- 1Technical University of Denmark, National Space Institute, Geodesy and Earth Observation, Copenhagen, Denmark (javed@space.dtu.dk, karni@space.dtu.dk, abbas@space.dtu.dk)
- 2Department of Glaciology and Climate, Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland, Denmark (wic@geus.dk)
- 3Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Himalayan Cryosphere, Climate and Disaster Research Center (HiCCDRC), School of Science, Kathmandu University, Nepal (rijan@ku.edu.np)
- 4Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA (Mirakhadka01@gmail.com)
High-altitude lakes across High Mountain Asia (HMA) are one of the critical freshwater reservoirs and sensitive indicators of climate change due to their remote locations and limited human disturbances. However, the ongoing climate change and enhanced glacier melt represent a substantial risk of outburst floods. We present an updated estimate of changes in water level of 239 lakes across HMA from 2010 to 2023 using satellite altimetry data from the CryoSat-2 mission. Examining lake levels, we observe a decline until 2015, followed by a rapid increase until 2023. About 42% of the lakes located above 4000 m a.s.l. are within glaciated catchments. Increased lake levels are particularly notable in glaciated catchments by 0.22 ± 0.01 m a-1, which is slightly faster than those in non-glaciated catchments (0.17 ± 0.01 m a-1). Elevated lake levels in glaciated catchments enhance the risk of glacial outburst floods.
How to cite: Hassan, J., Nielsen, K., Colgan, W., Kayastha, R., Khadka, M., and Khan, S.: Rising Lake Levels Across High Mountain Asia, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-7485, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-7485, 2025.
