O=C=O<p>‘Catastrophic’ 2023 lake outburst in India driven by glacial melt and permafrost thaw</p><p><a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/ClimateChange" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ClimateChange</span></a> played a key role in the “catastrophic” 2023 floods in the Himalayan state of Sikkim in <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/India" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>India</span></a>, a new study says. <br>The breach of one of the “largest, fastest-growing and most hazardous” glacial lakes in Sikkim, the South <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/Lhonak" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Lhonak</span></a> lake, led to cascading floods that killed 55 people and washed away a 1,200 megawatt (MW) <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/hydropower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>hydropower</span></a> dam.<br>The event was identified as a glacial lake outburst flood (<a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/GLOF" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>GLOF</span></a>), which is a sudden release of water from a lake fed by glacial melt.<br><a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/Sikkim" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Sikkim</span></a> is a small Himalayan state in north-east India, bordering <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/China" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>China</span></a> in the north, <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/Bhutan" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Bhutan</span></a> in the east, <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/Nepal" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Nepal</span></a> in the west and the state of West <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/Bengal" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Bengal</span></a> in the south. <br>Part of the eastern <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/Himalaya" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Himalaya</span></a>, Sikkim is host to more than 90 <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/glaciers" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>glaciers</span></a> and <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/Kanchenjunga" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Kanchenjunga</span></a>, the world’s third-highest peak. Sikkim serves as the origin and upper river basin for the <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/Teesta" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Teesta</span></a> river, one of the largest tributaries of the <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/Brahmaputra" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Brahmaputra</span></a> river system.</p><p><a href="https://www.carbonbrief.org/catastrophic-2023-lake-outburst-in-india-driven-by-glacial-melt-and-permafrost-thaw/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">carbonbrief.org/catastrophic-2</span><span class="invisible">023-lake-outburst-in-india-driven-by-glacial-melt-and-permafrost-thaw/</span></a></p><p><a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/Cryosphere" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Cryosphere</span></a></p>