Third Pole Regional Climate Centre Network (TPRCC-Network)

Operational Products

Cryosphere Disasters

Figure 1 Glacial lake distribution and changes in the Third Pole. (a) Maps highlighting the glacial lake expansion rate between 2018 and 2022. The pie charts with different colors and sizes illustrate the number and types of glacial lakes based on the Global Terrestrial Network for Glaciers (GTN-G) regions. The histograms present the frequency of the glacial lakes in terms of their size (b) and elevation (c). The smoothed density distribution of the area change rate for all of the glacial lakes and lakes with detectable changes (error > change area) in 2018–2022 (d) and 1990–2018 (e).

Figure 2 Composite map illustrating the results of the glacial lake hazard assessment, regional potential GLOF inundation area, and GLOF probability. The pie charts with different sizes and colors exhibit the numbers and classification of the glacial lakes used in the assessment processes. The potential flood propagation of each glacial lake with a high outburst potential was simulated using the HEC-RAS 2-dimensional hydraulic model.

Figure 3 Spatial distributions of the GLOF exposure, risk, and regional potential disaster intensity in the Third Pole. The yellow sections of the pie charts reflect the percentage of very high and high risk glacial lakes.

Figure 4 (a) Spatial and temporal distributions of 145 GLOFs in the Third Pole since 1900. The sizes of the hollow circles represent the drainage volumes of the GLOFs, which were reconstructed based on observed or estimated values. The colors of the circles denote the outburst years of the GLOFs. (b) A relatively complete subset of GLOFs occurring during 1981–2020, which was used to analyze the GLOF frequency and trends.

Glacial lakes in very-high risk and the estimated GLOF propagation.pdf

For more details, please refer to below references:

Zhang, T., Wang, W., An, B., & Wei, L. (2023). Enhanced glacial lake activity threatens numerous communities and infrastructure in the Third Pole. Nature Communications, 14(1), 8250.

Zhang, T., Wang, W., An, B. (2024). The inventory of glacial lakes and results of risk assessment in the Third Pole. National Tibetan Plateau / Third Pole Environment Data Center. https://doi.org/10.11888/Cryos.tpdc.301116. https://cstr.cn/18406.11.Cryos.tpdc.301116.

Zhang, T., Wang, W., An, B. (2024). The exposure dataset within the potential impact area of the glacial lake outburst floods in the Third Pole. National Tibetan Plateau / Third Pole Environment Data Center. https://doi.org/10.11888/Cryos.tpdc.301115. https://cstr.cn/18406.11.Cryos.tpdc.301115.

Zhang, T., Wang, W., An, B. (2024). The dataset of GLOF propagation simulated by the HEC-RAS model in the Third Pole. National Tibetan Plateau / Third Pole Environment Data Center. https://doi.org/10.11888/Cryos.tpdc.301118. https://cstr.cn/18406.11.Cryos.tpdc.301118.