Glacier extents within Briançonnais Alps (southern French Alps) from the Last Glacial Maximum to the Holocene: chronological synthesis
L’englacement du haut bassin durancien (Alpes françaises du sud) du Dernier Maximum Glaciaire à l’Holocène : synthèse chronologique
Résumé
This paper aims to provide an overview of the investigations led in the Upper-Durance catchment (upstream Guillestre), focusing on the disappearance of glaciers after the Last Glacial Maximum. It is based on extensive fieldwork, describing and mapping the geomorphic remnants of past-glaciations, and 35 Cosmic Ray Exposure ages. A four-stage chronological sequence summarises glacial variations during the Late-Glacial/Holocene transition. The main results provide both chronological data (two generations of moraines identified as Younger Dryas and Preboreal) and spatial data (asymmetry of glaciers development in the Upper-Durance catchment during the Late-Glacial), providing new findings that may be useful for palaeo-climatologists.