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Characteristics of recent temperate glacier fluctuations in the Parlung Zangbo River basin, southeast Tibetan Plateau

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  • Special Topic Glacial Retreat and Its Impact on Lakes in Tibetan Plateau
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Chinese Science Bulletin

Abstract

Little is known about recent variation of temperate glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau, although they are of particular theoretical and practical interests in terms of climate change and water supply. The study of glacier mass balance and terminus variation for six temperate glaciers in the Parlung Zangbo River basin, southeast Tibetan Plateau, shows the facts of the overall negative mass balance and the continued terminus retreat from 2005/2006 to 2007/2008. The mass balances of smaller glaciers were more negative compared to larger glaciers. Referring the trend of glacier mass balance in the Hengduan Mountains, the Himalayas and glacier shrinkage in southeast Tibetan Plateau, the mass loss and recession of temperate glacier in this region are expected if the current climate condition continues.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Tibetan Environment Changes and Land Surface Processes, Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100085, China

    Wei Yang, TanDong Yao, BaiQing Xu & LingLong Ma

  2. State Key Laboratory of Cryosphere, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou, 730000, China

    TanDong Yao

  3. Beibei Meteorological Bureau, Chongqing, 400700, China

    ZhiHui Wang & Ming Wan

Authors
  1. Wei Yang
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  2. TanDong Yao
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  3. BaiQing Xu
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  4. LingLong Ma
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  5. ZhiHui Wang
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  6. Ming Wan
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Correspondence to TanDong Yao.

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Yang, W., Yao, T., Xu, B. et al. Characteristics of recent temperate glacier fluctuations in the Parlung Zangbo River basin, southeast Tibetan Plateau. Chin. Sci. Bull. 55, 2097–2102 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11434-010-3214-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11434-010-3214-4

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