Glacier Changes in the Chhombo Chhu Watershed of Tista basin between 1975 and 2018, Sikkim Himalaya, India

Abstract. Glaciers of the Tista basin represent an important water resource for mountain communities and large population downstream. The present article attempts to assess the observable changes in the glacier area in the Chhombo Chhu Watershed (CCW) of Tista basin, Sikkim Himalaya. The CCW consists of 74 glaciers (>0.02 km2) with a mean glacier size of 0.61 km2. The change of such glacier outlines obtained from the declassified hexagon KH-9 (1975), Landsat 5 TM (1989), Landsat 7 ETM+ (2000), Landsat 5 TM (2010), and Sentinel 2A (2018). The total glacier area in 1975 was 62.6 ±0.7 km2; by 2018, the area had decreased to 44.8 ±1.5 km2, an area loss of 17.9 ± 1.7 km2 (0.42 ± 0.04 km2 a−1). Debris free glaciers exhibit more area loss by 11.8 ± 1.2 km2 (0.27 ± 0.03 km2 a−1) followed by partially debris-covered (5.0 ± 0.4 km2 or 0.12 ± 0.01 km2 a−1) and maximum debris-covered (1.0 ± 0.1 km2 or −0.02 ± 0.002 km2 a−1) glaciers. The quantum of glacier area loss in the CCW of Sikkim Himalaya took its pace during 2000–2010 (0.62 ± 0.5 km2 a−1) and 2010–2018 (0.77 ± 0.6 km2 a−1) timeframes. Field investigations of selected glaciers and climatic records also support the trend in glacier recession in the CCW due to a significant increase in temperature trend and more or less static precipitation since 1995. Glacier retreat rates in the CCW were almost similar to the Changme Khangpu basin and other selected glaciers in Sikkim Himalaya. This glacier inventory and area change analysis will provide valuable information to the glaciological and hydrological community to model and plan the water resources in the Sikkim state of Eastern Himalaya. The dataset is now available from the Zenodo web portal: http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4457183 (Chowdhury et al., 2021).

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Glacier changes in the Chhombo Chhu Watershed of the Tista basin between 1975 and 2018, the Sikkim Himalaya, India

Earth System Science Data ◽

10.5194/essd-13-2923-2021 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (6) ◽

pp. 2923-2944

Author(s):

Arindam Chowdhury ◽

Milap Chand Sharma ◽

Sunil Kumar De ◽

Manasi Debnath

Keyword(s):

Large Population ◽

Water Source ◽

Thematic Mapper ◽

Glacier Area ◽

Sikkim Himalaya ◽

Mountain Communities ◽

Area Loss ◽

Field Investigations ◽

Landsat 7 ◽

Sentinel 2A

Abstract. Glaciers of the Tista basin represent an important water source for mountain communities and a large population downstream. The article presents observable changes in the Chhombo Chhu Watershed (CCW) glacier area of the Tista basin, the Sikkim Himalaya. The CCW contains 74 glaciers (> 0.02 km2) with a mean glacier size of 0.61 km2. We determined changes in glaciers from the declassified Hexagon Keyhole-9 (KH-9) (1975), Landsat 5 Thematic Mapper (TM) (1989), Landsat 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) (2000), Landsat 5 TM (2010), and Sentinel-2A (2018) images. The total glacier area in 1975 was 62.6 ± 0.7 km2; and by 2018, the area had decreased to 44.8 ± 1.5 km2, an area loss of 17.9 ± 1.7 km2 (0.42 ± 0.04 km2 a−1). Clean glaciers exhibited more area loss of 11.8 ± 1.2 km2 (0.27 ± 0.03 km2 a−1) than partially debris-covered and maximally debris-covered glaciers. The area loss is 5.0 ± 0.4 km2 (0.12 ± 0.01 km2 a−1) for partially covered glaciers and 1.0 ± 0.1 km2 (−0.02 ± 0.002 km2 a−1) for maximally covered glaciers. The glacier area loss in the CCW of the Sikkim Himalaya is 0.62 ± 0.5 km2 a−1 during 2000–2010, and it is 0.77 ± 0.6 km2 a−1 during 2010–2018. Field investigations of selected glaciers and climatic records also support the glacier recession in the CCW due to a significant increase in temperature (0.25 ∘C a−1) and more or less static precipitation since 1995. The dataset is now available from the Zenodo web portal: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4457183 (Chowdhury et al., 2021).

