Dynamics of Maximum Snow Cover Area and Snow Line Altitude Across Nepal (2003-2018) Using Improved MODIS Data

Khadka, Nitesh; Ghimire, Shravan Kumar; Chen, Xiaoqing; Thakuri, Sudeep; Hamal, Kalpana; Shrestha, Dibas; Sharma, Shankar

doi:10.3126/jist.v25i2.33729

Cited by 10 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 22 publications

(32 reference statements)

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“…In the Himalayas, annual precipitation trends appear to be heterogeneous and relatively weak (Kansakar et al, 2004;Salerno et al, 2015;Karki et al, 2017;Shrestha et al, 2019a;Talchabhadel et al, 2018;Hamal et al, 2020b). Besides, many studies have shown the dynamics of snow and retreat of Himalayan glaciers in the recent decades in response to change in temperature and precipitation (Yao et al, 2012;King et al, 2017;Khadka et al, 2020b). Most of these studies are based on in-situ data directly or indirectly from the lower elevation (generally below 2600m asl.).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Does the High Elevation Climate along Mt. Everest can be Represented by Lower Elevation Stations?

Dawadi¹,

Sharma²,

Hamal³

et al. 2021

J. Inst. Sci. Tech.

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Climate change studies of the high mountain areas of the central Himalayan region are mostly represented by the meteorological stations of the lower elevation. Therefore, to validate the climatic linkages, daily observational climate data from five automated weather stations (AWS) at elevations ranging from 2660 m to 5600 m on the southern slope of Mt. Everest were examined. Despite variations in the means and distribution of daily, 5-day, 10-day, and monthly temperature and precipitation between stations located at a higher elevation and their corresponding lower elevation, temperature records in the different elevations are highly correlated. In contrast, the precipitation data shows a comparatively weaker correlation. The slopes of the regression model (0.82–1.13) with (R2>0.74) for higher altitude (5050 m and 5600 m) throughout the year, 0.83–1.12 (R2>0.68) except late monsoon season for the station at 4260 m and 5050 m asl indicated the similar variability of the temperature between those stations. Similarly, Namche (3570 m) temperature changes by 0.81–1.32°C per degree change in corresponding lower elevation Lukla station (2660 m), except for monsoon season. However, inconsistent variation was observed between the station with a large altitudinal difference (2940 m) at Lukla and Kala Patthar (5600 m). In general, climate records from corresponding lower elevation can be used to quantitatively assess climatic information of the high elevation areas on the southern slope of Mt. Everest. However, corrections are necessary when absolute values of climatic factors are considered, especially in snow cover and snow-free areas. This study will be beneficial for understanding the high-altitude climate change and impact studies.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Does the High Elevation Climate along Mt. Everest can be Represented by Lower Elevation Stations?

Dawadi¹,

Sharma²,

Hamal³

et al. 2021

J. Inst. Sci. Tech.

Self Cite

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“…Furthermore, post-monsoon and winter seasons are relatively dry seasons. Winter rainfall is more pronounced in the western part of the country and contributes to snowfall in the high Himalayan regions [60,61].…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of GPM-Era Satellite Products’ (IMERG and GSMaP) Ability to Detect Precipitation Extremes over Mountainous Country Nepal

et al. 2021

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The reliability of satellite precipitation products is important in climatic and hydro-meteorological studies, which is especially true in mountainous regions because of the lack of observations in these areas. Two recent satellite rainfall estimates (SREs) from Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM)-era—Integrated Multi-Satellite Retrievals for Global Precipitation Measurement (IMERG-V06) and gauge calibrated Global Satellite Mapping of Precipitation (GSMaP-V07) are evaluated for their spatiotemporal accuracy and ability to capture extreme precipitation events using 279 gauge stations from southern slope of central Himalaya, Nepal, between 2014 and 2019. The overall result suggests that both SREs can capture the spatiotemporal precipitation variability, although they both underestimated the observed precipitation amount. Between the two, the IMERG product shows a more consistent performance with a higher correlation coefficient (0.52) and smaller bias (−2.49 mm/day) than the GSMaP product. It is worth mentioning that the monthly gauge-calibrated IMERG product yields better detection capability (higher probability of detection (POD) values) of daily precipitation events than the daily gauge calibrated GSMaP product; however, they both show similar performance in terms of false alarm ratio (FAR) and critical success index (CSI). Assessment based on extreme precipitation indices revealed that the IMERG product outperforms GSMaP in capturing daily precipitation extremes (RX1Day and RX5Day). In contrast, the GSMaP product tends to be more consistent in capturing the duration and threshold-based precipitation extremes (consecutive dry days (CDD), consecutive wet days (CWD), number of heavy precipitation days (R10mm), and number of extreme precipitation days (R25mm)). Therefore, it is suggested that the IMERG product can be a good alternative for monitoring daily extremes; meanwhile, GSMaP could be a better option for duration-based extremes in the mountainous region.

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“…Gosaikunda and associated lakes remain frozen nearly for six months during the winter season. Precipitation occurs mainly as snowfall except during summer monsoon season (Bhatt et al, 2014;Khadka et al, 2020). From the meteorological data from the nearly Kyangjing station (28.21°N; 85.61°E; elevation: 3920 m), for the last three decades, shows that the annual rainfall varies from 600 mm to 900 mm, the mean temperature is around 5.5°C with minimum temperature -12°C to maximum temperature 20°C.…”

Section: Hydrology and Hydrochemistrymentioning

confidence: 99%

Conservation of Gosainkunda and Associated Lakes: Morphological, Hydrochemistry, and Cultural Perspectives

Thakuri

Neupane

Khadka

2021

J. Tourism Himalayan Adventures

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In this paper, we present the current situation of the Gosainkunda and associated lakes based on the preparation of an inventory of lakes using the Google Earth Engine and 2020 Sentinel 2A satellite imagery. Furthermore, we discuss the hydrology, hydrochemistry, and cultural significance of the lakes based on the systematic review of available literatures. In 2020, there are 22 lakes along with Gosaikunda (12.7±0.4 ha) in the Upper Trishuli watershed (59.2 km2), extending from 1274 to 4993 m elevation and covering a total area of 80 ha. The largest lake is Bhairabkunda, with an area of 15.5±0.5 ha. The water bodies in the region are drying, and some of the lakes have already disappeared from the region. But some lakes in the region are evolving as temporary water bodies. The high-altitude lakes are sensitive indicators of anthropogenic disturbance and changing climate. Though the lakes have better hydrochemical quality than the urban lakes located in the southern part of the country, the evidence shows increasing local and long-range transport and deposition of the pollutants in the lake water. The presence of chemical constituents of anthropogenic sources in the water of oligotrophic lakes is possibly evidence of the long-range transport of pollutants. Considering the cultural importance of the region, the number of visitors is increasing annually. Increasing human activities in and around the lake, long-range transport of pollutants, and changing environment in the area are demanding for the lake's conservation. We suggest regular monitoring of the high-altitude lakes to understand the ongoing climate change and anthropogenic impacts.

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Dynamics of Maximum Snow Cover Area and Snow Line Altitude Across Nepal (2003-2018) Using Improved MODIS Data

Cited by 10 publications

References 22 publications

Does the High Elevation Climate along Mt. Everest can be Represented by Lower Elevation Stations?

Does the High Elevation Climate along Mt. Everest can be Represented by Lower Elevation Stations?

Assessment of GPM-Era Satellite Products’ (IMERG and GSMaP) Ability to Detect Precipitation Extremes over Mountainous Country Nepal

Conservation of Gosainkunda and Associated Lakes: Morphological, Hydrochemistry, and Cultural Perspectives

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