IPA Action Group: Rock glacier inventories and kinematics

The International Permafrost Association (IPA) Action Group Rock glacier inventories and kinematics (RGIK) intended to sustain the first steps toward the development of a network dedicated to rock glacier inventories and to promote the integration of permafrost creep rate (rock glacier velocity) as a new associated parameter to Essential Climate Variable (ECV) Permafrost within the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) initiative supported by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), characterizing the evolution of mountain permafrost on the global scale. The Action Group was launched in June 2018 and finished in June 2023. The RGIK initiative is now transitioning from a temporary Action Group to a permanent structure, still with the support of the IPA.

The Puigcerdà Commitment defines the goals and lays the foundation for the transition from a temporary Action Group to a sustainable structure of the future RGIK. It was elaborated during the last workshop of the Action Group at the 6^th European Conference on Permafrost in Puigcerdà (Spain) in June 2023.

RGIK currently consists of a network of 229 people from 29 countries. If you are interested in participating, please join the mailing list.

• Objectives of the Action Group

  The Action Group intended to sustain the first steps toward developing of a network dedicated to rock glacier inventorying (mapping) and worldwide rock glacier monitoring monitoring, along with the definition of standards.

  More specifically, the Action Group aimed to coordinate efforts to:

  • define widely accepted guidelines for inventorying and mapping rock glaciers, including information on the activity rate,
  • promote the use of satellite SAR interferometry (e.g. Sentinel data) for monitoring rock glacier velocity at a regional scale and define appropriate guidelines,
  • integrate as far as possible local-scale monitoring datasets based on aerial (photogrammetric) and terrestrial geodetic surveys,
  • initiate the development of a worldwide rock glacier database, including kinematic information,
  • set up guidelines for selecting an appropriate number of rock glaciers per region that can be then used to assess temporal trends in velocity with decadal to intra-decadal time steps,
  • build up and manage a web platform for visualization and open data access.

   

   

• Organization of the Action Group

  The basic idea of the Action Group was bring together researchers for coordinating efforts, regrouping knowledge and data in a single place (open access database), as well as to define consensual baselines for inventorying rock glaciers and including kinematics information.

  The co-authors of this abstract agreed to participate in the core scientific group of the Action Group during its initial phase.

  The Action Group was chaired by Reynald Delaloye (University of Fribourg, Switzerland).

  A committee was constituted in September 2019 at the Workshop I to support the development of the activities related to the Rock Glacier Inventory (RoGI) part of the Action Group (Task 1), namely (more members have joined since 2019):

  • Xavier Bodin (EDYTEM, France)
  • Francesco Brardinoni (University of Bologna, Italy)
  • Reynald Delaloye (University of Fribourg, Switzerland)
  • Christophe Lambiel (University of Lausanne, Switzerland)
  • Shelley MacDonell (University of Canterbury, New Zealand)
  • Lucas Ruiz (IANIGLA, Argentina)
  • Line Rouyet (NORCE, Norway)
  • Alessandro Cicoira (University of Zurich, Switzerland)
  • Yan Hu (Chinese University of Hong Kong, China)
  • Mishelle Wehbe (University of Ottawa, Canada)
  • Nicole Schaffer (CEAZA, Chile)

  A second committee was constituted in February 2020 at the Workshop II to support the activities related to the Rock Glacier Velocity (RGV) GCOS ECV Permafrost part of the Action Group (Task 2), namely (more members have joined since 2020):

  • Leif Anderson (University of Utah, USA)
  • Chloé Barboux (University of Fribourg, Switzerland)
  • Xavier Bodin (EDYTEM, France)
  • Alessandro Cicoira (University of Zurich, Switzerland)
  • Reynald Delaloye (University of Fribourg, Switzerland)
  • Isabelle Gärtner-Roer (University of Zurich, Switzerland – IPA Vice-President)
  • Christophe Lambiel (University of Lausanne, Switzerland)
  • Cécile Pellet (University of Fribourg, PERMOS, Switzerland)
  • Line Rouyet (NORCE, Norway)
  • Philippe Schoeneich (University of Grenoble, France – GTN-P Steering Committee)
  • Gernot Seier (AIRlabs, Austria)
  • Julie Wee (University of Fribourg, Switzerland)
• Tasks

  During the kick-off meeting in June 2018 (EUCOP 5, Chamonix), attendees supported the proposal of structuring the Action Group activities into three main Tasks and subsequent Sub-Tasks as follows:

  Task 1: Rock Glacier Inventories (RoGI)

  Definition of widely accepted guidelines for inventorying (mapping) rock glaciers, including indications of the activity rate

  • Agreement on a “working” definition of rock glaciers (what do we want/need to inventory?)
  • Standards for inventorying (definition of key attributes), e.g. point location, outlining, etc. -> Inventorying strategy
  • Practical guidelines for inventorying rock glaciers (e.g. also including the use of kinematics)

   

  Task 2: Rock Glacier Velocity (RGV)

  Generating rock glacier velocity time series in a climate-oriented perspective, meaning data records which can contribute to a new product of the GCOS Essential Climate Variable (ECV) Permafrost.

