Debris-covered Area Research Articles

Deriving seasonal and annual surface mass balance for debris-covered glaciers from flow-corrected satellite stereo DEM time series

Abstract Glaciers in High-Mountain Asia are experiencing varying rates and patterns of mass loss due to a complex interplay between glacier surface processes, local conditions and climate forcing. Spatially distributed surface mass balance (SMB) estimates can provide valuable insight into these drivers, but observations are currently limited in both space and time. We used very-high-resolution optical stereo images acquired by commercial satellites to prepare time series of digital elevation models (DEMs), and derived contemporaneous surface velocity and elevation change products for six debris-covered glaciers in Nepal. We developed new methods to produce flow-corrected Lagrangian SMB maps to isolate local surface ablation signals with enough detail to study individual ice cliffs. Our results show reduced ablation under thick debris cover and enhanced ablation over ice cliffs. Ablating ice cliffs were responsible for $10\!-\!38\%$ of the total ablation over debris-covered areas, even though they covered $\leq \!11\%$ of the total area. Seasonal SMB products reveal the timing and patterns of summer accumulation and ablation, underscoring the importance of snow avalanches for low-elevation debris-covered glaciers in the region. Our approach can be applied to other glaciers with repeat high-resolution DEM coverage and extended for regional analyses of SMB on seasonal to interannual timescales.

Spatial Distribution and Variation in Debris Cover and Flow Velocities of Glaciers during 1989–2022 in Tomur Peak Region, Tianshan Mountains

In this study, we utilized a feature optimization method combining texture and topographical factors with the random forest (RF) approach to identify changes in the extent of the debris cover around the Tianshan Tomur Peak between 1989 and 2022. Based on Sentinel-1 image data, we extracted glacier flow velocities using an offset tracking method and conducted a long-term analysis of flow velocities in combination with existing datasets. The debris identification results for 2022 showed that the debris-covered area in the study region was 409.2 km2, constituting 22.8% of the total glacier area. Over 34 years, the area of debris cover expanded by 69.4 km2, reflecting a growth rate of 20.0%. Analysis revealed that glaciers in the Tomur Peak area have been decelerating at an overall rate of −4.0% per decade, with the complexity of the glacier bed environment and the instability of the glacier’s internal structure contributing to significant seasonal and interannual variability in the movement speeds of individual glaciers.

Influence of debris cover on the glacier melting in the Himalaya

Debris cover either enhances or reduces glacier melting, thereby modulating glacier response to increasing temperatures. Debris cover variation and glacier recession were investigated on five glaciers; Pensilungpa (PG), Drung Drung (DD), Haskira (HK), Kange (KG) and Hagshu (HG), situated in the topographically and climatically similar zone in the Zanskar Himalaya using satellite data between 2000 and 2020. Analyses reveals that the HK, KG, and HG had a debris-covered area of ∼24% in 2020, while PG and DD had a debris cover of <10%. Comparing PG to the other four glaciers, it had the highest shrinkage (5.7 ± 0.3%) and maximum thinning (1.6 ± 0.6 m a−1). Accordingly, detailed measurements of PG's debris cover thickness, temperature and ablation were conducted for eleven days in August 2020. The results indicated a significant variation of temperature and the highest melting was observed near dirty and thin debris-covered ice surface. Thermal conductivity of 0.9 ± 0.1 Wm−1 K−1 and 1.1 ± 0.1 Wm−1 K−1 was observed at 15 cm and 20 cm debris-depth, respectively. The ablation measurements indicated an average cumulative melting of 21.5 cm during eleven days only. Degree-day factor showed a decreasing trend towards debris cover depth with the highest value (4.8 mm w.e.°C−1 d−1) found for the dirty ice near the glacier surface and the lowest value (0.4 mm w.e.°C−1 d−1) found at 30 cm depth. The study highlights the importance of in-situ debris cover, temperature and ablation measurements for better understanding the impact of debris cover on glacier melting.

