Articles | Volume 20, issue 5
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-2851-2026
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-2851-2026
Research article
 | 
21 May 2026
Research article |  | 21 May 2026

Enhancing lake identification in Alpine periglacial environments by leveraging the global context of transformers

Jinhao Xu, Min Feng, Yijie Sui, Yanan Su, Xuefei Zhang, Qinglin Wu, Zhimin Hu, and Ruilin Wang

Related authors

Large Gradient Subsidence Monitoring in Mining Area Based on LuTan-1 SAR Images
Xiang Zhang, Hui Zhao, Xinming Tang, Tao Li, Xiaoqing Zhou, and Xuefei Zhang
Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., XLVIII-G-2025, 1715–1720, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLVIII-G-2025-1715-2025,https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLVIII-G-2025-1715-2025, 2025
LuTan-1 Satellite-Based Geological Disaster Detection in Lingbao City, Western Henan of China
Jing Lu, Xinming Tang, Lei Wei, Lingfei Guo, Tao Li, Xiang Zhang, and Xuefei Zhang
Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., XLVIII-G-2025, 1023–1028, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLVIII-G-2025-1023-2025,https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLVIII-G-2025-1023-2025, 2025
Multi-temporal Monitoring for Road Slope Collapse by Means of LUTAN-1 SAR Data and High Resolution Optical Data
Xiang Zhang, Xinming Tang, Tao Li, Xiaoqing Zhou, Haifeng Hu, Xuefei Zhang, and Jing Lu
Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., XLVIII-1-2024, 867–873, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLVIII-1-2024-867-2024,https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLVIII-1-2024-867-2024, 2024
LT-1 SAR Satellite Constellation for Permafrost Deformation Monitoring Along the Tibetan Plateau Engineering Corridor
Xuefei Zhang, Tao Li, Xiang Zhang, Xiaoqing Zhou, Jing Lu, and Xueguang Zhang
Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., XLVIII-1-2024, 875–880, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLVIII-1-2024-875-2024,https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLVIII-1-2024-875-2024, 2024
Comparison between DInSAR and Stacking in Deformation Monitoring Using LuTan-1
Jing Lu, Xinming Tang, Tao Li, Xiang Zhang, Xuefei Zhang, Tan Li, and Xiaofeng Qiu
Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., XLVIII-1-2024, 457–462, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLVIII-1-2024-457-2024,https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLVIII-1-2024-457-2024, 2024

Cited articles

Ahmed, R., Wani, G. F., Ahmad, S. T., Sahana, M., Singh, H., and Ahmed, P.: A review of glacial lake expansion and associated glacial lake outburst floods in the himalayan region, Earth Syst. Environ., 5, 695–708, https://doi.org/10.1007/s41748-021-00230-9, 2021. 
Avtar, R., Komolafe, A. A., Kouser, A., Singh, D., Yunus, A. P., Dou, J., Kumar, P., Gupta, R. D., Johnson, B. A., and Minh, H. V. T.: Assessing sustainable development prospects through remote sensing: A review, Remote Sens. Appl. Soc. Environ., 20, 100402, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsase.2020.100402, 2020. 
Bajracharya, S. R. and Mool, P.: Glaciers, glacial lakes and glacial lake outburst floods in the Mount Everest region, Nepal, Ann. Glaciol., 50, 81–86, https://doi.org/10.3189/172756410790595895, 2009. 
Bajracharya, S. R., Mool, P. K., and Shrestha, B. R.: Impact of climate change on Himalayan glaciers and glacial lakes: case studies on GLOF and associated hazards in Nepal and Bhutan, International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development Kathmandu, https://doi.org/10.53055/ICIMOD.470, 2007. 
Barbieux, K., Charitsi, A., and Merminod, B.: Icy lakes extraction and water-ice classification using Landsat 8 OLI multispectral data, Int. J. Remote Sens., 39, 3646–3678, https://doi.org/10.1080/01431161.2018.1447165, 2018. 
Download
Short summary

Lakes in alpine periglacial environments are expanding rapidly under climate warming, but their detection and classification remain difficult because of complex terrain and spectral interference. We developed a vision-transformer-based framework to delineate lake boundaries and distinguish contemporary glacial lakes from other lakes. Applied to the southeastern Tibetan Plateau, it identified 3,266 lakes, including many as small as 0.0001 km².

Share