Rock Glacier Inventory for the Upper Engadin Valley

170 rock glaciers in the Upper Engadin region of the Swiss Alps were mapped and categorized into three activity states: 97 active, 47 inactive, and 26 fossil. The inventory was created using infrared aerial photographs at a scale of approximately 1:52,000. For each feature, parameters including front and source elevation, length, width, exposition, and Swiss national coordinates were recorded.

Use Cases

• Analyzing the distribution of rock glacier activity states based on elevation and aspect.
• Modeling permafrost distribution and degradation using rock glacier location and elevation data.
• Assessing geohazard risks by correlating rock glacier activity with slope stability.
• Studying the response of cryospheric landforms to climate change in a high-altitude valley system.

Strengths

• Provides a complete inventory of 170 rock glaciers in a defined alpine region.
• Features are annotated with detailed morphometric parameters (elevation, length, width, exposition).
• Data collection method is specified: mapping from infrared aerial photographs by a national survey office.

Limitations

• Metadata conflicts: last updated date is listed as both 1988-07-31 and 2026-04-09 across platforms.
• Original data documentation is an unpublished 1989 report, which may limit accessibility.
• Column names and exact data structure are not provided in the available metadata.

Provenance

Source

Mapping performed by the Swiss Federal Office of Cadastral Surveys (Vermessungsdirektion); data described in Hoelzle (1989, unpublished).

Collection Method

Manual mapping and measurement from infrared aerial photographs at a scale of approximately 1:52,000.

Time Range

Data collection circa 1989.

Freshness

The underlying data is from 1989, though metadata records show a 2026 administrative update.

Geography

Upper Engadin valley, Eastern Swiss Alps, Switzerland.