scholarly journals High Mountain Asian glacier response to climate revealed by multi-temporal satellite observations since the 1960s

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Atanu Bhattacharya ◽  
Tobias Bolch ◽  
Kriti Mukherjee ◽  
Owen King ◽  
Brian Menounos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Loss ◽  
River Flow ◽  
Tien Shan ◽  
High Mountain ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Temperature And Precipitation ◽  
Multi Temporal ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
Northern Tien Shan

AbstractKnowledge about the long-term response of High Mountain Asian glaciers to climatic variations is paramount because of their important role in sustaining Asian river flow. Here, a satellite-based time series of glacier mass balance for seven climatically different regions across High Mountain Asia since the 1960s shows that glacier mass loss rates have persistently increased at most sites. Regional glacier mass budgets ranged from −0.40 ± 0.07 m w.e.a−1 in Central and Northern Tien Shan to −0.06 ± 0.07 m w.e.a−1 in Eastern Pamir, with considerable temporal and spatial variability. Highest rates of mass loss occurred in Central Himalaya and Northern Tien Shan after 2015 and even in regions where glaciers were previously in balance with climate, such as Eastern Pamir, mass losses prevailed in recent years. An increase in summer temperature explains the long-term trend in mass loss and now appears to drive mass loss even in regions formerly sensitive to both temperature and precipitation.

scholarly journals Central Himalayan tree-ring isotopes reveal increasing regional heterogeneity and enhancement in ice mass loss since the 1960s

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-112
Author(s):  
Nilendu Singh ◽  
Mayank Shekhar ◽  
Jayendra Singh ◽  
Anil K. Gupta ◽  
Achim Bräuning ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Loss ◽  
Tree Ring ◽  
Strong Predictor ◽  
Ice Core ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Regional Heterogeneity ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
East West ◽  
Diverse Plant

Abstract. Tree-ring δ18O values are a sensitive proxy for regional physical climate, while their δ13C values are a strong predictor of local ecohydrology. Utilizing available ice-core and tree-ring δ18O records from the central Himalaya (CH), we found an increase in east–west climate heterogeneity since the 1960s. Further, δ13C records from transitional western glaciated valleys provide a robust basis for reconstructing about 3 centuries of glacier mass balance (GMB) dynamics. We reconstructed annually resolved GMB since 1743 CE based on regionally dominant tree species of diverse plant functional types. Three major phases became apparent: positive GMB up to the mid-19th century, the middle phase (1870–1960) of slightly negative but stable GMB, and an exponential ice mass loss since the 1960s. Reasons for accelerated mass loss are largely attributed to anthropogenic climate change, including concurrent alterations in atmospheric circulations (weakening of the westerlies and the Arabian Sea branch of the Indian summer monsoon). Multi-decadal isotopic and climate coherency analyses specify an eastward declining influence of the westerlies in the monsoon-dominated CH region. Besides, our study provides a long-term context for recent GMB variability, which is essential for its reliable projection and attribution.

scholarly journals Palaeo-earthquake magnitudes on the Dzhungarian fault, N. Tien shan, and implications for the rupture processes of intraplate strike-slip faults

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chia-Hsin Tsai ◽  
Richard Walker ◽  
Simon Daout ◽  
Kanatbek Abdrakhmatov ◽  
Aidyn Mukambayev ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Kinematic Model ◽  
Strike Slip ◽  
Tien Shan ◽  
High Mountain ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Lithospheric Deformation ◽  
Large Earthquakes ◽  
Northern Tien Shan ◽  
Fault Length

<p>Long-term and present-day crustal deformation in the northern Tien Shan is poorly known, but is a key to understanding the mode of lithospheric deformation deep within the continental interiors, as well as the hazards posed by the slow-moving intraplate faults. Driven by the India-Asia collision, the NW-SE strike-slip faults and the E-W range-front thrust faults in the interior of Tien Shan together accommodate about 15-20 mm/yr of shortening. Here we focus on the NW-SE striking Dzhungarian fault (DZF) and the E-W striking Lepsy fault (LPF), which are large oblique strike-slip faults bounding the Dzhungarian Alatau, northern Tien Shan. Two large historical earthquakes in ~1716 and 1812 (Mw 8) were recorded in this region, and clear fault traces as well as scarps are visible from satellite images along some of the main faults. However, their geometries, slip rates, mode of deformation, expected earthquake magnitudes and recurrence interval have not been studied in details. A previous study suggested that the LPF ruptured in a seismic event around 400 yrBP that might be the 1716 earthquake known from historical records. Offsets of over 15 m were found over a fault length of 120 km, indicating a magnitude in the range Mw 7.5-8.2. The slip to length ratio for the LPF is unusally high, suggesting either that faults in this region are capable of generating very large earthquakes for a given fault length, or that the rupture length is underestimated.</p><p>Using a combination of high-resolution digital elevation models (DEMs) and orthophotos from High Mountain Asia (NASA), Pleiades optical imagery (CNES), drone photos and multi-temporal interferometric synthetic-aperture radar (InSAR) from the Sentinel-1 satellites, we identify the geomorphic signatures and quantify the long-term and short-term strain accumulation along the faults. The ~400 km DZF shows evidence for relatively ‘fresh’ rupturing along much of its length. We calculate an average lateral slip per event of 9.9 m from offset stacking analysis, which underlines the potential future large earthquakes on this fault. The proximity of the DZF and LPF ruptures and equivalent level of preservation opens the possibility that they were formed in a single earthquake event, with a moment-magnitude greater than 8. We also present estimates of long-term and short-term rates of slip across the DZF in order to estimate average recurrence intervals and to build a kinematic model of the faulting in the Northern Tien Shan.</p>

