@article{fdi:010058829,
  title = {{L}inking glacier annual mass balance and glacier albedo retrieved from {MODIS} data},
  author = {{D}umont, {M}. and {G}ardelle, {J}. and {S}irguey, {P}. and {G}uillot, {A}. and {S}ix, {D}. and {R}abatel, {A}. and {A}rnaud, {Y}ves},
  editor = {},
  language = {{ENG}},
  abstract = {{A}lbedo is one of the variables controlling the mass balance of temperate glaciers. {M}ultispectral imagers, such as {MOD}erate {I}maging {S}pectroradiometer ({MODIS}) on board the {TERRA} and {AQUA} satellites, provide a means to monitor glacier surface albedo. {I}n this study, different methods to retrieve broadband glacier surface albedo from {MODIS} data are compared. {T}he effect of multiple reflections due to the rugged topography and of the anisotropic reflection of snow and ice are particularly investigated. {T}he methods are tested on the {S}aint {S}orlin {G}lacier ({G}randes {R}ousses area, {F}rench {A}lps). {T}he accuracy of the retrieved albedo is estimated using both field measurements, at two automatic weather stations located on the glacier, and albedo values derived from terrestrial photographs. {F}or summers 2008 and 2009, the root mean square deviation ({RMSD}) between field measurements and the broadband albedo retrieved from {MODIS} data at 250m spatial resolution was found to be 0.052 or about 10% relative error. {T}he {RMSD} estimated for the {MOD}10 daily albedo product is about three times higher. {O}ne decade (2000-2009) of {MODIS} data were then processed to create a time series of albedo maps of {S}aint {S}orlin {G}lacier during the ablation season. {T}he annual mass balance of {S}aint {S}orlin {G}lacier was compared with the minimum albedo value (average over the whole glacier surface) observed with {MODIS} during the ablation season. {A} strong linear correlation exists between the two variables. {F}urthermore, the date when the average albedo of the whole glacier reaches a minimum closely corresponds to the period when the snow line is located at its highest elevation, thus when the snow line is a good indicator of the glacier equilibrium line. {T}his indicates that this strong correlation results from the fact that the minimal average albedo values of the glacier contains considerable information regarding the relative share of areal surfaces between the ablation zone (i.e. ice with generally low albedo values) and the accumulation zone (i.e. snow with a relatively high albedo). {A}s a consequence, the monitoring of the glacier surface albedo using {MODIS} data can provide a useful means to evaluate the interannual variability of the glacier mass balance. {F}inally, the albedo in the ablation area of {S}aint {S}orlin {G}lacier does not exhibit any decreasing trend over the study period, contrasting with the results obtained on {M}orteratsch {G}lacier in the {S}wiss {A}lps.},
  keywords = {{FRANCE}},
  booktitle = {},
  journal = {{C}ryosphere},
  volume = {6},
  numero = {6},
  pages = {1527--1539},
  ISSN = {1994-0416},
  year = {2012},
  DOI = {10.5194/tc-6-1527-2012},
  URL = {https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010058829},
}