C43F-08
After the Earthquake: Impacts of Seismic Snow and Ice Redistribution in Langtang Valley, Nepal, on Glacier Mass Balances and Hydrological Regimes
Thursday, 17 December 2015: 15:25
3005 (Moscone West)
Joseph M Shea1, Silvan Ragettli2, Wouter Immerzeel3, Francesca Pellicciotti4, Evan S Miles5, Jakob F Steiner2, Pascal Buri2 and Philip D.A. Kraaijenbrink6, (1)International Center for Integrated Mountain Development, Kathmandu, Nepal, (2)ETH Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland, (3)Utrecht University, Department of Physcial Geography, Utrecht, 3584, Netherlands, (4)ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland, (5)Scott Polar Research Institute, Cambridge, United Kingdom, (6)Utrecht University, Department of Physcial Geography, Utrecht, Netherlands
Abstract:
The magnitude 7.8 Gorkha Earthquake that struck Nepal on 25 April 2015 resulted in a catastrophic loss of life and property, and had major impacts in high mountain areas. The earthquake resulted in a number of massive ice avalanches in Langtang Valley that destroyed entire villages and killed over 300 people. We first conduct a remote sensing analysis of the entire catchment, and attempt to quantify the volumes of snow and ice redistributed through high-resolution optical imagery, thermal imagery, and DEM differencing. Where data are available we examine the impact on the surface mass balances of four major glaciers (Lirung, Shalbachaum, Langtang and Langshisha). Finally, we use the physically-based and fully distributed TOPKAPI model to simulate the impacts of the co-seismic snow and ice redistribution on the hydrology of the Langtang River.
