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Climate change decisive for Asia’s snow meltwater supply

Author

Listed:
  • Philip D. A. Kraaijenbrink

    (Utrecht University)

  • Emmy E. Stigter

    (Utrecht University)

  • Tandong Yao

    (Chinese Academy of Sciences)

  • Walter W. Immerzeel

    (Utrecht University)

Abstract

Streamflow in high-mountain Asia is influenced by meltwater from snow and glaciers, and determining impacts of climate change on the region’s cryosphere is essential to understand future water supply. Past and future changes in seasonal snow are of particular interest, as specifics at the scale of the full region are largely unknown. Here we combine models with observations to show that regional snowmelt is a more important contributor to streamflow than glacier melt, that snowmelt magnitude and timing changed considerably during 1979–2019 and that future snow meltwater supply may decrease drastically. The expected changes are strongly dependent on the degree of climate change, however, and large variations exist among river basins. The projected response of snowmelt to climate change indicates that to sustain the important seasonal buffering role of the snowpacks in high-mountain Asia, it is imperative to limit future climate change.

Suggested Citation

  • Philip D. A. Kraaijenbrink & Emmy E. Stigter & Tandong Yao & Walter W. Immerzeel, 2021. "Climate change decisive for Asia’s snow meltwater supply," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 11(7), pages 591-597, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcli:v:11:y:2021:i:7:d:10.1038_s41558-021-01074-x
    DOI: 10.1038/s41558-021-01074-x
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    Cited by:

    1. Dalei Hao & Gautam Bisht & Hailong Wang & Donghui Xu & Huilin Huang & Yun Qian & L. Ruby Leung, 2023. "A cleaner snow future mitigates Northern Hemisphere snowpack loss from warming," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-10, December.
    2. Tong Cui & Yukun Li & Long Yang & Yi Nan & Kunbiao Li & Mahmut Tudaji & Hongchang Hu & Di Long & Muhammad Shahid & Ammara Mubeen & Zhihua He & Bin Yong & Hui Lu & Chao Li & Guangheng Ni & Chunhong Hu , 2023. "Non-monotonic changes in Asian Water Towers’ streamflow at increasing warming levels," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-9, December.
    3. Umirbekov, Atabek & Essery, Richard & Müller, Daniel, 2024. "GEMS v1.0: Generalizable Empirical Model of Snow Accumulation and Melt, based on daily snow mass changes in response to climate and topographic drivers," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 17(2), pages 911-929.
    4. Zappalà, Guglielmo, 2024. "Adapting to climate change accounting for individual beliefs," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 169(C).
    5. Tafone, Alessio & Raj Thangavelu, Sundar & Morita, Shigenori & Romagnoli, Alessandro, 2023. "Design optimization of a novel cryo-polygeneration demonstrator developed in Singapore – Techno-economic feasibility study for a cooling dominated tropical climate," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 330(PB).
    6. Zhili Wang & Yadong Lei & Huizheng Che & Bo Wu & Xiaoye Zhang, 2024. "Aerosol forcing regulating recent decadal change of summer water vapor budget over the Tibetan Plateau," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-9, December.

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