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High Asian Icy Landscapes during warm interstadials (HAIL): coupling between monsoon intensity and past glacier culminations?

Descripción del proyecto

Dilucidación de la compleja interacción entre los diferentes factores atmosféricos en la región de alta montaña de Asia

La criosfera de la región de alta montaña de Asia es muy sensible a los cambios en la temperatura del aire y las precipitaciones, y sus glaciares y casquetes glaciares responden al calentamiento actual y a las fluctuaciones de los sistemas de circulación atmosférica predominantes. El monzón asiático es uno de dichos sistemas y consiste en un cambio estacional en la dirección del viento, que permite que el aire húmedo de los océanos Índico y Pacífico precipite en las zonas de gran altura de la región de alta montaña de Asia, alimentando así la criosfera. En el proyecto HAIL, financiado con fondos europeos, se dilucidará la compleja interacción entre los diferentes factores atmosféricos y las culminaciones glaciares documentadas durante los últimos sesenta mil años, centrándose en un comportamiento poco conocido de los glaciares de esta región durante los intervalos interestadiales cálidos. Diferenciar los factores climáticos globales regionales es importante para comprender los cambios pasados en los glaciares y predecir su destino futuro.

Objetivo

The cryosphere of High-Mountain Asia (HMA) is extremely sensitive to shifts in air temperature and precipitation, with its glaciers and ice caps not only responding to the present warming but also to changes in the intensity of prevailing atmospheric circulation systems. One such system–the Asian monsoon–is a seasonal change in wind direction, which allows moist air from the Indian and Pacific oceans to precipitate at high elevations of HMA, feeding the cryosphere. Decoupling global from regional climate drivers is important, if we are to understand past changes in glaciers or predict their future fate. HAIL’s primary aim is to untangle the complex interplay between different atmospheric drivers and documented glacier culminations during the past 60 thousand years, zooming in on an enigmatic behaviour of HMA glaciers during warm interstadial intervals. A counterintuitive glacier growth during these warm intervals appears out-of-phase with diminishing and disappearing ice masses elsewhere on Earth but correlates well with increases in monsoon intensity. Until now, a lack of robust evidence on glacier culminations, as well as absence of a framework for assessing their paleoclimatic significance have merely fuelled speculations. HAIL combines a comprehensive compilation of constraints on past glacier geometries and paleoclimate proxy data with paleoclimate and advanced numerical glacier models to test the hypothesis that regional glacier culminations during globally warm periods of the last glacial cycle were driven by variations in the monsoon intensity. Through this action, the researcher will not only extend his strong expertise in glacial geomorphology and geochronology into the realm of numerical data interpretation but will also transfer paleo-data skills and considerable pedagogical training to the host. Riding on the host’s cutting-edge education methods, HAIL will test and develop its outreach strategy for students and the general public.

Coordinador

NORGES TEKNISK-NATURVITENSKAPELIGE UNIVERSITET NTNU
Aportación neta de la UEn
€ 202 158,72
Dirección
HOGSKOLERINGEN 1
7491 Trondheim
Noruega

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Región
Norge Trøndelag Trøndelag
Tipo de actividad
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Enlaces
Coste total
€ 202 158,72