Cirque glaciers found on the Colorado Front Range, USA are sensitive to climate change and are important for water supply and the delivery of water downstream. These glaciers are shrinking at a rapid rate in response ...Cirque glaciers found on the Colorado Front Range, USA are sensitive to climate change and are important for water supply and the delivery of water downstream. These glaciers are shrinking at a rapid rate in response to the global climate change, and thus it is important to track and analyze them. One of the ways to monitor these glaciers is by using multispectral satellite imagery (Landsat imagery). In this article, the feasibility of tracking glacial area via Landsat satellites has been discussed and the trend of 13 glaciers in the Colorado Front Range Region has been analyzed from 1993 to 2021. In this period, the total glacial area across 13 glaciers in the Colorado Front Range Region has decreased by 63.6%, and a significant correlation (p-value p < 0.05) found with the annual global average temperature indicates that the retraction of glaciers is likely a response to the global warming.展开更多
文摘Cirque glaciers found on the Colorado Front Range, USA are sensitive to climate change and are important for water supply and the delivery of water downstream. These glaciers are shrinking at a rapid rate in response to the global climate change, and thus it is important to track and analyze them. One of the ways to monitor these glaciers is by using multispectral satellite imagery (Landsat imagery). In this article, the feasibility of tracking glacial area via Landsat satellites has been discussed and the trend of 13 glaciers in the Colorado Front Range Region has been analyzed from 1993 to 2021. In this period, the total glacial area across 13 glaciers in the Colorado Front Range Region has decreased by 63.6%, and a significant correlation (p-value p < 0.05) found with the annual global average temperature indicates that the retraction of glaciers is likely a response to the global warming.