scholarly journals Central Himalayan tree-ring isotopes reveal increasing regional heterogeneity and enhancement in ice-mass loss since the 1960s

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nilendu Singh ◽  
Mayank Shekhar ◽  
Jayendra Singh ◽  
Anil Kumar Gupta ◽  
Achim Bräuning ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Loss ◽  
Tree Ring ◽  
Strong Predictor ◽  
Ice Core ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Regional Heterogeneity ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
East West ◽  
Diverse Plant

Abstract. Tree-ring δ18O values are a sensitive proxy of regional physical climate, while their δ13C values are a strong predictor of local ecohydrology. Utilizing available ice-core and tree-ring δ18O records from central Himalaya (CH), we show an increase in east-west heterogeneity since the 1960s. Further, δ13C records from transitional western glacier valleys provide a robust basis of reconstruction of about three centuries of glacier mass balance (GMB) dynamics. Annually resolved GMB is based on regionally-dominant and diverse plant-functional species since the 1743 CE. Results indicate three major phases: positive GMB up to the mid-nineteenth century, the middle phase of slightly negative but stable GMB, and an exponential ice-mass loss since the 1960s. Reasons of accelerated mass loss are largely attributed to anthropogenic climate change, including concurrent alterations in atmospheric circulations (weakening of the westerlies and Arabian Branch of the Indian summer monsoon). CH-scale, multi-decadal isotopic and climate coherency analyses specify an eastward declining influence of westerlies in this monsoon-dominated region. Besides, our study provides a long-term context for recent GMB variability, which is essential for reliable projection and attribution.

scholarly journals Health and sustainability of glaciers in High Mountain Asia

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Evan Miles ◽  
Michael McCarthy ◽  
Amaury Dehecq ◽  
Marin Kneib ◽  
Stefan Fugger ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Field Measurements ◽  
Tien Shan ◽  
High Mountain ◽  
Specific Mass ◽  
Ice Flow ◽  
Ice Volume ◽  
Mass Redistribution ◽  
Glacier Ablation

AbstractGlaciers in High Mountain Asia generate meltwater that supports the water needs of 250 million people, but current knowledge of annual accumulation and ablation is limited to sparse field measurements biased in location and glacier size. Here, we present altitudinally-resolved specific mass balances (surface, internal, and basal combined) for 5527 glaciers in High Mountain Asia for 2000–2016, derived by correcting observed glacier thinning patterns for mass redistribution due to ice flow. We find that 41% of glaciers accumulated mass over less than 20% of their area, and only 60% ± 10% of regional annual ablation was compensated by accumulation. Even without 21st century warming, 21% ± 1% of ice volume will be lost by 2100 due to current climatic-geometric imbalance, representing a reduction in glacier ablation into rivers of 28% ± 1%. The ablation of glaciers in the Himalayas and Tien Shan was mostly unsustainable and ice volume in these regions will reduce by at least 30% by 2100. The most important and vulnerable glacier-fed river basins (Amu Darya, Indus, Syr Darya, Tarim Interior) were supplied with >50% sustainable glacier ablation but will see long-term reductions in ice mass and glacier meltwater supply regardless of the Karakoram Anomaly.

scholarly journals Geodetic Mass Balance of Haxilegen Glacier No. 51, Eastern Tien Shan, from 1964 to 2018

2022 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 272
Author(s):  
Chunhai Xu ◽  
Zhongqin Li ◽  
Feiteng Wang ◽  
Jianxin Mu ◽  
Xin Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Mass Loss ◽  
Mass Balance ◽  
Laser Scanning ◽  
Mean Value ◽  
Tien Shan ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Topographic Map ◽  
Glacier Surface ◽  
Elevation Changes ◽  
Geodetic Mass Balance

