NEW DELHI, July 15: A new study has suggested that snowfall across the Himalayas may have been significantly underestimated for years, with researchers finding that previous analyses underestimated seasonal snowfall by 37 per cent over the Lake Hampta region in Himachal Pradesh during a single winter.
The study, published in the journal Monthly Weather Review, was conducted by researchers from the British Antarctic Survey, the UK Met Office, and the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur.
Researchers said accurately measuring snowfall in mountainous regions has long been a challenge due to difficult terrain. To address this, the team used high-altitude frozen lakes as natural pressure sensors to improve snowfall estimates across the western-central Himalayas.
The scientists installed commercially available water-pressure sensors at Lake Ghepan and Lake Hampta in the western Himalayas, and Lake Mugu in Nepal. Based on the Archimedes principle of displacement, the sensors measure the weight of accumulated snow by recording changes in water pressure beneath the frozen lakes.
According to lead author Siddharth Gumber, a mountain climate scientist at the British Antarctic Survey, the technique provides more accurate and unbiased estimates of both the timing and intensity of snowfall than conventional methods.
The researchers found that the new model accurately simulates snowfall patterns, including extreme snowfall events, and could be used to generate reliable long-term snowfall records.
They said improved snowfall measurements are crucial for predicting snowmelt, estimating river flows and helping communities and policymakers prepare for future water shortages, particularly as climate change increases uncertainty over mountain water resources.
