The movements of Alpine glaciers throughout the last 10,000 years as sensitive proxies of temperature and climate changes

A brief review of the movements of Alpine glaciers throughout the Holocene in the Northern Hemisphere (European Alps) and in the Southern Hemisphere (New Zealand Southern Alps) is presented. It is mainly based on glacier studies where ¹⁴C dating, dendrochronology and surface exposure dating with cosmogenic isotopes is used to establish the chronology of advances and retreats of glaciers. An attempt is made to draw some general conclusions on the temperature and climate differences between the Northern and Southern Hemisphere.