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The recent disaster in Nepal, where a hanging glacier collapsed, has prompted India to increase its monitoring of glacial lakes and hanging glaciers in the region. Uttarakhand, one of India's most ecologically sensitive states, shares a border with Nepal and has 1,266 glacial lakes, prompting officials to take action to prevent a similar catastrophe.
A hanging glacier is a mass of ice that sits on a steep mountain slope, having become detached from the larger glacier it once belonged to. This instability makes them inherently vulnerable, as they continually shed ice through small avalanches. When enough ice breaks away at once, the result can be catastrophic, sending a mass of ice and rock racing down the mountainside under gravity.
Jeffrey Kargel, a senior scientist at the Planetary Science Institute, explained that the glacier that collapsed in Nepal appears to have been exactly this kind of formation. He noted that the retreating ice lost the physical support that had previously held its lower section in place, "leaving it 'hanging' and susceptible to this collapse event."
A study published in the journal *npj Natural Hazards* in April found hundreds of glaciers across the Indian Himalayas already meet this definition. The study, led by researchers at the Indian Institute of Science and IIT Bhubaneswar, identified 219 hanging glaciers in the Alaknanda basin of Uttarakhand's Garhwal Himalayas alone, covering more than 71 square km.
The glaciers sit on slopes averaging 33 degrees, and a separate assessment has identified at least 858 hanging glaciers along India's roughly 2,500-kilometre stretch of the Himalayas. When one of these glaciers breaks away, the ice and rock it sheds can pick up further rock, snow, and sediment as it travels downhill, potentially damming rivers and causing devastating floods.
The study's simulations found that an avalanche in Uttarakhand's Badrinath-Mana sector could reach flow heights of more than 50 meters, enough to overwhelm major settlements and infrastructure. The risk in this specific basin is projected to grow sharply over the coming years, with the number of people living in exposed areas expected to climb significantly.
"These findings highlight the need for targeted monitoring and risk-informed planning," the study's authors wrote. Pam Pearson, director of the International Cryosphere Climate Initiative, echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the importance of monitoring such "hanging glaciers" closely to provide better warnings to vulnerable downstream communities.
"This will require much greater funding of monitoring programs, but such funding is small compared to the costs of loss of life and livelihoods," Pearson told the *Indian Express*. She also argued that the disaster should serve as a "wake-up call" on the need to move away from fossil fuels, suggesting that the economic cost of a rapid transition would be far smaller than the continued toll of disasters, droughts, and heatwaves linked to warming climates.
The incident in Nepal has underscored the urgency of addressing the risks posed by hanging glaciers and the potential for catastrophic events. As climate change continues to impact the Himalayas, it is crucial for countries in the region to collaborate and enhance their monitoring efforts to mitigate these risks and protect the lives and livelihoods of their citizens.
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