Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-qsmjn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-18T07:51:24.546Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Temperature reconstruction from glacier length fluctuations in the Himalaya

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 March 2016

Argha Banerjee  and
Mohd Farooq Azam
Argha Banerjee*
Affiliation:
Earth and Climate Science, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Pune, Pashan, Pune, India
Mohd Farooq Azam
Affiliation:
IRD/UJF - Grenoble I/CNRS/G-INP, LGGE UMR 5183, LTHE UMR 5564, Grenoble, France
*
Correspondence: Argha Banerjee <argha@iiserpune.ac.in>
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

A temperature reconstruction in the glacierized Himalaya over the past centuries using glacial length fluctuation records is challenging due to the abundance of debris-covered glaciers and a scarcity of glacial length fluctuation data. Using idealized flowline model simulations, we show that supraglacial debris cover significantly alters the length fluctuations only when the debris cover is very thick. An expanded database of length fluctuation records for 43 glaciers in the Himalaya and Karakoram is compiled and a standard linear inversion procedure is applied to a subset of 34 glaciers in this database. The reconstructed temperature anomaly during 1860-2010 indicates a continued warming of the region with a total temperature change of ~1.6 K. A close resemblance of the regional temperature anomaly to global trends is seen.

Keywords

climate changedebris-covered glaciersglacier fluctuationsglacier modelling
Type
Paper
Information
Annals of Glaciology , Volume 57 , Issue 71 , March 2016 , pp. 189 - 198
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s) 2016

References

Adhikari, S and Huybrechts, P (2009) Numerical modelling of historical front variations and the 21st century evolution of glacier AX010, Nepal Himalaya. Ann. Glaciol., 50(52), 27–34 (doi: 10.3189/172756409789624346)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Adhikari, S, Marshall, SJ and Huybrechts, P (2011) On characteristic timescales of glacier AX010 in the Nepalese Himalaya. Bull. Glaciol. Res., 29, 19–29 (doi: 10.5331/bgr.29.19)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ageta, Y and Higuchi, K (1984) Estimation of mass balance components of a summer-accumulation type glacier in the Nepal Himalaya. Geogr. Ann. A, 249–255 (doi: 10.2307/520698)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Auden, JB (1937) Snout of the Cangotri Glacier, Tehri Carhwal. Rec. Glaciol. Surv. India, 72, 135–40Google Scholar
Azam, MF and 10 others (2012) From balance to imbalance: a shift in the dynamic behaviour of Chhota Shigri Glacier (western Himalaya, India). J. Glaciol., 58, 315–324 (doi: 10.3189/2012JoG11J123)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Azam, MF and 10 others (2015) Meteorological conditions, seasonal and annual mass balances of Chhota Shigri Glacier, western Himalaya, India. Ann. Glaciol., 57(71) (see paper in this issue)Google Scholar
Bajracharya, SR and Mool, P (2009) Glaciers, glacial lakes and glacial lake outburst floods in the Mount Everest region, Nepal. Ann. Glaciol., 50(53), 81–86 (doi: 10.3189/172756410790595895)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bali, R, Agarwal, KK, Ali, SN and Srivastava, P (2010) Is the recessional pattern of Himalayan glaciers suggestive of anthropogenically induced global warming? Arab. J. Geosci., 4, 1087–1093 (doi: 10.1007/s12517-010-0155-9)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bali, R, Ali, SN, Agarwal, KK, Rastogi, SK, Krishna, K and Srivastava, P (2013) Chronology of late Quaternary glaciation in the Pindar valley, Alaknanda Basin, Central Himalaya (India). J. Asian Earth Sci., 66, 224–233 (doi: 10.101 6/j.jseaes.2O13.01.011)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Banerjee, A and Shankar, R (2013) On the response of Himalayan glaciers to climate change. J. Glaciol., 59(215), 480–490 (doi: 10.3189/2013JoG12J130)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baneijee, A and Shankar, R (2014) Estimating the avalanche contribution to the mass balance of debris covered glaciers. Cryosphere Discuss., 8(1), 641–657 (doi: 10.51 94/tcd-8-641-2014)Google Scholar
