Satelitte images show a small lake has started forming and then disappearing on a regular basis at the junction of the Tasman and Hochstetter Glaciers in recent months. Scientists conducting the annual Glacier Snowline Survey over the South Island later this month are keeping a watchful eye on the lake. Niwa principal scientist and survey leader Andrew Lorrey said the lake appeared to have been periodically forming and then disappearing since about October last year. "We suspect it may build to a certain size and is then siphoned away, possibly underneath the Hochstetter Glacier, into Tasman Lake. "What we are seeing from preliminary satellite images is a potential hazard forming, that could increase ice calving off the glacier."

Source: Otago Daily Times March 10, 2021 15:31 UTC