Glacier Lake Outburst Volume Calculator
Reconcile initial/final water-column lake storage using supplied area-depth contours, not peak-discharge envelope or duplicate entire-basin integration; assumes fixed basin, no outburst hydrograph/dam stability prediction.
Description
Fixed-basin water storage can be integrated from area-depth contours.
Fixed-basin water storage can be integrated from area-depth contours. The difference between two levels is a signed released-volume estimate.1
Enter aligned nonnegative contours/areas with depth 0 start, at least two strictly increasing depths and nonincreasing areas. Water-column heights must be 0–basin depth. Interpolate shoreline level and integrate piecewise-linear area by trapezoids; return both storages and difference.
When to use Glacier Lake Outburst Volume Calculator
Use Glacier Lake Outburst Volume Calculator when you need to evaluate the supplied records under the calculation and evidence rules below. No peak discharge, hydrograph, dam stability or changing basin is modeled.
Prepare the observed ice, snow, water or geometry measurements and explicit calibration parameters requested. Keep coordinates, datum, density and time units consistent.
How to use Glacier Lake Outburst Volume Calculator and understand its results
- Prepare the observed ice, snow, water or geometry measurements and explicit calibration parameters requested. Keep coordinates, datum, density and time units consistent.
- Enter depthContoursM, contourAreasM2, initialWaterDepthM, finalWaterDepthM using the field table and calculation rules, then run the tool.
- Read initialLakeStorageM3, finalLakeStorageM3, signedOutburstReleasedVolumeM3. The explanation below defines the units, signs, ordering and any flags or placeholder values.
- If the tool reports an input issue, correct the values and run it again. Apply the stated assumptions when interpreting a successfully returned result.
| Input field | Meaning | Value type; see rules below | Requirement |
|---|---|---|---|
| depthContoursM | Depth contours m | list of number | Required |
| contourAreasM2 | Contour areas m2 | list of number | Required |
| initialWaterDepthM | Initial water depth m | number | Required |
| finalWaterDepthM | Final water depth m | number | Required |
Enter aligned nonnegative contours/areas with depth 0 start, at least two strictly increasing depths and nonincreasing areas. Water-column heights must be 0–basin depth. Interpolate shoreline level and integrate piecewise-linear area by trapezoids; return both storages and difference.
storage(h)=integral(area(depth),bottom−h…bottom); release=initial−final Units, indexing, boundary conditions and exceptional cases are defined in the calculation rules above.
| Output field | Meaning | Value type |
|---|---|---|
| initialLakeStorageM3 | Initial lake storage m3 | number |
| finalLakeStorageM3 | Final lake storage m3 | number |
| signedOutburstReleasedVolumeM3 | Signed outburst released volume m3 | number |
{
"input": {
"depthContoursM": [
0,
10,
20
],
"contourAreasM2": [
100,
50,
0
],
"initialWaterDepthM": 15,
"finalWaterDepthM": 5
},
"output": {
"initialLakeStorageM3": 562.5,
"finalLakeStorageM3": 62.5,
"signedOutburstReleasedVolumeM3": 500
}
}Limitations and assumptions
No peak discharge, hydrograph, dam stability or changing basin is modeled.
Numeric inputs, where present, must be finite. Follow the calculation-specific rules for overflow, underflow and exceptional cases. Numeric lists are limited to 10,000 entries; string lists to 128 strings of at most 128 characters each. The rules above may impose smaller limits. Missing required fields, extra fields, wrong value types and violations of the calculation rules are input errors.
Alternative or Complementary methods
Use Ablation River Discharge Contribution Calculator: A meltwater budget can compare modeled delivered flow with measured river discharge. Ratios above one reveal inconsistency rather than confirmed attribution. For a complementary task, use Calving Front Cliff Height Above Water Calculator: Calving-cliff height can be measured relative to both water level and toe. A submerged top remains a signed observation.
References
-
Glacier Lake Outburst Volume Calculator — tool.io
Similar or alternative tools
- Ablation River Discharge Contribution Calculator
A meltwater budget can compare modeled delivered flow with measured river discharge. Ratios above one reveal inconsistency rather than confirmed attribution.
- Calving Front Cliff Height Above Water Calculator
Calving-cliff height can be measured relative to both water level and toe. A submerged top remains a signed observation.