149. Antonova et al. (2014) Landsat-based monitoring of landscape dynamics in Mount Rainier National Park: 1985-2009
     As part of Vital Signs Monitoring, the North Coast and Cascades Network (NCCN) of the National Park Service (NPS) developed a protocol for monitoring landscape dynamics using Landsat satellite imagery. The protocol was implemented at Mount Rainier National Park (MORA) in 2013 using LandTrendr (Landsat-based Detection of Trends in Disturbance and Recovery) algorithms developed by the Laboratory for Applications of Remote Sensing in Ecology (LARSE) at Oregon State University. We mapped eight categories of landscape change occurring at MORA and surrounding areas from 1985 to 2009: Avalanches, Clearing, Development, Fire, Mass Movements, Progressive Defoliation, Riparian, and Tree Toppling. The Avalanche category captures long, linear change which partially or completely removes vegetation from the valley wall following release of a large mass of snow down a mountainside. Clearings are areas under forest management where practices vary from thinning to clearcuts. The Development category captures change associated with complete and persistent removal of vegetation and shift to a built landscape. Changes due to Fire vary in intensity from full canopy removal to partial burns that leave behind a mix of dead and singed trees. The Mass Movement category includes landslides found on valley walls and debris flows associated with steep gradient streams. Progressive Defoliation is a change type where forest cover remains but has declined due to insect infestation, disease or drought. Riparian changes are restricted to valley floors along major streams and rivers and capture areas where either conifer or broadleaf vegetation previously existed and has been converted to river channel. Change due to Tree Toppling is evidenced by fallen, broken or topped trees, generally due to wind but sometimes to root rot. Only changes larger than 0.8 ha and for which the duration of the period of landscape change was <4 years were mapped. The MORA study area is 385,000 ha, of which 25% is inside the park. Approximately 14.5% of the study area underwent detectable change during the 25 year period of analysis, affecting ~0.54% MORA and ~19.34% of the area outside the park boundary. The annual average area impacted by landscape change within the study area was about 2,235 ha. Within the park boundary, the annual average area undergoing change was ~21 ha. Clearing was the major change type within the study area over the last 25 years, followed by Progressive Defoliation. Clearing occurred predominately outside the park boundary. Inside the park, Riparian was the most significant agent of landscape change, followed by Fire and Tree Toppling. The inter-annual variability in the total area experiencing landscape change was considerable. The greatest amount of change outside the park boundary was documented in 1985 and was associated with the Clearing category. The years 2006 and 2004 also had higher than average change. Within the MORA boundary, 2007 was the year in which the greatest change was detected, due to a significant flood event which occurred November of 2006, followed by 2004, the year of the Redstone Fires. An analysis of the size of change patches showed that, on average, Avalanches, Mass Movements and Riparian changes are smaller but more numerous, whereas Fires tend to be larger but fewer.
554. Beason and Kenyon (2026) Interpreting summit elevations on Mount Rainier: Contextualizing ice-surface change, bedrock elevation, and geodetic frameworks
     Recent work has documented measurable changes in the elevation of ice-capped summits across the western United States, including Mount Rainier. At Mount Rainier, comparisons between mid-20th century survey data and modern GNSS measurements indicate a decrease in the elevation of the highest point on the mountain, driven by long-term thinning of summit ice. Here, we examine these results within the broader glaciological and geodetic context of Mount Rainier, where more than a century of observations document sustained changes in glacier thickness, extent, and mass balance. We emphasize the importance of distinguishing between ice-surface elevation and bedrock elevation when interpreting summit measurements on glaciated volcanoes, and describe how differences in vertical datums, measurement approaches, and temporal variability influence apparent elevation change. We synthesize existing datasets to demonstrate that observed elevation differences are consistent with long-term glacier thinning and are not indicative of lowering of the underlying volcanic edifice. We further highlight how terminology and framing influence interpretation of elevation change, particularly for prominent peaks where findings may be communicated beyond academic contexts. This contribution expands on recent work by providing geodetic context, integrating long-term datasets, and offering recommendations for consistent terminology and measurement practices in studies of glaciated summits.
553. Nuth and Kaab (2011) Co-registration and bias corrections of satellite elevation data sets for quantifying glacier thickness change
