GLIMS: Global Land Ice Measurements from Space

Monitoring the World's Changing Glaciers

GLIMS Workshop 2008, Boulder, Colorado, USA


Dear GLIMS RCs, Stewards, and affiliates,

As many of you know, there have been several highly successful GLIMS Workshops over the past 8 years in such locations as Switzerland, Maryland, France, Norway, England, and New Zealand, and some smaller meetings in Italy, California and Arizona. It has been 7 years since there has been a GLIMS workshop in the United States with significant international participation. We are therefore planning on holding a GLIMS workshop in Boulder, Colorado, as described in detail below.

GLIMS Workshop

Boulder, Colorado

June 16-18 (Monday-Wednesday), 2008


Duration: 2.5 days (half day on Day Three)

Through this workshop we seek to review and advance the current state of knowledge regarding several key topics that are of direct relevance to glacier studies based on remote sensing. These are:

  1. DEM generation from satellite stereo pairs

  2. Mapping ice divides

  3. Mapping debris covered glaciers

  4. Challenges in assessing change through comparisons with older data

  5. Other major hurdles in satellite glacier mapping


Workshop participants are invited to make presentations that address specific questions related to one or more of these topics, such as:

  1. What are the best tools and methods for the problem? How can these be best shared with the GLIMS community?

  2. Where are the main problems? What steps need special attention?

  3. What additional methods or algorithms need to be developed?

  4. Can we agree on specific protocols, definitions or procedures to help the GLIMS community deal with this topic?

  5. What additional assistance can be provided to help make dealing with this topic easier for others in GLIMS?

This workshop will address GLIMS-specific issues mostly at the technical level. By contrast, the International Workshop on World Glacier Inventory, to be held in Lanzhou, China, 20-24 September 2008, will focus on the broader issues of coordinating different glacier inventory efforts, how these efforts tie into larger Earth observation programs, and how best to achieve global coverage soon.

Draft Program:

Day One

Overview of Topics, presented by GLIMS participants, followed by short talks reporting on research results or current developments relevant to one or more of the topics.

Day Two

Working groups focused on each of the topics. The aim would be to summarize current knowledge and key issues, share techniques and problems with current algorithms and methods, and to develop recommendations for best practices and an action plan.

Day Three

Plenary session: Report summaries from working group sessions, identify next steps.

The results of the workshop will be compiled into a report, with intent to submit it for publication. In addition, a section of the glims.org Web site will show the results of these working groups and disseminate algorithms and computer code.

Registration

There will be food brought to the site for continental breakfasts and lunches. To cover these costs, there will be a registration fee of $60, payable on-site. Receipts will be provided.

Please let us know (e-mail to Bruce Raup and Richard Armstrong) as soon as possible if you plan to attend this workshop so that we may start on the necessary organizational tasks that will be required at NSIDC.

Logistics

Should you decide to attend, you may find this logistical information helpful.

  • Directions to the Boulder Campus, University of Colorado
  • Directions to NSIDC, where the workshop will be held.

    Note: If you drive, we can supply parking permits. Please park in metered spaces for a short time when you first arrive. After you receieve a parking pass, park in any "EC" lot.

  • Hotels in the vicinity

    You are free to choose from hotels found via the above link. Also, the Best Western Boulder Inn has given us a conference rate. Details:

    • Group code: call (+1-)800-233-8469 and reference code "GLIMS"
    • Arrival Date: Sunday, June 15, 2008
    • Departure Date: Wednesday, June 18, 2008
    • Group Rates: $98 for a room with one King bed
    • Method of reservation: Guests will make own reservations and guarantee with individual credit cards. Unconfirmed rooms in block will be released 30 days prior to arrival.

  • Transportation from the airport (Denver International Airport, or DIA):
    • AB bus in the public transit system ($11 one-way, approximately 1 hour 15 minutes to downtown Boulder)
    • SuperShuttle

Fun outside the workshop

On Sunday, 15 June, a few of us plan to go for a hike in the mountains, hopefully to get a closer view of a Colorado glacier. (To see Colorado glaciers, you need to get up close to them.) This may involve hiking to elevations around 3600 m. If you're interested in joining us, let Bruce Raup know.

Other attractions:

  • The Colorado Shakespeare Festival has been named as one of the top three Shakespeare festivals in the nation by TIME Magazine. Under the stars on the University of Colorado campus: http://www.coloradoshakes.org/
  • Boulder's summer classic music festival at the historic Chautauqua park: http://www.coloradomusicfest.org/
  • The largest friendliest farmers market in Colorado in the heart of downtown Boulder: http://boulderfarmers.org/
  • The Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art: http://www.bmoca.org/
  • The Dushanbe Teahouse, the only structure of its kind in the Western Hemisphere. The stunning teahouse was given to the city of Boulder by its sister city of Dushanbe, Tajikistan as a symbol of U.S. and Soviet relations. In downtown Boulder, open daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner. http://www.BoulderTeaHouse.com/
  • The Boulder Outdoor Cinema - Movies under the stars on a beautiful Boulder night http://boulderoutdoorcinema.com/
  • Boulder's only professional resident theatre http://www.nomadstage.com/