Prakash Rao: Glacial Melt and Climate Change in the Himalayas

Dr. Prakash Rao was a Plenary Speaker at the 2009 Conference. Dr Rao has 25 years of experience in the field of biological conservation and ecology related subjects in India and overseas.

Dr Rao’s paper  Glacial Melt and Climate Change in the Himalayas: Building Adaptive Strategies for the Future has been published as part of The International Journal of Climate Change: Impacts and Responses. The paper is by Prakash Rao, Gopala Areendran and Rajesh Kumar.

Abstract: According to the recent IPCC report, the mean global surface temperature has increased by 0.74C over the last 100 years (1906-2005). Eleven of the twelve warmest years have been recorded in the past twelve years. The findings of the IPCC Assessment Report (2007) suggest that there has been a significant decline in the mountain glaciers and snow cover, which has contributed to the increased sea levels. From 1961 to 2003, the global mean sea level rose by 1.8 (+0.5) mm per year and the the global temperature of the oceans increased by 0.10oC from surface to depth of 700m from 1961- 2003 and 80% of the heat added to the climate system is being absorbed by the ocean. Other long term climatic changes that have been observed include extreme droughts, intensity of tropical cyclones, changes in the salinity of the ocean and wind patterns. In the later half of 20th century, a threefold increase in the rate of retreat has been observed in Himalayan Glaciers with an increased rate of retreat since advent of industrialisation . There are definite linkages seen with excessive increments in earth’s average global surface temperature as brought by various studies around the world.