WATER BALANCE OF GLACIERIZED CATCHMENTS IN TROPICS: A CASE STUDY IN BOLIVIAN ANDES

抄録

On outer-tropical glaciers, mostly in Peru and Bolivia, ablation and accumulation occur all year round whereas maximum in wet seasons. This study investigated glacier mass balance and catchment scale water balance of Glacier Tuni and Huayna Potosi, which locate at the west side of Bolivian Andes. Remote sensing and hydrological methods have been applied to conduct glacier mass balances monthly and annually in recent years. With remote sensing method, glacier volume change has been derived based on glacier area change obtained utilizing cloud free Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) scenes. Results of commonly negative glacier mass balance have revealed that glaciers in this region are retreating. Despite of interests on glaciological aspects, water balances of glacierized catchments have been carried out. Except for in a few months glaciers got positive mass balance, glaciers continuously contributed to discharge.