Climate change and mudslides

Is there a link between climate change, glacier movements and the erosion of rock underneath the ice? According to Frédéric Herman of the University of Lausanne, mountains are vulnerable to climate change: the risk of mudslides increases if alpine rivers carry more sediments. Supported by the SNSF, his research group explored the Franz Josef Glacier in New Zealand, which is over ten kilometres long and perfectly located to answer his research question. “Using a new spectroscopic method, I was able to analyse 4,000 samples in two weeks and create an accurate map of the glacier. In the past, this work would have taken years”, explains master’s student Mattia Brughelli excitedly. The study was realised in cooperation with the French National Museum of Natural History, the Californian Institute of Technology and the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Survey Science in New Zealand.