Thinning and shrinkage of Laohugou No. 12 glacier in the Western Qilian Mountains, China, from 1957 to 2007

Landsat images, real-time kinematic GPS measurements, and topographic maps were used to determine changes in ice elevation, volume, and areal extent of the Laohugou No. 12 glacier (Qilian Mountains, China) between 1957 and 2007. The glacier experienced significant thinning and areal shrinkage in the ablation zone, but slight thickening in part of the accumulation zone. Elevation decreased by 18.6±5.4 m between 1957 and 2007 in the regions covered by the GPS measurements. The total volume loss for the entire glacier was estimated to be 0.218 km3 using a third-order polynomial fit method. The area diminished by 0.28 km2 between 1957 and 1994, 0.26 km2 between 1994 and 2000, and 0.28 km2 between 2000 and 2007, suggesting that the rate of loss in glacial coverage has increased since the mid-1990s. Significant increases in annual mean air temperature may have contributed to shrinkage and thinning of the glacier.     

Discovery of an ice cave in the Yatude Valley, Langhovde, Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica

A circular hole was discovered on the downstream side of a glacier dam in the Yatude Valley, Langhovde, East Antarctica, during the 2005–2006 austral summer. The opening of this hole is the first opportunity enabling us to observe the interior of the dam. The opening led to a large cave in the dam, raising the possibility of meltwater drainage through the dam. The Yatude Valley is an approximately U-shaped fluvial valley. The valley floor has been incised to form a box-shaped inner valley that contains fluvial terraces and large boulders upon the valley floor. The origin of these features can be explained by a large amount of running water; however, we consider it unlikely that a regular current has flowed through this site for a long period. Instead, it is more likely that large quantities of lake water have been periodically discharged due to collapse of the glacier dam or spilling out through a tunnel channel within the cave. The discovered hole and the ice cave are key features in understanding the historical development of the Yatude Valley in relation to the melting history of the Antarctic ice sheet.     

1968-2009年叶尔羌河流域冰川变化——基于第一、二次中国冰川编目数据

利用"中国冰川资源及其变化调查"项目最新冰川编目成果和中国第一次冰川编目结果, 对中国叶尔羌河流域1968-2009年冰川变化进行了分析. 结果表明:叶尔羌河流域冰川总体上处于退缩状态, 面积减少了927 km², 年平均面积减少23.2 km², 年均面积缩小比例为0.36%·a^-1, 与中国其他地区冰川退缩程度相比属于中等水平. 叶尔羌河流域不同规模冰川的退缩幅度存在差异, 小冰川大幅萎缩, 甚至消失; 规模较大的冰川相对变化幅度较小, 一些冰川出现过跃动. 从朝向分布来看, 位于南坡的冰川退缩最为严重, 而西坡较小. 冰川集中分布在海拔5 100~5 500 m和5 500~5 900 m区间, 海拔4 700~5 100 m区间的冰川面积减少最为显著. 消失冰川大多数为面积在0.2~0.5 km²的小冰川, 且朝向东北坡的冰川消失数量最多. 研究区有冰川分裂现象, 也出现了支冰川前进超覆现象, 统计表明该流域有13条冰川在前进后形成6条冰川. 1968-2009年研究区气温升高、降水增加, 总体上看, 降水增加缓解了因升温而导致的冰川退缩.     

东南极达尔克冰川表面运动速度特征研究

2007-2012年,在东南极达尔克冰川实施了18期空间方向交会观测,解算得到了冰川的运动规律:其整体平均运动速度为0.41 m·d^-1,平均流向的方位角为7.01°;总的来说,其冬季和夏季的流速基本相当,但冰川前缘附近的运动在冬季显得更为活跃;冰川横截面上从边缘到中心,流速逐渐增大,流速最大的点出现在冰川中轴线上,流速最小的点则出现在边界附近;沿冰川流动方向,从上游至入海口,流速亦逐渐增大,冰川前缘流速最大,此处有较多的冰裂缝发育.与之前的遥感研究结果相比较,冰川运动比较稳定,流速未发现显著变化.     

Petrogenesis and geodynamic setting of the Triassic granitoid plutons in West Qinling,China: insights from LA-ICP-MS zircon U–Pb ages,Lu–Hf isotope signatures and geochemical characteristics of the Zhongchuan pluton

