"Using Historic Glacial Data and GIS to Predict Mount Rainier National " by Daniel Kincaid

Date of Award

Spring 6-15-2024

Document Type

Masters Capstone Project

Degree Name

M.S. in Geographic Information Science

Organizational Unit

College of Natural Science and Mathematics, Geography and the Environment

Copyright Statement / License for Reuse

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Keywords

Washington, Mount Rainier National Park, Glaciers, Geographic information science, Environmental measurement

Abstract

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.

Copyright Date

6-6-2024

Publication Statement

Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.

Rights Holder

Daniel Kincaid

Provenance

Received from author

File Format

application/pdf

Language

English (eng)

Extent

43 pgs

File Size

39.3 MB



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