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Glaciers experience periodic variations in flow velocity called surges, each of which influences the glacier's characteristics and the occurrence of downstream disasters (e.g., ice-dammed lake outburst floods). The Karakoram region contains many surging glaciers, yet there are few comprehensive studies of multiple surge cycles. In this work, Landsat, topographic map, Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM), TerraSAR-X/TanDEM-X, ITS_LIVE, and Sentinel-1 glacier velocity data were used to systematically analyze the characteristics of Kyagar Glacier since the 1970s. Three surging events were identified, with active phases in 1975–1978, 1995–1997, and 2014–2016. The timing of these surges was similar, with a cycle of 19–20 years, an active phase of 3–4 years, and a quiescent phase of 16–17 years. During the quiescent phase, a large amount of ice accumulates in the lower part of the accumulation zone, and the terminal of the tongue thins significantly. According to the most recent surge event (2014–2016), glacier flow accelerated suddenly in the active phase and reached a maximum velocity of 2 ± 0.08 m d−1. Then, the glacier terminal thickened sharply, the reservoir zone thinned by 12 ± 0.2 m, and the terminal receiving zone thickened by 28 ± 0.2 m. The glacier may have entered a quiescent phase after July 2016. The glacier surge causes a large amount of material to transfer from upstream to downstream, forming an ice dam and creating conditions for a glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF). At the termination of the active phase, the subglacial drainage channel became effective, triggering the GLOF. For a period of the quiescent phase, the glacier ablation intensifies and the GLOF repeats constantly. One surge caused 7–8 GLOFs, and then a continuous reduction in the ice dam elevation. Eventually, the ice dam disappeared, and the GLOF no longer continued before the next glacier-surging event. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The regional surge patterns and control mechanisms for glaciers in the western Pamirs are unclear. Using remote sensing, more surge-type glaciers have been discovered in the western Pamirs. This provides an opportunity to obtain the integral characteristics of glacier surging. Using Sentinel-1A, TSX/TDX and Landsat remote sensing data, the changes in surface velocity, surface elevation and surface features of five glaciers that have recently surged in the western Pamirs are obtained. The results show that (1) all glacier surges initiate gradually for several years and most form a surge front in the upper region of the glacier. (2) For most glaciers, the active phase of the surge is more than 2 years, except for one that is within several months. (3) The peak velocity mostly occurs in summer and autumn, and the maximum velocity is less than 8 m d−1. (4) There is sharp deceleration, such as the hydrologic controlled surge at the end of the surge. However, the surface flow of the transverse profiles shows no features of base sliding. Based on the comparison of surge patterns with other regions in High Mountain Asia, we conclude that the surging glaciers in the western Pamirs are triggered by thermal mechanisms under the control of sub-hydrological modulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mass balance observations are beneficial for assessing climate change in different world regions. This study analyzed the glacier elevation change, ice flux divergence, and surface mass balance (SMB) in the West Kunlun Mountains (WKM) on the Tibetan Plateau using remote sensing data, including satellite altimetry, glacier surface velocity, and thickness fields. Seventeen local glaciers were examined in detail and showed varying surface elevation changes from −0.39 ± 0.11 to 0.83 ± 0.10 m/a. Overall, we obtained a reasonably rapid elevation trend of 0.21 ± 0.14 m/a. By combining the ice flux divergence and surface mass balance, the overall thickness change of the WKM glacier over time is almost zero, and the WKM glacier shows a positive mass balance of 0.21 ± 0.98 m/a. Moreover, the ice flux divergence is more significant on the ice tongue than in the flat region due to the more considerable gradient of surface velocity and thickness fields. We found that glacier heterogeneity dynamics were associated with a surging dynamic mechanism concentrated in the glacier tongue and were induced by inner terrain instabilities. The glacier surging causes a drastic drop in glacier elevation but does not cause a glacier mass gain or loss, and it has an enhanced effect on the ice flux divergence. Therefore, glacier surging is the main reason for the decline of the two glaciers monitored. In addition, the long-term meteorological data analysis found that, since 2000, the air temperature warming hiatus may have balanced the three glaciers, and significantly increasing precipitation variation may cause the glacier to thicken the most. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lake water storage changes in four lakes were analyzed based on in situ bathymetric survey data and Landsat images in the extremely dry and cold northwestern Tibetan Plateau region. The results indicated that Bangdag Co and Aksai Chin Lake, which are glacier-fed and closed lakes, showed decreasing trends from 1976 to 1996, then increasing trend from 1996 to 2015, during which period water storage increased by 1.24 km 3 and 1.37 km 3 , respectively, and 65% of the water storage increase in Aksai Chin Lake during this period occurring in 2006 and 2013. Longmu Co, which is a non-glacier-fed lake, exhibited little variation from 1976 to 1996 and a slight increase of 0.1 km 3 from 1996 to 2015. The precipitation, temperature and potential evaporation (Ep) trends indicated that lake shrinkage from 1976 to 1996 was attributed to less precipitation and less meltwater at lower surface air temperatures. Decreased Ep (15.5 mm/y) contributed approximately 2% and 4% to the lake expansion of Aksai Chin Lake and Bangdag Co from 2000 to 2009. Based on the assumption of equal precipitation-evaporation for the study area, glacial meltwater contributed 76.6% to the lake expansion of Bangdag Co from 2000 to 2015. Because change in lakes' water storage showed a large difference between glacier-fed lakes and non-glacier-fed lakes from 1996 to 2015 under relatively high precipitation conditions, it is suggested that glacial meltwater exerted more influence on increasing lake water storage associated with rising temperatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Karayaylak Glacier surge initiated from May 2014 and terminated on October 2015. • In the active period, the maximum velocity reached 20.1 m d−1. • The receiving zone experienced an average surface elevation gain of 36.8 ± 1.5 m. • Landsat, Gaofen-1 and Ziyuan-3 images were used to monitor glacier surging. • Karayaylak