SHARE-ASIA Project
Meteoclimatic research in Himalaya and Karakorum
Water Research Institute, IRSA-CNR, Brugherio
Responsible of the Project: Gianni Tartari
Researcher involved: Massimo Bollasina (Scripps Institution of Oceanography, San Diego, USA)
Laura Bertolani (Centro Epson Meteo)
Gianpietro Verza (Ev-K2-CNR)
Elisa Vuillermoz (Ev-K²-CNR)
Abstract
This Project is the prosecution of the monitoring climate activities that the Pyramid MeteoGroup
(PMG) started in Himalaya ten years ago. Recently this measurement extended to the Karakorum
Range. The activity is involved in two international projects (CEOP and ABC) promoted from the
WMO and UNEP; CEOP Project looks at energy and water balance in earth, ABC Project treats the
emergent problem of the pollutants transportation on global scale.
Introduction
Himalaya and Karakorum Regions includes the most high mountain ranges and they lie in the
climate area characterized by the monsoon regime. These areas allow the identification of
atmospheric phenomena that are altered from the anthropic activity. The meteorological and
climate research in high altitude mountain is in continuous growth because these sites have climate
correspondences with global climate events. The monsoons influence on about 60% of the world
population with consequent and remarkable repercussions on worldwide economy.
The monsoon study started in Himalaya on 1990 with the installation of an Automatic Weather
Station (AWS), MTX – Modena, near the Pyramid Laboratory / Observatory (5050 m), in Lobuche,
Khumbu Valley, Nepal. This site is an essential point for the study of the Indian Monsoon
characteristics during its way toward Tibet. The first results have allowed to reach a deep
comprehension of the monsoon local characteristics, pointing out the importance of the Pyramid
location as observatory of its behaviour in the long period.
The importance of these results have permitted the installation of two news AWSs LSI. Lastem,
Settala (MI) strengthened with new sensors near the Pyramid Laboratory, and other three AWSs in
Lukla (2260 m), Namche Baazar (3570 m), Pheriche (4260 m). The stations make up the Pyramid
MeteoNetwork (PMN). Recently (2004) the area of study extended also to the Karakorum Range,
with the installation of an AWS in the Baltoro Glacier, Pakistan, near Urdukas Camp.
The PMN is involved in international projects like CEOP (Coordinated Enhanced Observed Period)
that has the objective to document and to simulate energy and water fluxes on global scale and to
study their influence on the general atmospheric circulation; and like ABC (Atmospheric Brown
Cloud) that aims to study the pollutants’ impact on troposphere of the Asiatic Regions on the
regional and global physical-climate system, on agriculture, water cycle and human health.
The main objective of this research, that is a part of the SHARE-Asia (Stations at High Altitude for
Research on the Environment) Integrated Project foreseen activities, is to acquire the knowledge of
the high altitude climate in Himalaya and Karakorum, to study the complex mechanisms of
interaction between the local and synoptic atmospheric circulation, and to give a support to the
energy and water balances’ studies and to the comprehension of the pollutants transport’s
mechanisms.
To achieve these results it is expected to:
1. pursue the characterization of Himalaya and Karakorum areas to obtain a complete analysis
of the high altitude climate of Asiatic Regions and a comprehension of its changes’ effects
on ecosystems;
2. provide the base of data to validate the GCM models that study the Asiatic Monsoon;
3. provide the base of data for the CEOP Project
4. contribute with the meteorological measurements to the researches conducted in the ABC
Project.
Material and methods
The Pyramid MeteoNetwork is made up of 6 AWSs in Nepal (one of these is property of the
Sagarmatha National Park) and one in Pakistan.
The MTX station, installed on August 1990 in Lobuche, near the Pyramid Laboratory / Obesrvatory,
is an automatic station provided with 8 bit bus data, an EPROM-RAM memory of 64 kb and a
removable unit of data storage. It is equipped with seven sensors to determine air temperature,
relative humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind speed and wind direction, precipitation, global
radiation. The energetic demand is totally satisfied by a solar panel and a buffer battery of elevated
efficiency.
The LSI-Lastem AWSs of Lukla, Namche, Pheriche and Pyramid, in Nepal, and of Urdukas in Pakistan,
measure the same parameters. The sensors are placed on a pole at 5 m high, the sensor or wind
speed and wind velocity is put on the top of the pole, the sensors of temperature, relative humidity
and global radiation are on pole at 2 m high. The barometer is inside the container that hold the
datalogger, which is on pole at 1.5 m high. The pole is supported by a tripod of about 30 kg and by
a double series of t-rods positioned at two different highs. The pluviometer is on the top of a
secondary pole of 1.5 m, with the solar panel that provides continuous energy to the datalogger.
The station is has also a battery of 12 V that is used when solar energy in insufficient.
The Pyramid LSI-Lastem Station has been equiped with two sensors for the determination of soil
thermal flux, snow level, soil moisture, up and down short and longwave solar radiation .
