Up-glacier propagation of surface lowering of Yala Glacier, Langtang Valley, Nepal Himalaya
We quantify the surface elevation changes along Yala Glacier in Langtang Valley, Nepal Himalaya, since 1981 using geodetic methods to understand the recent evolution and current state of small debris-free glaciers across the region. We analyse differential global positioning system measurements and...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Cambridge University Press
2023-04-01
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| Series: | Journal of Glaciology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0022143022001186/type/journal_article |
| _version_ | 1827990602171547648 |
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| author | Sojiro Sunako Koji Fujita Takeki Izumi Satoru Yamaguchi Akiko Sakai Rijan Bhakta Kayastha |
| author_facet | Sojiro Sunako Koji Fujita Takeki Izumi Satoru Yamaguchi Akiko Sakai Rijan Bhakta Kayastha |
| author_sort | Sojiro Sunako |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | We quantify the surface elevation changes along Yala Glacier in Langtang Valley, Nepal Himalaya, since 1981 using geodetic methods to understand the recent evolution and current state of small debris-free glaciers across the region. We analyse differential global positioning system measurements and aerial stereo imagery that were acquired along Yala Glacier in 2007, 2009, 2012 and 2015 to generate digital elevation models for each calculation period. Continuous surface lowering has mainly been observed across the down-glacier area during the calculation periods, although a large degree of variability exists, with this lowering trend propagating up-glacier in recent years. The area-weighted glacier mass balances range from −0.98 ± 0.27 to −0.26 ± 0.30 m w.e. a−1 for the five calculation periods (1981–2007, 2007–2009, 2009–2012, 2012–2015 and 2007–2015). These calculated mass-balance data reveal that Yala Glacier has undergone accelerated mass loss since the late 2000s, which is consistent with the results of previous in situ measurement and remote-sensing studies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T00:38:03Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-fc8a55e881cf44208113e3aebbacd67d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0022-1430 1727-5652 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T00:38:03Z |
| publishDate | 2023-04-01 |
| publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Glaciology |
| spelling | doaj.art-fc8a55e881cf44208113e3aebbacd67d2023-03-14T11:50:40ZengCambridge University PressJournal of Glaciology0022-14301727-56522023-04-016942543210.1017/jog.2022.118Up-glacier propagation of surface lowering of Yala Glacier, Langtang Valley, Nepal HimalayaSojiro Sunako0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0403-1950Koji Fujita1https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3753-4981Takeki Izumi2Satoru Yamaguchi3https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9972-0443Akiko Sakai4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6320-6212Rijan Bhakta Kayastha5https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5896-1731Snow and Ice Research Center, National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience (NIED), Nagaoka, JapanGraduate School of Environmental Studies, Nagoya University, Nagoya, JapanGraduate School of Urban Environmental Sciences, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Hachioji, JapanSnow and Ice Research Center, National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience (NIED), Nagaoka, JapanGraduate School of Environmental Studies, Nagoya University, Nagoya, JapanDepartment of Environmental Science and Engineering, Himalayan Cryosphere, Climate and Disaster Research Center (HiCCDRC), School of Science, Kathmandu University, Dhulikhel, NepalWe quantify the surface elevation changes along Yala Glacier in Langtang Valley, Nepal Himalaya, since 1981 using geodetic methods to understand the recent evolution and current state of small debris-free glaciers across the region. We analyse differential global positioning system measurements and aerial stereo imagery that were acquired along Yala Glacier in 2007, 2009, 2012 and 2015 to generate digital elevation models for each calculation period. Continuous surface lowering has mainly been observed across the down-glacier area during the calculation periods, although a large degree of variability exists, with this lowering trend propagating up-glacier in recent years. The area-weighted glacier mass balances range from −0.98 ± 0.27 to −0.26 ± 0.30 m w.e. a−1 for the five calculation periods (1981–2007, 2007–2009, 2009–2012, 2012–2015 and 2007–2015). These calculated mass-balance data reveal that Yala Glacier has undergone accelerated mass loss since the late 2000s, which is consistent with the results of previous in situ measurement and remote-sensing studies.https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0022143022001186/type/journal_articleGlacier mass balanceglacier monitoringmountain glaciers |
| spellingShingle | Sojiro Sunako Koji Fujita Takeki Izumi Satoru Yamaguchi Akiko Sakai Rijan Bhakta Kayastha Up-glacier propagation of surface lowering of Yala Glacier, Langtang Valley, Nepal Himalaya Journal of Glaciology Glacier mass balance glacier monitoring mountain glaciers |
| title | Up-glacier propagation of surface lowering of Yala Glacier, Langtang Valley, Nepal Himalaya |
| title_full | Up-glacier propagation of surface lowering of Yala Glacier, Langtang Valley, Nepal Himalaya |
| title_fullStr | Up-glacier propagation of surface lowering of Yala Glacier, Langtang Valley, Nepal Himalaya |
| title_full_unstemmed | Up-glacier propagation of surface lowering of Yala Glacier, Langtang Valley, Nepal Himalaya |
| title_short | Up-glacier propagation of surface lowering of Yala Glacier, Langtang Valley, Nepal Himalaya |
| title_sort | up glacier propagation of surface lowering of yala glacier langtang valley nepal himalaya |
| topic | Glacier mass balance glacier monitoring mountain glaciers |
| url | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0022143022001186/type/journal_article |
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