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Spatially Variable Glacier Changes in the Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal, 2000 to 2016

Lovell, Arminel M.; Carr, J. Rachel; Stokes, Chris R.

Spatially Variable Glacier Changes in the Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal, 2000 to 2016 Thumbnail


Authors

Arminel M. Lovell

J. Rachel Carr



Abstract

Himalayan glaciers have shrunk rapidly in recent decades, but the spatial pattern of ice loss is highly variable and appears to be modulated by factors relating to individual glacier characteristics. This hinders our ability to predict their future evolution, which is vital for water resource management. The aim of this study is to assess recent glacier changes in the little-studied Annapurna Conservation Area (ACA; area: 7629 km2) in Nepal, and to explore local controls influencing their behaviour. We map changes in glacier area, surface elevation, and ice flow velocity on a large sample of glaciers (n = 162) in the ACA between 2000 and 2016. We found that total glacier area decreased by 8.5% between 2000 and 2014/15. Ice surface velocity changes between 2002 and 2016 were variable, with no clear trend of acceleration or deceleration. The mean surface elevation change for a smaller sample of glaciers (n = 72) was −0.33 ± 0.22 m a−1 between 2000 and 2013/16, which equates to a mean mass balance of −0.28 ± 0.24 m w.e. a−1. There was a trend of increasingly less negative mass balance towards the north. Glaciers that lost the most mass in the north of the ACA tended to have lower maximum elevations, bottom-heavy hypsometries, and were more likely to be avalanche-fed. However, these patterns were not apparent in glaciers in central ACA. There was no significant difference in the mean surface elevation change rate on the ablation zones of debris-covered compared with debris-free glaciers. Our work shows that glaciers in the ACA are losing area and mass at variable rates, but that the influence of local controls is complex, which introduces large uncertainties when predicting their future evolution.

Citation

Lovell, A. M., Carr, J. R., & Stokes, C. R. (2019). Spatially Variable Glacier Changes in the Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal, 2000 to 2016. Remote Sensing, 11(12), Article 1452. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs11121452

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Jun 13, 2019
Online Publication Date Jun 19, 2019
Publication Date Jun 19, 2019
Deposit Date Jul 8, 2019
Publicly Available Date Jul 16, 2019
Journal Remote Sensing
Electronic ISSN 2072-4292
Publisher MDPI
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 11
Issue 12
Article Number 1452
DOI https://doi.org/10.3390/rs11121452
Public URL https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1297677

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Publisher Licence URL
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Copyright Statement
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited (CC BY 4.0).






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