Avalanche hazard mitigation in east Karakoram mountains

Karakoram mountains range in north-western part of Himalayas is about 500 km in length and hosts some of the world’s highest peaks and longest glaciers. It is characterized by steep slopes and polar climate. Snowfall and avalanches are observed almost throughout the year. Many lives have been lost in the past in these mountains due to avalanches. This study focuses on avalanche hazard mitigation work undertaken in eastern part of Karakoram mountains, a complex of glaciers including Siachen and other connected glaciers on the eastern side of Saltoro Ridge. From the forecasting point of view, the snowpack on the slopes of Karakoram mountains almost always has unstable layers and hence continual avalanche threat exists. The structural mitigation measures are infeasible due to steep, unstable and glaciated terrain. The method of slope stabilization by preventive triggering of small avalanches holds promise but necessary infrastructure is difficult to install and maintain. Consequently, the effective avalanche hazard mitigation in the area is a challenging task. The paper describes the general terrain, climatological and avalanche characteristics of the area. Further, it elaborates the infrastructure set up, various tools and products developed to assist the avalanche practitioners in organizing safe camping and movements in the area particularly the snow-meteorological observatory network, weather modelling products, avalanche forecasting models, terrain visualization tools, hazard mapping and risk analysis, and experiences of preventive triggering of avalanches.