Articles | Volume 20, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-551-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-551-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
22 Jan 2026
Research article |
| 22 Jan 2026
| 22 Jan 2026
Dynamics of snow and glacier cover in the Upper Karnali Basin, Nepal: an analysis of its relationship with climatic and topographic parameters
Tribhuvan University, Central Department of Geography, Kathmandu, Nepal
Dibas Shrestha
Tribhuvan University, Central Department of Hydrology and Meteorology, Kathmandu, Nepal
Raju Chauhan
Tribhuvan University, Central Department of Environmental Science, Kathmandu, Nepal
Amrit Thapa
University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK, USA
Til Prasad Pangali Sharma
Tribhuvan University, Nepal Mountain Academy, Kathmandu, Nepal
Krishna Prasad Sharma
Tribhuvan University, Central Department of Geography, Kathmandu, Nepal
Sher Bahadur Gurung
Tribhuvan University, Central Department of Geography, Kathmandu, Nepal
Sundar Devkota
Department of Survey, Government of Nepal, Kathmandu, Nepal
Prabin Bhandari
George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, USA
Sikesh Koirala
Department of Survey, Government of Nepal, Kathmandu, Nepal
Yanhong Wu
Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China
Niroj Timalsina
Tribhuvan University, Central Department of Geography, Kathmandu, Nepal
Jeevan Kutu
Tribhuvan University, Central Department of Geography, Kathmandu, Nepal
Related authors
No articles found.
Yuying Wu, Yuhan Wang, Wenzheng Yang, Jie Zhang, Yanhong Wu, Jun Li, Gan Zhang, and Haijian Bing
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 17, 4779–4797, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-17-4779-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-17-4779-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
We developed a large, open-access dataset of mountain soil chemistry in China, based on over 1,300 samples from 166 sites across diverse climates and vegetation types. The dataset includes concentrations of 24 elements and key environmental variables like temperature, rainfall, and soil properties. This dataset offers a valuable resource for studying mountain ecosystems, supporting Earth system modeling, and predicting how soils respond to environmental change.
Cited articles
Bajracharya, S. R. and Shrestha, B. (Eds.): The status of glaciers in the Hindu Kush–Himalayan region, International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), Kathmandu, Nepal, 127 pp., 2011.
Bajracharya, S. R., Bajracharya, O. R., Baidya, S., Maharjan, S. B., and Shrestha, F.: Climate change impact on glaciers in the Langtang and Imja sub-basins of Nepal from late 70s to 2010, in: AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts, San Francisco, CA, 15–19 December, C31B-0278, 2014.
Beniston, M. and Stoffel, M.: Assessing the impacts of climatic change on mountain water resources, Sci. Total Environ., 493, 1129–1137, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2013.11.122, 2014.
Bhattacharya, A., Bolch, T., Mukherjee, K., King, O., Menounos, B., Kapitsa, V., Neckel, N., Yao, T., and Li, X.: High Mountain Asian glacier response to climate revealed by multi-temporal satellite observations since the 1960s, Nat. Commun., 12, 4133, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-24180-y, 2021.
Bolch, T., Buchroithner, M. F., Kunert, A., and Kamp, U.: Automated delineation of debris-covered glaciers based on ASTER data, in: GeoInformation in Europe, edited by: Gomarasca, M. A., Millpress, Rotterdam, 403–410, ISBN 978-90-5966-061-8, 2007.
Bolch, T., Kulkarni, A., Kääb, A., Huggel, C., Paul, F., Cogley, J. G., Frey, H., Kargel, J. S., Fujita, K., Scheel, M., Bajracharya, S., and Stoffel, M.: The state and fate of Himalayan glaciers, Science, 336, 310–314, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1215828, 2012.
Bolch, T., Shea, J. M., Liu, S., Azam, F. M., Gao, Y., Gruber, S., Immerzeel, W. W., Kulkarni, A., Li, H., Tahir, A. A., Zhang, G., and Zhang, Y.: Status and change of the cryosphere in the extended Hindu Kush Himalaya region, in: The Hindu Kush Himalaya Assessment: Mountains, Climate Change, Sustainability and People, edited by: Wester, P., Mishra, A., Mukherji, A., and Shrestha, A. B., Springer, Cham, 209–255, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-92288-1_7, 2019.
