Geoscience Reference
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Fig. 12.6
SEDIBUD global network of test sites (preliminary list - 2008) 1. Cape
Bounty (Canada); 2. Botn í Dýrafir
ð
i (Iceland); 3. Tindastöll (Iceland); 4. Hrafndalur
(Iceland); 5. Örravatnrústir (Iceland); 6. Fnjóskadalur (Iceland); 7. Hofsjökull (Iceland);
8. Austdalur (Iceland); 9. Kangerlussuaq (West Greenland); 10. Mittivakkat-Sermilik (Greenland);
11. Zackenberg (Greenland); 12. Petuniabukta-Sermilik (Spitsbergen); 13. Scottelva-Svalbard
(Norway); 14. Moor House, North Pennines (UK); 15. Erdalen (Norway); 16. Kidisjoki (Finland);
17. Latnjavagge (Sweden); 18. Bodalen (Norway); 19. Pasterze (Austria); 20. Musala Area
(Bulgaria); 21. East Dabka (India); 22.Godley Valley (New Zealand); 23. Potrok Aike (Argentina)
to September - the month accepted for observation by the German scientists. The
importance of temperature over the regime of perennial ice bodies is well illustrated
by the close relation between air temperature and the size of Snezhnika in periods of
minimal ice extent with annual air temperatures (Fig.
12.7
). Musala peak is used as a
reference parameter for estimating temperature conditions, because there is a strong
correlation between temperatures in the highest parts of Rila and Pirin (Nojarov and
Gachev,
2007
) and temperatures in the bottom of Golemia Kazan are about 2.6
◦
C
higher than those at Musala.
The firn body seems to react with a little delay (about a year), probably in rela-
tion to higher (or lower) volumes of ice left from the previous melt season. Sadly,
the present analysis excludes precipitation factor, because there have not been any
instrumental measurements of climate since 1961 and the great differences in regime
do not allow using precipitation data from Musala peak. If taking into account the
fact that a decrease of annual precipitation in the last 40 years is observed in SW
Bulgaria as a whole (Velev,
2002
), a suggestion can be made that the observed much
smaller sizes of Snezhnika in 1996 and 2005 in comparison to 1959 (as it is seen
from Fig.
12.7
) were caused mainly by the lower amounts of precipitation, as air
temperatures for these particular years differed slightly.
Two transects for measurement of slope mass movement activity were set up
in Golemia Kazan cirque in 2006. The 2-year observation (until 2008) showed no
activity in transect 1, which is situated on a gentle slope foot in the upper part of
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