Contrasting Changes of Debris-Free Glacier and Debris-Covered Glacier in Southeastern Tibetan Plateau
Debris-free and debris-covered glaciers are both extensively present in the southeastern Tibetan Plateau. High-precision and rigorous comparative observational studies on different types of glaciers help us to accurately understand the overall state of water resource variability and the underlying m...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2024-03-01
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| Series: | Remote Sensing |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/16/5/918 |
| _version_ | 1827319404902219776 |
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| author | Chuanxi Zhao Zhen He Shengyu Kang Tianzhao Zhang Yongjie Wang Teng Li Yifei He Wei Yang |
| author_facet | Chuanxi Zhao Zhen He Shengyu Kang Tianzhao Zhang Yongjie Wang Teng Li Yifei He Wei Yang |
| author_sort | Chuanxi Zhao |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Debris-free and debris-covered glaciers are both extensively present in the southeastern Tibetan Plateau. High-precision and rigorous comparative observational studies on different types of glaciers help us to accurately understand the overall state of water resource variability and the underlying mechanisms. In this study, we used multi-temporal simultaneous UAV surveys to systematically explore the surface elevation change, surface velocity, and surface mass balance of two representative glaciers. Our findings indicate that the thinning rate in the debris-free Parlung No. 4 glacier UAV survey area was consistently higher than that in the debris-covered 24K glacier in 2020–2021 (−1.16 ± 0.03 cm/d vs. −0.36 ± 0.02 cm/d) and 2021–2022 (−0.69 ± 0.03 cm/d vs. −0.26 ± 0.03 cm/d). Moreover, the surface velocity of the Parlung No. 4 glacier was also consistently higher than that of the 24K glacier across the survey period, suggesting a more dynamic glacial state. The surface mass balance of the Parlung No. 4 glacier (2020–2021: −1.82 ± 0.09 cm/d; 2021–2022: −1.30 ± 0.09 cm/d) likewise outpaced that of the 24K glacier (2020–2021: −0.81 ± 0.07 cm/d; 2021–2022: −0.70 ± 0.07 cm/d) throughout the observation period, which indicates that the debris cover slowed the glacier’s melting. Additionally, we extracted the melt contribution of the ice cliff area in the 24K glacier and found that the melt ratio of this ‘hotspot’ area ranged from 10.4% to 11.6% from 2020 to 2022. This comparative analysis of two representative glaciers provides evidence to support the critical role of debris cover in controlling surface elevation changes, glacier dynamics, and surface mass balance. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-25T00:20:17Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-983e7b0a6a9e427eac45d5d1d0b9d992 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2072-4292 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-25T00:20:17Z |
| publishDate | 2024-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Remote Sensing |
| spelling | doaj.art-983e7b0a6a9e427eac45d5d1d0b9d9922024-03-12T16:54:26ZengMDPI AGRemote Sensing2072-42922024-03-0116591810.3390/rs16050918Contrasting Changes of Debris-Free Glacier and Debris-Covered Glacier in Southeastern Tibetan PlateauChuanxi Zhao0Zhen He1Shengyu Kang2Tianzhao Zhang3Yongjie Wang4Teng Li5Yifei He6Wei Yang7College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Earth System, Environment and Resources (TPESER), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Water Resources Engineering and Management, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Earth System, Environment and Resources (TPESER), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Earth System, Environment and Resources (TPESER), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaSchool of Geospatial Engineering and Science, Sun Yat-sen University, Zhuhai 519000, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Earth System, Environment and Resources (TPESER), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Earth System, Environment and Resources (TPESER), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaDebris-free and debris-covered glaciers are both extensively present in the southeastern Tibetan Plateau. High-precision and rigorous comparative observational studies on different types of glaciers help us to accurately understand the overall state of water resource variability and the underlying mechanisms. In this study, we used multi-temporal simultaneous UAV surveys to systematically explore the surface elevation change, surface velocity, and surface mass balance of two representative glaciers. Our findings indicate that the thinning rate in the debris-free Parlung No. 4 glacier UAV survey area was consistently higher than that in the debris-covered 24K glacier in 2020–2021 (−1.16 ± 0.03 cm/d vs. −0.36 ± 0.02 cm/d) and 2021–2022 (−0.69 ± 0.03 cm/d vs. −0.26 ± 0.03 cm/d). Moreover, the surface velocity of the Parlung No. 4 glacier was also consistently higher than that of the 24K glacier across the survey period, suggesting a more dynamic glacial state. The surface mass balance of the Parlung No. 4 glacier (2020–2021: −1.82 ± 0.09 cm/d; 2021–2022: −1.30 ± 0.09 cm/d) likewise outpaced that of the 24K glacier (2020–2021: −0.81 ± 0.07 cm/d; 2021–2022: −0.70 ± 0.07 cm/d) throughout the observation period, which indicates that the debris cover slowed the glacier’s melting. Additionally, we extracted the melt contribution of the ice cliff area in the 24K glacier and found that the melt ratio of this ‘hotspot’ area ranged from 10.4% to 11.6% from 2020 to 2022. This comparative analysis of two representative glaciers provides evidence to support the critical role of debris cover in controlling surface elevation changes, glacier dynamics, and surface mass balance.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/16/5/918UAVdebris-free glacierdebris-covered glaciersoutheastern Tibetan Plateau |
| spellingShingle | Chuanxi Zhao Zhen He Shengyu Kang Tianzhao Zhang Yongjie Wang Teng Li Yifei He Wei Yang Contrasting Changes of Debris-Free Glacier and Debris-Covered Glacier in Southeastern Tibetan Plateau Remote Sensing UAV debris-free glacier debris-covered glacier southeastern Tibetan Plateau |
| title | Contrasting Changes of Debris-Free Glacier and Debris-Covered Glacier in Southeastern Tibetan Plateau |
| title_full | Contrasting Changes of Debris-Free Glacier and Debris-Covered Glacier in Southeastern Tibetan Plateau |
| title_fullStr | Contrasting Changes of Debris-Free Glacier and Debris-Covered Glacier in Southeastern Tibetan Plateau |
| title_full_unstemmed | Contrasting Changes of Debris-Free Glacier and Debris-Covered Glacier in Southeastern Tibetan Plateau |
| title_short | Contrasting Changes of Debris-Free Glacier and Debris-Covered Glacier in Southeastern Tibetan Plateau |
| title_sort | contrasting changes of debris free glacier and debris covered glacier in southeastern tibetan plateau |
| topic | UAV debris-free glacier debris-covered glacier southeastern Tibetan Plateau |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/16/5/918 |
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