Supraglacial lakes dynamic changes monitoring in the Baltoro Glacier based on time-series Sentinel-2 data

doi:10.13474/j.cnki.11-2246.2026.0808

Abstract

Abstract: [Purposes] As a key component of the cryosphere，the dynamic changes of supraglacial lakes are closely related to the stability of glacial systems.In recent years，affected by global warming，glaciers around the world have generally shown a trend of retreat and thinning，and the problem of negative mass balance has continued to worsen.This has directly led to dramatic fluctuations in the number and area of supraglacial lakes.Therefore，accurate monitoring of the dynamic changes of supraglacial lakes holds important scientific significance for revealing the evolution laws of regional climate and environment. [Methods] Based on Sentinel-2 images from 2016 to 2023，this study adopts the random forest algorithm to extract supraglacial lakes on the Baltoro Glacier in the Karakoram region and analyzes the temporal variation characteristics. [Findings] The results show that the number of supraglacial lakes on the Baltoro Glacier shows an overall upward trend，while their total area exhibits a downward trend.In addition，the analysis of the stability of supraglacial lakes shows that the number of dried-up supraglacial lakes has continued to rise，while the number of newly formed and stable supraglacial lakes first increased and then decreased.Among the small，medium，and large supraglacial lakes classified by area，the proportion of their quantities followed form largest to smallest in order of small、medium、large，while the amplitude of their area fluctuations followed form largest to smallest in order large、medium、small. [Conclusions] The findings of this study provide crucial foundational data support for subsequent in-depth analysis of glacial change mechanisms and the evolutionary laws of the climate and environment in the Karakoram region.

Key words: Karakoram region, Baltoro Glacier, supraglacial lake, random forest algorithm, dynamic monitoring

CLC Number:

P237

Sun Yongling, Liu Xiao, Pan Leran, Chen Yizhe, Zhang Zhimin. Supraglacial lakes dynamic changes monitoring in the Baltoro Glacier based on time-series Sentinel-2 data[J]. Bulletin of Surveying and Mapping, 2026, 0(8): 51-58.

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URL: http://tb.chinasmp.com/EN/10.13474/j.cnki.11-2246.2026.0808

http://tb.chinasmp.com/EN/Y2026/V0/I8/51

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