Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Modeling Glacier Mass Balance and Runoff in the Koxkar River Basin on the South Slope of the Tianshan Mts. during 1959 to 2009, China

Version 1 : Received: 31 October 2016 / Approved: 31 October 2016 / Online: 31 October 2016 (09:43:50 CET)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Xu, M.; Han, H.; Kang, S. Modeling Glacier Mass Balance and Runoff in the Koxkar River Basin on the South Slope of the Tianshan Mountains, China, from 1959 to 2009. Water 2017, 9, 100. Xu, M.; Han, H.; Kang, S. Modeling Glacier Mass Balance and Runoff in the Koxkar River Basin on the South Slope of the Tianshan Mountains, China, from 1959 to 2009. Water 2017, 9, 100.

Abstract

Water resources provided by alpine glaciers are an important pillar for people living in the arid regions in the west of China. In this study, the HBV (Hydrologiska Byrans Vattenavdelning) light model was applied to simulate glacier mass balance and runoff in the Koxkar River Basin (KRB) on the south slope of Mt. Tumur, western Tianshan Mts.. Daily temperature and precipitation were calculated by multiple linear regressions and gradient-inverse distance weighting, respectively, based on in-situ observed data by automatic weather stations (AWSs) in the basin (2007–2009) and at four meteorological stations neighbering the basin (1959–2009). Observed daily air temperature and precipitation were taken as input data for the HBV model, which was calibrated using runoff in 2007/08 and 2009/10, and validated in 2008/09 and 2010/11. Generally, the model could simulate runoff very well. The annual glacier mass balance and runoff were calculated using the HBV model driven by interpolated meteorological data for the period of 1959–2009. The simulated glacier mass balance were reasonable when compared with those observed values at nearby glaciers, indicating a decrease trend of mass balance in the basin with an average value of –370.4 mm a-1 since 1959. The annual runoff showed a slight increase trend (5.51 mm a-1). Futher analysis indicated that the runoff is more sensitive to temperature than precipitation amuont in the Koxkar river basin.

Keywords

glacier mass balance; runoff; Tianshan Mts.; Koxkar River Basin; HBV model; interpolation

Subject

Environmental and Earth Sciences, Environmental Science

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