This site uses cookies, as explained in our terms of use. If you consent, please close this message and continue to use this site.
2 mins Read
Experts from the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development’s (ICIMOD) Cryosphere Initiative and Department of Hydro Met Services (DHMS) in Bhutan carried out a joint field expedition to Bhutan’s benchmark glacier, Thana Glacier, 3-24 September 2016. The activities were carried out under the Cryosphere Monitoring Programme-Bhutan (CMP-B).
The team carried out annual glacier mass balance measurements, maintained automatic weather stations, conducted discharge measurements and collected snow samples for black carbon deposition. ‘Long-term data from Thana Glacier will provide key climate indicators for prepared adaptation to climate change and also help understand Bhutan’s water reserve’, Tshering Tashi, CMP-B coordinator, DHMS said.
Additionally, the glacier was surveyed with a differential GPS to determine changes in glacier surface elevation as a result of internal and basal melting in addition to the surface processes. Ground reflector corners were installed on existing control points to allow for better and more detailed monitoring of the region with satellite images.
Thana Glacier was selected for long-term mass balance monitoring and research as a first benchmark glacier of Bhutan. ICIMOD has been collaborating with DHMS for regular field activities in the glacier since 2015. Thana Glacier feeds Chamkarchu in central Bhutan. The government of Bhutan have planned two hydropower plant in the downstream of the river.
‘Data from Himalayan glaciers in Bhutan will also contribute to a better understanding of the different behaviour of glaciers in an east-west direction of the Hindu Kush Himalayas’ said Anna Sinisalo, Programme Coordinator, Cryosphere Initiative, ICIMOD.
Joint field expeditions with ICIMOD’s partners also provide the opportunity to train members in partner institutes to carry out quality field measurements. ‘Carrying out field measurements with experts improved my data collection skills’, says Jambay Choden from DHMS, for whom the expedition was her first glaciological fieldwork.
The international expedition team comprised members from five nations, who work in three different countries (Bhutan, Nepal and the United States of America). Joel Barker, a professor at Ohio State University and specialist in ice chemistry, will analyse the snow samples for black carbon content to better understand its influence on ice melt and investigate pollutant sources.
Fieldwork on glaciers is an integral part of the Cryosphere Initiative at ICIMOD. The Cryosphere Initiative and activities are supported by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and partners.
Share
Stay up to date on what’s happening around the HKH with our most recent publications and find out how you can help by subscribing to our mailing list.
Related content
On Sunday, 4 December 2016, the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) and The Ministry of Chittagong Hill Tracts ...
As an intergovernmental agency focusing on applied research and knowledge sharing, ICIMOD works to bridge the gap between academia, researchers, ...
Women in the Hunza Valley planting sea buckthorn (Photo: Kanwal Waqar) Kathmandu, ...
Li’s work focused on the derivation of high-resolution 3D glacier motion to understand the interaction between a glacial lake and ...
A joint initiative to aid the Government of Nepal (GoN) in developing internationally accredited environmental impact assessment (EIA) guidelines and procedures for ...
Ground-based research results showed much lesser mass loss compared with that detected through remote sensing, with remarkably low uncertainty. The ...
A multidisciplinary team was organised in the Mu Lar-Nam Ru watershed area of Putao district in Kachin, Myanmar late February ...
