Cartographie de la distribution du pergélisol et datation des glaciers rocheux dans la région du Mont Gelé (Valais)

IGUL (the Geography Institute of the University of Lausanne) has been active in geomorphological cartography for many years, notably in the region of Nendaz, Valais. The research carried out has shown how this region is rich in periglacial forms and has initiated numerous other studies, like for example a rock glacier survey. This inventory has allowed, on the one hand, a spatial analysis to be carried out on the rock glaciers in the region, and on the other hand, the lower limit of permafrost to be determined for the region. From this, a very simple model of permafrost distribution was created on the basis of the position of the rock glaciers. A part from being able to describe the current distribution of permafrost, this model has also allowed the past and future distribution of permafrost to be described. For this, the time of formation of the different rock glaciers in the directory had to be determined, which is what makes up the essential part of this article.