Debris-covered glaciers are a prominent feature in many glacierized mountain regions, and the relative proportion of debris-covered to clean ice in the mountain cryosphere is set to increase as glaciers recede. The presence of a surface debris cover fundamentally alters the surface energy balance and consequently the mass balance of these glaciers, partially decoupling them from the climate system. This influences the way glaciers will develop under different climate scenarios and poses a challenge when inferring former climate conditions from geological records of such glaciers.

This session aims to draw together knowledge on all aspects of debris-covered glacier systems, and we invite contributions including, but not limited to, (i) origins and characteristics of supraglacial debris cover; (ii) measurements or modeling of energy balance of debris-covered ice; (iii) mass balance measurements or modeling of debris-covered glaciers; (iv) dynamics and recent fluctuations of debris-covered glaciers; (v) depositional records of debris-covered glaciers, reconstructions of former glaciers and climatic interpretations of the depositional record; and (vi) hydrology of debris-covered glaciers and the development of associated glacier lake outburst flood hazards.