Bookhagen, B. and Burbank, D. W.: Toward a complete Himalayan hydrological budget: Spatiotemporal distribution of snowmelt and rainfall and their impact on river discharge, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth Surf., 115, F03019, https://doi.org/10.1029/2009JF001426, 2010.
Brun, F., Dumont, M., Wagnon, P., Berthier, E., Azam, M. F., Shea, J. M., Sirguey, P., Rabatel, A., and Ramanathan, Al.: Seasonal changes in surface albedo of Himalayan glaciers from MODIS data and links with the annual mass balance, The Cryosphere, 9, 341–355, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-341-2015, 2015.
Desinayak, N., Prasad, A. K., El-Askary, H., Kafatos, M., and Asrar, G. R.: Snow cover variability and trend over the Hindu Kush Himalayan region using MODIS and SRTM data, Ann. Geophys., 40, 67–82, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-40-67-2022, 2022.
Dhital, M. R.: Geology of the Nepal Himalaya: Regional Perspective, Springer International Publishing, Cham, Switzerland, 583 pp., https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02496-7, 2015.
DHM: Observed Climate Trend Analysis in the Districts and Physiographic Regions of Nepal (1971–2014), Department of Hydrology and Meteorology, Government of Nepal, Kathmandu, Nepal, https://dhm.gov.np/climate-services/climate-publications (last access: 20 September 2025), 2017.
Dimri, A. P. and Dash, S. K.: Wintertime climatic trends in the western Himalayas, Clim. Change, 111, 775–800, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-011-0201-y, 2012.
Dixit, A., Goswami, A., Jain, S., and Das, P.: Assessing snow cover patterns in the Indus–Ganga–Brahmaputra River Basins of the Hindu Kush Himalayas using snow persistence and snow line as metrics, Environ. Chall., 14, 100834, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envc.2023.100834, 2024.
Dowson, A. J., Sirguey, P., and Cullen, N. J.: Variability in glacier albedo and links to annual mass balance for the gardens of Eden and Allah, Southern Alps, New Zealand, The Cryosphere, 14, 3425–3448, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-3425-2020, 2020.
Duan, S.-B., Li, Z.-L., Li, H., Göttsche, F.-M., Wu, H., Zhao, W., Leng, P., Zhang, X., and Coll, C.: Validation of Collection 6 MODIS land surface temperature product using in situ measurements, Remote Sens. Environ., 225, 16–29, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2019.02.020, 2019.
Dussaillant, I., Berthier, E., Brun, F., Masiokas, M., Hugonnet, R., Favier, V., Rabatel, A., Pitte, P., and Ruiz, L.: Two decades of glacier mass loss along the Andes, Nat. Geosci., 12, 802–808, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-019-0432-5, 2019.
EROS – Earth Resources Observation and Science Center: Landsat 4–5 Thematic Mapper Level-2, Collection 2 [dataset], US Geological Survey [data set], https://doi.org/10.5066/P9IAXOVV, 2020a.
EROS – Earth Resources Observation and Science Center: Landsat 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus Level-2, Collection 2 [dataset], US Geological Survey [data set], https://doi.org/10.5066/P9C7I13B, 2020b.
EROS – Earth Resources Observation and Science Center: Landsat 8–9 Operational Land Imager/Thermal Infrared Sensor Level-2, Collection 2 [dataset], US Geological Survey [data set], https://doi.org/10.5066/P9OGBGM6, 2020c.
Elsasser, H. and Bürki, R.: Climate change as a threat to tourism in the Alps, Clim. Res., 20, 253–257, https://doi.org/10.3354/cr020253, 2002.
Farr, T. G., Rosen, P. A., Caro, E., Crippen, R., Duren, R., Hensley, S., Kobrick, M., Paller, M., Rodriguez, E., Roth, L., Seal, D., Shaffer, S., Shimada, J., Umland, J., Werner, M., Oskin, M., Burbank, D., and Alsdorf, D.: The Shuttle Radar Topography Mission, Rev. Geophys., 45, RG2004, https://doi.org/10.1029/2005RG000183, 2007.
