The status and decadal change of glaciers in Bhutan from the 1980s to 2010 based on satellite data. Issue 66 (2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Bajracharya, Samjwal Ratna; Maharjan, Sudan Bikash; Shrestha, Finu
• Is Part Of: Annals of glaciology. Volume 55:Issue 66(2014)
• Page Start: 159
• Page End: 166
• Publication Date: 2014
• Subjects: glacier mapping, -- mountain glaciers, -- remote sensing; Glaciology -- Periodicals; 551.3105 qA613
• DOI: 10.3189/2014AoG66A125
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0260-3055

Abstract

Abstract: In order to monitor changes in the glaciers in the Bhutan Himalaya, a repeat decadal glacier inventory was carried out from Landsat images of 1977/78 (~1980), 1990, 2000 and 2010. The base map of glaciers was obtained by the object-based image classification method using the multispectral Landsat images of 2010. This method is used separately to delineate clean-ice and debris-covered glaciers with some manual editing. Glacier polygons of 2000, 1990 and ~1980 were obtained by manual editing on 2010 by separately overlaying respective years. The 2010 inventory shows 885 glaciers with a total area of ~642 ± 16.1 km 2 . The glacier area is 1.6% of the total land cover in Bhutan. The result of a repeat inventory shows 23.3 ± 0.9% glacial area loss between ~1980 and 2010, with the highest loss (11.6 ±1.2%) between ~1980 and 1990 and the lowest (6.7 ±0.1%) between 2000 and 2010. The trend of glacier area change from the 1980s to 2010 is -6.4 ± 1.6%. Loss of glacier area was mostly observed below 5600 m a.s.l. and was greater for clean-ice glaciers. The equilibrium-line altitude has shifted upward from 5170 ± 110 m a.s.l. to 5350 ± 150 m a.s.l. in the years ~1980-2010.