| Term: | Area-averaged |
| Definition: | Descriptive of a quantity that has been averaged over part or all of the area of the glacier. The area-averaged mass balance is simply the specific mass balance of the region under consideration. The adjective has sometimes been used to emphasize that the specific mass balance is that of the whole glacier and not of a 'specific' location. 'Mean specific mass balance' has been used in the same sense. |