UAE research could provide early warnings to prevent Nepal flooding tragedies
Abu Dhabi scientists are trying to understand where threats from landslides or glacial collapses may emerge in Nepal as part of research that could save lives. Their work may offer an early warning to communities at risk from floods prompted by landslides and glacier falls of the kind that last month killed more than 1,300 people and left thousands more missing. Prof Mohammed Ali and Dr Aisha Al…
Scientists in Abu Dhabi are conducting research aimed at providing early warnings to prevent flooding tragedies in Nepal. The project, organized by Prof Mohammed Ali and Dr Aisha Al Suwaidi of Khalifa University in Abu Dhabi, aims to offer an early warning system for communities at risk from floods caused by landslides and glacial collapses, similar to the disaster that killed over 1,300 people in Nepal last month.
Prof Al Suwaidi emphasized that even a few additional minutes of warning, or preventing unsafe development in flood corridors, would be highly valuable.
The research falls under the Emirates Polar Programme, which examines the impact of climate change on polar regions. The Himalayas, part of the "third pole," are experiencing glacier retreat and permafrost thaw due to climate change, increasing the likelihood of landslides, glacial collapses, and floods. The project will focus on understanding the region's climate, changes to the cryosphere, outburst floods from glacial lakes, and tectonic movements.
Researchers will analyze historical satellite observations, conduct field activities, and monitor specific glaciers, slopes, lakes, and rivers. They aim to map the region's glaciers, glacial lakes, snow cover, rivers, unstable slopes, and landslide deposits repeatedly. Data from satellites will help determine changes in glacier height, speed, and the formation of lakes and landslides. Chemical analysis of samples will provide insights into rock uplift, erosion, and past flood events.
The project seeks to convert scientific observations into usable information, such as better maps, monitoring systems, local expertise, and more effective warnings. By identifying at-risk glaciers and monitoring their behavior, researchers hope to recognize abnormal changes and detect events quickly enough to warn downstream communities.
The research also highlights the importance of avoiding development in high-risk areas and the need for early-warning systems, as demonstrated by the contrast between Nepal's lack of such systems and Switzerland's sophisticated ones.
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