Articles | Volume 11, issue 5
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-2247-2017
© Author(s) 2017. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-2247-2017
© Author(s) 2017. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Research article
| 
22 Sep 2017
Research article |
| 22 Sep 2017
Structure and evolution of the drainage system of a Himalayan debris-covered glacier, and its relationship with patterns of mass loss
School of Geography and Sustainable Development, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
Sarah Thompson
Department of Geography, Swansea University, Swansea, UK
Jason Gulley
School of Geosciences, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
Jordan Mertes
Department of Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences, Michigan Tech, Houghton, MI, USA
Adrian Luckman
Department of Geography, Swansea University, Swansea, UK
Lindsey Nicholson
Institute for Atmospheric and Cryospheric Sciences, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
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Andreas Kellerer-Pirklbauer, Michael Avian, Douglas I. Benn, Felix Bernsteiner, Philipp Krisch, and Christian Ziesler
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Cited articles
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Short summary
This paper provides the first complete view of the drainage system of a large Himalayan glacier, based on ice-cave exploration and satellite image analysis. Drainage tunnels inside glaciers have a major impact on melting rates, by providing lines of weakness inside the ice and potential pathways for melt-water, and play a key role in the response of debris-covered glaciers to sustained periods of negative mass balance.
This paper provides the first complete view of the drainage system of a large Himalayan glacier,...
