New
Scientist: The Gravity Recovery And Climate Experiment
(GRACE) is a pair of satellites traveling above Earth in the
same orbit but 220 km apart. By accurately measuring changes in
the satellites' separation, GRACE can determine tiny variations
in Earth's gravity.
Walter Immerzeel of Utrecht University in the Netherlands and
his collaborators have used GRACE data to monitor the changing
thickness of Himalayan glaciers that feed five long and
powerful rivers of South and Southeast Asia: the Indus,
Brahmaputra, Ganges, Yangtze, and Yellow rivers. In the seven
years covered by the study (2001–7), only the glaciers
that feed the Ganges thinned appreciably. On the other hand, if
Earth continues to warm, Immerzeel predicts that all five
rivers will carry significantly less water downstream in the
coming decades.
Walter Immerzeel of Utrecht University in the Netherlands and
his collaborators have used GRACE data to monitor the changing
thickness of Himalayan glaciers that feed five long and
powerful rivers of South and Southeast Asia: the Indus,
Brahmaputra, Ganges, Yangtze, and Yellow rivers. In the seven
years covered by the study (2001–7), only the glaciers
that feed the Ganges thinned appreciably. On the other hand, if
Earth continues to warm, Immerzeel predicts that all five
rivers will carry significantly less water downstream in the
coming decades.
