This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Gao, J. Articles by Liu, Y. Search for Related Content GeoRef GeoRef Citation Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Applications of remote sensing, GIS and GPS in glaciology: a review

Department of Geography, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand

Yansui Liu

Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources, Chinese Academy of Science, Beijing 100101, People’s Republic of China

Remote sensing has served as an efficient method of gathering data about glaciers since its emergence. The recent advent of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Global Positioning Systems (GPS) has created an effective means by which the acquired data are analysed for the effective monitoring and mapping of temporal dynamics of glaciers. A large number of researchers have taken advantage of remote sensing, GIS and GPS in their studies of glaciers. These applications are comprehensively reviewed in this paper. This review shows that glacial features identifiable from aerial photographs and satellite imagery include spatial extent, transient snowline, equilibrium line elevation, accumulation and ablation zones, and differentiation of ice/snow. Digital image processing (e.g., image enhancement, spectral ratioing and automatic classification) improves the ease and accuracy of mapping these parameters. The traditional visible light/infrared remote sensing of two-dimensional glacier distribution has been extended to three-dimensional volume estimation and dynamic monitoring using radar imagery and GPS. Longitudinal variations in glacial extent have been detected from multi-temporal images in GIS. However, the detected variations have neither been explored nor modelled from environmental and topographic variables. GPS has been utilized independent of remote sensing and GIS to determine glacier ice velocity and to obtain information about glacier surfaces. Therefore, the potential afforded by the integration of nonconventional remote sensing (e.g., SAR interferometry) with GIS and GPS still remains to be realized in glaciology. The emergence of new satellite images will make remote sensing of glaciology more predictive, more global and towards longer terms.

Key Words: GIS • glaciers • GPS • remote sensing

Progress in Physical Geography, Vol. 25, No. 4, 520-540 (2001)
DOI: 10.1177/030913330102500404


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				D. J. Quincey, R. M. Lucas, S. D. Richardson, N. F. Glasser, M. J. Hambrey, and J. M. Reynolds Optical remote sensing techniques in high-mountain environments: application to glacial hazards Progress in Physical Geography, December 1, 2005; 29(4): 475 - 505. [Abstract] [PDF]

				P. Aplin Remote sensing: base mapping Progress in Physical Geography, June 1, 2003; 27(2): 275 - 283. [PDF]