     There are an increasing number of digital elevation models (DEMs) available worldwide for deriving elevation differences over time, including vertical changes on glaciers. Most of these DEMs are heavily post-processed or merged, so that physical error modelling becomes difficult and statistical error modelling is required instead. We propose a three-step methodological framework for assessing and correcting DEMs to quantify glacier elevation changes: (i) remove DEM shifts, (ii) check for elevation-dependent biases, and (iii) check for higher-order, sensor-specific biases. A simple, analytic and robust method to co-register elevation data is presented in regions where stable terrain is either plentiful (case study New Zealand) or limited (case study Svalbard). The method is demonstrated using the three global elevation data sets available to date, SRTM, ICESat and the ASTER GDEM, and with automatically generated DEMs from satellite stereo instruments of ASTER and SPOT5-HRS. After 3-D co-registration, significant biases related to elevation were found in some of the stereoscopic DEMs. Biases related to the satellite acquisition geometry (along/cross track) were detected at two frequencies in the automatically generated ASTER DEMs. The higher frequency bias seems to be related to satellite jitter, most apparent in the back-looking pass of the satellite. The origins of the more significant lower frequency bias is uncertain. ICESat-derived elevations are found to be the most consistent globally available elevation data set available so far. Before performing regional-scale glacier elevation change studies or mosaicking DEMs from multiple individual tiles (e.g. ASTER GDEM), we recommend to co-register all elevation data to ICESat as a global vertical reference system.
552. Hotaling et al. (2022) Summer dynamics of microbial diversity on a mountain glacier
     Glaciers are rapidly receding under climate change. A melting cryosphere will dramatically alter global sea levels, carbon cycling, and water resource availability. Glaciers host rich biotic communities that are dominated by microbial diversity, and this biodiversity can impact surface albedo, thereby driving a feedback loop between biodiversity and cryosphere melt. However, the microbial diversity of glacier ecosystems remains largely unknown outside of major ice sheets, particularly from a temporal perspective. Here, we characterized temporal dynamics of bacteria, eukaryotes, and algae on the Paradise Glacier, Mount Rainier, USA, over nine time points spanning the summer melt season. During our study, the glacier surface steadily darkened as seasonal snow melted and darkening agents accumulated until new snow fell in late September. From a community-wide perspective, the bacterial community remained generally constant while eukaryotes and algae exhibited temporal progression and community turnover. Patterns of individual taxonomic groups, however, were highly stochastic. We found little support for our a priori prediction that autotroph abundance would peak before heterotrophs. Notably, two different trends in snow algae emerged—an abundant early- and late-season operational taxonomic unit (OTU) with a different midsummer OTU that peaked in August. Overall, our results highlight the need for temporal sampling to clarify microbial diversity on glaciers and that caution should be exercised when interpreting results from single or few time points.
551. Kincaid (2024) Using historic glacial data and GIS to predict Mount Rainier National Park's glacial future
     Will Washington state have glaciers 100 years from now (year 2124)? Due to generally warmer weather glaciers are largely in retreat globally, including the glaciers in Washington state. In Washington state summer glacial meltwater plays a vital role in the survival of wildlife and is needed for human purposes that include recreation, power generation, drinking, agricultural, and industrial. This project looked at the most resilient glaciers in Washington state, the glaciers at Mount Rainier National Park. Historic measurements were used in an exponential growth calculation to project the amount in acres each glacier at Mount Rainer will advance or retreat over the next 100 years. The glaciers were digitized into ArcGIS Pro and then adjusted according to the calculations. The results of the project show that all the glaciers at Mount Rainier should be intact in 2124. This is of vital importance to wildlife and human populations that depend on the summer meltwater for various purposes.
550. Florea et al. (2022) Fumarole-ice dynamics in cryo-speleology on volcanic edifices—Mount Rainier, Washington, USA
     The persistent fumarole ice caves nearly circumnavigating the East Crater of Mount Rainier in the Cascade Volcanic Arc in Washington, USA, are a natural laboratory to study the dynamic equilibrium between thermal flux and glacial ice. The large circum‐crater passage connects to entrances on the crater rim by steep transverse passages, and fumarole gas convection and advection maintains the cave passage distribution and morphology. Between August 2016 and August 2017, we collected hourly data using remote sondes that include temperatures at three fumarole, cave air temperature and pressure, water temperature and depth in an in‐cave meltwater lake, and the outside temperature and snow depth at Paradise Visitors Center. Correlation and wavelet analyses of these data reveal complex associations between patterns of weather, fumarole activity, and lake level. At longer scales, fumarole temperatures behave largely independently and connected to spatial and temporal changes in volcanic heat flux and glacial melt circulation. At the scale of individual storm‐events, major snowfalls seal the cave entrances, increasing cave air temperature and pressure from fumarole output and causing rising lake levels from increased melt until entrances reopen. Repeating freeze‐thaw cycles observed in the cave monitoring data are a primary cause of crater mass‐wasting.

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The U.S. Geological Survey Cascades Volcano Observatory and the University of Washington Pacific Northwest Seismic Network continue to monitor Washington and Oregon volcanoes closely and will issue additional notifications as warranted.

Website Resources

For images, graphics, and general information on Cascade Range volcanoes: https://www.usgs.gov/observatories/cvo
For seismic information on Oregon and Washington volcanoes: http://www.pnsn.org/volcanoes
For information on USGS volcano alert levels and notifications: https://www.usgs.gov/programs/VHP/volcano-notifications-deliver-situational-information

Jon Major, Scientist-in-Charge, Cascades Volcano Observatory, jjmajor@usgs.gov

General inquiries: vhpweb@usgs.gov