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By: Simon Oberli, Photographer
   
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Kanderfirn: 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 melting Kanderfirn (incl. Aelpetligletscher). We will follow the formation of this glacial lake in the coming years and publish our observations on this page.

Situation plan glacier end Kanderfirn

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 8 = Our location 8.
- Red dot 14 = Our location 14
- Yellow line = angle of view
- Line in magenta = beginning/end of the angle of view
Points 8 and 14 were surveyed with a handheld GPS unit.
The screenshot of map.admin.ch was created on 20.1.2023.
The map shows the status as of approx. 2018.
Key data of the lake according to the study:
. - Aera: 0.603km2
- Largest depth: 48.5m
- Average depth: 21.5m

Situation glacier end Kanderfirn on 11.8.2022

The panoramic photo below was taken from location 8 and shows a 260° view.
Situation glacier end Kanderfirn on 11.8.2022.
Situation glacier end Kanderfirn on 11.8.2022.
According to the above situation plan, a large lake will form at the end of Kanderfirn and Aelpeltligletscher in the coming years to decades.
On 11 August 2022, the area where the new lake was to be created was still largely covered by ice. Two lakes have formed in front of the Kanderfirn in recent years. The future will show whether these are part of the big lake.
Our site 8 is located on a large glacial rib, which is mostly covered with debris.
In the 2023 season, we will again capture the situation in pictures and subsequently update this page.
Published / updated: 24.1.2023 / 4.2.2023
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