Evolution, sedimentation and thermal state of the emerging pro-glacial lakes at Witenwasserengletscher, Switzerland

Abstract

As glaciers retreat worldwide, local basal depressions are exposed where new pro-glacial lakes are forming. Although the formation of such new lakes has been mapped widely, the impact of their interaction with the glacier on sediment dynamics and the thermal state is rarely studied. At the example of Witenwasserengletscher, Switzerland, we use historic aerial imagery and a bathymetric survey to investigate in detail the interaction of glacier retreat, lake formation and sedimentation. Three lakes have emerged since the mid-1990s with mean depths between 1.25 and 6 m. The deepest lake lost contact to the ice in 2009 with a delta forming from mobilized sub-glacial sediment. Phases of direct contact of the glacier with the lakes are found to increase terminus retreat and affect the thermal state and sedimentation. In summer, lake water temperatures in these small ice-contact lakes stay close to 0°C, whereas the disconnected eastern lake shows temperatures consistently over 6°C. Temperature profiles from 2021 show that after losing ice contact, warm sediment-rich glacial water forms an underflow that is breaking through the summertime stratification with warm water over cold water. In this case, density stratification is dominated by suspended sediment rather than temperature. Sedimentation shows a high multiannual variability and is dependent on a multitude of factors, ultimately on the routing of glacial streams. These tend to migrate towards the centre of the valley as the glacier retreats. Our study shows that during deglaciation lake evolution, sediment redistribution and the thermal state are highly dynamic and pro-glacial lakes strongly affect the sediment evolution and may thereby impact on the ecosystem in pro-glacial streams.