Go to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and see “Thousands of Mistakes”!

This article is provided by

The Second Qinghai-Tibet Expedition

Produced in partnership with Planet Research

The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is vast

White snow-capped mountains, gray-yellow earth, green pastures

Makes up most of the colors here

But there is another color

Although it only occupies 2% of the area of ​​the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

But it brings a different spirit to this vast land

It is

blue

The blue ones are made of

Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

lake

(The Holy Elephant Gate of Namtso Lake in Tibet, with the main peak of Nyainqentanglha Mountain in the distance, photographer @山风)

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Compared to

Many lakes in eastern my country are emerald green.

This blue is very unique

(Please watch in horizontal mode, Co'e next to Selin Co, photographer @陆雨春)

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Whether in the mountains and valleys

Still in the flat hinterland

You can see these blue figures

they

The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

"Blue Maker"

(Please watch in horizontal mode, the distribution of lakes on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is shown in blue. The blue lakes on the map are icons, not the actual color of the lakes. Map by @陈景逸/星球研究院)

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after all

What creates these blue colors?

In our lifetime

Will they always exist?

01

Blue | Because of purity

Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

The mountains are long and the peaks are numerous

The entry of water vapor is greatly hindered

Most of the highland land

Drought is evident

(Dryness distribution of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in the 2010s, drawn by @陈景逸/Planetary Research Institute)

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However, the mountains are a barrier

But its towering figure

It also causes water vapor to form solid precipitation such as snow at high altitudes.

After accumulation and compaction, glaciers are formed

Thus, the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau has become a huge

Solid water reservoir

(Luoben Qiangga Glacier and Dongsheng Lake, located in Shigatse, Tibet, photographer @白宇)

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Over 47,000 square kilometers of glaciers

and more than 4,300 cubic kilometers of ice reserves

The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau has earned the reputation of being the Asian Water Tower.

When the glaciers melt

Meltwater and precipitation flow down the mountain.

In low-lying areas

Another important form of Asia's water tower

lake

(Jiongpu Co, located in Qamdo, Tibet, photographer @行影不离)

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Widespread glaciers

Most of the lakes on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Not far from the water source

The water flow into the lake is short and small

It therefore carries fewer debris particles

Plus

Low temperature, salty lake water, etc.

The growth of microorganisms in the lake is inhibited

The lake water is so clear and clean

Rarely seen turbidity

(Dongtaijinaier Lake, located in Haixi, Qinghai, photographer @咔咔)

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When the sun shines into the lake

Long-wave visible light such as yellow light easily penetrates deep into the lake and is absorbed

Short-wave visible light such as blue light is prone to scattering

So it is captured by our eyes

Blue Maker

It was fully launched in all parts of the plateau

(Kailash and Manasarovar, located in Ali, Tibet, with Tibetan wild donkeys beside the lake, photographer @山风)

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When the lake is shallow

The lake is mostly light blue

And it will superimpose the color of the lake bottom

Milk Lake in Daocheng, Sichuan

Because of the milky white lake bottom

The lake is more light

(Milk Lake in Aden, Daocheng, Sichuan, photographer @曹维兵)

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When the lake is deep

The lake bottom is hard to see

The lake is the ultimate deep blue

The lakes upstream of the Nuorilang Waterfall in Jiuzhaigou

Deep in the lake

The color presented is azure blue

(Norilang Waterfall in Jiuzhaigou, Sichuan and the Nuorilang Lakes upstream. The water depth of the lakes is mostly between 7-20m, and the deepest can reach 23m. Photographer @李珩)

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Represents pure blue

It also gives the lake a sense of holiness.

This may be the lakes

One of the reasons why it is considered a holy lake

The Three Sacred Lakes of Tibet

Namtso Lake, Manasarovar Lake, Yamdrok Lake

Wide lake

All of them have the holy blueness of the sea

(Namtso Lake is located at the junction of Lhasa and Nagqu in Tibet. 3/5 of the lake is in Bange County, Nagqu City, and 2/5 is in Dangxiong County, Lhasa City. Photographer: @阿拖施晓君)

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Sansheng Lake in Yading, Daocheng, Sichuan

Milk Sea, Five Color Sea, Pearl Sea

Although the lake is small and shallow

But it does not diminish the sense of holiness

(Five-color Sea in Yading, Daocheng, Sichuan, photographer @沈龙泉)

