Karayaylak glacier changes in the Kongur Mountain of eastern Pamir between 1973 and 2016 based on active and passive remote sensing technologies

doi:10.6046/gtzyyg.2020.02.21

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Abstract

Located on the northern slope of Kongur Mountains, Karayaylak glacier surged in May 2015. For the purpose of obtaining the glacier surface elevation changes of the Karayaylak glacier from 1973 to 2016, the authors used the 1973 Keyhole satellite optical remote sensing data, the US SRTM DEM data in 2000, and the TanDEM-X bistatic SAR data in 2013 and 2016. The results show that, from 1973 to 2013, there was no obvious elevation change; from 2013 to 2016, clear surface thickening was observed at the terminus of the west branch, whereas a relatively obvious glacial surface elevation thinning was detected in the upper part of the glacier. Landsat OLI image from 2013 to 2015 were employed to monitor the change of glacier surface velocities. The distributions and changes of the glacier surface velocities indicate that the western tributary of Karayaylak glacier moved faster than any other tributaries. According to the comprehensive analysis, it is considered that there is no obvious advance or retreat trend at the terminus of the glacier before glacier surge, and the flow velocity of the glacier has changed greatly. In addition, combined with the results of meteorological data, it is believed that the glacial surge has little to do with local climate change. The main reason for the surge is probably attributed to the structural change of the glacier itself.

Keywords Karayaylak glacier glacier surge active and passive remote sensing glacier elevation change glacier flow velocity

:	P228
	P343.6

Corresponding Authors: Liming JIANG E-mail: jlm@whigg.ac.cn

Issue Date: 18 June 2020

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	Lili FENG
	Liming JIANG
	Lin LIU
	Yafei SUN

Cite this article:

Lili FENG,Liming JIANG,Lin LIU, et al. Karayaylak glacier changes in the Kongur Mountain of eastern Pamir between 1973 and 2016 based on active and passive remote sensing technologies[J]. Remote Sensing for Land & Resources, 2020, 32(2): 162-169.

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https://www.gtzyyg.com/EN/10.6046/gtzyyg.2020.02.21 OR https://www.gtzyyg.com/EN/Y2020/V32/I2/162

Fig.1 Study area and distribution of remote sensing data

Tab.1 Data used in this study

Tab.2 Parameter list of TanDEM-X bistatic InSAR

Fig.2 Flowchart of TanDEM-X DEM generation

Fig.3 Flow chart of KH-9 DEM generation

Fig.4 Elevation difference of the Karayaylak glacier in 1973—2000,2000—2013 and 2013—2016

Fig.5 Changes in the terminus of the west branch of the Karayaylak glacier from 1972 to 2016

Fig.6 Average surface flow velocities of the Karayaylak glacier from 2013 to 2015

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