Glacial geomorphology of the Vanch River basin, the western Pamirs, Tajikistan

ABSTRACT Geomorphological mapping of glaciers and glacial landforms helps describe the current environment and investigate past glacial changes. Here we present the first detailed 1:80,000 glacial geomorphological map of the Vanch River basin (about 2100 km2), the western Pamirs, Tajikistan [38.6667°N, 72.0000°E]. Mapping was performed using DEM (30 m), Landsat 8 imagery (15 m), and Google Earth images (∼1 m). The resultant map provides the spatial distribution of glaciers and associated erosional and depositional landforms such as cirques, glacial valleys, rock glaciers, and moraines. Morphology of the lower section of the main valley outlines the limits of Vanch Glacier in the Middle Pleistocene. Comparison with former glacier inventories indicates that the glaciers have generally been stable, but the proportion of debris-covered areas has increased since 2007. The identified 184 intact rock glaciers represent hidden water storage, providing a new basis for estimating water resources in the basin.

A low-cost and open-source approach for supraglacial debris thickness mapping using UAV-based infrared thermography

Abstract. Debris-covered glaciers exist in many mountain ranges and play an important role in the regional water cycle. However, modelling the surface mass balance, runoff contribution and future evolution of debris-covered glaciers is fraught with uncertainty as accurate observations on small-scale variations in debris thickness and sub-debris ice melt rates are only available for a few locations worldwide. Here we describe a customised low-cost unoccupied aerial vehicle (UAV) for high-resolution thermal imaging of mountain glaciers and present a complete open-source pipeline that facilitates the generation of accurate surface temperature and debris thickness maps from radiometric images. First, a radiometric orthophoto is computed from individual radiometric UAV images using structure-from-motion and multi-view-stereo techniques. User-specific calibration and correction procedures can then be applied to the radiometric orthophoto to account for atmospheric and environmental influences that affect the radiometric measurement. The thermal orthophoto reveals distinct spatial variations in surface temperature across the surveyed debris-covered area. Finally, a high-resolution debris thickness map is derived from the corrected thermal orthophoto using an empirical or inverse surface energy balance model that relates surface temperature to debris thickness and is calibrated against in situ measurements. Our results from a small-scale experiment on the Kanderfirn (also known as Kander Neve) in the Swiss Alps show that the surface temperature and thickness of a relatively thin debris layer (ca. 0–15 cm) can be mapped with high accuracy using an empirical or physical model. On snow and ice surfaces, the mean deviation of the mapped surface temperature from the melting point (∼ 0 ∘C) was 0.6 ± 2.0 ∘C. The root-mean-square error of the modelled debris thickness was 1.3 cm. Through the detailed mapping, typical small-scale debris features and debris thickness patterns become visible, which are not spatially resolved by the thermal infrared sensors of current-generation satellites. The presented approach paves the way for comprehensive high-resolution supraglacial debris thickness mapping and opens up new opportunities for more accurate monitoring and modelling of debris-covered glaciers.

Differential surface melting of a debris-covered glacier and its geomorphological control — A case study from Batal Glacier, western Himalaya

The spatially variable response of Himalayan glaciers is often linked with the melting rate caused by supraglacial debris cover on the glacier surface. Studies have identified the role of debris cover in inhibiting underneath ice melt, but the spatial distribution of debris thickness still needs to be discovered in the region. We conducted debris thickness estimation at 110 locations and in-situ mass balance measurements over Batal Glacier from Chandra basin in the semi-arid region of the western Himalaya from 2013 to 2019 to establish a relationship between ice ablation rates and debris thicknesses. Overall, the annual ablation for the debris-covered area varied between 1.3 and 1.8 m w.e. a−1, with a mean annual ablation of 1.6 m w.e. a−1 during 2013–2019. While the point ablation rate does not exceed 3 m w.e. a−1 at any specific glacier area throughout the observation period. The melt rate was attenuated up to 80 % under the debris thickness ranging from 2 to 72 cm. The formation and thickness of the debris increased linearly down the glacier, sparse in the centreline owing to supraglacial channels and ice walls, and higher at the margins due to the contribution from avalanches. Supraglacial water channels and ice cliffs along the centreline were also observed as persistent contributors to the ablation rate. However, a higher mean surface slope (12°) of the ablation zone constraints the formation of supraglacial ponds. The area with patchy debris cover has an increased melt rate compared to the completely debris-covered area. Spatially distributed but reduced ice ablation under varying debris thickness underlines the influence of debris thickness on the underneath ice melt rate for Himalayan glaciers. Further studies on the evolution of supraglacial ponds and ice cliffs are required to understand the shrinking of glaciers in response to climate change in the western Himalaya.

