Research portal
Search 274,531 glaciers and every Antarctic iceberg listed since 2020 with 30 filters. Every query is a permanent link you can cite, and exports are free, with no account.
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Data dictionary
Exports contain every column below, whatever columns the table shows. CSV files are UTF-8, comma separated, with RFC 4180 quoting; the lines that start with # at the top hold the dataset version, the query URL, the generation time, the row counts and the attribution (in pandas: read_csv(path, comment="#")). Text that a spreadsheet could run as a formula starts with an apostrophe.
GeoJSON files are RFC 7946 FeatureCollections in WGS 84 with a metadata member: a Point per glacier centre or latest iceberg position, and for tracks one LineString per iceberg (a MultiLineString where it crosses 180°) whose properties hold the weekly values as arrays. Each export stops at 50,000 rows and says so in its metadata; empty values mean no data.
Glaciers (one row per RGI 7.0 glacier)
| Column | Unit | Description | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| rgi_id | Glacier identifier in the Randolph Glacier Inventory 7.0 (RGI2000-v7.0-G-rr-nnnnn). | RGI 7.0 | |
| name | Glacier name recorded in the inventory, cleaned of codes and hints. Empty for unnamed glaciers (most of them). | RGI 7.0, Adoptice | |
| o1region | RGI first-order region, 01 to 19. | RGI 7.0 | |
| o1region_name | Name of the first-order region. | RGI 7.0 | |
| o2region | RGI second-order region, such as 01-02. | RGI 7.0 | |
| o2region_name | Name of the second-order region. | RGI 7.0 | |
| country_code | ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code of the country whose Natural Earth 1:10m polygon contains the glacier centre; otherwise the nearest country within 50 km; otherwise AQ south of 60° S. Empty in disputed areas without an ISO code (Siachen, Southern Patagonian Ice Field) and far from land. Not a statement on sovereignty. | Natural Earth 1:10m | |
| nearest_place | Nearest place with 15,000 or more inhabitants in GeoNames, by great-circle distance. | GeoNames cities15000 | |
| nearest_place_country | Country code of the nearest city (GeoNames). | GeoNames cities15000 | |
| nearest_place_km | km | Great-circle distance from the glacier centre to the nearest city (haversine, Earth radius 6,371 km), rounded to 0.1 km. | GeoNames cities15000, Adoptice |
| lat | ° | Latitude of the glacier centre point (RGI cenlat), WGS 84, decimal degrees. | RGI 7.0 |
| lon | ° | Longitude of the glacier centre point (RGI cenlon), WGS 84, decimal degrees. | RGI 7.0 |
| area_km2 | km² | Glacier area from the RGI outline, square kilometres. | RGI 7.0 |
| zmin_m | m | Minimum surface elevation, metres above sea level. | RGI 7.0 |
| zmax_m | m | Maximum surface elevation, metres. | RGI 7.0 |
| zmed_m | m | Median surface elevation, metres. | RGI 7.0 |
| zmean_m | m | Mean surface elevation, metres. | RGI 7.0 |
| slope_deg | ° | Mean surface slope, degrees. | RGI 7.0 |
| aspect_deg | ° | Mean aspect (direction the surface faces), degrees clockwise from north. | RGI 7.0 |
| aspect_sector | Aspect as one of eight 45° sectors centred on N, NE, E, SE, S, SW, W, NW (N = 337.5° to 22.5°). | Adoptice | |
| lmax_m | m | Maximum length of the glacier along its flowline, metres. | RGI 7.0 |
| terminus | Terminus type from RGI term_type: land (0), marine (1), lake (2), shelf (3), not_assigned (9). In RGI 7.0 only marine-terminating glaciers are flagged; all others are not_assigned. | RGI 7.0 | |
| inventory_date | date | Date of the source image of the outline (ISO 8601). The glacier today may be smaller. | RGI 7.0 |
| availability | Symbolic adoption status on Adoptice: available, reserved or adopted. | Adoptice | |
| has_image | true/false | true when Adoptice has a satellite portrait of the glacier. | Adoptice |
| url | Glacier page on adoptice.com. | Adoptice |
Icebergs (one row per USNIC iceberg, metrics from its weekly positions)
| Column | Unit | Description | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| code | USNIC name: Antarctic quadrant letter, number, and suffix letters for fragments (A23A is a piece of A23). | USNIC weekly list | |