The eastern Tien Shan hosts substantial mid-latitude glaciers, but in situ glacier mass balance records are extremely sparse. Haxilegen Glacier No. 51 (eastern Tien Shan, China) is one of the very few well-measured glaciers, and comprehensive glaciological measurements were implemented from 1999 to 2011 and re-established in 2017. Mass balance of Haxilegen Glacier No. 51 (1999–2015) has recently been reported, but the mass balance record has not extended to the period before 1999. Here, we used a 1:50,000-scale topographic map and long-range terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) data to calculate the area, volume, and mass changes for Haxilegen Glacier No. 51 from 1964 to 2018. Haxilegen Glacier No. 51 lost 0.34 km2 (at a rate of 0.006 km2 a−1 or 0.42% a−1) of its area during the period 1964–2018. The glacier experienced clearly negative surface elevation changes and geodetic mass balance. Thinning occurred almost across the entire glacier surface, with a mean value of −0.43 ± 0.12 m a−1. The calculated average geodetic mass balance was −0.36 ± 0.12 m w.e. a−1. Without considering the error bounds of mass balance estimates, glacier mass loss over the past 50 years was in line with the observed and modeled mass balance (−0.37 ± 0.22 m w.e. a−1) that was published for short time intervals since 1999 but was slightly less negative than glacier mass loss in the entire eastern Tien Shan. Our results indicate that Riegl VZ®-6000 TLS can be widely used for mass balance measurements of unmonitored individual glaciers.

scholarly journals Progress and prospect for research on mountain glaciers in China

1992 ◽  
Vol 16 ◽  
pp. 207-211
Author(s):  
Xie Zichu
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Ice Core ◽  
Research Area ◽  
Tien Shan ◽  
High Mountain ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Mountain Glaciers ◽  
Ice Cap ◽  
Glacial Runoff ◽  
West Kunlun

In the past decade the interest of many scientists worldwide has been attracted to the central Asian area of China. A number of gaps in scientific knowledge have been closed, and many significant discoveries have been made.The most important achievement is the ice-core research by the Sino-American Joint Expedition to the Dunde Ice Cap, Qilian mountains, that established a record of ten thousand years of climatic and environmental change. In addition, in cooperation with scientists from Japan, Switzerland and the Soviet Union, studies have been carried out focusing on glacier mass balance, heat balance, the mechanism and formation of glacial runoff, and high mountain climates. This work has been done in the Tien Shan, west Kunlun, Tanggula, Nyaingentanglha and Gongga mountains.In addition, through joint efforts of scientists from China, Nepal and Canada, important advances have also been made in studies of glacier lake outburst floods and debris flows in the Karakoram and the Himalayas, and in mountainous areas in southeastern Tibet.The glaciers in central Asia will continue to be an important research area for glaciologists from all over the world in the coming decade.

scholarly journals The influence of decadal-scale variability on trends in long European streamflow records

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 1859-1896 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Hannaford ◽  
G. Buys ◽  
K. Stahl ◽  
L. M. Tallaksen
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
River Flow ◽  
Interdecadal Variability ◽  
Trend Detection ◽  
Quality Data ◽  
Mean Flow ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Decadal Scale ◽  
Multi Temporal

Abstract. This study seeks to provide a long-term context for the growing number of trend analyses which have been applied to river flows in Europe. Most studies apply trend tests to fixed periods, in relatively short (generally 1960s–present) records. This study adopts an alternative "multi-temporal" approach, whereby trends are fitted to every possible combination of start and end years in a record. The method is applied to 132 catchments with long (1932–2004) hydrometric records from northern and central Europe, which were chosen as they are minimally anthropogenically influenced and have good quality data. The catchments are first clustered into five regions, which are broadly homogenous in terms of interdecadal variability of annual mean flow. The multi-temporal trend approach was then applied to regional time series of different hydrological indicators (annual, monthly and high and low flows). The results reveal that the magnitude and even direction of short-term trends are heavily influenced by interdecadal variability. Some short-term trends revealed in previous studies are shown to be unrepresentative of long-term change. For example, previous studies have identified post-1960 river flow decreases in southern and eastern Europe: in parts of eastern Europe, these trends are resilient to study period, extending back to the 1930s; in southern France, longer records show evidence of positive trends which reverse from the 1960s. Recent (post-1960) positive trends in northern Europe are also not present in longer records, due to decadal variations influenced by the North Atlantic Oscillation. The results provide a long-term reference for comparison with published and future studies. The multi-temporal approach advocated here is recommended for use in future trend assessments, to help contextualise short-term trends. Future work should also attempt to explain the decadal-scale variations that drive short-term trends, and thus develop more sophisticated methods for trend detection that take account of interdecadal variability and its drivers.