Inter-Decadal Dynamics of Glacier Area and Supra-glacial Lakes Over Hispar Glacier, Western Karakoram

Glaciers of the central Karakorum region are the primary source of fresh water and lifeline for downstream inhabitants but changing climatic conditions put serious impacts on glaciers which cause rapid ablation and the creation of glacial lakes. Many natural hazards are associated with glaciers and glacial lakes like Glacier lake outburst flood (GLOF). Using Geographic Information System and Remote sensing techniques on Hispar glacier which is part of central Karakorum, the current study applied Landsat (TM, ETM, ETM+, and OLI) and sentinel-2 satellite imagery. Further, mapping to the Hispar glacier is done to know the variations in glacier and supraglacial lakes between 1990 and 2019. According to the results, about 90% of glacial ponds are present in the debris-covered area while only 10% are present in the clean ice and scow area. This study identifies the decreasing trend in the number and the area of glacial lakes. In 1990, about 42 glacial ponds were covering a total area of 0.733km2, whereas, in 2019, 20 glacial lakes were covering an area of 0.18km2. In the last three decades (1990-2019) about 20km2 of clean ice and snow is increased. The findings of climate data revealed that there is a decreasing trend of temperature and an increasing trend of precipitation. Since 1995, about 0.75oC temperature is observed in HRB. The findings of this study somehow support the Karakoram anomaly.

Glaciogenic Periglacial Landform in the Making—Geomorphological Evolution of a Rockfall on a Small Glacier in the Horlachtal, Stubai Alps, Austria

Deglaciation in high mountain areas signifies the transition from glacial to periglacial conditioned landscapes. Due to the reduced melt rate of debris-covered glacier ice, these areas of the glacier may persist long after the surrounding glacier has melted, resulting in the formation of distinct post-glacial landforms. In this study, we examine the geomorphological evolution and potential future development of a 19,267 m3 ± 204 m3 rockfall from the permafrost-affected headwall on the low-elevated Zwieselbachferner in the Horlachtal, Stubai Alps, Austria. The analysis uses multi-epochal remote sensing data, including photogrammetrically and airborne laser scanning-derived digital elevation models, orthophotos, and satellite data, covering a period from the initial rockfall in 2003/2004 to 2022. The data reveals that the rockfall event resulted in the formation of a supraglacial debris layer of varying thickness, spanning an area of 15,920 m2. Subsequently, 13 further rockfalls ranging from 67 m3 ± 6 m3 to 4250 m3 ± 121 m3 were detected. The mean ice thickness of the debris-covered area only slightly decreased between 2006 and 2022, in contrast to the surrounding glacier, whose thickness and length have strongly decreased. This results in the formation of a steep front and flanks that become increasingly covered by debris redistribution. The study suggests that the glacier ice covered by rockfall-derived debris will remain as a periglacial landform of glacial origin after the complete melting of the surrounding glacier.

