Scientific article
English

Synergistic analysis of satellite, unmanned aerial vehicle, terrestrial laser scanner data and process-based modelling for understanding the dynamics and morphological changes around the snout of Gangotri Glacier, India

Published inGeomorphology, vol. 396, no. 108005
Publication date2022-01
Abstract

The glaciated areas of the Himalaya often experience mass movement, glacial lake outburst flood and other associated hazards, posing threat to the communities and infrastructure in the downstream areas. A large debris flow occurred during July 16–19, 2017 near the present snout of the Gangotri Glacier in the Garhwal Himalaya, India resulting in significant geomorphological changes in the vicinity. The present study assesses the applicability of multi-source remote sensing data from satellites, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and terrestrial laser scanner (TLS) along with process-based modelling to understand and quantify glacier snout dynamics and morphological changes around Gangotri Glacier in the Garhwal Himalaya of India.Weshow that retreat rates of Gangotri Glacier snout along the lateral flow lines are (left flowline 29.6m year−1; right flowline 60.5 m year−1) are significantly higher compared to the central flow line (18.2myear−1) during2010–2020 leading to total loss in glacial ice area of 0.11 ± 0.015 km2. The snout dynamics and evolution of the new channel from the terminus of the adjoining Meru Glacier, connecting the moraine-dammed glacial lake and the Bhagirathi River, suggest that retreat of the Gangotri Glacier, intense precipitation and excessive seepage from the glacial lake were the important drivers of the debris flow in July 2017. The accumulated debris occupied an area of ~0.25 km2 near the snout of the Gangotri Glacier and shifted Bhagirathi River by 36–200 ± 9.35m towards northeast. The synergistic analysis of pre- and post-event satellite, UAV and TLS-based digital elevation models (DEMs) and satellite images indicate that about −8±0.066Å~106m3 of sediments were generated by the debris flow. The results from remote sensing data suggest that a significant portion (~60%) of the deposited debris has been transported to the downstream areas between July 16–19, 2017 and October 2, 2017. Regular monitoring of the area is recommended, especially in light of climate change using earth observation data and ground measurements. The multi-source integrated framework implemented in this study is generic and can be applied for any debris flow or landslide studies in glaciated terrain.

Keywords
  • Gangotri Glacier
  • Debris flow
  • Remote sensing
  • UAV
  • Terrestrial laser scanning
  • Rapid mass movement simulation
Citation (ISO format)
DHOTE, Pankaj R. et al. Synergistic analysis of satellite, unmanned aerial vehicle, terrestrial laser scanner data and process-based modelling for understanding the dynamics and morphological changes around the snout of Gangotri Glacier, India. In: Geomorphology, 2022, vol. 396. doi: 10.1016/j.geomorph.2021.108005
Main files (1)
Article (Published version)
accessLevelRestricted
Identifiers
Journal ISSN0169-555X
182views
0downloads

Technical informations

Creation21/02/2023 14:06:00
First validation21/02/2023 14:06:00
Update16/03/2023 10:40:15
Status update16/03/2023 10:40:15
Last indexation01/11/2024 04:17:18
All rights reserved by Archive ouverte UNIGE and the University of GenevaunigeBlack