Objective
At the border between Uganda and the D.R. of Congo, the Rwenzoris form a remote and high-altitude mountain range stretching through the East African Rift System. With heights of 4-5 km, they include Africa's third highest peak (Mt. Stanley, 5109 m) as well as some of the last African glaciers. The combined area of the Rwenzori glaciers declined by more than 75% during the 20th century, and halved between 1987 and 2006. This extreme mass loss may have strong implications for the local hydrology, ecosystems and communities, and recent estimates suggest that the glaciers will disappear in the next decade(s). This trend correlates well with similarly dramatic glacier retreats on Mt Kilimandjaro (Tanzania) and Mt Kenya (Kenya) during the same period, and is attributed to increased air temperature or reduced humidity/cloud cover. Despite recent work on the evolution of glacier extent in the last decades, the measured glacier retreat, as well as the interpretation of the driving climatic factors responsible since the 1980’s, remain controversial and are limited to available data.
In order to better understand the dynamics of this recession, we will survey the current state of the two largest Rwenzori glaciers, Stanley and Speke glaciers, using a panel of remote sensing, geophysical and geochemical methods. These include, first, surveying of glacier extents over the last decades using satellite imagery, mapping of the current glacier extent and main features using differential GPS, and assessing the glacier thicknesses using ice-penetrating radar. These three steps will allow for further ice flow modeling. Second, the use of weather station data in the glacier vicinity as well as ice/water sampling for geochemical analysis will allow investigating the glacier sensitivity to the changing climate and its (palaeo-)environmental potential. These results will be compiled with a view to provide a first estimate of modern, past and future ice budgets in the area of interest.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences earth and related environmental sciences physical geography glaciology glacial geology
- engineering and technology environmental engineering remote sensing
- natural sciences earth and related environmental sciences atmospheric sciences climatology climatic changes
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Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF-EF-CAR - CAR – Career Restart panel
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2014
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
3080 Tervuren
Belgium
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.