Ice thickness, volume and subglacial topography of Urumqi Glacier No. 1, Tianshan mountains, central Asia, by ground penetrating radar survey

The results of radar survey for three times are presented, aiming to determine ice thickness, volume and subglacial topography of Urumqi Glacier No. 1, Tianshan Mountains, central Asia. Results show that the distribution of ice is more in the center and lesser at both ends of the glacier. The bedrock is quite regular with altitudes decreasing towards the ice front, showing the U-shaped subglacial valley. By comparison, typical ice thinning along the centerline of the East Branch of the glacier was 10–18 m for the period 1981–2006, reaching a maximum of ∼30 m at the terminus. The corresponding ice volume was 10296.2 × 10 ⁴ m ³, 8797.9 × 10 ⁴ m ³ and 8115.0 × 10 ⁴ m ³ in 1981, 2001 and 2006, respectively. It has decreased by 21.2% during the past 25 years, which is the direct result of glacier thinning. In the same period, the ice thickness, area and terminus decreased by 12.2%, 10.3%, and 3.6%, respectively. These changes are responses to the regional climatic warming, which show a dramatic increase of 0.6°C (10 a) ⁻¹ during the period 1981–2006.