Forster, P., Storelvmo, T., Armour, K., Collins, W., Dufresne, J.-L., Frame, D., Lunt, D. J., Mauritsen, T., Palmer, M. D., Watanabe, M., and Wild, M.: The Earth's Energy Budget, Climate Feedbacks, and Climate Sensitivity, in: Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, edited by: Masson-Delmotte, V., Zhai, P., Pirani, A., Connors, S. L., Péan, C., Berger, S., Caud, N., Chen, Y., Goldfarb, L., Gomis, M. I., Huang, M., Leitzell, K., Lonnoy, E., Matthews, J. B. R., Maycock, T. K., Waterfield, T., Yelekçi, Ö., Yu, R., and Zhou, B., Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK and New York, NY, USA, 923–1054, https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009157896.009, 2021.
Gafurov, A. and Bárdossy, A.: Cloud removal methodology from MODIS snow cover product, Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 13, 1361–1373, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-13-1361-2009, 2009.
Ghimire, M., Pangali Sharma, T. P., Chauhan, R., Gurung, S. B., Devkota, S., Sharma, K. P., Shrestha, D., Wei, Z., and Timalsina, N.: Status and changes in glaciers in the Upper Karnali Basin, West Nepal: Assessing topographic influences on area, fragmentation, and volume, J. Earth Syst. Sci., 134, 215, https://doi.org/10.1007/s12040-025-02664-5, 2025a.
Ghimire, M., Shrestha, D., Zhao, W., Chauhan, R., Gurung, S. B., Pangali Sharma, T. P., Sharma, K. P., Tamang, S., Timalsina, N., Devkota, S., Thapa, A., Koirala, S., Bhandari, P., Subedi, B., Lohani, U., Kutu, J., Rana, D., and Yanhong, W.: State and dynamics of cryosphere of Upper Karnali Basin, associated hazards and implications to water resources and livelihood, Project Code TU-NPAR-077/78-ERG-15, Tribhuvan University, Research Coordination and Development Council (RCDC), Kathmandu, Nepal, unpublished report, 2025b.
Gilbert, R. O.: Statistical Methods for Environmental Pollution Monitoring, Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, ISBN 978-0-442-23050-0, 1987.
Gorelick, N., Hancher, M., Dixon, M., Ilyushchenko, S., Thau, D., and Moore, R.: Google Earth Engine: Planetary-scale geospatial analysis for everyone, Remote Sens. Environ., 202, 18–27, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2017.06.031, 2017.
Gurung, D. R., Maharjan, S. B., Shrestha, A. B., Shrestha, M. S., Bajracharya, S. R., and Murthy, M. S. R.: Climate and topographic controls on snow cover dynamics in the Hindu Kush Himalaya, Int. J. Climatol., 37, 3873–3882, https://doi.org/10.1002/joc.4961, 2017.
Hall, D. K. and Riggs, G. A.: MODIS/Terra Snow Cover 8-Day L3 Global 500 m SIN Grid. (MOD10A2, Version 61). [Data Set], NASA National Snow and Ice Data Center Distributed Active Archive Center [data set], https://doi.org/10.5067/MODIS/MOD10A2.061, 2021.
Hall, D. K., Riggs, G. A., Salomonson, V. V., DiGirolamo, N. E., and Bayr, K. J.: MODIS snow-cover products, Remote Sens. Environ., 83, 181–194, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0034-4257(02)00095-0, 2002.
Hersbach, H., Bell, B., Berrisford, P., Hirahara, S., Horányi, A., Muñoz-Sabater, J., Nicolas, J., Peubey, C., Radu, R., Schepers, D., Simmons, A., Soci, C., Abdalla, S., Abellan, X., Balsamo, G., Bechtold, P., Biavati, G., Bidlot, J., Bonavita, M., De Chiara, G., Dahlgren, P., Dee, D., Diamantakis, M., Dragani, R., Flemming, J., Forbes, R., Fuentes, M., Geer, A., Haimberger, L., Healy, S., Hogan, R. J., Hólm, E., Janisková, M., Keeley, S., Laloyaux, P., Lopez, P., Lupu, C., Radnoti, G., de Rosnay, P., Rozum, I., Vamborg, F., Villaume, S., and Thépaut, J.-N.: The ERA5 global reanalysis, Q. J. R. Meteorol. Soc., 146, 1999–2049, https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.3803, 2020.
