Wow! Even just over a week ago when I was there the melt was in full swing, crazy times…

Ulvebreen (Svalbard) Fieldwork I have been in Svalbard for the last couple of weeks helping a team led by Whyjay Zheng ( install a set of GNSS stations on Ulvebreen in eastern Svalbard. Ulvebreen is a surge-type glacier, currently in its quiescent phase and last surged around 1900 i.e. over 100 years ago (see our recent review paper: & database of surge-type glaciers in Svalbard: …

Ulvebreen (Svalbard) Fieldwork

I have been in Svalbard for the last couple of weeks helping a team led by Whyjay Zheng ( install a set of GNSS stations on Ulvebreen in eastern Svalbard. Ulvebreen is a surge-type glacier, currently in its quiescent phase and last surged around 1900 i.e. over 100…

It’s the world day of glaciers - here, I give some brief thoughts on their importance to the world and us as humans.

Glaciers hold vital records of our planet’s past and play a key role in shaping its future. As they continue to change, so too does the world around us.

They hold huge reserves of freshwater and help sustain communities around the world.
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New review of surging glaciers in Svalbard!

I am pleased to share our new paper in which we review the current distribution of surging glaciers in Svalbard! Published in Earth Science Reviews, you can find the full paper here: The surging Borebreen in 2024. In this review, we analyse the methods…

SvalbardDT at ESA Workshop

So much has been happening that I have not had a chance to keep up with posts on this website! You'll be seeing updates very soon... Let's start with the most recent - this week, SvalbardDT attended the ESA Digital Twin Earth Components: Open Science Meeting 2026' in…

Some downtime to enjoy the snow - Longyearbreen behind!

Back in the frozen north - Svalbard with more than a sprinkling of snow!

New paper out in Journal of Glaciology!

We have a new paper out! Work with Leigh Stearns, Michael Shahin, and Sid Shankar studying the potential of new ICEYE SAR satellite imagery to study the dynamic behaviour of ice mélange around the margins of the Greenland Ice Sheet. The higher resolution…

We have a new paper out! Work with @leighstearns.bsky.social, @laserglaciers.bsky.social, and Sid Shankar studying the potential of new ICEYE SAR satellite imagery to study the dynamic behaviour of ice mélange around the margins of the Greenland Ice Sheet.

Read more here: tinyurl.com/mtc94juu

A person standing on a moraine which is in front of a mountain. The mountain is in East Antarctica, with a small glacier between the mountain and moraine. The person is using a saw to collect a rock sample from the surface of a boulder on top of the moraine.

A photo taken from a mountain in East Antarctica, with moraines and blue ice in the foreground, and the vast East Antarctic Ice Sheet extending to the horizon. Some small mountains (nunataks) are poking out above the surface of the ice sheet at varying distances.

Applications are now open for a Glasgow-based Iapetus DTP project centred on using in situ 14C to study glacier histories in East Antarctica! tinyurl.com/3ddvynn2 @stever60.bsky.social @uofglasgow.bsky.social @iapetusdtp.bsky.social @bas.ac.uk

Interesting - it also last surged in 2022, so possibly the ice surface lowering contributed to this?

We have a new preprint out reviewing the monitoring & detection of Svalbard surging glaciers: eartharxiv.org/repository/v...

We also compiled a new database of Svalbard's surge-type glaciers: zenodo.org/records/1524...

@dannipearce.bsky.social @hazlovell.bsky.social @adrianluckman.bsky.social

A challenging field season this year, with some unprecedented issues with the local gasoline supply (lnss.no/oppdatering-...)!

Nonetheless, we still managed to continue our monitoring of Borebreen's surge, which is currently advancing through the fjord and showing no signs of stopping...

Back in my favourite place, Svalbard!

Ny-Ålesund?

Very cool!

I’ll come and say hi (and maybe also see you on the Edinburgh flight on Sunday?)

I am extremely happy to see my colleague Brice Rea be appointed as the next director of @scotsages.bsky.social!

I am looking forward to seeing SAGES continue to flourish in the years to come!

📢 Leadership Update from SAGES!🌍

We’re thrilled to announce that Professor Brice Rea from the University of Aberdeen has been appointed as the new Director of SAGES, taking over in July 2025.

Swiss glacier collapse buries most of village of Blatten Many homes in Blatten have been flattened after a large chunk of the Birch glacier fell on to the village.

Shocking scenes following the disintegration and collapse of the Birch Glacier. A stark example of the evolving nature of cryospheric hazards under rapid warming and deglaciation in mountain regions. Monitoring and early evacuation prevented a bigger human impact here.
www.bbc.com/news/article...

The 2025 SAGES Annual Science Meeting in Stirling has been great!

Thanks so all who came along and presented. It's been a wonderful two days in Stirling.

Another great @scotsages.bsky.social conference - a wonderful community producing great science!

We took friends who didn’t care about Eurovision to a Eurovision party last night - they were so confused!

Nice to see you briefly yesterday!

EGU Contributions!

Next week we will be at EGU in Vienna presenting some of our teams exciting new research! Please come and talk to us: Poster #1 🧊 The distribution of glacier surge behaviour in Svalbard and implications for understanding unstable ice flow📅 Poster | Monday, 28 Apr, 10:45–12:30…

See you there, Bethan! Sorry i didn't include your handle, limited space in the text!

See you there, let's grab a beer at some point!

🧊 Linking small- and large-scale Digital Twins: A concept

📅 Poster | Thursday, 01 May, 10:45–12:30 (CEST), Hall X5, X5.151

📰 Abstract: meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU25/EGU25-...

✍ Authors: Aiden Durrant, Me, @bernhardhofle.bsky.social, @hannahwe.bsky.social, @tabernig.bsky.social