Multitemporal Landsat multispectral scanner and thematic mapper data of the Hubbard Glacier region, southeast Alaska

In late May 1986, the advancing Hubbard Glacier blocked the entrance to Russell Fiord near Yakutat, Alaska, creating a large ice-dammed lake. Runoff from the surrounding glaciated mountains raised the level of the lake to about 25 m above sea level by 8 October, when the ice dam failed. Remote sensing offers one method to monitor this large tidal glacier system, particularly the glacier activity that would portend the re-closure of Russell Fiord. -Authors