A Himalayan Time Bomb Is Ticking

The glaciers of the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) form part of the largest concentrations of snow and ice outside the polar realms, earning the name ‘Third Pole’. We look at seven of them in our neighbourhood.

Climate Change: Clear And Present Danger

Climate change poses a significant threat to glaciers in the HKH region.

Though scientists and researchers are investigating the root cause of the Nepal disaster that has killed over a thousand people, the amount of data they have collected over the years point towards climate change as the trigger.

SCROLL TO DISCOVER

7 Regions Of Hindu Kush Himalaya In And Around India

SECTOR 01 / 07

Hindu Kush

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Area 3.2 lakh sqkm

Glaciers 5,071

Largest 99 sqkm

It contributes to a total glacier area of 3,001 sqkm. The average glacier size is 0.59 sqkm. The region is at an elevation of 300 to 7,708 metres above sea level.

SECTOR 02 / 07

Karakoram

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Area 63,474 sqkm

Glaciers 9,067

Largest 1,007 sqkm

Despite a smaller total area of 63,474 sqkm, it holds the largest glacier area at 14,653 sqkm, representing 26.27% of the listed total.

SECTOR 03 / 07

Western Himalaya

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Area 1.8 lakh sqkm

Glaciers 12,575

Largest 113 sqkm

This region has the highest glacier count among the seven areas at 12,575. They cover 7,878 sqkm across a total regional landmass of 186,678 sqkm.

SECTOR 04 / 07

Tibetan Interior Mountains

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Area 5.16 lakh sqkm

Glaciers 3,413

Largest 50 sqkm

This region has 3,413 glaciers spanning an area of 3,702 sqkm. It also has a high baseline elevation from 3,574 to 6,751 metres above sea level.

GROUND ZERO

Central Himalaya

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Area 2.5 lakh sqkm

Glaciers 8,722

Largest 125 sqkm

Central Himalaya Disaster Telemetry Infographic

SECTOR 06 / 07

Eastern Himalaya

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Area 1.6 lakh sqkm

Glaciers 3,401

Largest 81 sqkm

The glacier elevations are situated at high altitudes here, ranging from 3,032 to 8,091 metres above sea level. The total glacier size is 2,996 sqkm.

SECTOR 07 / 07

Eastern Tibetan Mountains

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Area 3.30 lakh sqkm

Glaciers 580

Largest 20 sqkm

This area has the lowest glacier count of the seven, holding just 580 glaciers over 299 sqkm out of the total 3.30 lakh sqkm. The largest glacier in this sector measures 20 sqkm.

DISASTER RESPONSE & READINESS

How Prepared Are We?

Studies show the HKH region has been warming at an average rate of 0.2 degree Celsius every decade for the last 50 years. Snow cover has also reduced across the HKH since the early 21st century.

The reduction in snowfall coupled with rising temperatures has implications for a glacier’s mass balance - which is the balance between the amount of accumulated and melted ice. What it means is glaciers are invaluable natural indicators of climate change.

Hence, the Nepal disaster that is being increasingly linked to melting glaciers is the biggest example of the horrors the world faces due to climate change.

Severe flash floods and landslides triggered by a low-pressure system over the Bay of Bengal have affected 35 of Nepal’s 77 districts. The Bagmati River in Kathmandu reached a 30-year peak at 14.8m, inundating Pashupatinath temple precincts. Army helicopters conducted 47 rescue sorties, evacuating 612 people from rooftops in Sindhupalchowk.

AFTER 10 DAYS

On The Ground

Nepal Trishuli 3A tunnel rescue operation

ROSHAN MIJAR, CLASS 7, ROLL NUMBER 31

The textbooks bear the name of this boy who studied at Shri Bageshwari Secondary School. A plastic ruler was found wedged between two leaves of the book, perhaps to mark where his teacher ended her last class. Inside the bag were two pens and a lunch to be eaten during recess. His fate is unknown. He might have been lucky to reach safety, or he might have become a statistic - dead or missing. But one thing can be said for sure - he suffered, like the rest of Nepal.

THE CRITICAL QUESTION

Nepal Was A Warning. Is India Ready For The Next Himalayan Disaster?

The Third Pole, which includes a large chunk of India’s mountainous regions, is warming at an unprecedented rate. What happens to its ice won’t stay in the mountains. It will decide the fate of 1.49 billion people downstream.