Basnett, S, Kulkarni, AV, and Bolch, T (2013) The influence of debris cover and glacial lakes on the recession of glaciers in Sikkim Himalaya, India. J. Glaciol., 59(218), 1035–1046 (doi: 10.3189/2013JoC12J184)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Benn, DI, Kirkbride, MP, Owen, LA and Brazier, V (2003) Glaciated valley landsystems. In Evans, DIA ed. Glacial landsystems. Arnold, London, 372–406 Google Scholar
Berthier, E, Arnaud, Y, Kumar, R, Ahmad, S, Wagnon, P and Chevallier, P (2007) Remote sensing estimates of glacier mass balances in the Himachal Pradesh (western Himalaya, India). Remote Sens. Environ., 108, 327–338 (doi: 10.1016/j.rse.2006.11.017)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bhambri, R, Bolch, T, Chaujar, RK and Kulshreshtha, SC (2011) Glacier changes in the Garhwal Himalayas, India 1968-2006 based on remote sensing. J. Glaciol., 57(203), 543–556 (doi: 10.31 89/002214311796905604)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bhambri, R, Bolch, T, Kawishwar, P, Dobhal, DP, Srivastava, D and Pratap, B (2013) Heterogeneity in glacier response in the upper Shyok Valley, northeast Karakoram. Cryosphere, 7, 1385–1398 (doi: 10.51 94/tc-7-1385-2013)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bhutiyani, MR, Kale, VS and Pawar, NJ (2010) Climate change and the precipitation variations in the northwestern Himalaya: 1866-2006. Int. J. Climatol, 30(4), 535–548 (doi: 10.1002/joc.1920)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bolch, T, Pieczonka, T and Benn, DI (2011) Multi-decadal mass loss of glaciers in the Everest area (Nepal Himalaya) derived from stereo imagery. Cryosphere, 5, 349–358, (doi: 10.5194/tc-5-349-2011)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bolch, T and 11 others (2012) The state and fate of Himalayan glaciers. Science, 336, 310–314 (doi: 10.1126/science.1215828)CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bookhagen, B and Burbank, DW (2010) Toward a complete Himalayan hydrological budget: spatiotemporal distribution of snowmelt and rainfall and their impact on river discharge. J. Geophys. Res., 115, F03019 (doi: 10.1029/2009JF001426)Google Scholar
Cotter, GD and Brown, JC (1907) Notes on certain glaciers in Kumaon. Rec. Glaciol. Surv. India, 35(4), 148–152 Google Scholar
Dimri, AP and Dash, SK (2012) Wintertime climatic trends in the western Himalayas. Climatic Change, 111(3-4), 775–800 (doi: 10.1007/s10584-011-0201-y)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dobhal, DP and Mehta, M (2010) Surface morphology, elevation changes and terminus retreat of Dokriani Glacier, Garhwal Himalaya: implication for climate change. Himalayan Geol., 31(1), 71–78 Google Scholar
Dobhal, DP, Gergan, JG and Thayyen, RJ (2008) Mass balance studies of the Dokriani Glacier from 1992 to 2000, Garhwal Himalaya, India. Bull. Glaciol. Res., 25, 9–17 Google Scholar
Dobhal, DP, Mehta, M and Srivastava, D (2013) Influence of debris cover on terminus retreat and mass changes of Chorabari Glacier, Garhwal region, central Himalaya, India. J. Glaciol., 59(217), 961–971 (doi: 10.31 89/201 3JoG12J1 80)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fujita, K (2008) Effect of precipitation seasonality on climatic sensitivity of glacier mass balance. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett, 276(1), 14–19 (doi: 10.101 6/j.epsl.2008.08.028)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fujita, K, Nakazawa, F and Rana, B (2001a) Glaciological observations on Rikha Samba Glacier in Hidden Valley, Nepal Himalayas, 1998 and 1999. Bull. Glaciol. Res., 18(2901), 31–35 Google Scholar