scholarly journals Ideal climatic variables for the present-day geometry of the Gregoriev Glacier, Inner Tien Shan, Kyrgyzstan, derived from GPS data and energy-mass balance measurements

2011 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 855-883
Author(s):  
K. Fujita ◽  
N. Takeuchi ◽  
S. A. Nikitin ◽  
A. B. Surazakov ◽  
S. Okamoto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Meteorological Data ◽  
Vertical Surface ◽  
Tien Shan ◽  
Balance Model ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Differential Gps ◽  
Good Agreement

Abstract. We conducted 2 yr (2005–2007) of in situ meteorological and glaciological observations on the Gregoriev Glacier, a flat-top glacier within the Inner Tien Shan, Kyrgyzstan. Differential GPS surveys reveal a vertical surface deletion at the summit of the glacier. Based on snow density data and an energy-mass balance model, we estimate that the annual precipitation and summer mean temperature required to maintain the glacier in the modern state are 289 mm and −3.85 °C at the glacier summit (4600 m above sea level, a.s.l.), respectively. The good agreement between the long-term estimated and observed precipitation at a nearby station in the Tien Shan (292 mm at 3614 m a.s.l. for the period 1930–2002) suggests that the glacier dynamics have been regulated by the long-term average accumulation. The glacier mass-balance, reconstructed based on meteorological data from the Tien Shan station for the past 80 yr, explains the observed fluctuations in glacier extent, particularly the negative mass balance in the 1990s.

scholarly journals The influence of decadal-scale variability on trends in long European streamflow records

2013 ◽  
Vol 17 (7) ◽  
pp. 2717-2733 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Hannaford ◽  
G. Buys ◽  
K. Stahl ◽  
L. M. Tallaksen
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
River Flow ◽  
Interdecadal Variability ◽  
Trend Detection ◽  
Quality Data ◽  
Mean Flow ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Decadal Scale ◽  
Multi Temporal

Abstract. This study seeks to provide a long-term context for the growing number of trend analyses which have been applied to river flows in Europe. Most studies apply trend tests to fixed periods, in relatively short (generally 1960s–present) records. This study adopts an alternative "multi-temporal" approach, whereby trends are fitted to every possible combination of start and end years in a record. The method is applied to 132 catchments with long (1932–2004) hydrometric records from northern and central Europe, which were chosen as they are minimally anthropogenically influenced and have good quality data. The catchments are first clustered into five regions, which are broadly homogenous in terms of interdecadal variability of annual mean flow. The multi-temporal trend approach was then applied to regional time series of different hydrological indicators (annual, monthly and high and low flows). The results reveal that the magnitude and even direction of short-term trends are heavily influenced by interdecadal variability. Some short-term trends revealed in previous studies are shown to be unrepresentative of long-term change. For example, previous studies have identified post-1960 river flow decreases in southern and eastern Europe: in parts of eastern Europe, these trends are resilient to study period, extending back to the 1930s; in southern France, longer records show evidence of positive trends which reverse from the 1960s. Recent (post-1960) positive trends in northern Europe are also not present in longer records, due to decadal variations influenced by the North Atlantic Oscillation. The results provide a long-term reference for comparison with published and future studies. The multi-temporal approach advocated here is recommended for use in future trend assessments, to help contextualise short-term trends. Future work should also attempt to explain the decadal-scale variations that drive short-term trends, and thus develop more sophisticated methods for trend detection that take account of interdecadal variability and its drivers.

scholarly journals A doubling of glacier mass loss in the Karlik Range, easternmost Tien Shan, between the periods 1972–2000 and 2000–2015

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Zhujun Wan ◽  
Yetang Wang ◽  
Shugui Hou ◽  
Baojuan Huai ◽  
Qi Liu
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Mass Loss ◽  
Radar Data ◽  
Tien Shan ◽  
Topographic Maps ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Regional Warming ◽  
Early 21St Century ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
X Band

Abstract Despite a number of studies reporting glacier extent changes and their response to climate change over the eastern Tien Shan, glacier mass-balance changes over multiple decades are still not well reconstructed. Here, glacier mass budgets on the Karlik Range, easternmost Tien Shan during the time spans of 1972–2000 and 2000–2015 are quantified using digital elevation models reconstructed from topographic maps, SRTM X-band radar data and ASTER images. The results exhibit significant glacier mass loss in the Karlik Range for the two time spans, with a mean mass loss of −0.19 ± 0.08 m w.e. a−1 for the 1972–2000 period and −0.45 ± 0.17 m w.e. a−1 for the 2000–2015 period. The doubling of mass loss over the latter period suggests an acceleration of glacier mass loss in the early 21st century. The accelerated mass loss is associated with regional warming whereas the decline in annual precipitation is not significant.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document