Location
Langfjordjøkelen (70°10'N, 21°45'E) is a maritime plateau glacier located at the border between Troms and Finnmark counties, about 60 km north-west of Alta in northern Norway. Its area is 8.4 km2, and 3.7 km2 drains eastward to Andrevann. The glaciological studies at Langfjordjøkelen started in 1989 and include mass balance measurements, front position changes, glacier velocity and meteorological observations.
Mass balance observations
Langfjordjøkelen has been the subject of annual mass balance measurements since 1989 with the exception of 1994 and 1995. The investigations are performed on the east-facing part. The mass balance measurements reveal a large annual mass turnover in the same order as at the maritime glaciers located much farther south in Norway. The mean summer balance (-3.0 m w.e.) exceeds the winter balance (2.2 m w.e.) resulting in an annual deficit of -0.78 m w.e./a. for the period 1989-2005. The mass deficit of Langfjordjøkelen is in contrast to the maritime glaciers in southern Norway which experienced mass surplus in the same period. Most of the mass loss of Langfjordjøkelen has occurred over the last nine years (1997-2005). In the period 1989-1995 the glacier had a slightly negative mass balance, while all the other observed glaciers in mainland Norway, including the continental ones, had a transient mass surplus (Andreassen et al., 2005).
Glacier fluctuations
Historical records, photos and maps show that Langfjordjøkelen has retreated about 1.4 km since 1900, the mean annual retreat being about 13 m. Aerial photos show that the glacier snout receded approximately 200 m during 1945-66 and approximately 700 m during 1966-94. Length change measurements began in 1998 and show a mean annual retreat of more than 30 m. The recent increased thinning and retreat of Langfjordjøkelen is stronger than observed for any other glacier in mainland Norway.
Literature
Andreassen, L.M., H. Elvehøy, B. Kjøllmoen, R. V. Engeset and N. Haakensen, 2005. Glacier mass balance and length variation in Norway. Annals of Glaciology, 42, 317-325 .
Andreassen, L.M., B. Kjøllmoen, A.L. Rasmussen and Ø.Nordli. 2006. Rapid thinning of Langfjordjøkelen in northern Norway. Workshop on the mass budget of Arctic glaciers, Obergurgl, Austria. Book of extended abstracts, 16-19.
Kjøllmoen, Bjarne, Liss M. Andreassen, Rune V. Engeset, Hallgeir Elvehøy, Miriam Jackson and Rianne H. Giesen, 2006: Glaciological investigations in Norway 2005. NVE Report 2 2006, 91 p + app. Download report (pdf).
Kjøllmoen, B. 1999. Breundersøkelser på Langfjordjøkelen 1988. NVE Dokument 2, 24 s.
Kjøllmoen, B., H.C. Olsen og R. Sværd. 2000. Langfjordjøkelen i Vest-Finnmark. Glasiohydrologiske undersøkelser. NVE Dokument 3, 55 s.
Kjøllmoen, B og H.C. Olsen. 2002. Langfjordjøkelen i Vest-Finnmark. Glasiohydrologiske undersøkelser. NVE Dokument 4, 35 s.