For billions of people, mountain meltwater is essential for drinking water and sanitation, food and energy security, and the integrity of the environment. But today, as the world warms, glaciers are melting faster than ever, making the water cycle more unpredictable and extreme. And because of glacial retreat, floods, droughts, …
Rise in temperatures and a fall in the amount of precipitation in the Mount Everest region has led to a majority of mountain glaciers shrinking by 30 percent along with an upward movement of snowline by 180 metres in the last five decades, according to a new study conducted in …
Can you imagine Mount Everest without its snow and ice? The time may not be far away because researchers have found that glaciers in the Mount Everest region including the Sagarmatha national park that surrounds the peak, have shrunk by 13 percent in the last 50 years and the snowline …
Summer ice in the Antarctic is melting 10 times quicker than it was 600 years ago, with the most rapid melt occurring in the last 50 years, a joint Australian-British study showed Monday. A research team from the Australian National University and the British Antarctic Survey drilled a 364-metre (1,194 …
About 90 percent of glaciers in the Third Pole region are shrinking, accelerated by black carbon being transferred from South Asia to the Tibetan Plateau, a top scientist has warned. The Third Pole region, which is centered on the Tibetan Plateau and concerns the interests of the surrounding countries and …
A significant decrease in monsoon and overall annual precipitation and increasing trends in temperatures especially in winter and monsoon have been observed in Jammu and Kashmir. A survey of climate change by the Ministry of Earth Science indicates an increasing but statistically insignificant trend in winter precipitation in the Northwestern …
The Stimson Center, in coordination with the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (Pakistan) and the Observer Research Foundation (India), is release of a new report, Connecting the Drops: An Indus Basin Roadmap for Cross-Border Water Research, Data Sharing, and Policy Coordination. The report results from a Track II diplomatic initiative that …
Glacial lake is a water body formed in/under/besides and/or in front of a glacier due to glacial dynamics. Such high-altitude glacial lakes are hazardous to humanity and infrastructure as they can drain instantaneous and create devastating floods in the downstream. The formation of moraine-dammed glacial lakes and glacial lake outburst …
Climate change has shrunk Andean glaciers between 30 and 50 percent since the 1970s and could melt many of them away altogether in coming years, according to a study published on Tuesday in the journal The Cryosphere. Andean glaciers, a vital source of fresh water for tens of millions of …
The Siachen Glacier has been reduced by 5.9km in longitudinal extent between 1989 and 2009 because of rising temperatures, says a study published recently. Human presence at Siachen may also be affecting the neighbouring glaciers of Gangotri, Miyar, Milan and Janapa which feed Ganges, Chenab and Sutlej rivers. The study, …
Since 2006, ICIMOD has commissioned various case studies as part of a study on flash flood risk reduction in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region. The purpose of these studies was to create a knowledge base on flash flood processes in different parts of the region with diverse climatic and socioeconomic …
Himachal Pradesh being very sensitive to various facets of climate change, it is imperative that systematic and scientific observations are made on various aspects of climate. This would call for mounting research and data collection through various institutions located within the state and also sensitize the different organs of the …
Temperatures in the western part of Antarctica are rising almost twice as fast as previously believed, adding to fears that continued thaws are causing sea levels to rise, according to comprehensive research published this week. In a discovery that raises new concerns about the effects of climate change on the …
The Arctic Report Card considers a wide range of environmental observations throughout the Arctic, and is updated annually. A major finding of the Report Card 2012 is that numerous record-setting melting events occurred, even though, with the exception of a few limited episodes, Arctic-wide it was an unremarkable year, relative …
Depletion in, what is, the nation’s gushing resource today, would be the most likely scenario it could expect in not so distant future. This was based on the findings of Brigham Young University’s professor, Summer Rupper, in her publication, Geophysical Research letters. The findings indicated that the amount of melt …
Water-related disasters and extreme weather events are occurring with increasing frequency in Central Asia and in the countries that surround it. Floods, landslides/mudflows, droughts and earthquakes, which frequently affect the region, cause enormous economic and social damage and often lead to massive loss of human life. Extreme weather events, such …
GANGTOK, Oct 14 – A glacier study team consisting of Assistant Scientific Officer Narpati Sharma and Project Scientists RK Sharma, Pranay Pradhan and Dilliram Chettri of Sikkim State Council of Science and Technology working for Glacier Dynamics of Sikkim, has completed an expedition to East Rathong Glacier in West Sikkim. …
A visit to the Siachen Glacier, the world’s longest at 76.4 km and highest at nearly 22,000 feet, recently provided a group of adventurers and environmentalists a rare glimpse of the fauna around the world’s highest battle zone. It also offered them an opportunity to see first hand how some …
Climate-driven changes in glacier-fed streamflow regimes have direct implications on freshwater supply, irrigation and hydropower potential. Reliable information about current and future glaciation and runoff is crucial for water allocation, a complex task in Central Asia, where the collapse of the Soviet Union has transformed previously interdependent republics into autonomous …
SRINAGAR: Minister for PHE, Irrigation & Flood Control, Taj Mohi-ud-Din today stressed the need for preserving traditional sources of water. Interacting with a delegation of National Institute of Hydrology (NIH) here this morning, the Minister asked them to undertake a study of ponds and pools in Kandi belt and suggest …
