Glacial Lakes of Mongolia
The over 2200 lakes of Mongolia are generally poorly studied, particularly the glacial lakes. This overview study presents a classification of the glacial lakes based on tectonic-geological and geomorphological dynamics. Selected representative lakes are described using results from fieldwork and sa...
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MDPI AG
2024-01-01
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| Series: | Geographies |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-7086/4/1/2 |
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| author | Michael Walther Ulrich Kamp Nyam-Osor Nandintsetseg Avirmed Dashtseren Khurelbaatar Temujin |
| author_facet | Michael Walther Ulrich Kamp Nyam-Osor Nandintsetseg Avirmed Dashtseren Khurelbaatar Temujin |
| author_sort | Michael Walther |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The over 2200 lakes of Mongolia are generally poorly studied, particularly the glacial lakes. This overview study presents a classification of the glacial lakes based on tectonic-geological and geomorphological dynamics. Selected representative lakes are described using results from fieldwork and satellite image analysis, including bathymetry, paleoshorelines, and recent lake-level fluctuations between 1987 and 2020. Generally, lake levels dropped from the early Holocene until recently, with the onset of the climate change-driven glacier recession that has resulted in lake-level rises and area expansion in almost all moraine-dammed, tongue-basin, and ice-contact lakes. In contrast, endorheic lakes have mainly been shrinking for the past forty years because of an increase in air temperature and evaporation rates and the effects of an intensifying water use within the catchment for irrigation, mining, and hydroelectric energy production in the form of dams. The creation of a lake monitoring system based on an in-depth inventory is recommended. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T18:14:41Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-64a7f462e6964b1c8cd8beb88c3ff071 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2673-7086 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T18:14:41Z |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Geographies |
| spelling | doaj.art-64a7f462e6964b1c8cd8beb88c3ff0712024-03-27T13:43:18ZengMDPI AGGeographies2673-70862024-01-0141213910.3390/geographies4010002Glacial Lakes of MongoliaMichael Walther0Ulrich Kamp1Nyam-Osor Nandintsetseg2Avirmed Dashtseren3Khurelbaatar Temujin4UNESCO Chair of Environmental Sciences in Eastern Central Asia, Mongolian Academy of Sciences, P.O. Box 361, Ulaanbaatar 14192, MongoliaEarth and Environmental Sciences Discipline, Department of Natural Sciences, University of Michigan-Dearborn, Dearborn, MI 48128, USAInstitute of Geography and Geoecology, Mongolian Academy of Sciences, P.O. Box 361, Ulaanbaatar 14192, MongoliaInstitute of Geography and Geoecology, Mongolian Academy of Sciences, P.O. Box 361, Ulaanbaatar 14192, MongoliaInstitute of Geography and Geoecology, Mongolian Academy of Sciences, P.O. Box 361, Ulaanbaatar 14192, MongoliaThe over 2200 lakes of Mongolia are generally poorly studied, particularly the glacial lakes. This overview study presents a classification of the glacial lakes based on tectonic-geological and geomorphological dynamics. Selected representative lakes are described using results from fieldwork and satellite image analysis, including bathymetry, paleoshorelines, and recent lake-level fluctuations between 1987 and 2020. Generally, lake levels dropped from the early Holocene until recently, with the onset of the climate change-driven glacier recession that has resulted in lake-level rises and area expansion in almost all moraine-dammed, tongue-basin, and ice-contact lakes. In contrast, endorheic lakes have mainly been shrinking for the past forty years because of an increase in air temperature and evaporation rates and the effects of an intensifying water use within the catchment for irrigation, mining, and hydroelectric energy production in the form of dams. The creation of a lake monitoring system based on an in-depth inventory is recommended.https://www.mdpi.com/2673-7086/4/1/2glacial lakeice-contact lakemoraine-dammed lakeMongoliaZungenbecken lake |
| spellingShingle | Michael Walther Ulrich Kamp Nyam-Osor Nandintsetseg Avirmed Dashtseren Khurelbaatar Temujin Glacial Lakes of Mongolia Geographies glacial lake ice-contact lake moraine-dammed lake Mongolia Zungenbecken lake |
| title | Glacial Lakes of Mongolia |
| title_full | Glacial Lakes of Mongolia |
| title_fullStr | Glacial Lakes of Mongolia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Glacial Lakes of Mongolia |
| title_short | Glacial Lakes of Mongolia |
| title_sort | glacial lakes of mongolia |
| topic | glacial lake ice-contact lake moraine-dammed lake Mongolia Zungenbecken lake |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-7086/4/1/2 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT michaelwalther glaciallakesofmongolia AT ulrichkamp glaciallakesofmongolia AT nyamosornandintsetseg glaciallakesofmongolia AT avirmeddashtseren glaciallakesofmongolia AT khurelbaatartemujin glaciallakesofmongolia |