Background The widely distributed glaciers in the greater Himalayan region have generally experienced rapid shrinkage since the 1850s. As invaluable sources of water and because of their scarcity, these glaciers are extremely important. Beginning in the twenty-first century, new methods have been applied to measure the mass budget of these glaciers. Investigations have shown that the albedo is an important parameter that affects the melting of Himalayan glaciers. Methodology/Principal Findings The surface albedo based on the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data over the Hindu Kush, Karakoram and Himalaya (HKH) glaciers is surveyed in this study for the period 2000–2011. The general albedo trend shows that the glaciers have been darkening since 2000. The most rapid decrease in the surface albedo has occurred in the glacial area above 6000 m, which implies that melting will likely extend to snow accumulation areas. The mass-loss equivalent (MLE) of the HKH glacial area caused by surface shortwave radiation absorption is estimated to be 10.4 Gt yr-1, which may contribute to 1.2% of the global sea level rise on annual average (2003–2009). Conclusions/Significance This work probably presents a first scene depicting the albedo variations over the whole HKH glacial area during the period 2000–2011. Most rapidly decreasing in albedo has been detected in the highest area, which deserves to be especially concerned.
National Climate Centre, China Meteorological Administration, Beijing, China;State Key Laboratory of Cryospheric Sciences, Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou, China;Snow-Ice-Aerosol Analyzing Laboratory, Beijing, China;Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences, Beijing, China;Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China;Interdisciplinary Mathematics Institute, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina, United States of America;State Key Laboratory of Cryospheric Sciences, Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou, China;State Key Laboratory of Cryospheric Sciences, Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou, China;Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences, Beijing, China;Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences, Beijing, China;State Key Laboratory of Cryospheric Sciences, Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou, China;Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences, Beijing, China;Snow-Ice-Aerosol Analyzing Laboratory, Beijing, China;State Key Laboratory of Cryospheric Sciences, Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou, China;Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences, Beijing, China;Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing, China;Snow-Ice-Aerosol Analyzing Laboratory, Beijing, China
Recommended Citation:
Jing Ming,Yaqiang Wang,Zhencai Du,et al. Widespread Albedo Decreasing and Induced Melting of Himalayan Snow and Ice in the Early 21st Century[J]. PLOS ONE,2015-01-01,10(6)