Abstract

Glaciar Pio XI, the largest glacier in South America, has experienced an advance during the 20th century, unlike virtually all other glaciers in Patagonia, which are retreating rapidly. Climatological records of the last 80 years are analyzed together with ice-velocity and meteorological measurements collected during November 1995 near the tidewater front of Glaciar Pio XI. Ice speeds of up to 50 m d-1 were measured, the maximum occurring during a period when air temperatures were high.