The dataset recorded at PMN, as well as the dataset collected at Syangboche AWS (part of the
"Himalayas Reference Site " in the framework of CEOP 1) is checked and validated.
For all parameters, the data have been visually checked, looking for extremely and unusual
low/high values and/or periods with constant values. Nocturnal shortwave radiation data has been
checked for non-zero values; wind speed and direction for sensor freezing (in that case recorded
wind speed is zero and wind direction is 360°) and/or unusual high values; precipitation data has
been checked for delayed measurement due to the melting of solid precipitation. Snow depth
values have been checked to delete hourly/daily fluctuations of the measured snow (in absence of
real snow fall) due to the dependence of the sensor signal on air density. Cross-checking among the
variation of different measured parameters (ground heat flux, snow cover, etc.) was also performed
to assure the consistency among the variations of different variables under the same conditions.
Expected results
The expected results can be summarized in:
▪
the prosecution of the registrations’ series, hourly and bi-hourly, of the principle
meteorological variables that are continuously measured since 1994;
▪
the continuation of the measures along the altitude gradient, from 2400 to 5000 m, that
started in Khumbu Valley on 2000;
▪
the finishing of the base of data for the CEOP Project from October 2003 to December 2004;
▪
the first climate characterization of the medium Valley of Baltoro Glacier with hourly
continuous measures never registered before.
The research will allow to study in detail the climate characteristics of the Himalayan Region. The
results will be available to:
▪
the finishing of the CEOP Project phase 1;
▪
the validation of the GCM models that study the Asiatic Monsoon;
▪
give the base of the meteorological hourly data for the ABC Project
The extension of the meteoclimate measures in the Pakistani area of Karakorum will permit to
obtain a climate characterization of these regions that are few studied in a continuous way. This
work is very important for the interactions with the glaciology research.
Forecast and proposal of the results’ diffusion
On 2005 different shapes of the collected data diffusion are expected:
▪
the data collected during the year 2003 will be given to RONAST;
▪
the second yearbook that collect mean daily values of the variables measured form the PMN
AWSs will be published, five years later than the fist publication;
▪
a publication, concerning the first ten years of study in the Himalayan region, will be
submitted to an international review;
▪
an elaboration between the climate data and the atmospheric particulate matter will be
executed from Dott Gallorini (CNR – Metrological Institute) that have don this study on 2002
and 2003;
▪
the results will be presented in a concise way at at least one national and one international
congress.
Activities planned in 2005
The AWSs’ measures are carried out in remote, with an autonomy of about six months of the
memory card. The recent problems occurred during the data downloading and the data
memorization caused by unknown factors, impose an increase of the field activity, for the control of
the regular stations working so there will be 3-4 missions in Nepal and 2 in Pakistan.
At the end of every mission the data collected will be preliminary registered in a “database of the
unprocessed data” of the PMN, using the database available in the software InfoGAP, supplied free
on December 2005. This database has the aim to allow an ordered collection of the numerical
information produced by the PMN, and to facilitate the access to the unprocessed data for all the
necessities required form the validation or the controlled diffusion toward other users.
On 2005 it will be plan the database “ Archives PMN’s validated data”, where it will be preserved the
hourly and daily data after the procedure of validation made by the Epson Meteo Centre (CEM). This
database will represent the Official Archives of PMN’s data. The information will be released for
yearbooks publications, scientific publications and for the participation of international project
(CEOP, ABC, SHARE- Asia), furnishing the base of data. It will be also used for the realization of the
DSS (Decision Support System) of the Partnership’s Projects financed by the Italian Cooperation, in
collaboration with ICIMOD.
On 2005 it will start a quality control plan (QC/QA, quality control and quality assurance) based on
the main concept of the sensors’ calibration, to optimize the quality of the collected data. During
the first mission in Nepal a communication system by radiomodem will be installed on the AWS of
the Sagarmatha National Park Head Quarter (Namche Bazaar). This will allow the Park to give
information in real time about the meteorological phenomenon. These information will be very
useful for the high altitude trekking and for the safety of helicopters’ flies that reach the Khumbu
Valley.
The measures for the ABC Project will start from November 2005. From this period it will be done
changes in the organization of the data management, that will be planed during the spring-summer
period.
During the mission in Pakistan the installation of the Urdukas AWS will be completed and the supply
will be made powerful with the addition of a solar panel and of a battery. Its datalogger will be
configured with the same elaborations of the AWSs in Nepal.
Bibliography
Bollasina, M., L. Bertolani, and G. Tartari, 2002: Simulations of the 2001 Indian Summer Monsoon
Onset with a General Circulation Model", proc. IEMSS 2002 Conference, Lugano, 24-27 Giugno
2002.
Bollasina, M., L. Bertolani, and G. Tartari, 2002: Meteorological observations in the Khumbu
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