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also

White sacred mountain

Always with the Holy Lake

(Dangre Yongcuo, located in Nagqu, Tibet; in the distance is the sacred mountain Dagu, two Tibetan antelopes seem to be looking at the sacred mountain in the distance, photographer @山风)

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Exotic Animals

Often gather at the lakeside

(Mapang Yumtso, located in Ali, Tibet, is the only freshwater lake among the three sacred lakes in Tibet; there are black-necked cranes on the lakeshore and the Namu Nani Snow Mountain in the distance. Photographer @赖建)

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Mani pile for blessing

Often seen on the lake shore

All of the above

The sacredness and greatness of the holy lake are further demonstrated

(Pumoyongcuo and the Mani piles by the lake; Pumoyongcuo is located in Shannan, Tibet, southwest of Yamdrokcuo. Photographer: @阿拖施晓君)

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then

Different shades of blue

Represents purity

Demonstrating the sacred

Shining brightly on this plateau

But these blue

Except the color is different

They also vary in size and shape.

What kind of rules exist in this?

02

Blue | Various forms

In terms of lake size

Most of the Great Lakes

All are located outside the rugged mountains

In the hinterland of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau or in the intermountain basins

China's largest lake

Qinghai Lake

It is such a super lake

Like a huge sapphire

Embedded in the northeast corner of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

(Please watch in horizontal mode, Qinghai Lake, photographer @张扬小强)

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There are not many lakes around Qinghai Lake.

In the northeast of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

This is the norm for many large lakes.

But it’s different in the southwest

Especially in the north of Gangdise-Nyainqentanglha Mountains

The southern part of the Changtang Plateau

An east-west belt of lakes

It crosses nearly half of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

Since the lake is called "Cuo" in Tibetan

This lake-rich area is therefore called

“Mistake after mistake”

(Please watch in horizontal mode. Schematic diagram of the distribution of the multi-lake areas where "mistakes are repeated" were made. Map by @陈景逸/Planet Research Institute)

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More than 100 million years ago

There's still an ocean here.

As the Indian Ocean plate continues to rush towards the Eurasian plate

The area of ​​this ocean is gradually shrinking

And then gradually disappeared in the uplift of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

Leaving behind a relatively low-lying area and many large and small basins

After the water storage, "one mistake after another" was born.

(Please watch in horizontal screen, a group of Tibetan antelopes running in front of Daze Co, taken in Nima, Tibet, photographer @山风)

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then

The Great Lakes Gather Here

Top Ten Lakes in Tibet

This occupies eight

With other scattered lakes of different sizes

It is like an exquisite

Sapphire Necklace

The three largest lakes

This necklace

Three sapphire main stones

They are

The largest lake in Tibet with an area of ​​2273.95 square kilometers

Selin Co

The second largest lake in Tibet with an area of ​​2024.55 square kilometers

Namtso

The third largest lake in Tibet with an area of ​​1,014.51 square kilometers

Zharin Nam Co

(The above area data is taken from the "Comprehensive Geographical Research on China's Plateau Lakes" published by Science Press in 2021. Due to differences in statistical time and methods, there are differences in lake area data from different data. This is for reference only; the picture shows Selin Co, which spans Bange, Nima and Shenzha counties in Nagqu, Tibet. Please watch it in horizontal mode. The photographer is @陈小羊)

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The three of them

This is the only area in Tibet.

Extra large lake

The rest of the larger

Such as Tangre Yongcuo, Anglarencuo, Taruocuo, etc.

Most of them are larger than 100 square kilometers.

But less than 1000 square kilometers

Large and medium-sized lakes

(Angla Rin Co, located in Shigatse, Tibet, photographer @蒋晨明)

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Together with other areas of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Pangong Lake, Yamdrok Lake, Eling Lake, etc.

More than 200 large and medium-sized lakes

It accounts for 65% of the lake area on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

For the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Blue Workhorse

(Pangong Lake is located at the border between China and Indian-controlled Kashmir, about 2/3 of which is located in my country. Photographer: @向文军)

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They are full of

The blue of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau has been given a myriad of forms

Its shape is basically irregular.

