Surging Dynamics of the ZhongFeng Glacier, Western Kunlun Mountains

IF 6.3 2区地球科学 Q1 ENGINEERING, ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONIC

IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing Pub Date : 2026-02-20 DOI:10.1109/JSTARS.2026.3665525

Yongpeng Gao;Miaomiao Qi;Jianxin Mu;Yang Liu;Chunhai Xu;Pengbin Liang

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Abstract

The Western Kunlun Mountains are a region known for a high concentration of surge-type glaciers in High Mountain Asia and have long been of interest to glaciologists. This article examines the 2021–2023 surge of the eastern branch of ZhongFeng Glacier (ZFG) and reviews the 2003–2004 surge of its western branch, utilising multisource digital elevation models, Landsat MSS/ETM+/OLI, Sentinel-2, and meteorological data. Our findings reveal that surges in both the eastern and western branches of the ZFG were initiated during the summer, with durations of 2 years and 1 year, respectively. Peak flow velocities exceeded 10 m/day, more than 50 times the velocities observed during quiescent periods. During surges, the glacier termini of the eastern and western branches thickened by 60.25 ± 3.07 m and 76.21 ± 8.05 m, respectively, corresponding to ice mass gains of 0.53 ± 0.03 km³ and 0.74 ± 0.08 km³. Based on the timing characteristics of these surges, we conclude that both branches of the ZFG are influenced by hydrological mechanisms. Furthermore, differences in surface and subglacial topography are determined to be the primary factors contributing to the asynchrony of surges between the two branches.

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西昆仑峰峰冰川的涌动动力学

西昆仑山脉是亚洲高山地区以涌浪型冰川高度集中而闻名的地区，长期以来一直是冰川学家的兴趣所在。本文利用多源数字高程模型、Landsat MSS/ETM+/OLI、Sentinel-2和气象资料，研究了中丰冰川东部分支（ZFG） 2021-2023年的浪涌，并回顾了其西部分支2003-2004年的浪涌。研究结果表明，东支和西支的涌浪都是在夏季开始的，持续时间分别为2年和1年。峰值流速超过10米/天，是静息期流速的50多倍。在涌流期间，东支和西支冰川末端分别增厚60.25±3.07 m和76.21±8.05 m，对应的冰质量增加分别为0.53±0.03 km3和0.74±0.08 km3。根据这些浪涌的时间特征，我们得出结论，ZFG的两个分支都受到水文机制的影响。此外，地表和冰下地形的差异被确定为导致两个分支之间浪涌不同步的主要因素。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing 地学-成像科学与照相技术

CiteScore

9.30

自引率

10.90%

发文量

563

审稿时长

4.7 months

期刊介绍： The IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing addresses the growing field of applications in Earth observations and remote sensing, and also provides a venue for the rapidly expanding special issues that are being sponsored by the IEEE Geosciences and Remote Sensing Society. The journal draws upon the experience of the highly successful “IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing” and provide a complementary medium for the wide range of topics in applied earth observations. The ‘Applications’ areas encompasses the societal benefit areas of the Global Earth Observations Systems of Systems (GEOSS) program. Through deliberations over two years, ministers from 50 countries agreed to identify nine areas where Earth observation could positively impact the quality of life and health of their respective countries. Some of these are areas not traditionally addressed in the IEEE context. These include biodiversity, health and climate. Yet it is the skill sets of IEEE members, in areas such as observations, communications, computers, signal processing, standards and ocean engineering, that form the technical underpinnings of GEOSS. Thus, the Journal attracts a broad range of interests that serves both present members in new ways and expands the IEEE visibility into new areas.