West Qinling is one of the most important parts of the Qinling orogenic belt and includes acidic–intermediate plutons and many types of ore deposits. In this article, we collected geochemical and geochronological data for the Triassic granitoid plutons of West Qinling and found that nearly all plutons share the similar features with the Zhongchuan pluton. We present new laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) zircon U–Pb ages, major and trace element geochemistry, and zircon Hf isotope systematics for the granites of the Zhongchuan pluton to elucidate the evolution of granitoid plutons in West Qinling during the Triassic. LA-ICP-MS zircon U–Pb dating indicates that the Xujiaba and Guandigou units formed at 220.1 ± 1.2 and 215.9 ± 0.85 Ma, respectively, reflecting the time of the Late Triassic. The rocks of the Zhongchuan pluton are metaluminous to weakly peraluminous and have a high-K calc-alkaline to shoshonite series with high SiO₂ (63.59–76.22%) and low P₂O₅ (0–0.2%) concentrations, a high K₂O/Na₂O ratio (1.18–17.92), a high differentiation index (78.45–93.04) and a medium A/CNK ratio (0.98–1.69). The zircon Hf isotope dating indicates that the Xujiaba and Guandigou units have an inhomogeneous ε_Hf(t) (?4.425 to 1.067 for Xujiaba and ?4.920 to 2.042 for Guandigou) and two-stage Hf model ages (1123–1531 Ma for Xujiaba and 1115–2342 Ma for Guandigou). The geochemical and isotopic data imply that the granites of each unit share the same origin. They probably derived from the partial melt of metagreywackes and then mixed with the mantle-derived magma. Based on the regional geological history, petrographic characteristics and new geochemical and isotopic data of the Zhongchuan pluton, we suggest that the Triassic magma was derived from the partial melts of metagreywackes and was influenced by the mantle-derived melt during the collision of the Yangtze and Qinling plates.     

玉龙雪山景区游客分布特征分析

基于2001~2009年玉龙雪山景区索道接待人次数据,从客流量的年度变化、季度变化、黄金周变化等方面分析了景区客流时空分布特征。主要结果如下:(1)景区客流量随着时间变化呈逐年上升的趋势且增幅明显;(2)夏季为玉龙雪山景区的旺季,冬季为淡季,景区内部各景点季节性差异大小为:牦牛坪冰川公园云杉坪。(3)黄金周客流量变化呈"单峰"型,中期人数最多;最大日客流量为年内日平均客流量的2.43倍。各景点"五一"、"十一"客流分布集中程度相似,牦牛坪的变化程度最大,冰川公园最小。(4)景区客流量空间分布集中程度高,主要集中于云杉坪和冰川公园。     

近45年来托木尔峰青冰滩72号冰川变化特征

基于天山托木尔峰青冰滩72号冰川2008年高精度差分GPS测量资料,2009年末端重复测量数据以及1964年地形图,通过对比研究近45 a来该冰川的变化特征,结果表明:1964~2009年,青冰滩72号冰川末端退缩1 852 m,年均后退41 m,由此造成面积减少约为1.53 km²,年均减少0.03 km²;1964~2008年,冰舌平均减薄9.59±6 m,年均减薄约0.22±0.14 m,冰储量亏损达14.1±8.8×10^-3 km³(12.7±7.9×10^-3 km³ w.e.)。与天山其它区域典型监测冰川相比,青冰滩72号冰川消融强烈,是区域气候、末端海拔、冰川类型、表碛覆盖等因素综合影响的结果。     

Chemical characteristics and environmental significance of fresh snow deposition on Urumqi Glacier No. 1 of Tianshan Mountains, China

Ice and snow chemistry of alpine glaciers is crucial for the research of regional atmospheric environment change. Fresh snow samples were weekly collected from Urumqi Glacier No.1 in the Tianshan Mountains, Xin- jiang, China, and the chemical characteristics and seasonal variations of major ions, mineral dust, δ18O and trace metals were measured. Results show that the concentrations of major ions in the snow are Ca2+ SO42- NH4+ NO3- Cl- Na+ Mg2+ K+, in which Ca2+ is the dominant cation, and SO42-is the dominant anion. All major ions have close positive correlations with each other except NO3-. δ18O shows positive correlation with air temperature change during the study period. Mineral dust particle and major ionic concentrations in fresh snow have obvious seasonal change, with high concentration in spring but low concentration in summer and autumn, which indicates that the chemical mass input from Asian dust activity to snow is very significant. Temporal changes of trace metals in fresh snow, e.g., Cd, Pb, Zn, Al, Fe, have shown that human-induced pollution of central Asian region also has large contribution to the snow chemistry on alpine glaciers of the Tianshan Mountains.     

10Be surface-exposure age dating of the Last Glacial Maximum in the northern Pamir (Tajikistan)

Knowledge of the spatial and temporal variations in Alpine glaciations is essential for reconstructing the regional and global timing of ice ages. This study investigates glacial deposits at the mouth of the Muksu catchment in the northern Pamir using ¹⁰Be surface-exposure age dating. We sampled boulders from the furthest downstream recessional moraine (20 samples) and five lateral moraines (41 samples) near the former terminus of the Fedchenko Glacier, the longest (∼72 km) present-day Alpine glacier of the Pamir. After the identification of outliers, the boulder population of the recessional moraine yielded a mean exposure age of 17.5 ± 1.9 ka. The maximum exposure age of the lateral moraines, collected ∼5 km up-valley of the recessional moraine, is 18.2 ± 1.7 ka. The boulder ages reflect glacial deposition during the Last Glacial Maximum (Marine Isotope Stage 2) in the region; they are in accordance with published glacial deposition ages in the western Tian Shan.