Glacier inventory and glacier changes (1994–2020) in the Upper Alaknanda Basin, Central Himalaya

AbstractHimalayan glaciers have been shrinking and losing mass rapidly since 1970s with an enhanced rate after 2000. The shrinkage is, however, quite heterogeneous and it is important to document individual glacier characteristics and their changes at the basin scale. We present an updated glacier inventory of the Upper Alaknanda Basin (UAB), Central Himalaya for the year 2020 and report area, debris cover and length changes for the periods 1994–2006 and 2006–2020 based on remote-sensing data. We identified 198 glaciers, comprising an area of 354.6 ± 8.5 km2, and classified them according to their size and morphology. The glaciers of the basin lost 4.2 ± 2.9% (0.16 ± 0.11% a−1) of their frontal area (from 368.6 ± 9.2 to 353.0 ± 5.3 km2) from 1994 to 2020. The average retreat rate was higher in the period 2006–2020 (13.3 ± 1.8 m a−1) in comparison to 1994–2006 (9.3 ± 1.9 m a−1). However, the area change rate was similar for the two periods (0.14 ± 0.27% a−1 for 1994–2006 and 0.16 ± 0.19% a−1 for 2006–2020). The debris-covered area has increased by 13.4 ± 4.4% from 1994 to 2020. A comparison with previous studies in UAB indicates consistent area loss of ~0.15% a−1 since the 1960s.

Flow velocities of the debris-covered Miyar Glacier, western Himalaya, India

ABSTRACT Spatiotemporal surface velocity measurements of the alpine valley type debris-covered Miyar Glacier of the Chandrabhaga (Chenab) basin, western Himalaya, were assessed based on the cross-correlation of Landsat images spanning nearly three decades (1992-2019). Long-term (1950-2015) temperature and precipitation trends were evaluated using Asian Precipitation Highly Resolved Observational Data Integration Towards Evaluation (APHRODITE) datasets. The mean velocity (1992-2019) of the Miyar Glacier is ∼29 m/yr, with spatial patterns revealing that the debris-covered tongue is nearly stagnant (∼5 m/yr) compared to the debris-free up-glacier zone (∼35 m/yr). The transition zone from clean to debris-covered ice in the mid-ablation area shows the highest long-term mean velocities of ∼60 m/yr during the observation period, likely resulting from a steep surface gradient and greater ice thickness than the other regions of this glacier. The slow-moving and nearly stagnant debris-covered area reveals the highest amount of surface lowering due to the expansion of supraglacial ponds. Miyar Glacier experiences summer speed-up of ∼67–80% in seasonal velocity compared to winter, interpreted as a result from enhanced basal sliding during summer months due to warmer temperatures inputting more meltwater into the subsurface drainage system. Inter-annual velocity variations are greatest in the upper glacier, with higher velocities observed more frequently in recent decades. Future work should aim to elucidate the causes of this pattern, considering the overall rising air temperature trend in the western Himalaya.

Influence of Supraglacial Debris Thickness on Thermal Resistance of the Glaciers of Chandra Basin, Western Himalaya

A large number of glaciers in the Hindu-Kush Himalaya are covered with debris in the lower part of the ablation zone, which is continuously expanding due to enhanced glacier mass loss. The supraglacial debris transported over the melting glacier surface acts as an insulating barrier between the ice and atmospheric conditions and has a strong influence on the spatial distribution of surface ice melt. We conducted in-situ field measurements of point-wise ablation rate, supraglacial debris thickness, and debris temperature to examine the thermal resistivity of the debris pack and its influence on ablation over three glaciers (Bara Shigri, Batal, and Kunzam) in Chandra Basin of Western Himalaya during 2016–2017. Satellite-based supraglacial debris cover assessment shows an overall debris covered area of 15% for Chandra basin. The field data revealed that the debris thickness varied between 0.5 and 326 cm, following a spatially distributed pattern in the Chandra basin. The studied glaciers have up to 90% debris cover within the ablation area, and together represent ∼33.5% of the total debris-covered area in the basin. The supraglacial debris surface temperature and near-surface air temperature shows a significant correlation (r = &amp;gt; 0.88, p = &amp;lt; 0.05), which reflects the effective control of energy balance over the debris surface. The thermal resistivity measurements revealed low resistance (0.009 ± 0.01 m2°C W−1) under thin debris pack and high resistance (0.55 ± 0.09 m2°C W−1) under thick debris. Our study revealed that the increased thickness of supraglacial debris significantly retards the glacier ablation due to its high thermal resistivity.

