Dramatic loss of glacier accumulation area on the Tibetan Plateau revealed by ice core tritium and mercury records

Kang, Shichang; Wang, Fei; Morgenstern, Uwe; Zhang, Y.; Grigholm, Bjorn; Kaspari, Susan; Schwikowski, Margit; Ren, Jiawen; Yao, Tandong; Qin, Dahe; Mayewski, Paul Andrew

doi:10.5194/tc-9-1213-2015

Cited by 92 publications

(54 citation statements)

References 39 publications

(73 reference statements)

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“…glacier NC01), with considerable shrinkage of the glacier margins near the summit. This phenomenon appears to be present in other small glaciers in this region of China (Tian and others, 2014b; Kang and others, 2015).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Changes in ice volume of the Ningchan No.1 Glacier, China, from 1972 to 2014, as derived from in situ measurements

et al. 2017

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ABSTRACT. Global climate change is causing widespread glacier retreat, with many small glaciers disappearing from the world's mountain ranges. We obtained the annual mass balance of a small glacier (the Ningchan No.1 Glacier) located on the northeastern Tibetan Plateau, from the years 2010 to 2015 using glaciological and geodetic methods. We also measured the glacier's thickness in 2014 using ground-penetrating radar. Employing topographical maps and ZY-3 images, we obtained Digital Elevation Models for 1972 and 2014. Our results showed that the mean annual mass balance from 2010 to 2015 was ∼−0.9 ± 0.5 m w.e. The mean equilibrium line altitude was ∼4680 m in the period 2010-15, which exceeds the maximum elevation of the glacier. The glacier has lost area and mass across its elevation range. The mean ice thickness was 24.0 ± 2.5 m in 2014. From 1972 to 2014, the glacier's area shrank from 0.77 ± 0.05 to 0.39 ± 0.04 km 2 , and the ice volume decreased by (14.96 ± 0.97) × 10 6 m 3 , equivalent to (12.72 ± 0.82) × 10 6 t w.e. over the same period.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Changes in ice volume of the Ningchan No.1 Glacier, China, from 1972 to 2014, as derived from in situ measurements

et al. 2017

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“…Some drillings have been performed in the Himalaya, but many sites should be exploited in the coming years. The glaciers are rapidly shrinking with an expected higher trend in the next years (Bolch and others, 2012;Kang and others, 2015). Consequently, potential sites have the highest drilling priority if compared with the other Asian regions.…”

Section: Discussion Of Potential Drilling Sitesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mapping the suitability for ice-core drilling of glaciers in the European Alps and the Asian High Mountains

et al. 2017

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ABSTRACT. Ice cores from mid-latitude mountain glaciers provide detailed information on past climate conditions and regional environmental changes, which is essential for placing current climate change into a longer term perspective. In this context, it is important to define guidelines and create dedicated maps to identify suitable areas for future ice-core drillings. In this study, the suitability for ice-core drilling (SICD) of a mountain glacier is defined as the possibility of extracting an ice core with preserved stratigraphy suitable for reconstructing past climate. Morphometric and climatic variables related to SICD are selected through literature review and characterization of previously drilled sites. A quantitative Weight of Evidence method is proposed to combine selected variables (i.e. slope, local relief, temperature and direct solar radiation) to map the potential drilling sites in mid-latitude mountain glaciers. The method was first developed in the European Alps and then applied to the Asian High Mountains. Model performances and limitations are discussed and first indications of new potential drilling sites in the Asian High Mountains are provided. Results presented here can facilitate the selection of future drilling sites especially on unexplored Asian mountain glaciers towards the understanding of climate and environmental changes.

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“…Two ice cores (from ∼5800 m a.s.l.) retrieved at Mount Nyainqêntanglha and Mount Geladaindong on the southern and central TP provided evidence that the two coring sites had not received net ice accumulation since at least the 1950s and 1980s, respectively (Kang and others, 2015). The problem of vanishing accumulation areas poses a threat to environmental information archived within the glacier ice layers (Zhang and others, 2015).…”

Section: Melting During Days With Variable Cloud Covermentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of clouds on surface melting of Laohugou glacier No. 12, western Qilian Mountains, China

et al. 2018

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ABSTRACT. We analyzed a 2-year time series of meteorological data (January 2011-December 2012) from three automatic weather stations on Laohugou glacier No. 12, western Qilian Mountains, China. Air temperature, humidity and incoming radiation were significantly correlated between the three sites, while wind speed and direction were not. In this work, we focus on the effects of clouds on other meteorological parameters and on glacier melt. On an average, ∼18% of top-of-atmosphere shortwave radiation was attenuated by the clear-sky atmosphere, and clouds attenuated a further 12%. Most of the time the monthly average increases in net longwave radiation caused by clouds were larger than decreases in net shortwave radiation but there was a tendency to lose energy during the daytime when melting was most intense. Air temperature and wind speed related to turbulent heat flux were found to suppress glacier melt during cloudy periods, while increased water vapor pressure during cloudy days could enhance glacier melt by reducing energy loss by latent heat. From these results, we have increased the physical understanding of the significance of cloud effects on continental glaciers.

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Dramatic loss of glacier accumulation area on the Tibetan Plateau revealed by ice core tritium and mercury records

Cited by 92 publications

References 39 publications

Changes in ice volume of the Ningchan No.1 Glacier, China, from 1972 to 2014, as derived from in situ measurements

Changes in ice volume of the Ningchan No.1 Glacier, China, from 1972 to 2014, as derived from in situ measurements

Mapping the suitability for ice-core drilling of glaciers in the European Alps and the Asian High Mountains

Effects of clouds on surface melting of Laohugou glacier No. 12, western Qilian Mountains, China

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