| quadrant | Quadrant of first sighting: A (0° to 90° W), B (90° W to 180°), C (180° to 90° E), D (90° E to 0°). | USNIC weekly list | |
| status | tracked (on the latest list), pending (missing from the list for 4 to 7 weeks), farewell (missing for 8 weeks or more). | Adoptice | |
| first_listed | date | Date of the first weekly list that includes the iceberg (our record starts on 31 December 2020). | USNIC weekly list |
| last_listed | date | Date of the latest list that includes the iceberg. | USNIC weekly list |
| weeks_listed | Number of weekly lists that include the iceberg. | Adoptice | |
| lat | ° | Latest listed latitude, WGS 84, decimal degrees. | USNIC weekly list |
| lon | ° | Latest listed longitude, WGS 84, decimal degrees. | USNIC weekly list |
| position_date | date | Date of the latest listed position. | USNIC weekly list |
| length_km | km | Latest listed length, converted from nautical miles (1 NM = 1.852 km). USNIC sizes are estimates. | USNIC weekly list |
| width_km | km | Latest listed width, converted from nautical miles (1 NM = 1.852 km). | USNIC weekly list |
| area_km2 | km² | Area published with the latest position, when the list gives one (often empty). | USNIC weekly list |
| size_change_pct | % | Change of length × width between the first and the latest listing, percent. | Adoptice |
| drift_km | km | Sum of great-circle distances between consecutive listed positions (a lower bound of the real path). | Adoptice |
| net_km | km | Great-circle distance from the first to the latest listed position. | Adoptice |
| net_bearing_deg | ° | Initial bearing from the first to the latest position, degrees clockwise from north. Empty when the iceberg has not moved. | Adoptice |
| net_direction | Drift bearing as one of eight 45° sectors (N, NE, E, SE, S, SW, W, NW). | Adoptice | |
| mean_speed_km_week | km/week | Mean of the weekly speeds. A weekly speed is the distance from the previous position divided by the days between them, times 7; not computed across gaps over 28 days. | Adoptice |
| max_speed_km_week | km/week | Highest weekly speed. | Adoptice |
| calving_events | Number of listings where length × width fell to 70% or less of the previous listing (likely calving or break-up). | Adoptice | |
| availability | Symbolic adoption status on Adoptice. | Adoptice | |
| url | Iceberg page on adoptice.com. | Adoptice |
Iceberg tracks (one row per iceberg and weekly list)
| Column | Unit | Description | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| code | USNIC iceberg name. | USNIC weekly list | |
| date | date | Date of the weekly list (latest Last Update value in the file). | USNIC weekly list |
| lat | ° | Listed latitude, WGS 84. | USNIC weekly list |
| lon | ° | Listed longitude, WGS 84. | USNIC weekly list |
| length_km | km | Listed length converted from nautical miles (× 1.852). | USNIC weekly list |
| width_km | km | Listed width converted from nautical miles (× 1.852). | USNIC weekly list |
| area_km2 | km² | Area when the list gives one. | USNIC weekly list |
| speed_km_week | km/week | Distance from the previous position per 7 days; empty after a gap over 28 days and for the first listing. | Adoptice |
| bearing_deg | ° | Initial bearing from the previous position, degrees clockwise from north. | Adoptice |
Sources, licences and how to cite
- RGI 7.0 Consortium (2023). Randolph Glacier Inventory, A Dataset of Global Glacier Outlines, Version 7.0. NSIDC. doi:10.5067/F6JMOVY5NAVZ. CC BY 4.0.
- Iceberg positions and sizes: US National Ice Center (USNIC) weekly Antarctic iceberg list. Public domain (US government data).
- Nearest places: GeoNames (geonames.org), cities15000. CC BY 4.0.
- Countries: Natural Earth 1:10m admin-0 countries, version 5.1.1. Public domain.
- Compiled by Adoptice (adoptice.com). Cite as: Adoptice (year). Glacier and iceberg research portal. https://adoptice.com/research
You may reuse the exports under the terms of these sources: credit the RGI 7.0 Consortium and GeoNames (CC BY 4.0) and cite the query with the box above. Country borders follow Natural Earth and are not a position on any dispute. Iceberg sizes are USNIC estimates. See also the data and methodology page and the credits.