Hock, R., Rasul, G., Adler, C., Cáceres, B., Gruber, S., Hirabayashi, Y., Jackson, M., Kääb, A., Kang, S., Kutuzov, S., Milner, A., Molau, U., Morin, S., Orlove, B., and Steltzer, H.: High Mountain Areas, in: IPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate, edited by: Pörtner, H.-O., Roberts, D. C., Masson-Delmotte, V., Zhai, P., Tignor, M., Poloczanska, E., Mintenbeck, K., Alegría, A., Nicolai, M., Okem, A., Petzold, J., Rama, B., and Weyer, N. M., Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK and New York, NY, USA, 131–202, https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009157964.004, 2019.
Hunt, K. M. R., Baudouin, J.-P., Turner, A. G., Dimri, A. P., Jeelani, G., Pooja, Chattopadhyay, R., Cannon, F., Arulalan, T., Shekhar, M. S., Sabin, T. P., and Palazzi, E.: Western disturbances and climate variability: a review of recent developments, Weather Clim. Dynam., 6, 43–112, https://doi.org/10.5194/wcd-6-43-2025, 2025.
Immerzeel, W. W., Lutz, A. F., Andrade, M., Bahl, A., Biemans, H., Bolch, T., Hyde, S., Brumby, S., Davies, B. J., Elmore, A. C., Emmer, A., Feng, M., Fernández, A., Haritashya, U., Kargel, J. S., Koppes, M., Kraaijenbrink, P. D. A., Kulkarni, A. V., Mayewski, P. A., Nepaul, S., Pacheco, P., Pak-sok, J., Poulton, C., Pradhan, S., Rangecroft, S., Smeets, S., Suzuki, T., van der Schriek, T., Viviroli, D., Wada, Y., Xiao, C., Yao, T., and Baillie, J. E. M.: Importance and vulnerability of the world's water towers, Nature, 577, 364–369, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-019-1822-y, 2020.
Kääb, A., Reynolds, J. M., and Haeberli, W.: Glacier and permafrost hazards in high mountains, in: Global Change and Mountain Regions, edited by: Huber, U. M., Bugmann, H. K. M., and Reasoner, M. A., Springer, Dordrecht, 225–234, https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-3508-X_23, 2005.
Kääb, A., Berthier, E., Nuth, C., Gardelle, J., and Arnaud, Y.: Contrasting patterns of early twenty-first-century glacier mass change in the Himalayas, Nature, 488, 495–498, https://doi.org/10.1038/nature11324, 2012.
K.C., A.: Climate change and its impact on tourism in Nepal, J. Tour. Hosp. Educ., 7, 25–43, https://doi.org/10.3126/jthe.v7i0.17688, 2017.
Khadka, N., Li, B., Wu, Q., Shrestha, F., Paudel, L., and Wang, W.: Glacial lake outburst floods threaten China–Nepal transportation corridors, Sci. Total Environ., 927, 172456, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.174701, 2024.
Khatiwada, K. R., Panthi, J., Shrestha, M. L., and Nepal, S.: Hydro-climatic variability in the Karnali River basin of Nepal Himalaya, Climate, 4, 17, https://doi.org/10.3390/cli4020017, 2016.
Krishnan, R., Shrestha, A. B., Ren, G., Rajbhandari, R., Saeed, S., Sanjay, J., Syed, M. A., Vellore, R., Xu, Y., You, Q., and Ren, Y.: Unravelling climate change in the Hindu Kush Himalaya: rapid warming in the mountains and increasing extremes, in: The Hindu Kush Himalaya Assessment: Mountains, Climate Change, Sustainability and People, edited by: Wester, P., Mishra, A., Mukherji, A., and Shrestha, A. B., Springer International Publishing, Cham, 57–97, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-92288-1_3, 2019.