Inter-Decadal Dynamics of Glacier Area and Supra-glacial Lakes Over Hispar Glacier, Western Karakoram

Glaciers of the central Karakorum region are the primary source of fresh water and lifeline for downstream inhabitants but changing climatic conditions put serious impacts on glaciers which cause rapid ablation and the creation of glacial lakes. Many natural hazards are associated with glaciers and glacial lakes like Glacier lake outburst flood (GLOF). Using Geographic Information System and Remote sensing techniques on Hispar glacier which is part of central Karakorum, the current study applied Landsat (TM, ETM, ETM+, and OLI) and sentinel-2 satellite imagery. Further, mapping to the Hispar glacier is done to know the variations in glacier and supraglacial lakes between 1990 and 2019. According to the results, about 90% of glacial ponds are present in the debris-covered area while only 10% are present in the clean ice and scow area. This study identifies the decreasing trend in the number and the area of glacial lakes. In 1990, about 42 glacial ponds were covering a total area of 0.733km2, whereas, in 2019, 20 glacial lakes were covering an area of 0.18km2. In the last three decades (1990-2019) about 20km2 of clean ice and snow is increased. The findings of climate data revealed that there is a decreasing trend of temperature and an increasing trend of precipitation. Since 1995, about 0.75oC temperature is observed in HRB. The findings of this study somehow support the Karakoram anomaly.

Debris Emergence Elevations and Glacier Change

Debris-covered glaciers represent potentially significant stores of freshwater in river basins throughout High Mountain Asia (HMA). Direct glacier mass balance measurements are extremely difficult to maintain on debris-covered glaciers, and optical remote sensing techniques to evaluate annual equilibrium line altitudes (ELAs) do not work in regions with summer-accumulation type glaciers. Surface elevation and glacier velocity change have been calculated previously for debris-covered glaciers across the region, but the response of debris cover itself to climate change remains an open question. In this research we propose a new metric, i.e. the debris emergence elevation (ZDE), which can be calculated from a combination of optical and thermal imagery and digital elevation data. We quantify ZDE for 975 debris-covered glaciers in HMA over three compositing periods (1985–1999, 2000–2010, and 2013–2017) and compare ZDE against median glacier elevations, modelled ELAs, and observed rates of both mass change and glacier velocity change. Calculated values of ZDE for individual glaciers are broadly similar to both median glacier elevations and modelled ELAs, but slightly lower than both. Across the HMA region, the average value of ZDE increased by 70 +/− 126 m over the study period, or 2.7 +/− 4.1 m/yr. Increases in ZDE correspond with negative mass balance rates and decreases in glacier velocity, while glaciers and regions that show mass gains and increases in glacier velocity experienced decreases in ZDE. Regional patterns of ZDE, glacier mass balance, and glacier velocities are strongly correlated, which indicates continued overall increases in ZDEE and expansion of debris-covered areas as glaciers continue to lose mass. Our results suggest that ZDE is a useful metric to examine regional debris-covered glacier changes over decadal time scales, and could potentially be used to reconstruct relative mass and ELA changes on debris-covered glaciers using historical imagery or reconstructed debris cover extents.

Surface composition of debris-covered glaciers across the Himalaya using linear spectral unmixing of Landsat 8 OLI imagery