Fujita, K, Kadota, T, Rana, B, Kayastha, RB and Ageta, Y (2001b) Shrinkage of Glacier AX010 in Shorong region, Nepal Himalayas in the 1990s. Bull. Glaciol. Res., 18, 51–54 Google Scholar
Gantayat, P, Kulkarni, AV and Srinivasan, J (2014) Estimation of ice thickness using surface velocities and slope: case study at Gangotri Glacier, India. J. Glaciol., 60(220), 277 (doi: 10.3189/2014JoG13J078)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gardelle, J, Berthier, E and Arnaud, Y (2012) Slight mass gain of Karakoram glaciers in the early 21 st century. Nature Geosci., 5, 322–325 (doi: 10.1038/ngeo1450)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gardelle, J, Berthier, E, Arnaud, Y and Kääb, A (2013) Region-wide glacier mass balances over the Pamir-Karakoram-Himalaya during 1999-2011. Cryosphere, 7, 1263–1286 (doi: 10.5194/tc-7-1263-2013)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Geological Survey of India (GSI) (1999) Annual general report, Part 8, 133 Google Scholar
GSI (2013) Inter-annual documentation of recessional pattern of glaciers of Ghagra Basin, Uttrakhand Himalaya on expedition basis. GL/NR/HQ/2010/038, Field season: 2010-12 and 2012-13, mission-IV, Northern region, LucknowGoogle Scholar
Godwin-Austen, HH (1864) On the glaciers of the Mustagh Range. J. R. Ceogr. Soc, 34, 19–56 Google Scholar
Govindha Raj, KB (2011) Recession and reconstruction of Milam glacier, Kumaon Himalaya, observed with satellite imagery. Curr. Sci., 100(9), 1420–1425 Google Scholar
Govindha Raj, KB, Remya, SN and Kumar, KV (2013) Remote sensing-based hazard assessment of glacial lakes in Sikkim Himalaya. Curr. Sci., 104(3), 359–364 Google Scholar
Gusain, HS, Mishra, VD and Bhutiyani, MR (2014) Winter temperature and snowfall trends in the cryospheric region of north-west Himalaya. Mausam, 65(3), 425–432 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hewitt, K (2011) Glacier change, concentration, and elevation effects in the Karakoram Himalaya, upper Indus basin. Mt. Res. Dev., 31, 188–200 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hou, S and 9 others (2007) Summer temperature trend over the past two millennia using air content in Himalayan ice. Climate Past, 3, 1–7 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Immerzeel, W (2008) Historical trends and future predictions of climate variability in the Brahmaputra basin. Int. J. Climatol., 28, 243–254 (doi: 10.1002/joc.1528)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jangpangi, BS (1958) Study of some of the central Himalayan glaciers, J. Sci. Ind. Res., 17A(12)Google Scholar
Jangpangi, BS and Vohra, CP (1959) The retreat of the Shunkalpa (Ralam) Glacier in central Himalaya, Pittorgarh district, Uttar Pradesh, India. Geol. Surv. India, 234–238 Google Scholar
Kääb, A, Berthier, E, Nuth, C, Gardelle, J and Arnaud, Y (2012) Contrasting patterns of early 21st century glacier mass change in the Himalaya. Nature, 488(7412), 495–498 (doi: 10.1038/nature11324)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kargel, JS, Cogley, JG, Leonard, GJ, Haritashya, U and Byers, A (2011) Himalayan glaciers: the big picture is a montage. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA (PNAS), 108(36), 14709–14710 (doi: 10.1073/pnas.1111663108)CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Klok, E and Oerlemans, J (2003) Deriving historical equilibrium-line altitudes from a glacier length record by linear inverse modelling. Holocene, 13(3), 343–351 (doi: 10.11 91/0959683603hl627rp)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kulkarni, AV, Rathore, BP, Mahajan, S and Mathur, P (2005) Alarming retreat of Parbati glacier, Beas basin, Himachal Pradesh. Curr. Sci., 88, 1844–1849 Google Scholar