Kulkarni, A. V., Rathore, B. P., and Singh, S. K.: Distribution of seasonal snow cover in central and western Himalaya, Ann. Glaciol., 51, 125–130, https://doi.org/10.3189/172756410791386445, 2010.
Kulkarni, A. V., Shirsat, T. S., Kulkarni, A., Negi, H. S., Bahuguna, I. M., and Thamban, M.: State of Himalayan cryosphere and implications for water security, Water Security, 14, 100101, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasec.2021.100101, 2021.
LRMP: Land Resource Mapping Project (national soils/land-use inventory), Government of Nepal, Kathmandu, Nepal, 1986.
Maskey, S., Uhlenbrook, S., and Ojha, S.: An analysis of snow cover changes in the Himalayan region using MODIS snow products and in-situ temperature data, Clim. Change, 108, 391–400, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-011-0181-y, 2011.
Mimura, N.: Sea-level rise caused by climate change and its implications for society, Proc. Jpn. Acad. Ser. B, 89, 281–301, https://doi.org/10.2183/pjab.89.281, 2013.
Muhammad, S. and Thapa, A.: An improved Terra–Aqua MODIS snow cover and Randolph Glacier Inventory 6.0 combined product (MOYDGL06*) for high-mountain Asia between 2002 and 2018, Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 12, 345–356, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-345-2020, 2020.
Naegeli, K., Huss, M., and Hoelzle, M.: Change detection of bare-ice albedo in the Swiss Alps , The Cryosphere, 13, 397–412, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-397-2019, 2019.
NSO – National Statistics Office: National Population and Housing Census 2021 (NPHC 2021) – online tables, Government of Nepal, Kathmandu, Nepal, https://censusnepal.cbs.gov.np/results (last access: 12 December 2025), 2021.
Nyaupane, G. P. and Chhetri, N.: Vulnerability to climate change of nature-based tourism in the Nepalese Himalayas, Tour. Geogr., 11, 95–119, https://doi.org/10.1080/14616680802643359, 2009.
Parajka, J. and Blöschl, G.: Spatio-temporal combination of MODIS images – Potential for snow cover mapping, Water Resour. Res., 44, W03406, https://doi.org/10.1029/2007WR006204, 2008.
Pendergrass, A. G.: Changing degree of convective organization as a mechanism for dynamic changes in extreme precipitation, Curr. Clim. Change Rep., 6, 47–54, https://doi.org/10.1007/s40641-020-00157-9, 2020.
Pepin, N., Bradley, R. S., Diaz, H. F., Baraer, M., Caceres, E. B., Forsythe, N., Fowler, H., Greenwood, G., Hashmi, M. Z., Liu, X. D., Miller, J. R., Ning, L., Ohmura, A., Palazzi, E., Rangwala, I., Schöner, W., Severskiy, I., Shahgedanova, M., Wang, M. B., Williamson, S. N., and Yang, D. Q.: Elevation-dependent warming in mountain regions of the world, Nat. Clim. Change, 5, 424–430, https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate2563, 2015.
Pepin, N. C., Arnone, E., Gobiet, A., Haslinger, K., Kotlarski, S., Notarnicola, C., Palazzi, E., Seibert, P., Serafin, S., Stocchi, P., and Zebisch, M.: Climate changes and their elevational patterns in the mountains of the world, Rev. Geophys., 60, e2020RG000730, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020RG000730, 2022.
Pfeffer, W. T., Arendt, A. A., Bliss, A., Bolch, T., Cogley, J. G., Gardner, A. S., Hagen, J.-O., Hock, R., Kaser, G., Kienholz, C., Miles, E. S., Moholdt, G., Mölg, N., Paul, F., Radic, V., Rastner, P., Raup, B. H., Rich, J., Sharp, M. J., and the Randolph Consortium: The Randolph Glacier Inventory: a globally complete inventory of glaciers, J. Glaciol., 60, 537–552, https://doi.org/10.3189/2014JoG13J176, 2014.
