Arunachal Pradesh lost 110 glaciers in 32 years reveals a study

Itanagar, Feb 4: A section of the Eastern Himalayas in Arunachal Pradesh lost 110 glaciers in 32 years, says a new study.

A group of researchers who have done the study found that these glaciers covering an area of 309.85 sq. km disappeared at a retreat rate of 16.94 sq. km during the study period from 1988 to 2020. The retreat exposed bedrock and created glacial lakes, threatening glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs).

The eastern Himalayas have been witnessing to a major GLOF – the 2023 Sikkim disaster that killed at least 55 people and destroyed a 1,200-megawatt hydropower project on the Teesta River.

The study was published in the Journal of Earth System Science, authored by Vimha Ritse, Amenuo Susan Kulnu, and Latonglila Jamir of Nagaland University’s Department of Environmental Science, and Nabajit Hazarika of Cotton University’s Department of Environmental Biology and Wildlife Sciences.

The researchers used remote sensing and geographic information systems to map glacier boundaries, even in debris-covered areas, from Tawang to Lohit districts of Arunachal Pradesh through West Kameng, Kurung Kumey, Upper Siang, and Upper Dibang Valley districts. They also used the Randolph Glacier Inventory of Global Land Ice Measurements from Space as a reference.

They found that the number of glaciers decreased from 756 to 646 during the 32-year-long study period. The glacial cover during this period reduced by 309.85 sq. km from 585.23 sq. km, working out to a loss of a little more than 47%.

Read: Bamboo-based composites to revolutionize high-altitude bunker construction

WATCH:

Find latest news from every corner of Northeast India at hubnetwork.in, your online source for breaking news, video coverage.

Pynshngaiñ Kurbah secures first medal for Meghalaya at 38th National Games