A new Working Group on Debris Covered Glaciers supported by the International Association of Cryospheric Sciences (IACS) has been established to run from 2018-2022. The targetted objectives are to:
1) compare the available methods of mapping supra-glacial debris thickness, and assess their appropriateness for different applications
2) compare the performance of available sub-debris ablation models, and assess their appropriateness for different applications.
3) work closely with the debris-covered glaciers community to coordinate knowledge exchange
We would like to engage as wide a group of scientists as possible in this working group, which will include young and senior scientists from a variety of geographic locations. In order to achieve this in a practical sense, we define two levels or participation: working group members and participants.
Members are expected to contribute to ALL of the following:
a) actively contribute to the development of at least one of the two comparison projects, which includes model design, forcing data, and output variables,
b) produce model results for at least one of the comparison projects,
c) participate in group workshops (as far as possible).
In addition to these members, we also welcome working group participants from a wider sphere of related debris-covered glacier research topics. Participants are expected to participate in discussions and meetings (if possible) AND contribute to AT LEAST ONE of the following:
a) contribute forcing data to one of the comparison projects,
b) provide data or code to foster knowledge exchange,
c) contribute services to journal special issues.
If you are interested in these activities, please read the working group aims and objectives available at http://www.cryosphericsciences.org/wg_debrisCovGlaciers.html and contact one of the working group co-chairs (Lindsey Nicholson, Francesca Pellicciotti, and David Rounce) if you would like to either become a member/participant or be kept abreast of working group activities.