Abstract. The Himalaya mountain range is characterized by highly glacierized, complex, dynamic topography. The ablation area of Himalayan glaciers often features a highly heterogeneous debris mantle comprising ponds, steep and shallow slopes of various aspects, variable debris thickness, and exposed ice cliffs associated with differing ice ablation rates. Understanding the composition of the supraglacial debris cover is essential for a proper understanding of glacier hydrology and glacier-related hazards. Until recently, efforts to map debris-covered glaciers from remote sensing focused primarily on glacier extent rather than surface characteristics and relied on traditional whole-pixel image classification techniques. Spectral unmixing routines, rarely used for debris-covered glaciers, allow decomposition of a pixel into constituting materials, providing a more realistic representation of glacier surfaces. Here we use linear spectral unmixing of Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) images (30 m) to obtain fractional abundance maps of the various supraglacial surfaces (debris material, clean ice, supraglacial ponds and vegetation) across the Himalaya around the year 2015. We focus on the debris-covered glacier extents as defined in the database of global distribution of supraglacial debris cover. The spectrally unmixed surfaces are subsequently classified to obtain maps of composition of debris-covered glaciers across sample regions. We test the unmixing approach in the Khumbu region of the central Himalaya, and we evaluate its performance for supraglacial ponds by comparison with independently mapped ponds from high-resolution Pléiades (2 m) and PlanetScope imagery (3 m) for sample glaciers in two other regions with differing topo-climatic conditions. Spectral unmixing applied over the entire Himalaya mountain range (a supraglacial debris cover area of 2254 km2) indicates that at the end of the ablation season, debris-covered glacier zones comprised 60.9 % light debris, 23.8 % dark debris, 5.6 % clean ice, 4.5 % supraglacial vegetation, 2.1 % supraglacial ponds, and small amounts of cloud cover (2 %), with 1.2 % unclassified areas. The spectral unmixing performed satisfactorily for the supraglacial pond and vegetation classes (an F score of ∼0.9 for both classes) and reasonably for the debris classes (F score of 0.7). Supraglacial ponds were more prevalent in the monsoon-influenced central-eastern Himalaya (up to 4 % of the debris-covered area) compared to the monsoon-dry transition zone (only 0.3 %) and in regions with lower glacier elevations. Climatic controls (higher average temperatures and more abundant precipitation), coupled with higher glacier thinning rates and lower average glacier velocities, further favour pond incidence and the development of supraglacial vegetation. With continued advances in satellite data and further method refinements, the approach presented here provides avenues towards achieving large-scale, repeated mapping of supraglacial features.

Annual and seasonal glaciological mass balance of Patsio Glacier, western Himalaya (India) from 2010 to 2017

AbstractImproving the knowledge on Himalayan glaciers mass balance is a key to understand the present and past annual atmospheric variations and future water availability in the region. Here, we present glaciological mass balance for Patsio Glacier, located in Himachal Pradesh (India), western Himalaya. Annual glacier-wide mass balance was measured for 7 consecutive years (2010/11 to 2016/17) and winter mass balance for 6 years (2011/12 to 2016/17). The cumulative mass balance over this period was −2.35 ± 0.37 m w.e. The corresponding mean mass balance was −0.34 m w.e. a−1. The mean annual ablation gradient excluding the debris-covered area was 0.47 m w.e. (100 m)−1. The annual ablation over the debris-covered area is reduced by an average of −1.0 m w.e. compared to the clean ice surface. Winter mass balance was consistently positive with a maximum of 1.34 m w.e. in 2014/15 and a minimum of 0.88 m w.e. in 2011/12. Multiple regression analysis between annual mass balance versus annual and winter precipitation of the Lahaul-Spiti region shows a significant positive correlation. Our results highlight the importance of monitoring seasonal mass balance and consideration of non-climatic parameters (debris and aspect) while estimating the glacier-wide mass balance.

Evolution of Surface Characteristics of Three Debris-Covered Glaciers in the Patagonian Andes From 1958 to 2020