(Please watch in horizontal mode. The Yamdrok Lake in Shannan, Tibet has many branches like coral branches, so it is also called "the upper coral lake" in Tibetan. Photographer @Sun Yan)

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but

Located in the vast mountains of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Thousands of small lakes

But it is different

Hengduan Mountains

Lisuohai Lake not far from Mount Gongga

And the many holy lakes in Daocheng Yading

All show pearl-like roundness

(Please watch in horizontal mode, Lisuohai Lake, with Mount Gongga not far away, photographer @张善友)

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On the high mountains in the northern part of the western Sichuan Plateau

Degemu Co

and some lakes in Lianbaoyezhe

Approximately elliptical shape

(Lianbaoyeze Zhagarcuo, photographer @李源)

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The basins of these lakes were created by glaciers

Therefore, they are collectively referred to as

Glacial Lake

Glacier extent on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

It used to be wider than it is now

The last glacial maximum about 20,000 years ago

The glacier area on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau was about 7.5 times that of today

(Comparison of the last glacial maximum and the current glacier range on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, map by @陈景逸/Planetary Research Institute)

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Flowing glaciers erode mountains

Leaving various depressions on its surface

When the Ice Age ended, the climate warmed

Glaciers are shrinking and retreating

These depressions become apparent

After the water accumulates, various types of glacial lakes are formed.

On the mountain

Glaciers accumulate and erode surrounding rocks

Forming mostly circular or semicircular ice buckets

After the water is stored, the lake will also be circular or semi-circular.

Cirque

In the valley

The glacier keeps flowing down

Long strips of depressions were eroded along the valley.

After the water is stored, the lakes are mostly oval in shape.

Glacial Lake

(Schematic diagram of the formation of the main types of glacial lakes, drawn by @Chen Sui/Planetary Research Institute)

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Glaciers erode mountains

It also causes a lot of debris to flow with the glacier.

And gather on both sides and at the end of the glacier to form a natural dam

After the glacier retreated

The water is intercepted here

The water is stored to form a moraine lake

(碛, meaning sand and stone)

Its shape varies in length

When the lake is low

As short as the one under the Qiangyong Glacier in Shannan, Tibet

Gun Yongcuo

Shaped like a piece of warm jade

(Qiangyong Glacier and Qiangyong Co in Kaluxiong Peak, Langkazi County, Shannan, Tibet, photographer @Greatwj)

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When the lake is full

As slender as the U-shaped valley of the Linzhi Glacier in Tibet

Basong Co

Resembling a wide river

(Basong Co, located in Linzhi, Tibet, photographer @张静)

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Due to the water blocking effect of the natural dam at the end of the lake

Moraine Lake is also called Moraine-dammed Lake

However, natural dams with similar functions

Glaciers are not the only ones that can create

Sudden landslides, mudslides, etc.

Let the mud and rocks lie in the river valley

Water accumulation upstream

It can also form a barrier lake

(Illustration of the causes of some barrier lakes on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, drawn by @陈随/Planetary Research Institute)

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They are often wild due to the sand and gravel

Molded into various interesting shapes

Such as the Five Flower Lake in Jiuzhaigou, Sichuan

The stool is shaped like a swimming tadpole

(Wuhua Lake in Jiuzhaigou, Sichuan, shaped like tadpoles, photographer @李珩)

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So far

Blue manufacturing machine in full force

Blue in all its forms

Spread across the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

But unfortunately

over time

Blue is not forever

Change is coming

03

Blue | Nothing lasts forever

first

Lake color

May change due to seasonal changes

In seasons with little rainfall or severe cold weather

The water of Ranwu Lake

Can be pure blue

(Please watch in horizontal mode, Ranwu Lake, located in Qamdo, Tibet, photographer @申燕)

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But when the rainy season comes

Rich in mud, sand, rock fragments and other debris

Will be carried into the lake by the flowing water

The lake water often becomes muddy and yellow

But sometimes when the crumb content is just right

Ranwu Lake can also show

Turquoise color

(Please watch in horizontal mode, Ranwu Lake, located in Qamdo, Tibet, photographer @李珩)

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also

In the severe winter

Some lakes are frozen due to low temperatures

So I put on a new white outfit

Sometimes the mood is like

Still holding the pipa and half covering her face

(Qiangyong Glacier and Qiangyong Co in Kaluxiong Peak, Langkazi County, Shannan, Tibet, photographer @张振启)

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Sometimes it blends in with the surrounding ice and snow.