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Spatial patterns in glacier characteristics and area changes from 1962 to 2006 in the Kanchenjunga–Sikkim area, eastern Himalaya

The Cryosphere ◽

10.5194/tc-9-505-2015 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 9 (2) ◽

pp. 505-523 ◽

Cited By ~ 55

Author(s):

A. E. Racoviteanu ◽

Y. Arnaud ◽

M. W. Williams ◽

W. F. Manley

Keyword(s):

Spatial Patterns ◽

Thermal Emission ◽

Eastern Himalaya ◽

Slope Aspect ◽

Glacier Area ◽

Glacier Surface ◽

Area Loss ◽

Debris Cover ◽

Landsat 7 ◽

The Himalaya

Abstract. This study investigates spatial patterns in glacier characteristics and area changes at decadal scales in the eastern Himalaya – Nepal (Arun and Tamor basins), India (Teesta basin in Sikkim) and parts of China and Bhutan – based on various satellite imagery: Corona KH4 imagery, Landsat 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) and Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission Radiometer (ASTER), QuickBird (QB) and WorldView-2 (WV2). We compare and contrast glacier surface area changes over the period of 1962–2000/2006 and their dependency on glacier topography (elevation, slope, aspect, percent debris cover) and climate (solar radiation, precipitation) on the eastern side of the topographic barrier (Sikkim) versus the western side (Nepal). Glacier mapping from 2000 Landsat ASTER yielded 1463 ± 88 km2 total glacierized area, of which 569 ± 34 km2 was located in Sikkim and 488 ± 29 km2 in eastern Nepal. Supraglacial debris covered 11% of the total glacierized area, and supraglacial lakes covered about 5.8% of the debris-covered glacier area alone. Glacier area loss (1962 to 2000) was 0.50 ± 0.2% yr−1, with little difference between Nepal (0.53 ± 0.2% yr−1) and Sikkim (0.44 ± 0.2% yr−1. Glacier area change was controlled mostly by glacier area, elevation, altitudinal range and, to a smaller extent, slope and aspect. In the Kanchenjunga–Sikkim area, we estimated a glacier area loss of 0.23 ± 0.08% yr−1 from 1962 to 2006 based on high-resolution imagery. On a glacier-by-glacier basis, clean glaciers exhibit more area loss on average from 1962 to 2006 (34%) compared to debris-covered glaciers (22%). Glaciers in this region of the Himalaya are shrinking at similar rates to those reported for the last decades in other parts of the Himalaya, but individual glacier rates of change vary across the study area with respect to local topography, percent debris cover or glacier elevations.

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Glacier changes between 1971 and 2016 in the Jankar Chhu Watershed, Lahaul Himalaya, India

Journal of Glaciology ◽

10.1017/jog.2018.77 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 65 (249) ◽

pp. 13-28 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

SURESH DAS ◽

MILAP CHAND SHARMA

Keyword(s):

Cloud Cover ◽

Thematic Mapper ◽

Landsat Thematic Mapper ◽

Field Observations ◽

Glacier Area ◽

Ablation Zone ◽

Change Analysis ◽

Recession Rate ◽

Glacier Changes ◽

Sentinel 2A

ABSTRACTGlacier changes in the Jankar Chhu Watershed (JCW) of Chandrabhaga (Chenab) basin, Lahaul Himalaya were worked out based on Corona and Sentinel 2A images between 1971 and 2016. The JCW consists of 153 glaciers (>0.02 km2) with a total area of 185.6 ± 3.8 km2that include 82 glaciers with debris-covered ablation zone, comprising 10.9% of the total glacierized area as in 2016. Change analysis based on Corona (1971), Landsat (2000) and Sentinel 2A (2016) was restricted to 127 glaciers owing to the presence of cloud cover on 26 glaciers in 1971. A subset of glaciers was also mapped using Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM; 1989) image. The total glacier area decreased by 14.7 ± 4.3 km2(0.3 ± 0.1 km2a−¹). The number of glaciers in the JCW increased by four between 1971 and 2016 due to fragmentation. More recently (2000–16), recession rate has increased. Clean-ice area decreased by 21.8 ± 3.8 km2(0.5 ± 0.1 km2a−¹) while debris-covered ice increased by 7.2 ± 0.4 km2(0.2 ± 0.01 km2a−¹). Field observations of select glaciers also support derived recession trend in the JCW. Retreat rates in the JCW have been observed to be much lower than previously reported.

