Korean Professor Explains Causes of Accelerated Glacier Melting

Glaciers and thick snow banks in the Himalayas and on the Tibetan Plateau are precious water resources directly linked to the lives of billions of people living in the surrounding areas. Glacial ice and snow are known to be very important factors that affect climate change in Asia. But it has been recently observed that glaciers and snow in the region are melting so fast that it is impossible to explain with the idea of a greenhouse effect. So far, identifying the causes of the phenomenon that threatens the water supply in the areas has eluded academic circles.

Kim Maeng-ki, professor in the Atmospheric Science Department of the College of Natural Science at Kongju National University, finally succeeded in finding the cause. He discovered that black carbon and dirt aerosol accelerate glacier and snow melting in the region. 

Aerosols are particles of liquids and solids that are floating in the air. While floating, they pollute the air. Black carbon, also known as soot, is one type of aerosol. And it is created by the incomplete combustion of fuels and burning biomass. When the black carbon, which can easily absorb sunlight, soaks up the sun’s rays, the earth’s atmosphere is heated. The heated atmosphere causes clouds to precipitate faster. As a result, the amount of solar radiation that the surface area of the Earth receives is increased, thereby heating the ground. 

Professor Kim found that the effects of radiation and heating by black carbon hasten the timing of glacier and snow melting by pulling up warm air to the southern region of the Himalayas and Tibetan Plateau like a heat pump. 

To prove his theory, the professor applied five kinds of 3D spatio-temporal distributions of aerosols, including black carbon, to a climate model made by combining ground observation data and Earth observation satellite data. He created as accurate a model as possible using this data, and then designed two experiments. One experiment accounted for the influence of aerosols, and one did not. 

Professor Kim's research is expected to contribute to an improvement in climate change knowledge. Since carbon dioxide emissions linger for hundreds of years, it takes a very long time to see the results of CO2 reduction. In contrast, the effects of reductions in black carbon aerosol emissions can be witnessed right away. That is why the research results are expected to slow down the rate of glacier and snow melting. Furthermore, it is anticipated that the protection of water resources in the Himalayas and Tibetan Plateau will be made possible along with great improvements in climate change in the surrounding areas. 

In 2010, the study was published in scientific journal Environmental Research Letters.