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Glacier No. 4 of Sigong River over Mt. Bogda of eastern Tianshan, central Asia: thinning and retreat during the period 1962–2009

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Abstract

RTK-GPS data, aerial photographs and Aster images were used to quantify volume, surface elevation, terminus position and area changes of Glacier No. 4 of Sigong River over Mt. Bogda, Tianshan during the period from 1962 to 2009. Glacier surface elevation of the tongue area decreased by 15 ± 8 m (0.32 ± 0.17 m a−1) and ice volume loss reached 0.014 ± 0.008 km3 (0.013 ± 0.007 km3 w. e.). The glacier terminus retreated at a rate of 8.0 m a−1 and the area decreased by about 0.53 km2, accounting for 15.8% of the glacier area in 1962 (3.33 km2). The changes can be primarily attributed to the significant increase in temperature in this region. A comparison with glacier changes by field measurements in other regions of eastern Tianshan showed obvious spatial differences in the magnitude of the changes, owing to a combination of regional climate change and topographical factors.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (2010CB951003), the Knowledge Innovation Project of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (KZCX2-EW-311), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 91025012, J0630966, and Y111141001).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Cryospheric Sciences/Tian Shan Glaciological Station, Cold and Arid Region Environment and Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou, 730000, Gansu, China

    Puyu Wang, Zhongqin Li, Huilin Li, Wenbin Wang & Feiteng Wang

  2. College of Geography and Environment Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou, 730070, Gansu, China

    Min Cao

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  1. Puyu Wang
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Correspondence to Puyu Wang.

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Wang, P., Li, Z., Li, H. et al. Glacier No. 4 of Sigong River over Mt. Bogda of eastern Tianshan, central Asia: thinning and retreat during the period 1962–2009. Environ Earth Sci 66, 265–273 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-011-1236-0

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