Surface mass balance analysis at Naradu Glacier, Western Himalaya, India.

In the present study, we analyze a field-based seven-year data series of surface mass-balance measurements collected during 2011/12 to 2017/18 on Naradu Glacier, western Himalaya, India. The average annual specific mass balance for the said period is  - 0.85 m w.

Himalayan glaciers experienced significant mass loss during later phases of little ice age.

To date, there is a gap in the data about the state and mass balance of glaciers in the climate-sensitive subtropical regions during the Little Ice Age (LIA). Here, based on an unprecedented tree-ring sampling coverage, we present the longest reconstructed mass balance record for the Western Himalayan glaciers, dating to 1615. Our results confirm that the later phase of LIA was substantially briefer and weaker in the Himalaya than in the Arctic and subarctic regions.