  • Promoting the use of satellite SAR interferometry, e.g. Sentinel-1 data, but more generally remote sensing data, for monitoring the rock glacier velocity at regional scales and defining appropriate guidelines
  • Integrate as far as possible local-scale monitoring data based on aerial and terrestrial geodetic surveys
  • Setting up of guidelines for selecting an appropriate number of rock glaciers per region that can be then used to assess temporal trends in velocity with decadal to intra-decadal time steps

   

  Task 3: Operational development of a database/web platform

  • Initiating the development of a worldwide rock glacier database, including kinematics
  • Build up and manage a web platform for visualization and open data access
• Timeline and activities

  The Action Group is active from mid-2018 to mid-2023. It was launched at EUCOP5 in Chamonix (France) in June 2018. Read more

  Pre-workshop took place in Chambéry (France) on 20 March 2019. Read more

  Workshop I took place in Evolène (Switzerland) on 23–27 September 2019. Read more

  Workshop II took place in Fribourg (Switzerland) on 11–13 February 2020. Read more

  RGIK scientific committees meeting took place in Fribourg (Switzerland) & Online on 24–25 November 2022. Read more

  Workshop III took place in Puigcerdà (Catalonia, Spain) on 17 June 2023 during the EUCOP 2023. Read more

• Outcomes (baseline concepts and guidelines)

  Guidelines for inventorying rock glaciers (RoGI)

  Baselines and practical concepts (v1.0) [28.12.2023]

  InSAR-based kinematic attribute in rock glacier inventories. Practical InSAR guidelines (v.4.0)  [31.05.2023]

   

  Rock Glacier Velocity (RGV) as an associated parameter of ECV Permafrost

  Baseline concepts (v3.2) [22.05.2023]

  Practical concepts (v1.2) [22.05.2023]

• RGIK community surveys

  The Rock glacier inventories and kinematics (RGIK) Action Group launched two surveys to compile worldwide overviews of existing/planned Rock Glacier Inventories (RoGI) and Rock Glacier Velocity (RGV) time series. The purpose of these surveys was to get an estimate of what exists in our community, as well as an overview of existing/planned RoGIs and RGVs, regardless of their format/content. The surveys are still open for new contributions. Please use the links below to access the surveys:

  Rock Glacier Inventories (RoGI)

  Rock Glacier Velocity (RGV)

  Results (click to enlarge)

  
• Tools

  RoGI template (to be use for your own inventory)

  RoGI Template for QGIS

  RoGI exercise in the Goms Valley, Switzerland (easy exercise leve in areas containing mostly mono-unit rock glacier systems)

  RoGI Goms GIS exercise [28.03.2023]

  RoGI exercise in the Matter Valley, Switzerland (more difficult exercise in an area containing also multi-unit rock glacier systems)

  RoGI Dirru-Steintälli GIS exercise [27.06.2023]

News

RGIK Seminars 2025

[08.01.2025] The program for the RGIK seminar series for the coming semester 2025 is ready: Zhangyu Sun "Inventorying rock glaciers for the Tibetan Plateau using deep learning" (26.02.2025); Sebastián Vivero "Insights into the geometric changes of rock glaciers from high-resolution, three-dimensional spatial data" (26.03.2025); Martín Mendoza "Modeling Thermal and Hydrological Processes in Andean Rock Glaciers: Insights from Shallow Instrumental Data and Climate Trends" (30.04.2025); Jakob Abermann "Limited knowledge of Rock Glaciers in Greenland" (28.05.2025).

RGIK Seminars 2025

RGIK Seminars 2024

[23.07.2024] The program for the RGIK seminar series for the coming semester 2024 is ready: Jan Beutel "Observing Slope Movements Using Continuous GNSS – History, Methods, Data Interpretation" (21.08.2024), Tyler Meng “Effects of Rock Glacier Dynamics on Surface Morphology” (25.09.2024), Javiera Carraha "Holocene glacial and periglacial dynamics and their paleoclimate implications in the Subtropical Andes of Chile" (30.10.2024) and Dominik Amschwand "Seasonal ice storage changes and meltwater generation at Murtèl rock glacier (Engadine, eastern Swiss Alps): Estimates from measurements and energy budgets in the coarse blocky active layer" (27.11.2024).

RGIK Seminars 2nd semester 2024

RGIK Standing Committee approved!

[10.07.2024] At the 12th International Conference on Permafrost (ICOP2024) in Whitehorse, Canada, on June 16th, the new RGIK bylaws and organization were presented to the IPA council. We are pleased to announce that RGIK has been formally accepted as an IPA Standing Committee. Both the former president and the newly elected IPA co-presidents congratulated us on the work and dedication of the community and mentioned RGIK as an example of an Action Group success story.

ExCom members (alphabetic order): Francesco Brardinoni, Diego Cusicanqui, Yan Hu, Kaytan Kelkar, Cécile Pellet (co-chair), Benjamin Robson, Line Rouyet (co-chair), Mishelle Wehbe