Hanging Glaciers in the Himalayas: A New Dimension of Disaster Risk
A 2026 study published in Nature identified 219 hanging glaciers in the Alaknanda basin of the Garhwal Himalayas, highlighting an emerging cryospheric hazard. Rising temperatures, changing precipitation patterns and expanding infrastructure are increasing the Himalayan region’s vulnerability to glacier collapse, avalanches, Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs), landslides and flash floods.
- Hanging glaciers are unstable masses of ice suspended on steep mountain slopes. Their sudden detachment can generate high-speed ice-rock avalanches capable of travelling rapidly through valleys and damaging settlements and infrastructure.
How Do Hanging Glaciers Become Unstable?
- Rising Temperatures: Accelerated melting can weaken and destabilise ice masses.
- Reduced Snow Cover: Lower snow ....
Do You Want to Read More?
Subscribe Now
To get access to detailed content
Already a Member? Login here
Take Annual Subscription and get the following Advantage
The annual members of the Civil Services Chronicle can read the monthly content of the magazine as well as the Chronicle magazine archives.
Readers can study all the material since 2018 of the Civil Services Chronicle monthly issue in the form of Chronicle magazine archives.
Disaster
- 1 Hydropower Development in the Himalayas: Balancing Development and Ecological Sustainability
- 2 Rising Urban Fire Disasters: A Growing Crisis amid Climate Change and Urbanisation
- 3 Tech-Driven Resilience: Modern Tools for Disaster Management
- 4 Drought: Escalating Risks to Communities, Ecosystems, and Economies
