Gletscherbewegungsmessungen mittels satellitengestützter Radar-Interferometrie: Die Pasterze (Glocknergruppe, Hohe Tauern, Kärnten).

This paper discusses the detection and satellite-based measurement of the surface displacement (surface deformation) of the largest Austrian glacier, the Pasterze (47°05’N, 12°44’E, 17.5 km²) by means of differential SAR-Interferometry (DINSAR). For this analysis, SAR-imagery recorded during the summer period was available. Out of three analysed image pairs of the ERS-(European Remote Sensing Satellite)-Tandem-Mission only one pair (20.8.1995–21.8.1995) showed sufficient coherence at the partly debris-covered glacier tongue of Pasterze Glacier for deriving a significant interferogram (displacement image). During this one-day observation period in August 1995, maximum surface displacement rates of 30–40 mm per day in the SAR-line-of-sight were calculated. Based on our results and additional simplifying assumptions (e.g. ice melt of 2 cm for the observation period, glacier flow parallel to the surface, steady glacier displacement all year round) a maximum annual surface displacement rate of 20 to 30 m for the year 1995 can be estimated.