Fluctuations of the Mer de Glace (Mont Blanc area, France) AD 1500-2050. An interdisciplinary approach using new historical data and neural network simulations

摘要

Glacier fluctuations are sensitive indicators of climate variability.Glacier length,though an indirect and delayed signal of climate information,can yet be used for the examination of the glacier-climate relationship.At the end of the 19th century,the first accurate measurements of glacier length fluctuations were carried out.Unfortunately,the preceding time of the Littele Ice Age(LIA)is not documented by instrumental data,and interdisciplinary approaches that use both historical and physical methods are needed to reconstruct the behaviour of glaciers back in time.