Leclercq, PW and Oerlemans, J (2012) Global and hemispheric temperature reconstruction from glacier length fluctuations. Climate Dyn., 38(5-6), 1065–1079 (doi: 10.1007/s00382-011-1145-7)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Leysinger, VGJ, Siegert, MJ and Payne, AJ (2004) Reconstructing ice-sheet accumulation rates at ridge B, East Antarctica. Ann. Glaciol, 39, 326–330 (doi: 10.3189/172756404781814519)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Longstaff, TG (1910) Dr. Longstaff’s Himalayan expedition, 1909. Geogr. J., 35, 64–65 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lüthi, MP (2014) Little Ice Age climate reconstruction from ensemble reanalysis of Alpine glacier fluctuations. Cryosphere, 8(2), 639–650 (doi: 10.5194/tc-8-639-2014)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lüthi, MP, Bauder, A and Funk, M (2010) Volume change reconstruction of Swiss glaciers from length change data. J. Geophys. Res., 115, F04022 (doi: 10.1029/2010JF001 695)Google Scholar
Mayewski, PA and Jeschke, PA (1979) Himalayan and Trans-Himalayan glacier fluctuations since AD 1812. Arct. Alp. Res., 11(3), 267–287 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mehta, M, Dobhal, DP and Bisht, MPS (2011) Change of Tipra glacier in the Garhwal Himalaya, India, between 1962 and 2008. Progr. Phys. Ceogr., 30, 1–18 (doi: 10.1177/0309133311411760)Google Scholar
Morice, CP, Kennedy, JJ, Rayner, NA and Jones, PD (2012) Quantifying uncertainties in global and regional temperature change using an ensemble of observational estimates: the HadCRUT4 dataset. J. Geophys. Res., 117, D08101 (doi: 10.1029/2011JD017187)Google Scholar
Mukhtar, MA and Prakash, O (2013) Glacio-geomorphological studies in the pro-glacial region of Gepang Gath Glacier, Lahaul and Spiti district, Himachal Pradesh on expedition basis 2012-13. Geological Survey of India, Chandigarh Google Scholar
Nainwal, HC, Negi, BDS, Chaudhary, M, Sajwan, KS and Gaurav, A (2008) Temporal changes in rate of recession: evidence from Satopanth and Bhagirath Kharak glaciers, Uttarakhand, using Total Station Survey. Curr. Sci., 94(5), 653–660 Google Scholar
Oerlemans, J (2001) Glaciers and climate change. AA Balkema Publishers, Rotterdam Google Scholar
Oerlemans, J (2005). Extracting a climate signal from 169 glacier records. Science, 308(5722), 675–677 (doi: 10.1126/science.1107046)CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Oerlemans, J (2010) The microclimate of valley glaciers. Igitur, Utrecht University, Utrecht Google Scholar
Pandey, P and Venkatraman, G (2013) Changes in the glaciers of Chandra-Bhaga basin, Himachal Himalaya, India, between 1980 and 2010 measured using remote sensing. Int. J. Remote Sens., 34(15), 5584–5597 (doi: 10.1109/ICARSS.2011.6049898)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pratap, B, Dobhal, DP, Mehta, M and Bhambri, R (2015) Influence of debris cover and altitude on glacier surface melting: a case study on Dokriani Glacier, central Himalaya, India. Ann. Glaciol., 56(70), 9–16 (doi: 10.31 89/201 5AoG70A971)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Purdon, W (1861) On the trigonometrical survey and physical configuration of the Valley of Kashmir. J. R. Geogr. Soc. London, 31, 14–30 Google Scholar
Qin, D and 6 others (2002) Preliminary results from the chemical records of an 80.4 m ice core recovered from the East Rongbuk Glacier, Qomolangma (Mount Everest), Himalaya. Ann. Glaciol., 35, 278–284 Google Scholar
