Glacial Retreat Calculator

Retreat rate from historical measurements and temperature.

Base retreat rate (m/yr)

Temperature anomaly (°C)

Observation period (years)

Glacier length (m)

Mean elevation (m)

Tab to move between fields

Effective retreat rate (m/yr)

26.25

Total retreat (m)787.5

Remaining length (m)4,212.5

Length lost (%)15.75

Years to disappear190

Volume lost (km³)0.07

How to Use This Calculator

Enter the Base retreat rate (m/yr) from historical terminus measurements for your glacier.
Set the Temperature anomaly (°C) — use local meteorological records relative to a baseline period.
Enter the current Glacier length (m) from terminus to head, and the Mean elevation (m).
Set the Observation period (years) over which you want to project retreat.
Read the Effective retreat rate (m/yr) and Total retreat (m), then check Years to disappear to assess long-term viability.

How the result changes with Base retreat rate (m/yr)

Base retreat rate (m/yr): Historical baseline glacier terminus retreat rate in meters per year.
Temperature anomaly (°C): Temperature departure from baseline in °C. Positive = warmer.
Observation period (years): Number of years to model retreat over.
Glacier length (m): Current glacier terminus-to-head length in meters.
Mean elevation (m): Average elevation of the glacier. Higher glaciers retreat more slowly.

Effective retreat rate (m/yr): Adjusted annual retreat rate accounting for temperature and elevation.
Total retreat (m): Cumulative retreat over the observation period.
Remaining length (m): Estimated glacier length after the observation period.
Length lost (%): Percentage of original glacier length lost.
Years to disappear: Estimated years until the glacier is fully gone at current retreat rate.
Volume lost (km³): Estimated ice volume lost using Bahr et al. (1997) scaling.

Identify Input Parameters
4 parameters
Base retreat rate (m/yr) = 15, Temperature anomaly (°C) = 1.5, Observation period (years) = 30, Glacier length (m) = 5000 = 5 input(s) provided
Calculate Effective retreat rate
Effective retreat rate = baseRetreatRate * tempMultiplier * elevationFactor
26.25 = 26.25
Calculate Total retreat
Total retreat = effectiveRetreatRate * observationYears
787.5 = 787.5
Calculate Remaining length
Remaining length
4212.5 = 4212.5