UPSC Articles
Sudden Change of Glacier course
Part of: Prelims and GS-III – Climate change
Context Scientists have recently found that Nearly 20,000 years ago, a large Himalayan glacier “abruptly” changed course and over time fused into an adjacent glacier in present-day Pittoragarh, Uttarakhand.
- This finding has been recorded in the Himalayas for the first time.
- Cause of the change: Change in climate and tectonic movement.
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- Its accumulated debris caused it to turn from a north-eastern direction to a south-eastern course.
- Methods used for the study: Remote sensing and an old survey map
- The unnamed glacier lies in an extremely inaccessible region.
Young Himalayan region
- Himalayan region is among the youngest mountain ranges in the world due to which the supporting underlying tectonic plates are not stable and frequently trigger earthquakes and landslides.
