GC13E-0701:
Investigating the Evolution of Imja Lake and Imja-Lhotse Shar Glacier with a Debris-Covered Melt Model and Lake Expansion Model

Monday, 15 December 2014
David Rounce, University of Texas, Austin, TX, United States and Daene C. McKinney, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, United States
Abstract:
The melt of glaciers in the Himalayas over the past half-century due to global temperature increase has led to the formation of many glacial lakes. These lakes typically form on the tongue of stagnant debris-covered glaciers with gentle slopes where there is significant amount of differential melting due to the spatial variation of debris thickness. Once the lake develops, the water acts as a heat sink thereby increasing the rate of mass loss as the lake expands rapidly due to calving retreat. Imja Lake is an excellent example of a glacial lake that developed in the 1950’s and has been undergoing rapid expansion due to calving retreat for many decades. This study seeks to use a debris-covered melt model in conjunction with a lake expansion model to investigate the evolution of Imja Lake and Imja-Lhotse Shar glacier.