Sensitive response of glaciers to changing climate in the Yankti Kuti valley, Kumaon Himalaya, India, between 1990 and 2021.

This study provides the first comprehensive account of the glaciation of the Yankti Kuti valley of the upper Kali Ganga catchment of the Kumaon Himalaya, Uttarakhand. Employing multi-year satellite images from 1990 to 2021, the study investigated the loss of glacial area, ice volume, snout recession, and the changes in the equilibrium line altitude (ELA) in the Yankti Kuti Valley. The investigation showed an overall reduction of ~ 21 km2 (~ 21%) of the total glacier area of the basin. The basin witnesses an ice volume loss of ~ 23% and ~ 41 m upward shifting of the equilibrium line altitude (ELA) between 1990 and 2021. The retreat rate of the four studied glaciers shows ranges from ~ 18 to 41 m/year. The glaciers in the valley are melting at a significant rate due to global warming, giving rise to the increasing number of pro-glacial lakes in the study area from 04 in 1990 to 10 in 2021 and making them vulnerable to glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) in the future. The study, therefore, calls for continued glacier monitoring in the upper Kali Ganga catchment in order to assess the future response of the Himalayan cryosphere and to make robust quantitative assessments about the sustainable mitigation and adaptation strategies in the lower valleys.