Glacier Surface Velocity Variations in the West Kunlun Mts. with Sentinel-1A Image Feature-Tracking (2014–2023)

Abstract

Glacier velocity is a crucial parameter in understanding glacier dynamics and mass balance, especially in response to climate change. Despite numerous studies on glaciers in the West Kunlun Mts., there is still insufficient knowledge about the details of inter- and intra-annual velocity changes under global warming. This study analyzed the glacier velocity changes in the West Kunlun Mts. using Sentinel-1A satellite data. Our results revealed that: (1) The velocity of glaciers across the region shows an increasing trend from 2014 to 2023. (2) Five glaciers were found to have been surged during the study period, among which two of them were not reported before. (3) The surges in the study region were potentially controlled through a combination of hydrological and thermal mechanisms. (4) The glacier N2, Duofeng Glacier, and b2 of Kunlun Glacier exhibit higher annual velocities (32.82 m a−1) compared to surging glaciers in quiescent phases (13.22 m a−1), and were speculated as advancing or fast-flowing glaciers.