Quantifying the controls on, influences and glaciological impacts of glacier disconnections on ice masses in the Himalaya (Op2302)

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Himalayan glaciers are thinning and receding rapidly in response to the ongoing climate change. The topography further imparts the non-linear response of these glaciers to climate change, leading to a heterogenous thinning and recession across the region. However, the alarming rate of thinning and receding in recent decades has caused detachment and disconnections between the accumulation and ablation area in many Himalayan glaciers. This trend is expected to continue as glaciers will downwaste and fragment more, given the warming rates. Disconnections between glacier's accumulation and ablation areas can lead to stagnation of glacier tongue with reduced surface velocity, increased debris cover and accelerated recession. The controls on and influence of disconnections on ice masses and ice flow dynamics are understudied in the Himalaya, and this hampers our ability to reliably predict future glacier behaviour in the region. Reliable prediction is crucial for assessing future melt water availability, sustainable water resource management and preparedness towards looming cryospheric hazards in the region. So, the main goals of my project are to quantify the climatic, glaciological, and topographic controls on glacier disconnections, to study the physical impacts of disconnections on glacier ice mass and ice flow dynamics and to quantify how widespread the issue of glacier disconnections is in the Himalayas using a combination of remote sensing methods, numerical modelling of glaciers and field-based studies.