Degradation of the cryosphere in the high Drakensberg Mountains under past and future climate change
Assigned Session: FS 3.158: Navigating Africa’s mountains in new Global Change territory
Abstract ID: 3.13949 | Not reviewed | Requested as: Poster | TBA | TBA
Sophie Biskop (1)
Marcelo, Fernandes (2); Sebastian, Vivero (3, 4); Francois, Engelbrecht (5); Stefan, Grab (6)
(1) Department of Geography, Friedrich Schiller University, Germany
(2) Institute of Geography and Spatial Planning, University of Lisbon, Portugal
(3) EPFL Valais Wallis, Switzerland
(4) Department of Geosciences, University of Fribourg, Switzerland
(5) Global Change Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
(6) School of Geography, Archaeology & Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
Abstract
A wide variety of periglacial and possible glacial landforms in the high Drakensberg Mountains exhibit evidence for Late Pleistocene (last 130 ka) cold climate conditions in southern Africa. Recent studies suggest that moisture supply during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) was a critical determinant for the existence of small and restricted glaciers in the mid-latitude Drakensberg Mountains. However, little is known about the absolute chronology of the glacial and periglacial evolution in the high Drakensberg Mountains. Detailed quantifiable paleoclimate data are fundamental to resolve ongoing controversies regarding temperature change and moisture availability during the LGM in southern Africa. Understanding how glacial and periglacial environments have responded to climate change in the past can provide an important testbed for climate models, and help to constrain projected changes of future climate in these regions.
The overall goal of this study is to assess the impact of climate change on past and future degradation of the cryosphere in the high Drakensberg based on an innovative and interdisciplinary approach, combining geomorphological mapping using high-resolution topographic information and visual satellite imagery, field surveys validation and cosmic-ray exposure (CRE) dating techniques, high-resolution dynamic climate modelling and cryospheric modelling. The following objectives are addressed:
1. Reconstruction of the spatial and temporal glacial and periglacial evolution in a portion of the high Drakensberg escarpment based on i) geomorphological mapping using mid (1:25000) and high- resolution orthoimages and Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) derived from satellite imagery (validated in field work) and detailed Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) surveys, and ii) CRE
2. Quantitative impact assessment of climate change on glaciation and deglaciation at the last glacial-interglacial transition based on glacier-mass balance modelling driven by high-resolution paleoclimate projections.
3. Quantitative impact assessment of climate change on the future transformation of the periglacial environment, especially seasonal frost, and snow distribution in the high Drakensberg, based on cryospheric modelling and high-resolution regional climate simulations.
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