Abstract ID: 3.13125 | Accepted as Talk | Talk | TBA | TBA

Glaciers in High Mountain Asia (HMA) play a crucial role in modulating the release of freshwater into rivers and supporting ecosystems. However, the glacier changes not only impact the water supply for the downstream area, but also alter the frequency and intensity of glacier-related hazards, such as glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs). An increasing frequency and risk of GLOFs is threatening the Asian population. In this context, glacial lake inventories benefit the disaster risk assessment and contribute to predicting glacier–lake interactions under climate change. Studies in glacial lake inventories using satellite observations have been heavily conducted in the Tibetan Plateau. However, a recent glacial lake mapping is still absent for the overall HMA, although the recent availability of Sentinel-2 satellite with a resolution of 10 m. Here we present the GLACIAL LAKE INVENTORY for the entire HMA regions based on more than 1300 images of Sentinel-2 collected during the 2022 year. A semi-automated lake mapping method have been developed and validated in order to assess and reduce the uncertainty. This study aims to present: (1) an up-to-date glacial lake inventory using Sentinel-2 images for the overall HMA; (2) the rigorous validation methodology adopted to check and reduce the uncertainty; (3) the morphological factors, derived from the Randolph Glacier Inventory (4) and the climatic parameters, considering reanalysis products. Generally, this work updates the current knowledge on distribution of glacial lakes and on factors responsible for their development in High Mountain Asia.