Brief communication: An approximately 50&thinsp;Mm<sup>3</sup> ice-rock avalanche on 22 March 2021 in the Sedongpu valley, southeastern Tibetan Plateau

C. Zhao; C. Zhao; W. Yang; W. Yang; M. Westoby; B. An; B. An; G. Wu; G. Wu; G. Wu; W. Wang; W. Wang; Z. Wang; Y. Wang; Y. Wang; S. Dunning

doi:10.5194/tc-16-1333-2022

The Cryosphere (Apr 2022)

Brief communication: An approximately 50 Mm<sup>3</sup> ice-rock avalanche on 22 March 2021 in the Sedongpu valley, southeastern Tibetan Plateau

C. Zhao,
C. Zhao,
W. Yang,
W. Yang,
M. Westoby,
B. An,
B. An,
G. Wu,
G. Wu,
G. Wu,
W. Wang,
W. Wang,
Z. Wang,
Y. Wang,
Y. Wang,
S. Dunning

Affiliations

C. Zhao: Key Laboratory of Tibetan Environment Changes and Land Surface Processes, Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
C. Zhao: College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China
W. Yang: Key Laboratory of Tibetan Environment Changes and Land Surface Processes, Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
W. Yang: CAS Center for Excellence in Tibetan Plateau Earth Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
M. Westoby: Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 8ST, UK
B. An: Key Laboratory of Tibetan Environment Changes and Land Surface Processes, Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
B. An: School of Science, Tibet University, Lhasa 850011, China
G. Wu: Key Laboratory of Tibetan Environment Changes and Land Surface Processes, Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
G. Wu: CAS Center for Excellence in Tibetan Plateau Earth Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
G. Wu: South-East Tibetan Plateau station for integrated observation and research of alpine environment, Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lulang 860100, China, Lulang, China
W. Wang: Key Laboratory of Tibetan Environment Changes and Land Surface Processes, Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
W. Wang: CAS Center for Excellence in Tibetan Plateau Earth Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
Z. Wang: Key Laboratory of Tibetan Environment Changes and Land Surface Processes, Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
Y. Wang: Key Laboratory of Tibetan Environment Changes and Land Surface Processes, Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
Y. Wang: South-East Tibetan Plateau station for integrated observation and research of alpine environment, Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lulang 860100, China, Lulang, China
S. Dunning: School of Geography, Politics and Sociology, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU, UK

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-1333-2022
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 16
pp. 1333 – 1340

Abstract

Read online

On 22 March 2021, an approximately 50 Mm3 ice-rock avalanche occurred from 6500 m a.s.l. in the Sedongpu basin, southeastern Tibet. The avalanche transformed into a highly mobile mass flow which temporarily blocked the Yarlung Tsangpo river. The avalanche flow lasted ∼ 5 min and produced substantial geomorphological reworking. This event, and previous ones from the basin, occurred concurrently with, or shortly after, positive seasonal air temperature anomalies. The occurrence of future large mass flows from the basin cannot be ruled out, and their impacts must be carefully considered given implications for sustainable hydropower and associated socioeconomic development in the region.

Published in The Cryosphere

ISSN: 1994-0416 (Print); 1994-0424 (Online)
Publisher: Copernicus Publications
Country of publisher: Germany
LCC subjects: Geography. Anthropology. Recreation: Environmental sciences; Science: Geology
Website: http://www.the-cryosphere.net/

About the journal