Hydrological drivers of the Karakoram anomaly

Séminaire de R. de Kok (Utrecht Univ.), Mardi 13 Octobre 2020 à 14h00 en salle Lliboutry, Bât. Glaciologie

Seminar by Remco de Kok from Utrecht University

Title : Hydrological drivers of the Karakoram anomaly

Abstract : Glaciers are growing in a part of High Mountain Asia (HMA), contrary to the demise of glaciers worldwide. This phenomenon, often referred to as the Karakoram anomaly, is not easily explained in the context of global warming. We investigated different possible causes of the Karakoram anomaly using a regional climate model, coupled to a glacier model, as well as a moisture tracking algorithm and the analysis of reanalysis data. We found that the pattern of HMA glacier mass balances that includes the Karakoram anomaly can be understood from the combination of temperature and precipitation trends, and the climate sensitivities of the glaciers. The increase of irrigation in Central Asia was found to be especially important in creating the increase in snowfall that can explain the Karakoram anomaly.