Indistinguishable from each other

(A glacial lake in Yubeng Village, Diqing, Yunnan. The lake is called "Ice Lake". Photographer @Zou Tong)

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Sometimes the ice is so thick

Can easily carry the flock of sheep on the road

(Pumoyongcuo and sheep, located in Shannan, Tibet, photographer @李珩)

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However, these changes are only temporary.

Accumulation of salts

This will cause a permanent change in blue

For example, calcium ions easily combine with carbon dioxide to precipitate

Formation of travertine

Even in freshwater lakes where the ion concentration is not high

It can also lay a white carpet on the bottom of the lake.

The lake water became lighter in color

(Huanglong Travertine Pool, located in Aba, Sichuan, photographer @杨建)

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Most salts try to achieve a similar effect.

Higher concentrations are required

Most of the lakes in the heart of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

They are relatively closed inland lakes.

The salt matter flowing into the lake cannot be discharged.

After a long period of accumulation

Lakes are becoming increasingly salty

Gradually became a salt lake

Salts precipitate due to saturation

The lake bottom also became white.

(Dongtaijinaier Lake, located in Haixi, Qinghai, photographer @张称心)

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It can even grow into various shapes

White salt flower

Add a different style to the lake

(Salt flowers in the Chaerhan Salt Lake, located in Haixi, Qinghai, photographer @韩飞)

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The changes brought about by salt substances are more than that

The higher concentration of iron ions and copper ions in the lake water

It will also change the color of the lake.

If there are a large number of halophilic microorganisms in the lake

Its body is rich in β-carotene, astaxanthin and other substances

Makes its body color bright

The lake will also be dyed with more brilliant colors

Under the complementary effect of these two

The lake color will change dramatically

(Chaerhan Salt Lake, located in Haixi, Qinghai, photographer @陈小羊)

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Blood red

(Please watch horizontally, Zhabuye Chaka, located in Shigatse, Tibet, photographer @Lu Yuchun)

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Honey yellow

(Eboliang Sulfur Lake, located in Haixi, Qinghai, photographer @周超)

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Emerald green

(Dachaidan Emerald Lake, located in the Dachaidan Administrative Region, Haixi, Qinghai Province, photographer @沈龙泉)

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As the salt lake dries up further due to drought

Only a thin layer of thick salt water remains.

The lake is therefore calm

Like a mirror of the earth

Snow-capped mountains in the distance, gorgeous sunsets, and brilliant stars

It has become its color

(Mangya Emerald Lake, located in Mangya City, Haixi, Qinghai Province, photographer @何小清)

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If the salt lake dries up further

What is left is the dry, snow-white salt crust.

Lake water is hidden in the gaps of salt layers

It only emerges occasionally when water is replenished by rainfall, snowmelt, etc.

It is a dry salt lake

This is the end of these lakes.

(Zhabuye Chaka, located in Shigatse, Tibet, photographer @Lu Yuchun)

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When the dryness further occurs

Their lives have come to an end.

The blue of the Great Lakes

The splendor of the Salt Lake period

Even the whiteness of the dry salt lake

All will be buried in the wind, sun, and dust in the future.

No longer exists

(A lake that is about to dry up in the Ghost City of Dachaidan, Qinghai Province, photographer @李源)

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From this it seems

In the overall dry climate environment of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Drying up seems to be the problem for most of the lakes here.

Final fate

future

The vast expanse of blue on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Will it really disappear like this?

Review their changes in recent decades

We may have some answers.

04

Blue | Future

Since the end of the 20th century

Global warming is accelerating

This profoundly affects

Many lakes on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Rising temperatures

The permafrost gradually melts

The ground collapsed and the water formed a lake

It is for the hot melting lake

They often appear in sheets

As dense as the stars in the night sky

(Please watch in horizontal mode, the lakes and swamps in Tianjun County, Haixi, Qinghai, photographer @张自荣)

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In 2018

Number of thermal melt lakes and ponds on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

It has reached an astonishing

120,000

By 2020

This number has risen to

160,000

In just two years

It has risen by more than 30%

The growth rate is extremely rapid

(Distribution of frozen soil and thermal thaw lakes on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, map by @Chen Jingyi/Planet Research Institute)

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Rising temperatures

It has also become an important factor causing climate anomalies.

Rainfall increases in most areas of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

In addition, the amount of glacial meltwater has also increased.

Many lakes are starting to grow

Ruselingcuo

From 1622 square kilometers in 1975

2428 square kilometers by 2020

The area has increased by nearly 50% in 45 years

Even surpassing Namtso in the process

It has become the largest lake in Tibet.

