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Dwindling Relevance of Large Volcanic Eruptions for Global Glacier Changes in the Anthropocene
Author(s) -
Zemp Michael,
Marzeion Ben
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/2021gl092964
Subject(s) - volcano , stratosphere , glacier , earth science , geology , atmospheric sciences , volcanic ash , climatology , vulcanian eruption , global warming , glacier mass balance , global cooling , environmental science , climate change , physical geography , geochemistry , geomorphology , oceanography , geography
Large volcanic eruptions impact climate through the injection of ash and sulfur‐containing gases into the atmosphere. While the ash particles fall out rapidly, the gases are converted to sulfate aerosols that reflect solar radiation in the stratosphere and cause a lowering of the global mean surface temperature. Earlier studies have suggested that major volcanic eruptions resulted in positive mass balances and advances of glaciers. Here, we perform a multivariate analysis to decompose global glacier mass changes from 1961 to 2005 into components associated with anthropogenic influences, volcanic and solar activities, and the El Niño‐Southern Oscillation. We find that the global glacier mass loss was mainly driven by the anthropogenic forcing, interrupted by a few years of intermittent mass gains following large volcanic eruptions. The relative impact of volcanic eruptions has dwindled due to strongly increasing greenhouse gas concentrations since the mid‐20th century.