A number of glaciological observations on debris-covered glaciers around the globe have shown a delayed length and mass adjustment in relation to climate variability, a behavior normally attributed to the ice insulation effect of thick debris layers. Dynamic interactions between debris cover, geometry and surface topography of debris-covered glaciers can nevertheless govern glacier velocities and mass changes over time, with many glaciers exhibiting high thinning rates in spite of thick debris cover. Such interactions are progressively being incorporated into glacier evolution research. In this paper we reconstruct changes in debris-covered area, surface velocities and surface features of three glaciers in the Patagonian Andes over the 1958–2020 period, based on satellite and aerial imagery and Digital Elevation Models. Our results show that debris cover has increased from 40 ± 0.6 to 50 ± 6.7% of the total glacier area since 1958, whilst glacier slope has slightly decreased. The gently sloping tongues have allowed surface flow velocities to remain relatively low (&amp;lt;60 m a−1) for the last two decades, preventing evacuation of surface debris, and contributing to the formation and rise of the ice cliff zone upper boundary. In addition, mapping of end of summer snowline altitudes for the last two decades suggests an increase in the Equilibrium Line Altitudes, which promotes earlier melt out of englacial debris and further increases debris-covered ice area. The strongly negative mass budget of the three investigated glaciers throughout the study period, together with the increases in debris cover extent and ice cliff zones up-glacier, and the low velocities, shows a strong linkage between debris cover, mass balance evolution, surface velocities and topography. Interestingly, the presence of thicker debris layers on the lowermost portions of the glaciers has not lowered thinning rates in these ice areas, indicating that the mass budget is mainly driven by climate variability and calving processes, to which the influence of enhanced thinning at ice cliff location can be added.

Spatio-Temporal Distribution of Supra-Glacial Ponds and Ice Cliffs on Verde Glacier, Chile

Known for their important role in locally enhancing surface melt, supraglacial ponds and ice cliffs are common features on debris-covered glaciers. We use high resolution satellite imagery to describe pond-cliff systems and surface velocity on Verde debris-covered glacier, Monte Tronador, and Southern Chile. Ponds and ice cliffs represent up to 0.4 and 2.7% of the glacier debris-covered area, respectively. Through the analyzed period and the available data, we found a seasonality in the number of detected ponds, with larger number of ponds at the beginning of the ablation season and less at the end of it. Using feature tracking, we determined glacier surface velocity, finding values up to 55 m/yr on the upper part of the debris-covered area, and decreasing almost to stagnation in the terminus. We found that larger ponds develop in glacier zones of low velocity, while zones of high velocity only contain smaller features. Meanwhile, ice cliffs appeared to be less controlled by surface velocity and gradient. Persistent ice cliffs were detected between 2009 and 2019 and backwasting up to 24 m/yr was measured, highlighting significant local glacier wastage.

Ice Cliff Dynamics of Debris-Covered Trakarding Glacier in the Rolwaling Region, Nepal Himalaya

Ice cliffs can act as “hot spots” for melt on debris-covered glaciers and promote local glacier mass loss. Repeat high-resolution remote-sensing data are therefore required to monitor the role of ice cliff dynamics in glacier mass loss. Here we analyze high-resolution aerial photogrammetry data acquired during the 2007, 2018, and 2019 post-monsoon seasons to delineate and monitor the morphology, distribution, and temporal changes of the ice cliffs across the debris-covered Trakarding Glacier in the eastern Nepal Himalaya. We generate an ice cliff inventory from the 2018 and 2019 precise terrain data, with ice cliffs accounting for 4.7 and 6.1% of the debris-covered area, respectively. We observe large surface lowering (&amp;gt;2.0 m a−1) where there is a denser distribution of ice cliffs. We also track the survival, formation, and disappearance of ice cliffs from 2018 to 2019, and find that ∼15% of the total ice cliff area is replaced by new ice cliffs. Furthermore, we observe the overall predominance of northwest-facing ice cliffs, although we do observe spatial heterogeneities in the aspect variance of the ice cliffs (ice cliffs face in similar/various directions). Many new ice cliffs formed across the stagnant middle sections of the glacier, coincident with surface water drainage and englacial conduit intake observations. This spatial relationship between ice cliffs and the glacier hydrological system suggests that these englacial and supraglacial hydrological systems play a significant role in ice cliff formation.

