Measuring rock glacier surface deformation using SAR interferometry

The detection and quantification of surface deformation of an active rock glacier using the differential SAR interferometry technique is presented. An average deformation rate of -6 mm/35 days in the radar line-of-sight in the summer of 1992 was estimated. The maximum deformation rate was located at the upper part of the rock glacier and amounts to -18 mm/35 days. In contrast, at the snout of the rock glacier the deformation rate was only around -10 mm/35 days. The spatial distribution of the surface deformation in the D-InSAR displacement map is smooth and supports the idea that ice is the stress transferring medium in rock glaciers.