Glaciers in the Satluj river basin in western Himalaya are likely to lose 33% of their area by 2050 and 81% by the end of the century, under Representative Concentration Pathway - RCP 8.5 scenario, based on the output from CNRM-CM5 and GFDL-CM3 climate models respectively.

The present study was carried out to assess floristic diversity, community composition and regeneration status of different forests in Nanda Devi National Park after prohibition of human activities in 1983 with a view to understand the impact of ban, and provide a basis for assessing subsequent changes on plant diversity and composition.

Aerosols play an important role in climate change processes. Among the various aerosols, black carbon (BC) has been recognized as the second most important anthropogenic agent for climate change and the primary tracer for adverse health effects caused by air pollution. The increasing concentration of BC in the atmosphere has now become a matter of serious concern, especially in the high Himalayan glaciated region that has the most vulnerable ecosystem with pristine environment, rich biodiversity and pollution-free ambient air quality.

Precipitation samples were collected across the Himalayas from Kashmir (western Himalaya) to Assam (eastern Himalaya) to understand the variation of the stable isotopic content (δ 18O and δD) in precipitation associated with two dominant weather systems of the region: western disturbances (WDs) and Indian summer monsoon (ISM).

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Religious and traditional beliefs, cultural mores, and practices play a crucial role in the conservation of environment and biodiversity. The present paper describes a case study of two sacred groves in Western Himalaya. Sacred groves (SGs) are patches of land that are communally protected with religious zeal. A preliminary survey was conducted in these SGs to study their role in biodiversity conservation. The data collected included the general information regarding the SGs and the associated deity, nearest human habitation, access to them, and their floral and faunal diversity.

The history of glacier length fluctuations serves as a reliable indicator of the past climate. In this paper, a numerical flowline model has been used to study the relationship between length variations of Chhota Shigri glacier and local climate since 1876. The simulated front positions of Chhota Shigri glacier are in agreement with those observed. After a successful simulation of the past retreat, the model was also used to predict future evolution of the glacier for the next 100 years under different climatic scenarios.

Hamtah and Chhota Shigri are two nearby, well monitored glaciers of western Himalaya, lying in the same climatic zone and driven by the same climatic conditions. In this study, topographical characteristics of both the glacier have been explored to understand the role of topography in controlling the glacier response.

Long-term measurements (from August 2009 to December 2014) of aerosol black carbon mass concentration (MBC) and spectral aerosol optical depth (AOD) were carried out from a high-altitude location, Hanle in western trans-Himalaya as part of the Regional Aerosol Warming Experiment.

Original Source

Physico-chemical properties of soil of two dominant forest types in Western Himalaya, viz. oak (Quercus leucotrichophora) and pine (Pinus roxburghii) across three soil depths, and winter and rainy seasons were analysed. In general, all the soil parameters, viz. soil moisture, water-holding capacity, organic carbon and total nitrogen decreased significantly with increasing soil depth in both the forests. However, pH did not show any trend with soil depth. All the soil physicochemical parameters were found significantly higher for oak forests compared to pine forests.

A study based on farm household survey was conducted in mid-hills of Himachal Pradesh to gain insights on people s perceptions and adaptations to climate change and variability. Results of the study indicated that 88.9 % of people perceived rise in temperature of the region while 88.4 % perceived a decreasing trend in amount of rainfall. People s perceptions for both maximum temperature and rainfall were in accordance with results of linear regression analysis of weather data of the period from 1995- 2011 collected from meteorological station in the region.