Turtmann glacier
| Turtmann glacier | ||
|---|---|---|
 Turtmann Glacier with Bishorn and Stierberg. |
||
| location | Turtmanntal , Canton of Valais , Switzerland | |
| Mountains | Western Alps , Valais Alps , Weisshorn Group | |
| Type | Valley glacier | |
| length | 5.8 km (1973) | |
| surface | 5.91 km² (1973) | |
| Exposure | North | |
| Altitude range | 4140 m above sea level M. - 2260 m above sea level M. | |
| Tilt | ⌀ 18 ° (32%) | |
| Coordinates | 619 814 / 108508 | |
|
||
| drainage | Turtmänna → Rhone → Mediterranean | |
The Turtmann Glacier is a valley glacier in the rear Turtmann Valley in the Valais Alps . It lies on the territory of the Swiss municipalities of Turtmann-Unterems and Oberems in the canton of Valais . The ice stream with a pronounced tongue was about 5.8 km long with an area of almost 6 km². By 2005 its length had shortened by a good 100 meters (compared to other large alpine glaciers only). If you add the Brunegg Glacier connected to it, its area increases by 6.7 to around 12.6 km². The north-exposed glacier extends from 4140 m to 2260 m above sea level. M. , its average incline is given as 32% (18 °).
location
The Turtmann Glacier takes its starting point on the northwest flank of the Bishorn at around 4140 m above sea level. M. First, flows of glacial northwest, whereby it on its northeast side by the ridge of the bull Berg ( 3507 m ) of parallel brunegg glacier is separated. At the height of the Stierberg, the Turtmann Glacier turns north and is flanked to the west by the Diablons ( 3592 m ). In the lower area, the ice stream is still around 600 m wide. An arm of the Brunegg Glacier flows into the Turtmann Glacier from the east. The glacier tongue currently ends at around 2240 m and drains into the Rhone via the Turtmänna , which runs through the Turtmann valley .
At an altitude of 3256 m , not far from the Col de Tracuit , which separates the Turtmann Valley from the Val d'Anniviers, the Cabane de Tracuit , a hut belonging to the Swiss Alpine Club SAC, stands above the western edge of the glacier. It serves as the starting point for climbing the Bishorn and the Weisshorn . Experienced high alpinists can reach the Cabane de Tracuit from the Turtmann Valley via the Turtmannhütte ( 2519 m , 3 hours from Gruben), the Brunegg Glacier, the rocks of the Adlerflüe and the Turtmann Glacier.
Development of the glacier since the Little Ice Age
At its peak during the Little Ice Age around the middle of the 19th century, the Turtmann glacier reached around 1 km further down the valley and also sent a short tongue over the Col de Tracuit into the catchment area of the Val d'Anniviers above Zinal . As one of the few glaciers in the Swiss Alps, the Turtmann glacier showed an overall positive change in length between 1980 and 2000. Since then, however, he has been withdrawing rapidly.
On August 6, 2020, a large glacier erupted in the area of the large icefall, so that since then the lower part of the glacier is no longer connected to the upper part.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Research institute for hydraulic engineering, hydrology and glaciology (VAW) of the ETH Zurich (publisher): Turtmanngletscher. In: Swiss Glacier Measurement Network. ( ethz.ch , also as PDF , accessed on November 16, 2012).
- ^ Research institute for hydraulic engineering, hydrology and glaciology (VAW) of the ETH Zurich (ed.): Brunegg Glacier. In: Swiss Glacier Measurement Network. ( ethz.ch , also as PDF , accessed on November 16, 2012).
- ^ Research institute for hydraulic engineering, hydrology and glaciology (VAW) of the ETH Zurich : Turtmann glacier. In: Glacier Natural Hazards. ( ethz.ch ( page no longer available ), also as a PDF ( page no longer available ), accessed on November 16, 2012).
- ↑ www.swisstopo.ch: Swisstopo geodata viewer, as of November 2012
- ↑ Gaudenz Flury: Turtmanngletscher - spectacular glacier breakup. SRF, August 6, 2020.