Soot over Tibet: Black Soot and Survival of Tibetan Glaciers (via @NASA_EO)
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=41854
NASA Earth Observatory: "On the Tibetan Plateau, temperatures are rising and glaciers are melting faster than climate scientists would expect based on global warming alone. A recent study of ice cores from five Tibetan glaciers by NASA and Chinese scientists confirmed the likely culprit: rapid increases in black soot concentrations since the 1990s, mostly from air pollution sources over Asia, especially the Indian subcontinent. Soot-darkened snow and glaciers absorb sunlight, which hastens melting, adding to the impact of global warming...
"...This image is from a computer simulation of the spread of black soot ("black carbon" to climate scientists) over the Tibetan Plateau from August through November 2009. It shows black carbon aerosol optical thickness on September 26, 2009. (Aerosol optical thickness is scale that describes how much pollution was in the air based on how much of the incoming sunlight the particles absorbed.) Places where the air was thick with soot are white, while lower concentrations are transparent purple..."
Link to Open Access PNAS study: Black Soot and the Survival of Tibetan Glaciers
Abstract: We find evidence that black soot aerosols deposited on Tibetan glaciers have been a significant contributing factor to observed rapid glacier retreat. Reduced black soot emissions, in addition to reduced greenhouse gases, may be required to avoid demise of Himalayan glaciers and retain the benefits of glaciers for seasonal fresh water supplies.
also see: After #COP15 The Ice Will Still Be Melting: The Tragedy of the Himalayas
Whole Earth Soot Image: Look for the soot hovering over India in the center of the image. The dark heat absorbing particles darken ice and increase the rate it melts.
