Outreach

During regular office days, a glacier often feels very far away. Fieldwork is always exciting because it provides a clearer understanding of what we are actually researching. From April 1^st until April 4^th 2025, Céline Walker (FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg, M³OCCA-affiliated), Felix Pfluger (Technische Universität München (TUM), M³OCCA) and Léa Rodari (Université Lausanne (UNIL)) were in the field to acquire GPR data on Hintereisferner, Austria, for the M³OCCA-affiliated DeLIGHT Junior research project.

For this spring’s fieldwork, we went to the Hintereisferner in the Austrian Alps. We drove to Rofental on Tuesday and met up with colleagues from the Universität Innsbruck (UIBK). Together, we went to the small research station situated at 3,050 m a.s.l., which offers an excellent view of the impressive glacier. The hut was our home for the next three days and is equipped with a small gas stove, a table, eight beds, plenty of gumboots, a guitar, and an old portable gramophone.

Upon arrival at the hut, we settled in, reviewed our crevasse rescue techniques, and made the final preparations to go onto the glacier. Over the following two days, our goal was to investigate the glacier and its englacial water regime. We used a ground-penetrating radar (GPR) antenna provided by Felix’s working group at TUM. The GPR antenna sends out radar pulses and receives echoes from layers where the density changes. This makes GPR an ideal tool for detecting the bedrock beneath the ice, as well as objects or water within the ice.

After testing the antenna, we began our measurements on the lower part of the glacier. We skied across the glacier in a zigzag pattern while dragging the antenna behind us to obtain radar profiles perpendicular to the flow direction. We used a 50 MHz center frequency for sufficient penetration depth in the ice and 100 MHz for high resolution of small features.

We were lucky with the weather on the second day and got some sunshine, which made the scenery magnificent. We could complete our measurements and ended up with a dense measurement grid of the lower part of the glacier. After finishing the data acquisition, we were able to relax and enjoy the cozy hut and its view on our third evening.

On Friday, we returned to civilization, bringing with us a new dataset. With the collected data, we now have a record of the englacial water content in spring. Later this year—during the melt season—the measurements will be repeated, and the water content and discharge regime will be compared to the spring data. We are already looking forward to the next fieldwork.

This fieldwork wouldn’t have been possible without the support of Léa and Felix for the data acquisition and the provision of the GPR antennas. Big thanks go to Rainer Prinz for the coordination of the fieldwork and Marie Schroeder and Leo Schlagbauer from UIBK for the accompaniment and hosting in the hut. Those contributions are appreciated.

This project is funded by the Elitenetzwerk Bayern.

The research station situated on 3026 m a.s.l. above Hintereisferner was established by the UIBK in the 70s.

After the successful data acquisition, Felix, Léa and Céline enjoyed the sun outside the hut.

The reseach station was equipped with a portable gramophone and a variety of old vinyls worth listening into.

The view on the glacier from the research station.

Felix is carrying the GPR antenna over the glacier.

Snow was constantly cooked on the stove in the hut to get drinking water.

Léa and Céline are dragging the antenna over the uneven glacier tongue.

At the “Klimatag” (Climate Day) at Paul-Pfinzing-Gymnasium Hersbruck, Thorsten Seehaus (M3OCCA PI) and Philipp Malz from the Institute of Geography at FAU presented the latest findings from glacier research and informed the pupils about the effects of climate change on glaciers. An interactive glacier quiz rounded off the event and ensured fun and lively interest among the pupils. With this participation, the Institute of Geography is committed to raising awareness of climate change and getting young people interested in climate protection and geography.

Our team had the opportunity to represent the M3OCCA doctoral program at the “Meile der Wissenschaft” during the Schlossgartenfest in Erlangen. This unique event, which brings together FAU staff and prominent figures from the region, was a blend of science, culture, alongside dancing and international cuisine until late into the night.
We were one of three scientific booths, where we presented our research on glacier modeling to a broader public. Visitors engaged in insightful conversations about our work, exploring the importance of glaciers and the impacts of climate change. We showcased the instruments and methods we use to monitor glacier changes, and participants enjoyed an interactive 3D visualization dashboard, which demonstrated glacier projections under various climate scenarios.
Our tent provided a cool space for discussions on a record-breaking hot night (thanks to an ice cube machine!), all while being dressed up in style for the occasion. The event offered a wonderful chance to share our work with the public and highlight the crucial role of glaciers in understanding our changing planet.

Photo copyright: Veena Prasad

Explaining my research to the Federal Minister of Education and Research Bettina Stark-Watzinger at the Digital Summit 2023 was a great privilege! The Minister impressed me with her eagerness to understand the connections and implications of my research. My research area is green AI, where I am currently focusing on AI-based automation of glacier monitoring.With this automation, it will soon be possible to study the dynamics of glacier calving fronts in the Arctic over the years and during different seasons. This knowledge will help us to better understand the effects of climate change on glaciers. In addition, we will be able to calibrate our glacier and climate models with the extracted front positions and thus further improve them.

by Nora Gourmelon

Copyright photos: AI Grid/Franziska Peters

Nora Gourmelon (Photo: second from right) is honored with the AI Newcomer Award 2023 in the field of natural and life sciences for her research in Green AI, a research field that tackles sustainability-related problems with AI.

In her current work, conducted as part of the International Doctoral Program (IDP) “Measuring and Modeling Mountain glaciers and ice caps in a Changing ClimAte (M³OCCA),” she is developing deep-learning techniques for extracting glacier front positions from satellite imagery.

When asked what the award means to her, Gourmelon responds: “The award helps to raise awareness of how you can also get involved in biodiversity and climate protection as a computer scientist. In addition, I am, of course, also very pleased about the great recognition for my research to date.”

The AI Newcomer Award is granted by the German Association of Computer Science (Gesellschaft für Informatik) to young researchers under 30 years for innovative developments in the area of artificial intelligence.

The award ceremony took place in Berlin on April 26 as part of “KI-Camp 2023,” an event for young AI researchers organized by the German Association of Computer Science and the German Federal Ministry for Education and Research (Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung).

The recording of the ceremony will be published here soon.

The award has also attracted the attention of the media and the press!