Publication Name

Glacier cumulative mass balance

Metres of water equivalent

5

0

Glacier thickness chang

Measured over different time ranges for each glacier

-5

25 Metres*

-10

-15

-20

Arctic Europe Andes

-25

Asia High Mountains Northwest USA and Southwest Canada Alaska and Coast Mountains Patagonia

-30

20

-35

-40

1960

1970

1980

1990

2000 2003

Source: Dyurgerov, M; Meier, M (2005) Glaciersand thechangingearthsystem:a2004snapshot . Boulder: Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, University of Colorado

15

Temperature increased more in high altitude regions Plateau of Tibet

Temperature increase, ºC 1961–1990

10

Thickness reduction

0.30

Thickness increase

0.25

0.20

5

0.15

Elevation Metres

0.10

0 1 000 3 000 6 000

0.05

0

0m

1 000m

2 000m

3 000m

4 000m

Glacier

* Measures the geodetic thickness change between survey and reference year in metres of ice equivalent 0

Elevation

Source: Liu, X; Chen, B (2000) ‘ClimateWarming in theTibetan Plateau During Recent Decades’ InternationalJournalofClimatology 20: 1729–1742

41