Glacier surge was controlled by hydrology. Glacier surges in the Pamir have been widely documented, but the surge mechanism remains poorly known. The Karayaylak Glacier is the first reported surging glacier in eastern Pamir but different dates and possible triggers were published. In this research, the Karayaylak Glacier was studied using an extensive Landsat and Ziyuan-3 (ZY-3) satellite image set. The active phase initiated in May to June 2014, and experienced a peak velocity of 20.1 ± 0.7 m d−1 in May 2015, terminating in October 2015. During 2014–2015, the reservoir zone experienced an average surface elevation reduction of 33.1 ± 1.5 m, and the receiving zone experienced an average surface elevation gain of 36.8 ± 1.5 m. The large basal sliding during the active phase (2014–2015) was likely driven by high water pressure at the bed in an inefficient drainage system. A large volume of water released at the end of the active phase indicated the drainage at the glacier base became more efficient. The abrupt peak velocity, the short active phase and the changes in drainage suggest that the Karayaylak Glacier surge was controlled by hydrology. The behaviour of the Karayaylak Glacier was similar to that of the Kyagar Glacier and Shispare Glacier in the Karakoram. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Mapping of the surficial geology and geomorphology of the Satujökull foreland of the northern Hofsjökull ice cap in central Iceland provides a clear signature of glacial landsystem overprinting as a result of complex glacier behaviour during the historical period. Landsystem 1 comprises a wide arc of ice-cored moraine and controlled ridges lying outside fluted and drumlinized terrain, and is indicative of polythermal conditions. This landform assemblage commonly marks the historical Little Ice Age maximum limit on the forelands of upland icefields in the arid interior of Iceland and is therefore a record of climatically driven glacier advance. Landsystem 2 contains most of the diagnostic criteria for the surging glacier landsystem and records two separate surges by the western margin of Satujökull in the period since the attainment of the Little Ice Age maximum advance. The occurrence of Landsystem 2 is significant because Satujökull has not been previously regarded as a surging glacier, even though other outlets of Hofsjökull are prone to surging. Landsystem overprinting, especially in response to changing thermal regimes and/or glacier dynamics, and particularly by different flow units in the same glacier, is rarely reported but is crucial to the critical application of modern landsystem analogues to Quaternary palaeoglaciological reconstruction. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

High Mountain Asia (HMA) hosts the largest glacier concentration outside of polar regions. It is also distinct glaciologically as it forms one of two major surge clusters globally, and many glaciers there contradict the globally observed glacier recession trend. Surging glaciers are critical to our understanding of HMA glacier dynamics, threshold behaviour and flow instability, and hence have been the subject of extensive research, yet many dynamical uncertainties remain. Using the cloud-based geospatial data platform, Google Earth Engine (GEE) and GEE-developed tool, GEEDiT, to identify and quantify trends in the distribution and phenomenological characteristics of surging glaciers synoptically across HMA, we identified 137 glaciers as surging between 1987–2019. Of these, 55 were newly identified, 15 glaciers underwent repeat surges, and 18 were identified with enhanced glaciological hazard potential, most notably from Glacier Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs). Terminus position time series analysis from 1987–2019 facilitated the development of a six-part phenomenological classification of glacier behaviour, as well as quantification of surge variables including active phase duration, terminus advance distance and rate, and surge periodicity. This research demonstrates the application of remote sensing techniques and the GEE platform to develop our understanding of surging glacier distribution and terminus phenomenology across large areas, as well as their ability to highlight potential geohazard locations, which can subsequently be used to focus monitoring efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies have shown that glacier changes were heterogeneous in the western Karakoram, with the coexistence of retreating, advancing, and surging glaciers. However, it remains unclear that the mechanisms driving these changes. Based on the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) DEM and TerraSAR-X/TanDEM-X images (2014), this study presents glacier surface height changes in the Hunza Basin of the western Karakoram, employing the method of differential synthetic aperture radar interferometry (DInSAR). A slight negative glacier mass balance was observed in the Hunza Basin during 2000–2014. Surge-type glaciers would not have an obvious effect on overall mass balance in regional assessments over long-time scales. Further, glacier surface velocities in the Hunza Basin were estimated from Landsat images for the period of 1990–2018 by utilizing published data sets and Landsat images. Compared to the annual glacier surface velocities, 22 surge events were observed in seven surge-type glaciers in the Hunza Basin. Glacier flow can be attributed to thermally and hydrologically control, and the geomorphological characteristics of different individuals. This study gives us a new insight into the situation of the "Karakoram anomaly" under the background of glacier mass loss in the high mountains of Asia (HMA). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most of the world's glaciers have retreated significantly against the background of recent climate warming, while reports have indicated that the glaciers in the West Kunlun Mountains (WKL) may be in a relatively stable state, although there are some gaps in previous research. Based on Landsat series data, topographic maps, SRTM and TanDEM-x data, this paper extracts detailed glacial area information and glacial mass balance during different time periods from 1970 to 2018. We found that, the total area of glaciers in the WKL decreased by 8.0 km2 from 1972 to 2018. The area decreased by 12.0 km2 from 1972 to 1991 and increased by 4.7 km2 from 2010 to 2018. Glacier surface elevation change results in the WKL showed that the overall glacier thickness slightly decreased from 1970 to 2016, with an average of 1.9 ± 1.0 m. The glaciers thinned by approximately 2.5 ± 1.0 m from 1970 to 2000, while from 2000 to 2016, the glaciers thickened approximately by 0.6 ± 1.0 m. Overall, the glaciers in the WKL showed very slight retreat. In addition, the mass changes of glaciers were affected by glacial surging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]