way to The Spatial
Information Society.
Acknowledgements
The work was conducted with the support of the Russian Fund for Basic Research, grant No.
98-05-64303
References
Khromova, T.E., “From the World Atlas of Snow and Ice Resources to glaciological GIS”,
Proceedings of the 18th International Cartographic Conference ICC 97, Stockholm 23-27 June 1997,
Galve, Sweden, pp. 628-634,1997
Khromova, T.E., Kotlyakov, V.M., Zverkova, N.M., “Conception of a Glaciological Geoinformation
System”, Mapping Sciences & Remote Sensing, Vol.35, No.2, pp. 79-93, April-June 1998.
Haeberli, W., M. Hoelzle, and S. Suter, eds., “EOS Science Plan”, NASA,Washington, D.C., pp. 263307, (http://eospso.gsfc.nasa.gov/sci_plan/chapters.html), 1998.
Raup, B.H., Kieffer, H.H., Hare, T.M., and Kargel, J.S., “Generation of Data Acquisition Requests for
the ASTER Satellite Instrument for Monitoring a Globally Distributed Target: Glaciers”, IEEE Trans.
Geoscience and Remote Sensing, v. 38, pp. 1105-1112, 2000.
Oppenheimer, M., Global warming and the stability of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, Nature, 393, pp.
325-332, 1998.
Appendix A
Examples from glaciological GIS database
Fig. 1: Pamir - Glaciers
.
Fig. 2: Arctic - Volume of snow
Fig. 3: Alps - Snow cover
Fig. 4: Caucasus - Annual River Runoff
Fig. 5: Arctic - Glacier Grambell. Airfoto and surface topography. Polygons.
Fig6. Arctic. Glacier Grambell. Airfoto and surface topography. Arcs