(Show the change of the scope of Selin Co, drawn by @Chen Jingyi/Planetary Research Institute)

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Namtso Lake was overtaken

Although the growth rate is not so exaggerated

But in the last 20 years

Increased by about 50 square kilometers

Equivalent to the area of ​​Kanas Lake in Xinjiang

(Please watch in horizontal mode, Namtso, photographer @段黄德)

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future

If the lake continues to grow

Many lakeside roads will be flooded

Many small surrounding lakes will be swallowed up by the big lake

(The road beside Selin Co, photographer @陈小羊)

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Increase in lake water volume

It will also reduce the salinity of the lake water.

The salt crust at the bottom of the salt lake will be dissolved

The halophilic microorganisms will therefore leave

The bright colors will disappear.

Some lakes may regain their blue color

(Emerald Lake in Haiximangya, Qinghai, photographer @黄雪峰)

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It can be seen from this

The blueness of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau appears to be increasing

But is this really the case?

Global warming

In fact, it also accelerated the disappearance of some lakes.

Rising temperatures and more rainfall

This will cause the glacier to flow faster

Glaciers are more prone to fractures

Let the front ice tongue slide into the moraine lake

In addition, the amount of water entering the lake has increased due to rainfall.

Many moraine lakes may burst their banks as a result.

Disappear

(The Leduomanin Glacier and the moraine lake below it in the northern part of the Gongga Mountains in Sichuan, photographer @张善友)

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Other barrier lakes formed by landslides and debris flows

The increase in the amount of water entering the lake

Increased risk of dam breach

(In June 2000, the Yigong Co in Linzhi, Tibet, burst its banks due to a sudden rise in lake water during the rainy season. After that, the riverbed of the Yigong Co was exposed, and it was difficult to see the valley filled with water as before. Photographer @仇梦涵)

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The abnormal climate caused by global warming

This has also led to a decrease in rainfall in some parts of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

In addition, the increase in evaporation due to the increase in temperature

The lakes in these areas are gradually shrinking

Even facing disappearance

(Laangcuo in Ali, Tibet has a dense lakeshore, which is a characteristic of lake shrinkage. Photographer @Song Wenjun)

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also

Climate warming will also lead to accelerated melting of glaciers

Debris originally trapped inside and at the bottom of the glacier

Will be brought out by meltwater

Increased rainfall and frequency

The water also carries more debris.

The water flowing into the lake will become more turbid

(Muddy water flowing under Laigu Glacier, located in Qamdo, Tibet, photographer @吴渊)

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Coupled with the rising temperature

The lake's growth environment has been improved

The proliferation of many microorganisms is accelerated

These factors will make many lakes

Lost its original purity

The blue disappears

(Chongba Yongcuo, located in Shigatse, Tibet; the lake water nearby is green and slightly turbid due to the high sediment content, which contrasts with the cleaner blue lake water in the distance. Photographer @刘剑伟)

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Most vulnerable

There are thousands of small lakes on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

But the Great Lakes are not all safe.

Over the past 20 years

Area greater than 50 square kilometers

152 lakes on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Although its overall transparency has increased

However, 18 of the lakes still have high transparency.

There was a significant decline

Qinghai Lake, Selin Co, etc. are among them

future

Many lakes on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

will continue to be profoundly affected by global warming

And it is difficult for us to accurately predict

The future changes of the blue Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

(A lake on the Pamir Plateau, located in Kizilsu Kirgiz Autonomous Prefecture, Xinjiang, is often called "White Sand Lake" because of the white sand on the lakeshore. Image source: Visual China)

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But one thing is certain

They are sensitive and changeable

It's hard to be the same as we knew it.

And their current beauty

It will also become a beautiful memory for us in the future

(Please watch in horizontal mode, Qinghai Lake, photographer @李文博)

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Expert support team

The Second Qinghai-Tibet Expedition

Yao Tandong, Zhu Liping, An Baosheng

Wang Junbo, Lei Yanbin, Wang Weicai, Li Jiule

This article was created by

Written by: Shanyuelou

Editor: Director, Yunwukongcheng

Image: Daytime sleep

Map: Chen Jingyi

Design: Chen Sui

Proofreading: Shaoshao, Zuokou, Zheng Yi, Quancaotian, Songnan

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