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Spatial patterns in glacier area and elevation changes from 1962 to 2006 in the monsoon-influenced eastern Himalaya

The Cryosphere Discussions ◽

10.5194/tcd-8-3949-2014 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 8 (4) ◽

pp. 3949-3998 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

A. Racoviteanu ◽

Y. Arnaud ◽

M. Williams ◽

W. F. Manley

Keyword(s):

Spatial Patterns ◽

Thermal Emission ◽

Spatial Scales ◽

Remote Sensing Data ◽

Eastern Himalaya ◽

Slope Aspect ◽

Glacier Area ◽

Covered Area ◽

Landsat 7 ◽

Elevation Changes

Abstract. This study presents spatial patterns in glacier area and elevation changes in the monsoon-influenced part of the Himalaya (eastern Nepal and Sikkim) at multiple spatial scales. We combined Corona KH4 and topographic data with more recent remote-sensing data from Landsat 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+), the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission Radiometer (ASTER), QuickBird (QB) and WorldView-2 (WV2) sensors. We present: (1) spatial patterns of glacier parameters based on a new "reference" geospatial Landsat/ASTER glacier inventory from ~ 2000; (2) changes in glacier area (1962–2006) and their dependence on topographic variables (elevation, slope, aspect, percent debris cover) as well as climate variables (solar radiation and precipitation), extracted on a glacier-by-glacier basis and (3) changes in glacier elevations for debris-covered tongues and their relationship to surface temperature extracted from ASTER data. Glacier mapping from 2000 Landsat/ASTER yielded 1463 km2 ± 88 km2 total glacierized area in Nepal (Tamor basin) and Sikkim (Zemu basin), parts of Bhutan and China, of which we estimated 569 km2 ± 34 km2 to be located in Sikkim. Supraglacial debris covered 11% of the total glacierized area, and supraglacial lakes covered about 5.8% of the debris-covered area. Based on analysis of high-resolution imagery, we estimated an area loss of −0.24% ± 0.08% yr−1 from the 1960's to the 2010's, with a higher rate of retreat in the last decade (−0.43% yr−1 ± 0.9 % from 2000 to 2006) compared to the previous decades (−0.20% yr−1 ± 0.16% from 1962 to 2000). Retreat rates of clean glaciers were −0.7% yr−1, almost double than those of debris-covered glaciers (−0.3% yr−1). Debris-covered tongues experienced an average lowering of −30.8 m ± 39 m from 1960's to 2000's (−0.8 m ± 0.9 m yr−1), with enhanced thinning rates in the upper part of the debris covered area, and overall thickening at the glacier termini.

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Detection of changes in coral reef communities using Landsat-5 TM and Landsat-7 ETM+ data

Canadian Journal of Remote Sensing ◽

10.5589/m02-095 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 29 (2) ◽

pp. 201-209 ◽

Cited By ~ 25

Author(s):

David Palandro ◽

Serge Andréfouët ◽

Frank E Muller-Karger ◽

Phillip Dustan ◽

Chuanmin Hu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Coral Reef ◽

Reef Communities ◽

Landsat 7 ◽

Landsat 5 Tm ◽

Coral Reef Communities

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Enhancing Adaptive Capacity through Education: A Case Study of Rural Mountain Communities, Sikkim, Eastern Himalaya India

Climate Change Governance and Adaptation ◽

10.1201/9781315166704-7 ◽

2018 ◽

pp. 109-135

Author(s):

Bhupen Mili

Keyword(s):

Adaptive Capacity ◽

Eastern Himalaya ◽

Mountain Communities

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Supraglacial debris cover assessment in the Caucasus Mountains, 1986-2000-2014

10.5194/essd-2017-96 ◽

2017 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Levan G. Tielidze ◽

Roger D. Wheate ◽

Stanislav S. Kutuzov ◽

Kate Doyle ◽

Ivan I. Lavrentiev

Keyword(s):

Morphological Type ◽

Ice Age ◽

Landsat 8 ◽

Glacier Area ◽

Greater Caucasus ◽

Rock Structure ◽

Debris Cover ◽

Landsat 7 ◽

Caucasus Mountains ◽

Elevation Model

Abstract. Surpaglacial debris cover plays an increasingly important role impacting on glacier ablation, while there have been limited recent studies for the assessment of debris covered glaciers in the Greater Caucasus mountains. We selected 559 glaciers according to the sections and macroslopes in the Greater Caucasus main watershed range and the Elbrus massif to assess supraglacial debris cover (SDC) for the years 1986, 2000 and 2014. Landsat (Landsat 5 TM, Landsat 7 ETM+, Landsat 8 OLI) and SPOT satellite imagery were analysed to generate glacier outlines using manual and semi-automated methods, along with slope information from a Digital Elevation Model. The study shows there is greater SDC area on the northern than the southern macroslope, and more in the eastern section than the western and central. In 1986-2000-2014, the SDC area increased from 6.4 %-8.2 %-19.4 % on the northern macroslope (apart from the eastern Greater Caucasus section), while on the southern macroslope, SDC increased from 4.0 %-4.9 %-9.2 %. Overall, debris covered glacier numbers increased from 122-143-172 (1986-2000-2014) for 559 selected glaciers. Despite the total glacier area decrease, the SDC glacier area and numbers increased as a function of slope inclination, aspect, glacier morphological type, Little Ice Age (LIA) moraines, rock structure and elevation. The datasets are available for public download at https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.880147.

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