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By: Simon Oberli, Photographer
   
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Oberaar glacier: Formation of the future glacial lakes

According to a scientific study/publication by Tim Steffen, Prof. Daniel Farinotti, et al., a glacial lake will be formed in front of the Oberaar glacier. We will follow the formation of this glacial lake in the coming years and publish our observations on this page.

Situation plan glacier end Oberaar glacier

Source map: Federal Office of Topography swisstopo. Distance from grid to grid: 1km.
Source map: Federal Office of Topography swisstopo. Distance from grid to grid: 1km.
Legend:
- Red lines: Outline of the future glacial lake. Source: Above-mentioned study.
- Red dot 15 = Our location 15.
- Red dot 17 = Our location 17.
- Yellow line = angle of view
- Line in magenta = beginning/end of the angle of view
Points 15 and 17 were measured with a handheld GPS device.
The screenshot from map.admin.ch was taken on 12.1.2023.
The map shows the status as of approx. 2018.
Key data of the lake according to the study:
- Aera: 0.023km2
- Largest depth: 9.1m
- Medium depth: 4.1m

Situation glacier end Oberaar glacier on 13.7.2020

The panoramic photo below was taken from location 17 and shows a 335° view.
Situation glacier end Oberaar glacier on 13.7.2020.
Situation glacier end Oberaar glacier on 13.7.2020.
According to the site plan above, a lake will form SW of location 17 in the coming years.
On 13 July 2020, the area where the new lake was to be formed was still largely covered in ice.
Our location 17 is located on a glacial polish rock rib, which was partially covered with debris on 13 July 2020.
The hollow in which the lake was to be formed lies in the area of the main outflow of the Oberaar glacier. This glacial stream often carries a lot of water, which contains a lot of sediment and carries smaller and larger stones with it. This could lead to this hollow being filled with gravel and sand within a few years.
In the 2023 season, we will again capture the situation in pictures and publish them on this page.
Published / Updated: 18.1.2023 / 4.2.2023
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