Pradhananga, D., Adhikary, S., Dhakal, B. N., Dhakal, A., Ghimire, A., Dhital, S., and Manandhar, S.: Cryosphere change in the warming Himalaya: Snow cover and snowline trends in Nepal's Langtang Basin (1988–2024), J. Tourism Himalayan Adv., 7, 14–26, 2025.
Pritchard, H. D.: Asia's shrinking glaciers protect large populations from drought stress, Nature, 569, 649–654, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-019-1240-1, 2019.
Rabatel, A., Francou, B., Soruco, A., Gomez, J., Cáceres, B., Ceballos, J. L., Basantes, R., Vuille, M., Sicart, J.-E., Huggel, C., Scheel, M., Lejeune, Y., Arnaud, Y., Collet, M., Condom, T., Consoli, G., Favier, V., Jomelli, V., Galarraga, R., Ginot, P., Maisincho, L., Mendoza, J., Ménégoz, M., Ramirez, E., Ribstein, P., Suarez, W., Villacis, M., and Wagnon, P.: Current state of glaciers in the tropical Andes: a multi-century perspective on glacier evolution and climate change, The Cryosphere, 7, 81–102, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-7-81-2013, 2013.
Ren, P., Pan, X., Liu, T., Huang, Y., Chen, X., Wang, X., Zhang, Y., and Ling, X.: Glacier changes from 1990 to 2022 in the Aksu River Basin, western Tien Shan, Remote Sens., 16, 1751, https://doi.org/10.3390/rs16101751, 2024.
Ren, S., Jia, L., Menenti, M., and Zhang, J.: Changes in glacier albedo and the driving factors in the Western Nyainqentanglha Mountains from 2001 to 2020, J. Glaciol., 69, 1500–1514, https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2023.33, 2023.
Rittger, K., Painter, T. H., and Dozier, J.: Assessment of methods for mapping snow cover from MODIS, Adv. Water Resour., 51, 367–380, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advwatres.2012.03.002, 2013.
Salerno, F., Uccelli, A., Cristofanelli, P., Stocchi, P., Diolaiuti, G., Ma, Y., and Putero, D.: Local cooling and drying induced by Himalayan glaciers, Nat. Geosci., 16, 1120–1127, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-023-01331-y, 2023.
Sasaki, O., Miles, E. S., Pellicciotti, F., Sakai, A., and Fujita, K.: Contrasting patterns of change in snowline altitude across five Himalayan catchments, The Cryosphere, 19, 5283–5298, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-5283-2025, 2025.
Sen, P. K.: Estimates of the regression coefficient based on Kendall's tau, J. Am. Stat. Assoc., 63, 1379–1389, https://doi.org/10.1080/01621459.1968.10480934, 1968.
Shen, L., Zhang, Y., Ullah, S., Pepin, N., and Ma, Q.: Changes in snow depth under elevation-dependent warming over the Tibetan Plateau, Atmos. Sci. Lett., 22, e1041, https://doi.org/10.1002/asl.1041, 2021.
Shrestha, A. B., Wake, C. P., Dibb, J. E., and Mayewski, P. A.: Maximum temperature trends in the Himalaya and its vicinity: an analysis based on temperature records from Nepal for the period 1971–94, J. Climate, 12, 2775–2786, https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0442(1999)012<2775:MTTITH>2.0.CO;2, 1999.
Shrestha, M., Wang, L., Koike, T., Xue, Y., and Hirabayashi, Y.: Modeling the spatial distribution of snow cover in the Dudhkoshi region of the Nepal Himalayas, J. Hydrometeorol., 13, 204–222, https://doi.org/10.1175/JHM-D-10-05027.1, 2012.
Syed, F. S., Giorgi, F., Pal, J. S., and King, M. P.: Effect of remote forcings on the winter precipitation of central southwest Asia part 1: observations, Theor. Appl. Climatol., 86, 147–160, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00704-005-0217-1, 2006.
