Estimation of glacier stored water in the Bhaga basin using laminar flow and volume-area scaling methods

Reliable estimates of glacier stored water are necessary for water resources management of Himalayan rivers. Extreme climate and rugged Himalayan terrain make it challenging to apply field methods. Therefore, the investigation used a technique based on glacier surface velocity, slope, and laminar flow law. We have estimated the stored water of 319 glaciers covering 320 +/- 16 km(2) area in the Bhaga basin. Glacier surface velocity and thickness of 64 glaciers are estimated using an open-source COSI-Corr and automated Himalayan Glacier Thickness Mapper (HIGTHIM) tool. The average surface velocity is calculated as 8 +/- 0.06 myr(-1), and the mean glacier ice thickness ranges from 28 +/- 3.8 to 82 +/- 11.2 m. We developed a new Volume-Area scaling relationship based on the estimates from the HIGTHIM tool in this work. The volume of the remaining 255 glaciers of the basin is estimated using this scaling relation. The total glacier stored water of Bhaga glaciers is estimated as 15 +/- 2.8 Gt. The technique provides better estimates of glacier stored water, providing primary input for further hydrological investigations in the Bhaga basin.

Automated summary

This study estimated the glacier stored water of 319 glaciers in the Bhaga basin in the Himalayas using a technique based on glacier surface velocity, slope, and laminar flow law, with the surface velocity and thickness of 64 glaciers estimated using the COSI-Corr and HIGTHIM tools. A new Volume-Area scaling relationship was developed, and the total glacier stored water of the Bhaga glaciers was estimated as 15 +/- 2.8 Gt, providing better estimates for further hydrological investigations in the basin.