Central Himalayan tree-ring isotopes reveal increasing regional heterogeneity and enhancement in ice mass loss since the 1960s
Tree-ring δ 18 O values are a sensitive proxy for regional physical climate, while their δ 13 C values are a strong predictor of local ecohydrology. Utilizing available ice-core and tree-ring δ 18 O records from the central Himalaya (CH), we found an increase in east–west climate heterogeneity since...
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ftcopernicus:oai:publications.copernicus.org:tc85444 2023-05-15T16:39:11+02:00 Central Himalayan tree-ring isotopes reveal increasing regional heterogeneity and enhancement in ice mass loss since the 1960s Singh, Nilendu Shekhar, Mayank Singh, Jayendra Gupta, Anil K. Bräuning, Achim Mayr, Christoph Singhal, Mohit 2021-01-06 application/pdf https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-95-2021 https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/15/95/2021/ eng eng doi:10.5194/tc-15-95-2021 https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/15/95/2021/ eISSN: 1994-0424 Text 2021 ftcopernicus https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-95-2021 2021-01-11T17:22:14Z Tree-ring δ 18 O values are a sensitive proxy for regional physical climate, while their δ 13 C values are a strong predictor of local ecohydrology. Utilizing available ice-core and tree-ring δ 18 O records from the central Himalaya (CH), we found an increase in east–west climate heterogeneity since the 1960s. Further, δ 13 C records from transitional western glaciated valleys provide a robust basis for reconstructing about 3 centuries of glacier mass balance (GMB) dynamics. We reconstructed annually resolved GMB since 1743 CE based on regionally dominant tree species of diverse plant functional types. Three major phases became apparent: positive GMB up to the mid-19th century, the middle phase (1870–1960) of slightly negative but stable GMB, and an exponential ice mass loss since the 1960s. Reasons for accelerated mass loss are largely attributed to anthropogenic climate change, including concurrent alterations in atmospheric circulations (weakening of the westerlies and the Arabian Sea branch of the Indian summer monsoon). Multi-decadal isotopic and climate coherency analyses specify an eastward declining influence of the westerlies in the monsoon-dominated CH region. Besides, our study provides a long-term context for recent GMB variability, which is essential for its reliable projection and attribution. Text ice core Copernicus Publications: E-Journals Indian The Cryosphere 15 1 95 112 |
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Copernicus Publications: E-Journals |
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ftcopernicus |
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English |
description |
Tree-ring δ 18 O values are a sensitive proxy for regional physical climate, while their δ 13 C values are a strong predictor of local ecohydrology. Utilizing available ice-core and tree-ring δ 18 O records from the central Himalaya (CH), we found an increase in east–west climate heterogeneity since the 1960s. Further, δ 13 C records from transitional western glaciated valleys provide a robust basis for reconstructing about 3 centuries of glacier mass balance (GMB) dynamics. We reconstructed annually resolved GMB since 1743 CE based on regionally dominant tree species of diverse plant functional types. Three major phases became apparent: positive GMB up to the mid-19th century, the middle phase (1870–1960) of slightly negative but stable GMB, and an exponential ice mass loss since the 1960s. Reasons for accelerated mass loss are largely attributed to anthropogenic climate change, including concurrent alterations in atmospheric circulations (weakening of the westerlies and the Arabian Sea branch of the Indian summer monsoon). Multi-decadal isotopic and climate coherency analyses specify an eastward declining influence of the westerlies in the monsoon-dominated CH region. Besides, our study provides a long-term context for recent GMB variability, which is essential for its reliable projection and attribution. |
format |
Text |
author |
Singh, Nilendu Shekhar, Mayank Singh, Jayendra Gupta, Anil K. Bräuning, Achim Mayr, Christoph Singhal, Mohit |
spellingShingle |
Singh, Nilendu Shekhar, Mayank Singh, Jayendra Gupta, Anil K. Bräuning, Achim Mayr, Christoph Singhal, Mohit Central Himalayan tree-ring isotopes reveal increasing regional heterogeneity and enhancement in ice mass loss since the 1960s |
author_facet |
Singh, Nilendu Shekhar, Mayank Singh, Jayendra Gupta, Anil K. Bräuning, Achim Mayr, Christoph Singhal, Mohit |
author_sort |
Singh, Nilendu |
title |
Central Himalayan tree-ring isotopes reveal increasing regional heterogeneity and enhancement in ice mass loss since the 1960s |
title_short |
Central Himalayan tree-ring isotopes reveal increasing regional heterogeneity and enhancement in ice mass loss since the 1960s |
title_full |
Central Himalayan tree-ring isotopes reveal increasing regional heterogeneity and enhancement in ice mass loss since the 1960s |
title_fullStr |
Central Himalayan tree-ring isotopes reveal increasing regional heterogeneity and enhancement in ice mass loss since the 1960s |
title_full_unstemmed |
Central Himalayan tree-ring isotopes reveal increasing regional heterogeneity and enhancement in ice mass loss since the 1960s |
title_sort |
central himalayan tree-ring isotopes reveal increasing regional heterogeneity and enhancement in ice mass loss since the 1960s |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-95-2021 https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/15/95/2021/ |
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Indian |
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Indian |
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ice core |
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ice core |
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eISSN: 1994-0424 |
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doi:10.5194/tc-15-95-2021 https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/15/95/2021/ |
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https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-95-2021 |
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The Cryosphere |
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1766029519709274112 |