Vuille, M., Carey, M., Huggel, C., Buytaert, W., Rabatel, A., Jacobsen, D., Soruco, A., Villacis, M., Yarleque, C., Elison Timm, O., Condom, T., Salzmann, N., and Sicart, J. E.: Rapid decline of snow and ice in the tropical Andes – Impacts, uncertainties and challenges ahead, Earth-Sci. Rev., 176, 195–213, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2017.09.019, 2018.
Wan, Z., Hook, S., and Hulley, G.: MODIS/Aqua Land Surface Temperature/Emissivity Daily L3 Global 1 km SIN Grid, Version 6, NASA EOSDIS Land Processes DAAC [data set], https://doi.org/10.5067/MODIS/MYD11A1.006, 2015.
Wan, Z., Hook, S., and Hulley, G.: MODIS/Terra Land Surface Temperature/Emissivity 8-Day L3 Global 1 km SIN Grid V061 [Data set], NASA Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center [data set], https://doi.org/10.5067/MODIS/MOD11A2.061, 2021a.
Wan, Z., Hook, S., and Hulley, G.: MODIS/Aqua Land Surface Temperature/Emissivity 8-Day L3 Global 1 km SIN Grid V061 [Data set], NASA Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center [data set], https://doi.org/10.5067/MODIS/MYD11A2.061, 2021b.
Wester, P., Mishra, A., Mukherji, A., and Shrestha, A. B. (Eds.): The Hindu Kush Himalaya Assessment: Mountains, Climate Change, Sustainability and People, Springer Nature, Cham, Switzerland, 627 pp., https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-92288-1, 2019.
Xu, J., Grumbine, R. E., Shrestha, A., Eriksson, M., Yang, X., Wang, Y., and Wilkes, A.: The melting Himalayas: cascading effects of climate change on water, biodiversity, and livelihoods, Conserv. Biol., 23, 520–530, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1523-1739.2009.01237.x, 2009.
Yadav, R. K., Rupa Kumar, K., and Rajeevan, M.: Increasing influence of ENSO and decreasing influence of AO/NAO in the recent decades over northwest India winter precipitation, J. Geophys. Res.-Atmos., 114, D12112, https://doi.org/10.1029/2008JD011318, 2009.
Ye, Y. and Tian, Y.: INTERPRETING CHANGES IN ALBEDO AND MASS BALANCE AT WHITE GLACIER, CANADIAN ARCTIC ARCHIPELAGO, Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., XLIII-B3-2022, 793–798, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLIII-B3-2022-793-2022, 2022.
Yu, W., Ma, M., Wang, X., Geng, L., Tan, J., and Shi, J.: Validation of MODIS land surface temperature products using ground-based longwave radiation observations in the Heihe River Basin, Proc. SPIE, 8174, 81741G, https://doi.org/10.1117/12.897571, 2011.
Yue, S. and Wang, C. Y.: The Mann–Kendall test modified by effective sample size to detect trend in serially correlated hydrological series, Water Resour. Manag., 18, 201–218, https://doi.org/10.1023/B:WARM.0000043140.61082.60, 2004.
Zemp, M., Huss, M., Thibert, E., Eckert, N., McNabb, R., Huber, J., Barandun, M., Machguth, H., Nussbaumer, S. U., Gärtner-Roer, I., Thomson, L., Paul, F., Maussion, F., Kutuzov, S., and Cogley, J. G.: Global glacier mass changes and their contributions to sea-level rise from 1961 to 2016, Nature, 568, 382–386, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-019-1071-0, 2019.
Zhao, W., He, J., Wu, Y., Xiong, D., Wen, F., and Li, A.: An analysis of land surface temperature trends in the central Himalayan region based on MODIS products, Remote Sens., 11, 900, https://doi.org/10.3390/rs11080900, 2019.
Short summary
In the Upper Karnali Basin, a critical water source for millions of people, snow and glaciers are shrinking, and snowlines have shifted as temperatures rise over the last two decades. Snow and glacier decline has threatened water supplies for farming, drinking, and hydropower. This study shows how climate change is reshaping the region’s frozen landscapes, risking water security for communities downstream. Protecting these icy reservoirs is vital to safeguarding lives and ecosystems.
In the Upper Karnali Basin, a critical water source for millions of people, snow and glaciers...
