Estimating glacier mass balance in High Mountain Asia based on Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer retrieved surface albedo from 2000 to 2020

Glacier surface albedo is a key parameter of the glacier mass and energy balance process. Many scholars have used the albedo method to study mass balance for an individual glacier, but less attention has been given to large‐area glaciers. Based on Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) retrieved glacier surface albedo and in situ mass balance, the correlations between albedo and mass balance are reported. The minimum/mean method (the whole glacier albedo is calculated by averaging the minimum/mean albedo of each grid cell), the MODIS snow albedo products (MxD10A1) and the MCD43A3 shortwave albedo were tested during the melt season (June–August) for four glaciers in the High Mountain Asia (HMA). Results reveal that albedo is well correlated with mass balance, the correlation (r) ranging from 0.41 to 0.90. Overall, the minimum method is better than the mean method, and MxD10A1 is better than MCD43A3. The albedo changes were calculated based on the MxD10A1 and the mean method, and a linear relationship is established between albedo changes and digital elevation models (DEMs) calculated mass balance from 2000 to 2016. A strong linear correlation (r = .9) is found between albedo changes and mass balance while excluding some areas that have insignificant seasonal variation in albedo, and the reconstructed albedo–mass balance relationship can be used to retrieve mass balance in large‐scale glaciers. Furthermore, the average loss of mass from 2000 to 2020 is calculated as −0.225 ± 0.040 m w.e.a−1. The greatest glacier mass loss is concentrated in the southeastern part of HMA, the mass loss in the north and west is less than that in the southeast, and the glacier mass is in a state of aggravated loss in recent years. Our study also offers a new method for estimating the large‐scale glacier mass balance. A strong relationship between albedo changes and glacier mass balance is found. Albedo changes is used to retrieve glacier mass balance in HMA, and mean albedo is more applicable to large‐area glaciers than minimum albedo. Exacerbated loss of glacier mass in recent years due to albedo reduction and mass loss reach −0.225 ± 0.040 m w.e.a−1 over 2000–2020 in HMA.