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    • Fulltext

       

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      Permanent link:
      https://www.ias.ac.in/article/fulltext/jess/126/04/0055

    • Keywords

       

      Specific mass balance; seasonal sensitivity characteristic; Baspa basin; Western Himalaya.

    • Abstract

       

      Seasonal sensitivity characteristics (SSCs) were developed for Naradu, Shaune Garang, Gor Garang and Gara glaciers, Western Himalaya to quantify the changes in mean specific mass balance using monthly temperature and precipitation perturbations. The temperature sensitivities were observed high during summer (April–October) and precipitation sensitivities during winter months (November–March), respectively. The reconstructed mass balance correlates well with the field and remote sensing measurements, available between 1980 and 2014. Further, SSCs were used with the monthly mean temperatures and precipitation estimates of ERA 20CM ensemble climate reanalysis datasets to reconstruct the specific mass balance for a period of 110 years, between 1900 and 2010. Mass balance estimates suggest that the Shaune Garang, Gor-Garang and Gara glaciers have experienced both positive and negative mass balance, whereas the Naradu glacier has experienced only negative mass balance since 1900 AD. Further, a cumulative loss of −133±21.5 m.w.e was estimated for four glaciers during the observation period. This study is the first record from Indian Himalaya in evaluating the mass balance characteristics over a century scale.

    • Author Affiliations

       

      Vinay Kumar Gaddam1 Anil V Kulkarni2 Anil Kumar Gupta3

      1. Cryosphere Science Division, National Center for Antarctica and Ocean Research, Goa, India.
      2. Divecha Center for Climate Change, CAOS, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560 012, India.
      3. Department of Civil Engineering, Dr. Ambedkar Institute of Technology, Visvesvaraya Technological University-RC, Bangalore, India.

    • Dates

       
      Published
      20 June 2017
      Manuscript received
      9 September 2016
      Manuscript revised
      10 February 2017
      Accepted
      12 February 2017

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