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Advances in Earth Science >

2022 , Vol. 37 >Issue 11: 1181 - 1193

DOI: https://doi.org/10.11867/j.issn.1001-8166.2022.056

Remote Sensing Monitoring of Recent Surging of the Gando Glacier, Central Pamir

  • Zhenfeng WANG ,
  • Zongli JIANG ,
  • Shiyin LIU ,
  • Zhiyuan MA ,
  • Zhen ZHANG
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  • 1.Hunan Provincial Key Laboratory of Geo-Information Engineering in Surveying, Mapping and Remote Sensing, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan Hunan 411201, China
    2.School of Earth Sciences and Spatial Information Engineering, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan Hunan 411201, China
    3.Institute of International Rivers and Eco-Security, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, China
    4.School of Geomatics, Anhui University of Science and Technology, Huainan Anhui 232001, China
WANG Zhenfeng (1999-), male, Huaxian County, Henan Province, Master student. Research areas include monitoring of glacier surge by remote sensing. E-mail: 1783792308@qq.com
JIANG Zongli (1975-), male, Luxi County, Hunan Province, Associate Professor. Research area includes cryospheric environment. E-mail: jiangzongli@hnust.edu.cn

Received date: 2022-04-09

  Revised date: 2022-08-02

  Online published: 2022-11-16

Supported by

the National Natural Science Foundation of China “The spatial and temporal heterogeneity of the surge-type glaciers and the differences with the normal glaciers in High Mountain Asia”(42071085);“Research on monitoring Koxkar glacier dynamics change by remote sensing and its response to climate change”(41471067)

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Abstract

Pamir hosts numerous surge-type glaciers. Currently, research on surge-type glaciers in this area is mainly focused on the inventorying and reporting of glacier surges, but a detailed description of surge characteristics and control mechanisms is still lacking. Landsat, Sentinel-1A, TerraSAR-X/TanDEM-X, and other multi-source remote sensing data were used to monitor detailed changes in surface velocity, elevation, and surface morphology during the surge process of the southern tributary of the Gando glacier. The results show that the southern tributary of the Gando glacier began to accelerate slowly prior to November 2014 and then gradually pushed downstream. After a four-year slow acceleration period, it entered a rapid movement period in the summer of 2018. During the rapid movement period, the maximum velocity reached 4.6 m/d, and a large amount of glacial material quickly migrated from the upstream to the downstream, resulting in a significant increase in thickness at the end of the southern tributary and the middle and upper reaches of the glacier tongue, with a maximum thickening of approximately 120 m, a significant decrease in the elevation of the middle and upper reaches of the southern tributary (accumulation area), and a maximum thinning of approximately 60 m. By the winter of 2021, the flow velocity in the southern tributary began to decrease significantly. According to the characteristics of surface velocity and elevation changes of the southern tributary, the surge thermal control of the southern tributary is more likely. In addition, we found that the trunk of the Gando glacier surged from 2010 to 2011 and may be mainly controlled by subglacial hydrology. Combined with the existing data, we infer that the surge-cycle duration is approximately 19 years and that of the southern tributary is approximately 30 years.

Key words： Glacier surging; Gando Glacier; Glacier velocity; Surface elevation; Remote sensing

Cite this article

Zhenfeng WANG , Zongli JIANG , Shiyin LIU , Zhiyuan MA , Zhen ZHANG . Remote Sensing Monitoring of Recent Surging of the Gando Glacier, Central Pamir[J]. Advances in Earth Science, 2022 , 37(11) : 1181 -1193 . DOI: 10.11867/j.issn.1001-8166.2022.056

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