Implementación y evaluación de un sistema de cámaras time-lapse para el seguimiento de la dinámica de la cubierta de hielo en pequeños lagos de alta montaña en los Pirineos (2021–2024)

Òscar Alemán-Milán

doi:10.18172/cig.6972

Authors

Òscar Alemán-Milán Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6442-9998

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18172/cig.6972

Keywords:

lake ice, time-lapse photography, climate change, mountain lakes, image quality

Abstract

Lake ice phenology in small high mountain lakes is a sensitive indicator of climate change, yet its monitoring remains limited due to winter inaccessibility and the spatial and temporal constraints of satellite remote sensing. This study presents the implementation and evaluation of LIMS-TL (Lake Ice Monitoring System – Time-Lapse), an automated image acquisition system based on programmed cameras to monitor ice cover in seven natural lakes (6.5–24.5 ha) within the Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici National Park (Pyrenees), over three winter seasons (2021–2024). LIMS-TL was designed to operate under extreme conditions and was assessed in terms of reliability, energy autonomy, and its ability to capture key freeze-up and break-up events. Through expert visual inspection of over 17,500 images, 90% of key phenological dates (Freeze-Up Start, Freeze-Up End, Break-Up Start, Break-Up End) were identified, and dynamic processes were documented with high temporal resolution. A visual classification method was also developed to assess image quality, applying three categories based on their usefulness for analysis. On average, 80.7% of days yielded at least one valid image per lake during the 2021–2022 season. This work represents the first systematic high-resolution documentation of lake ice phenology in the Pyrenees, successfully identifying the four key dates of the seasonal cycle. The resulting image archive provides valuable visual data for detailed analysis of surface dynamics and associated hydrological processes. Despite some limitations, such as occasional technical failures or snow accumulation on the lens, LIMS-TL proved to be an effective, replicable, and low-cost tool, suitable for standalone deployment or in combination with other observation methods. This methodology offers a solid foundation for expanding the monitoring of lake ice dynamics in mountain regions and enhancing our understanding of its evolution under climate change.

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Author Biography

Òscar Alemán-Milán, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona

Research Group of Mountain Areas and Landscape (GRAMP), Department of Geography,
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain.

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