Rockglacier inventory of the Western Nyainqêntanglha Range, Tibetan Plateau

The western Nyainqêntanglha Range on the Tibetan Plateau reaches an elevation of 7162 m and is characterized by an extensive periglacial environment. Here, we present the first rock glacier inventory of this region containing 1433 rock glaciers over an area of 4622 km². To create the most reliable inventory we combine manually created rock glacier outlines with an automated classification approach. The manual outlines were generated based on surface elevation data, optical satellite imagery and a surface velocity model. The surface velocity model was generated via InSAR time series analysis with Sentinel-1 data from 2016 to 2019. The rockglacier inventory was compiled in accordance with the guidelines (baseline concepts 4.1 and practical guidelines 3.0.1) from the action group on 'Rock glacier inventories and kinematics' of the International Permafrost Association (IPA).青藏高原念青唐古拉山西段海拔达7162米，区域内广泛发育冰缘环境。本研究首次编制了该区域的岩屑冰川（rock glacier）目录，共收录1433处岩屑冰川，总面积达4622平方千米。为构建最可靠的岩屑冰川目录，本研究将人工绘制的岩屑冰川轮廓与自动化分类方法相结合。人工轮廓的绘制基于地表高程数据、光学卫星影像与地表速度模型。该地表速度模型通过2016至2019年的Sentinel-1数据，采用干涉合成孔径雷达（Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar，简称InSAR）时间序列分析方法生成。本岩屑冰川目录的编制遵循国际冻土协会（International Permafrost Association，IPA）“岩屑冰川目录与运动学”行动组发布的指南（基准概念4.1与实操指南3.0.1）。