"Slower Erosion: European Alps' Pace Over 10,000 Years"
New research suggests that erosion rates in the European Alps may be declining in recent decades/centuries compared to over 10,000 years ago, attributed to reduced glacial load and climate warming. The study, focusing on rockwall erosion, found that higher erosion rates occurred in the middle to late Holocene, with a rapid decline in erosion rate over the past five decades. The researchers attribute this decline to a combination of increased frost cracking, thawing of permafrost, and landscape adjustment to glacial ice unloading. The findings are important for understanding the impact of deglaciation in a warmer world on rock erosion and rockfall events as climate change continues.
