Synonyms
Snow line
Definition
The equilibrium-line altitude (ELA) marks the area or zone on a glacier separating the accumulation zone from the ablation zone and represents where annual accumulation and ablation are equal.
Introduction
The equilibrium-line altitude (ELA) on glaciers is the average elevation of the zone where accumulation equals ablation over a 1-year period. The ELA can rarely be observed as a line at the same elevation across the entire width of the glacier due to local topographic and climatic variations in accumulation and ablation (Figure 1). Thus, the ELA is the average altitude of the equilibrium line. The ELA is very closely related to the local climate, particularly winter precipitation and summer air temperature. Variations in the ELA can therefore commonly be attributed to changes of these two variables. This can best be illustrated by its relationship to the net balance. The term net mass balance is the net gain or loss of ice and snow. The mass balance is...
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Bakke, J., Nesje, A. (2011). Equilibrium-Line Altitude (ELA). In: Singh, V.P., Singh, P., Haritashya, U.K. (eds) Encyclopedia of Snow, Ice and Glaciers. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-2642-2_140
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