Snow cover dynamics and hydrological regime of the Hunza River basin, Karakoram Range, Northern Pakistan

A A Tahir,B Ahmad,P Chevallier,Y Arnaud

doi:10.5194/hess-15-2275-2011

Abstract

Abstract. A major proportion of flow in the Indus River is contributed by its snow- and glacier-fed river catchments situated in the Himalaya, Karakoram and Hindukush ranges. It is therefore essential to understand the cryosphere dynamics in this area for water resource management. The MODIS MOD10A2 remote-sensing database of snow cover products from March 2000 to December 2009 was selected to analyse the snow cover changes in the Hunza River basin (the snow- and glacier-fed sub-catchment of the Indus River). A database of daily flows for the Hunza River at Dainyor Bridge over a period of 40 yr and climate data (precipitation and temperature) for 10 yr from three meteorological stations within the catchment was made available to investigate the hydrological regime in the area. Analysis of remotely sensed cryosphere (snow and ice cover) data during the last decade (2000–2009) suggest a rather slight expansion of cryosphere in the area in contrast to most of the regions in the world where glaciers are melting rapidly. This increase in snow cover may be the result of an increase in winter precipitation caused by westerly circulation. The impact of global warming is not effective because a large part of the basin area lies under high altitudes where the temperature remains negative throughout most of the year.

Highlights

Introduction and backgroundAn agricultural country, Pakistan is highly dependent on the Indus irrigation system, one of the largest irrigation networks in the world (SIHP, 1990)
Situated in the highelevation zone of central Karakoram, the Hunza river flow depends mainly on the accumulation of snow at high altitudes and energy input indirectly related to temperature
This suggests that meteorological data collection methods should be improved at the high-altitude stations present within the www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net/15/2275/2011/

Summary

Introduction

Introduction and backgroundAn agricultural country, Pakistan is highly dependent on the Indus irrigation system, one of the largest irrigation networks in the world (SIHP, 1990). The Indus River emerges from the Tibetan Plateau and flows toward northern areas of Pakistan where it changes its direction toward the south and flows into the Arabian Sea (Fig. 1). It has a controlling storage at Tarbela dam as the river descends from the mountains. Tarbela is the first major structure on the Indus River and supplies the flow to the Indus Irrigation System to irrigate the agricultural lands of Punjab (a province of Pakistan), the dominant producer of agriculture products in the country.

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