Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics Discussions www.atmos-chem-phys-discuss.net 1680-7367 1680-7375 9 6 2009 10.5194/acpd-9-26593-2009 http://www.atmos-chem-phys-discuss.net/9/26593/2009/ http://www.atmos-chem-phys-discuss.net/9/26593/2009/acpd-9-26593-2009.html http://www.atmos-chem-phys-discuss.net/9/26593/2009/acpd-9-26593-2009.pdf 26593 26625 2009-12-11 Black carbon aerosols and the third polar ice cap S. Menon smenon@lbl.gov D. Koch G. Beig S. Sahu J. Fasullo D. Orlikowski Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA Columbia University/NASA GISS, New York, NY, USA Indian Institute for Tropical Meteorology, Pune, India Climate Analysis Section, CGD/NCAR, Boulder, CO, USA Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, USA Recent thinning of glaciers over the Himalayas (sometimes referred to as the third polar region) have raised concern on future water supplies since these glaciers supply water to large river systems that support millions of people inhabiting the surrounding areas. Black carbon (BC) aerosols, released from incomplete combustion, have been increasingly implicated as causing large changes in the hydrology and radiative forcing over Asia and its deposition on snow is thought to increase snow melt. In India BC from biofuel combustion is highly prevalent and compared to other regions, BC aerosol amounts are high. 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