image: This is an ice cliff on the lower section of Langtang Glacier in the Nepalese Himalaya. view more
Credit: PNAS
Researchers simulated the evolution of ice cliffs, which act as melt hot spots, with varying orientations on a debris-covered glacier in the Nepalese Himalaya, and report that compared with persistent north-facing cliffs, south-facing cliffs received more intense solar radiation, leading to progressive flattening of south-facing cliffs and reburial by debris, suggesting that south-facing cliffs do not persist long enough to significantly affect glacial mass balance in a region where millions of people downstream depend on glacial water sources.
Article #17-13892: "Aspect controls the survival of ice cliffs on debris-covered glaciers," by Pascal Buri and Francesca Pellicciotti.
MEDIA CONTACT: Pascal Buri, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, SWITZERLAND; tel: +41-797292641; e-mail: <pascalburi@gmail.com>, <buri@ifu.baug.ethz.ch>
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