Briksdalsbreen

Historie

Briksdalsbreen is one of the most accessible and best known arms of the Jostedalsbreen glacier. Briksdalsbreen is located in the municipality of Stryn in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The glacier lies on the north side of the Jostedalsbreen, in Briksdalen which is located at the end of the Oldedalen valley, about south of the village of Olden. It is located inside Jostedalsbreen National Park. Briksdalsbreen terminates in a small glacial lake, Briksdalsbrevatnet, which lies above sea level.The size of Briksdalsbreen depends not only on temperature, but is also strongly affected by precipitation. Measurements since 1900 show small changes in the first decades, with advances in the glacier front in 1910 and 1929. In the period from 1934 to 1951 the glacier receded by, exposing the glacial lake. In the period from 1967 until 1997 the glacier expanded by and covered the whole lake, with the glacier front ending at the lake outlet. The glacier attracted international attention in the 1990s, as it was growing at a time when other European glaciers were in decline.After the year 2000, the glacier once again receded. In 2004 it had receded to behind the lake outlet and in 2007 the glacier front was on dry land behind the lake. In this regard, its position approximated the situation in the 1960s. However, glaciologists speculate that the size of the glacier was at its smallest since the 13th century.