Revista Geográfica del Sur

Application and usefulness of grounded theory in spatial and interdisciplinary studies. the case of Peñaflor

2025-04-30T21:16:51-04:00

The application of theoretical models to understand human phenomena such as the urban-rural gap and formal education from a positivist or qualitative perspective has resulted in rigid and slow-growing bodies of knowledge that hardly cover the complexity of inhabited spaces. To generate a deep understanding, the present work includes the application of Grounded Theory in the study of the formation of educational expectations in high school students in the commune of Peñaflor, Chile, to understand the main factors that influence them. Through two cycles of interviews, one applied to teachers and directors of schools in the commune, and the other to national experts in the study of rural education, an iterative analysis of codes selected from the literature and emerging elements is carried out. The results of the study diverge from urban-rural generalizations, with the commune exhibiting an intermediate behavior both in spatial and educational characteristics that influence the formation of expectations in secondary students and are interrelated in that the characteristics of the commune delimit relevant pedagogical and family aspects. With this, it is postulated that the epistemological approach provided by Grounded Theory allows capturing the complexity of geographic space and the construction of interdisciplinary knowledge.

Analysis of flow signals in glaciers smaller than 25 hectares

2025-04-30T21:30:16-04:00

An analysis was carried out on the signals that denote the present or past movement of “glacieret” (glaciers smaller than 25 ha according to the public glacier inventory IPG2022), in order to determine the frequencies of flow signal features analyzed in ranges every 5 ha and for each glaciological macrozone (North, South, Center and Austral), in order to establish relationships between glacier area and number and frequency of flow signals, in order to propose a new area threshold for the definition of “glacieret”. For this, we worked with the “glacieret” coding present in the public glacier inventory of the year 2022 (IPG2022), which occupies the classification of Cogley et al., (2011), who defines a glacieret as “a very small glacier, less than 0.25 km2 (25 ha) in size, without a marked flow pattern visible on the surface”. In total, 1,573 glaciers were analyzed using Google Earth, Google Engine, and Base Map Arcgis. The results showed that in glacieret with a surface area of less than 15 hectares there is a marked absence of morphologies that may indicate movement, which increase significantly in glacieret larger than 15 ha, exceeding 60% in several flow signals. In view of these results, it is concluded that glacieret larger than 15 hectares may be glaciers with active and present movement conditions, this is because most of them present at least one sign of flow, and all of them have the thickness and tension necessary to deform. Therefore, it is estimated that the definition of “glacieret” should be limited to bodies of ice or patches of perennial snow with areas less than 15 ha.

High-resolution geomorphological mapping of rock glaciers

2025-04-30T21:45:00-04:00

Using high-resolution data obtained by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), a detailed analysis of the morphology of the Ballicas rock glacier in the Central Andes of Chile was carried out. The results reveal that the rock glacier, previously considered as a single cryoform, is actually composed of three distinct entities. Various geomorphological structures, such as frontal and lateral slopes, ridges and grooves, were identified and characterized. The analysis of slope range concentrations suggests a variability in the activity and stability of the different parts of the glacier. These findings highlight the importance of using highresolution remote sensing technologies for an accurate characterization of rock glaciers and contributing to a better understanding of their evolution in the context of climate change.

Mass movements in cryospheric environments and their impact on the landscape

2025-04-30T21:50:48-04:00

Glaciers are known, among their many features, for being great landscape sculptures. The erosive force of their advance and retreat leaves morphological prints such as moraines, glacial cirques, flutes, among others. These elements are clear indications of both past and present glacial environment and favour the understanding of the processes that originates a high mountain relief. Despite the latter, there are other phenomena derived from the glacial environment that can have a sudden and intense impact on the landscape. Such is the case of glacier-related mass movements. These include rock and ice avalanches, glacier catastrophic detachments, glacier surges and Glacial Lake Outburst Floods. Similarly, debris flows originated from active rock glacier fronts also constitute examples of the latter. This contribution analyses several cases of mass movements that occurred in the last century in the central Andes of Chile (30°S-35°S). Firstly, the effects of the 1947 surge of the Juncal Sur Glacier (33.10°S/70.11°W) on the headwaters of the Olivares River valley are assessed, whose glacial striations are still recognisable today. At nearly the same site, the result of a 1992 glacier advance originated from a small valley glacier beneath the south face of Cerro Risopatrón (33.16°S/70.07°W) is reported, whose hummocky deposit lies at the end of the Juncal Sur Glacier surging front. At the same time, geomorphological evidence is presented after the 1980 catastrophic detachment of Aparejo Glacier (33.56°S/70.01°W), in the form of glacial striations and flutes, which extremely resemble the pre-detachment condition in 1956 suggesting a possible previous event with similar proportions. This condition is also evident on the Tinguiririca 3 Glacier (34.78°S/70.31°W), in the form of a potential collapse prior to 1970. Finally, the impact of a debris flow originating from the glacier front of the CL105400105 rock glacier (33.01°S/70.08°W) is also reported. The event, which occurred in January 2024, left a marked debris imprint on the Juncal Norte Glacier, whose potential effects on the glacier remain to be assessed. Based on the analysed evidence, we state that it is possible to distinguish between geomorphologic features of different glacierrelated mass movements coexisting in a single location. We also propose that large glacier hazards can overthrow the imprint of long-term glacier changes, posing a higher controlling factor for landscape building. Analysing these phenomena is relevant for the evaluation of the recurrence of mass movements in cryospheric environments, to understand their causes, and to estimate their magnitude in high mountain areas.

Revista Geográfica del Sur

2025-04-30T21:05:30-04:00