---
DOAJ_listed: '1'
OA_place: publisher
OA_type: gold
PlanS_conform: '1'
_id: '20669'
abstract:
- lang: eng
  text: 'Ice cliffs and supraglacial ponds are key drivers of mass loss on debris-covered
    glaciers. However, the relationship between melt ponds and adjacent ice cliffs
    has not been fully explored. We investigated the seasonal drainage patterns of
    a melt pond on the debris-covered Zhuxi Glacier in southeast Tibet and estimated
    the mass loss of its adjacent ice cliff during 2023-2024. Using hourly time-lapse
    photogrammetry we built a series of high-resolution point clouds to quantify the
    evolution of the ice cliff-pond system. Our findings indicate that subaerial melting
    and undercutting were the primary mechanisms of ice cliff mass loss during summer.
    In winter when the pond water level dropped, ice cliff calving became the dominant
    mode of ice loss. As the water level rose in spring, calving and subaerial melting
    occurred simultaneously and ice loss from calving accounted for approximately
    19.5 % of total ice loss from February to July 2024. Our results reveal the transitional
    state of this ice cliff-pond system, exhibiting characteristics of both melt hotspots
    and lake-terminating calving fronts, and highlight the interplay between seasonal
    drainage-refill pond and differing modes of ice loss on adjacent ice cliff. Future
    research should focus on additional high-resolution monitoring of similar systems
    and incorporation of ice cliff-pond dynamics in glacier-scale numerical models. '
acknowledgement: This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation
  of China (grant nos. 42271138, 42201144), Lhasa Science and Technology Plan Project
  (LSKJ202406), the National Key R&D Program of China (grant nos. 2024YFF0808601),
  and the Science and Technology Plan Projects of Tibet Autonomous Region (Grants
  XZ202501ZY0081 and XZ202401ZY0003). ZH additionally acknowledges mobility funding
  provided by China Scholarship Council (CSC), supporting an extended research stay
  at the University of Plymouth, where much of this research was completed.
article_processing_charge: Yes
article_type: original
author:
- first_name: Zhen
  full_name: He, Zhen
  last_name: He
- first_name: Matthew
  full_name: Westoby, Matthew
  last_name: Westoby
- first_name: Shaoting
  full_name: Ren, Shaoting
  id: 2066b6dd-2d54-11ef-8f8c-c94731161817
  last_name: Ren
- first_name: Chuanxi
  full_name: Zhao, Chuanxi
  last_name: Zhao
- first_name: Yifei
  full_name: He, Yifei
  last_name: He
- first_name: Tianzhao
  full_name: Zhang, Tianzhao
  last_name: Zhang
- first_name: Wei
  full_name: Yang, Wei
  last_name: Yang
citation:
  ama: He Z, Westoby M, REN S, et al. Quantifying the seasonal dynamics of a transitional
    ice cliff-pond system on a debris-covered glacier. <i>Journal of Glaciology</i>.
    2025. doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2025.10104">10.1017/jog.2025.10104</a>
  apa: He, Z., Westoby, M., REN, S., Zhao, C., He, Y., Zhang, T., &#38; Yang, W. (2025).
    Quantifying the seasonal dynamics of a transitional ice cliff-pond system on a
    debris-covered glacier. <i>Journal of Glaciology</i>. Cambridge University Press.
    <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2025.10104">https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2025.10104</a>
  chicago: He, Zhen, Matthew Westoby, SHAOTING REN, Chuanxi Zhao, Yifei He, Tianzhao
    Zhang, and Wei Yang. “Quantifying the Seasonal Dynamics of a Transitional Ice
    Cliff-Pond System on a Debris-Covered Glacier.” <i>Journal of Glaciology</i>.
    Cambridge University Press, 2025. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2025.10104">https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2025.10104</a>.
  ieee: Z. He <i>et al.</i>, “Quantifying the seasonal dynamics of a transitional
    ice cliff-pond system on a debris-covered glacier,” <i>Journal of Glaciology</i>.
    Cambridge University Press, 2025.
  ista: He Z, Westoby M, REN S, Zhao C, He Y, Zhang T, Yang W. 2025. Quantifying the
    seasonal dynamics of a transitional ice cliff-pond system on a debris-covered
    glacier. Journal of Glaciology.
  mla: He, Zhen, et al. “Quantifying the Seasonal Dynamics of a Transitional Ice Cliff-Pond
    System on a Debris-Covered Glacier.” <i>Journal of Glaciology</i>, Cambridge University
    Press, 2025, doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2025.10104">10.1017/jog.2025.10104</a>.
  short: Z. He, M. Westoby, S. REN, C. Zhao, Y. He, T. Zhang, W. Yang, Journal of
    Glaciology (2025).
date_created: 2025-11-23T23:01:40Z
date_published: 2025-11-10T00:00:00Z
date_updated: 2026-06-18T18:24:59Z
day: '10'
ddc:
- '550'
department:
- _id: FrPe
doi: 10.1017/jog.2025.10104
language:
- iso: eng
main_file_link:
- open_access: '1'
  url: https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2025.10104
month: '11'
oa: 1
oa_version: Published Version
publication: Journal of Glaciology
publication_identifier:
  eissn:
  - 1727-5652
  issn:
  - 0022-1430
publication_status: epub_ahead
publisher: Cambridge University Press
quality_controlled: '1'
scopus_import: '1'
status: public
title: Quantifying the seasonal dynamics of a transitional ice cliff-pond system on
  a debris-covered glacier
type: journal_article
user_id: 2DF688A6-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A87
year: '2025'
...