urumqi_glacier_no1

albedo_climate_mb This repository contains the analysis code and data processing scripts for studying climatic controls on surface albedo and mass balance of Urumqi Glacier No. 1 (UG1) from 2000 to 2024. Overview Urumqi Glacier No. 1, located in the eastern Tianshan Mountains of Central Asia, has experienced significant retreat due to climate warming. This study investigates the relationships between climatic drivers and surface albedo variations using Landsat observations, ERA5-Land reanalysis data, and in-situ mass balance measurements. Key Findings • Albedo decline: -0.0063 per year (2013-2024) • Mass loss rate: -0.019 m w.e. per year (2000-2024) • Primary controls: Air temperature (43%) and snowfall (36%) explain 34.6% of albedo variance • Spatial heterogeneity: Mass balance-albedo correlations range from -0.5 to +1.0 across 45 stakes Getting Started Prerequisites • R (≥ 4.0.0) • Required R packages (see requirements.R) • Google Earth Engine account (for data processing) Data Sources • Landsat 8/9: Surface reflectance data for albedo calculation (30m resolution) • ERA5-Land: Temperature and precipitation data (9km resolution) • WGMS: Glacier-wide mass balance records • In-situ measurements: Stake-based mass balance observations (45 stakes, 2013-2023) • RGI 7.0: Glacier outlines Key Scripts • enhanced_ug1_analysis.R: Main analysis script with spatial context integration • data_processing.R: Landsat albedo processing and climate data extraction • plotting_functions.R: Publication-quality visualization functions Output Files The analysis generates several key outputs: PDF Plots • 00_comprehensive_summary.pdf: Multi-panel overview with panels A-E • 01_mass_balance_spatial.pdf: Spatial distribution of mass balance • 02_summer_winter_mb.pdf: Seasonal mass balance patterns • 03_temporal_trends.pdf: Glacier-wide temporal trends • 04_individual_stakes.pdf: Individual stake time series • 05-08_*.pdf: Correlation and albedo analysis plots Data Files • combined_mass_balance_albedo.csv: Integrated dataset • stake_correlations.csv: Individual stake correlation results • glacier_wide_annual_averages.csv: Annual glacier-wide statistics Contact • Corresponding Author: Ming Jing - mingjing@beaconscience.org