I ghiacciai dei Pirenei Spagnoli

Glaciers of the Spanish Pyrenees

Abstract

The valleys of the Central Spanish Pyrenees have been carved by the Pleistocene glaciers as far as the external basins and river gorges moraines allow several episodes of the most recent Pleistocene glaciation and significant regression to be distinguished. In the higher areas there are signs of local Late Glacial progression and, below the highest summits, there is evidence of the effects of the Little Ice Age, In the principal massifs there remain, even today, small glaciers and glacierettes, located on the floor of the cirques, which date from the Little Ice Age. These glaciers have been retreating since the last decades of the XIX Century, and this process has considerably accelerated in recent years. The 29 glaciers and 7 glacierettes existing in 1980 are nowadays (1991) 19 and 17, respectively. Nivometrical data have been obtained between 1984 and 1991 and are presented here. These data explain the recent regression due to the brief snowfalls. Thus, it would appear to be instructive to continue the annual observations and to center them in significant glaciers, such as La Maladeta.