Science

Himalayan Glacier Disaster Timeline 2026–2050: GLOFs, Floods & Hydropower Risk

The August 26, 2026 Nepal-Tibet disaster was a glacier and ice-rock collapse, not a classic GLOF - it killed over 1,100 people and damaged 431 MW of Nepal's hy…

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CHAMOLI 2021

Rock-ice avalanche off Ronti Peak devastates the Rishiganga valley

About 27 million cubic metres of rock and glacier ice detached from the steep north face of Ronti Peak and transformed into a highly mobile debris flow down the Ronti Ga…

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SOUTH LHONAK 2023

A true glacial lake outburst flood destroys Sikkim's Teesta III dam

Peer-reviewed research found that an unstable lateral moraine mass - up to 14.7 million cubic metres of frozen material - collapsed into South Lhonak Lake, generating a…

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THAME 2024

A two-lake GLOF cascade sweeps an Everest-region village

ICIMOD determined that a rock avalanche hit a glacial lake at about 4,900 m, producing a displacement wave that breached the lake and released roughly 156,000 cubic metr…

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RASUWA 2025

A transboundary supraglacial-lake outburst hits the Rasuwagadhi corridor

A flood wave surged down the Lhende River in Tibet, crossed the border at Rasuwagadhi and entered Nepal's Upper Trishuli. ICIMOD satellite analysis attributed it to the…

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ICIMOD 2026

Hindu Kush Himalaya ice-loss rates have doubled since 2000

ICIMOD's HKH Glacier Outlook 2026, synthesising 38 monitored glaciers, found that ice-loss rates have roughly doubled since 2000, with a marked acceleration after 2010,…

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HIMACHAL LAKES 2026

A glacial-lake risk screening flags 88 lakes across Himachal Pradesh

A joint IIT Ropar / University of Technology Sydney study published August 28, 2026 screened Himachal Pradesh's glacial lakes and flagged 88 as at-risk: 9 extremely haza…

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LANGTANG COLLAPSE 2026

A glacier and rock collapse blocks a river on the Nepal-Tibet border

Satellite imagery indicates a large section of glacier and rock detached at roughly 5,200-5,400 m near Nepal's Langtang region and fell about 1,200 m - an estimated 100-…

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THE SURGE

The natural dam fails and floodwater races downstream at 50 metres per second

When the debris blockage failed, the ponded water released in a surge that picked up sediment and became a debris-laden flood down the Bhote Koshi and, further downstrea…

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HYDROPOWER & TOLL

431 MW of hydropower lost; Nepal's death toll passes 1,100

Nepal's electricity authority reported the flood knocked about 431 MW of operating hydropower capacity offline (~10% of the national total, including plants at Rasuwagad…

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PEAK WATER OUTLOOK

Himalayan river basins projected to reach "peak water" at a regional scale

ICIMOD's HI-WISE assessment projects the Indus, Ganges and Brahmaputra basins reaching "peak water" - the point of maximum glacier meltwater contribution to river flow -…

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