Region-wide glacier area and mass budgets for the Shaksgam River Basin, Karakoram Mountains, during 2000–2016

The Karakoram Mountains are well known for their widespread surge-type glaciers and slight glacier mass gains. On the one hand, glaciers are one of the sensitive indicators of climate change, their area and thickness will adjust with climate change. On the other hand, glaciers provide freshwater resources for agricultural irrigation and hydroelectric generation in the downstream areas of the Shaksgam River Basin (SRB) in Western China. The shrinkage of glaciers caused by climate change can significantly affect the security and sustainable development of regional water resources. In this study, we analyzed the changes in glacier area from 2000 to 2016 in the SRB using Landsat TM (Thematic Mapper)/ETM+ (Enhanced Mapper Plus)/OLI (Operational Land Imager) images. It is shown that the SRB contained 472 glaciers, with an area of 1840.3 km2, in 2016. The glacier area decreased by 0.14%/a since 2000, and the shrinkage of glacier in the southeast, east and south directions were the most, while the northeast, north directions were the least. Debris-covered area accounted for 8.0% of the total glacier area. We estimated elevation and mass changes using the 1 arc-second SRTM (Shuttle Radar Topography Mission) DEM (Digital Elevation Model) (2000) and the resolution of 8 m HMA (High Mountain Asia) DEM (2016). An average thickness of 0.08 (±0.03) m/a, or a slight mass increase of 0.06 (±0.02) m w.e./a has been obtained since 2000. We found thinning was significantly lesser on the clean ice than the debris-covered ice. In addition, the elevation of glacier surface is spatially heterogeneous, showing that the accumulation of mass is dominant in high altitude regions, and the main mass loss is in low altitude regions, excluding the surge-type glacier. For surge-type glaciers, the mass may transfer from the reservoir to the receiving area rapidly when surges, then resulting in an advance of glacier terminus. The main surge mechanism is still unclear, it is worth noting that the surge did not increase the glacier mass in this study.

Recessional pattern and surface elevation change of the Parvati Glacier, North-Western Himalaya (1965-2018) using remote sensing

ABSTRACT We present a long-term assessment (1965–2018) of recessional and area change patterns as well as the recent decade surface velocity (, 2000–2001 and 2017–2018) and elevation change (, 2003–2016) of the Parvati Glacier, north-western Himalaya. Multi-temporal high (Corona, Hexagon, and PlanetScope) to medium (Land Remote-Sensing Satellite (System, Landsat) Thematic Mapper (TM)/Enhanced Thematic Mapper+ (ETM+)/Operational Land Imager (OLI), Sentinel 2A- Multispectral Instrument (MSI), and Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER)) resolution images from 1965 to 2018 were analysed to evaluate multi-parameters of glacier dynamics. We estimated an average annual recessional rate of 37.5 ± 0.5 m and total area loss of 2.2 ± 0.01 km2 for the Parvati Glacier over the past half-century (i.e. 1965–2018). During 1973–1989, the Parvati Glacier experienced a significant recession (70.9 ± 3.1 m a−1) that resultant into disintegrated of the glacier in two separate glaciers between 1981 and 1989. We observed a higher average recession rate (28.4 ± 1.6 m a−1) of the detached glacier after its disintegrated from the Parvati Glacier (18.7 ± 1.6 m a−1) between 1989 and 2018. However, the debris-covered ice area of the Parvati Glacier (about 12%) increased twice that of the detached glacier (about 6.1%) during 1994–2018. The estimated reveals a substantial slowdown by about 27.7% and about 20% for the Parvati and detached glacier, respectively, during 2000–2001 and 2017–2018. Overall the annual average surface lowering rate (−0.7 ± 0.5 m a−1) for both the glacier has been almost similar during 2003–2016 but varied significantly at altitudinal. Our study shows inconsistency in previously reported recessional rate and observed advance phases in 1976–1989 and 2009–2013 for the Parvati Glacier during almost the same duration of the study. It is mainly ascribed to the misinterpretation of glacier boundaries using the Survey of India (SoI) topographic map of 1962 where glacier boundaries more generalized and by using coarser resolution of Landsat Multispectral Scanner (MSS) images (1970s), particularly for the debris-covered area. Overall, the Parvati Glacier shows a significant recession and frontal area change; and in the recent decades, extensive surface lowering, along with an observable slowdown in glacier and appearance of ice-cliffs in the ablation area collectively point towards substantial glacier degeneration over the period of our analysis.