A glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) is a type of outburst flood caused by the failure of a dam containing a glacial lake. An event similar to a GLOF, where a body of water contained by a glacier melts or overflows the glacier, is called a jökulhlaup. The dam can consist of glacier ice or a terminal moraine. Failure can happen due to erosion, a buildup of water pressure, an avalanche of rock or heavy snow, an earthquake or cryoseism, volcanic eruptions under the ice, or massive displacement of water in a glacial lake when a large portion of an adjacent glacier collapses into it.
Increasing glacial melting because of climate change, alongside other environmental effects of climate change (i.e. permafrost melting) mean that regions with glaciers are likely to see increased flooding risks from GLOFs.[1][2][3] This is especially true in the Himalayas where geologies are more active.[1][2]
A 2023 study found 15 million people at risk from this hazard, mostly in China, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Peru.[4]
- ^ a b Riaz, Somana; Ali, Arshad; Baig, Muhammad N. (18 March 2014). "Increasing risk of glacial lake outburst floods as a consequence of climate change in the Himalayan region". Jàmbá: Journal of Disaster Risk Studies. 6 (1): 7 pages. doi:10.4102/jamba.v6i1.110. ISSN 2072-845X.
- ^ a b Veh, Georg; Korup, Oliver; Walz, Ariane (14 January 2020). "Hazard from Himalayan glacier lake outburst floods". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 117 (2): 907–912. Bibcode:2020PNAS..117..907V. doi:10.1073/pnas.1914898117. ISSN 0027-8424. PMC 6969545. PMID 31888996.
- ^ "Will Climate Change Cause More Glacial Lake Outburst Floods?". State of the Planet. 21 May 2018. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
- ^ New study finds 15 million people live under the threat of glacial floods