Racoviteanu, A, Arnaud, Y, Williams, M and Manley, WF (2014) Spatial patterns in glacier area and elevation changes from 1962 to 2006 in the monsoon-influenced eastern Himalaya. Cryo-sphere Discuss., 8, 3949–3998 (doi: 10.5194/tcd-8-3949-2014)Google Scholar
Raina, VK (2009) Himalayan glaciers: a state-of-art review of glacial studies, glacial retreat and climate change. (MoEF Discussion Paper) Ministry of Environmentand Forests, Government of India/G.B. Pant Institute of Himalayan Environmentand Development, New Delhi/Kosi-Katarmal, Almora http://go.nature.com/pLgJ6D Google Scholar
Ren, JW, Jing, PF, Pu, JC and Qin, X (2006) Glacier variations and climate change in the central Himalaya over the past few decades. Ann. Glaciol., 43, 218–222 (doi: 10.3189/172756406781812230)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Scherler, D, Bookhagen, B and Strecker, MR (2011) Hillslope-glacier coupling: the interplay of topography and glacial dynamics in High Asia. J. Geophys. Res., 116, F02019 (doi: 10.1029/2010JF001751)Google Scholar
Schmidt, S and Nüsser, M (2009) Fluctuations of Raikot Glacier during the past 70 years: a case study from the Nanga Parbat massif, northern Pakistan. J. Glaciol., 55(194), 949–959 (doi: 10.3189/002214309790794878)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shrestha, AB, Wake, CP, Mayewski, PA, and Dibb, JE (1999) Maximum temperature trends in the Himalaya and its vicinity: an analysis based on temperature records from Nepal for the period 1971-94. J. Climate, 12(9), 2775–2786 (doi: 10.1175/1520-0442(1999)012<2775:MTTITH>2.0.CO;2)2.0.CO;2>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shrestha, AB, Wake, CP, Dibb, JE and Mayewski, PA (2000) Precipitation fluctuations in the Nepal Himalaya and its vicinity and relationship with some large scale climatological parameters. Int. j. Climatol., 20(3), 317–327 3.0.CO;2-G>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shrestha, ML and Shrestha, AB (2004) Recent trends and potential climate change impacts on glacier retreat/glacier lakes in Nepal and potential adaptation measures. Paper presented at the OECD Global Forum on Sustainable Development: Development and Climate Change; ENV/EPOC/GF/SD/RD (2004)6/Final, OECD, ParisGoogle Scholar
Steiner, D and 6 others (2008) Sensitivity of European glaciers to precipitation and temperature - two case studies. Climate Change, 90, 413–441 (doi: 10.1007/s10584-008-9393-1)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Survey of India (2005) National map policy http://www.surveyofindia.gov.in/tenders/nationalmappolicy/nationalmappolicy.pdf Google Scholar
Tewari, AP (1966) Recent changes in the position of the snout of the Pindari Glacier (Kumaon Himalaya), Almora District, Uttar Pradesh, India. Geological Survey of India, Chandigarh Google Scholar
Tian, L and 7 others (2003) Oxygen-18 concentrations in recent precipitation and ice cores on the Tibetan Plateau. J. Geophys. Res., 108(D9), 4293 (doi: 10.1029/2002JD002173)Google Scholar
Vincent, C and 10 others (2013). Balanced conditions or slight mass gain of glaciers in the Lahaul and Spiti region (northern India, Himalaya) during the nineties preceded recent mass loss. Cryosphere, 7, 569–582 (doi: 10.5194/tc-7-569-2013)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wagnon, P and 10 others (2007) Four years of mass balance on Chhota Shigri Glacier, Himachal Pradesh, India, a new benchmark glacier in the western Himalaya. J. Glaciol., 53, 603–611 (doi: 10.3189/002214307784409306)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wagnon, P and 11 others (2013) Seasonal and annual mass balances of Mera and Pokalde glaciers (Nepal Himalaya) since 2007. Cryosphere, 7, 1769–1786 (doi: 10.5194/tc-7-1769-2013)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
WWF (2009) Witnessing change: glaciers in the Indian Himalayas. WWF-India, New Delhi Google Scholar