India dam disaster: The trigger event and warnings for the future

Questions are being asked about how the disaster happened, and what, if anything, can be done to prevent similar incidents in future. Glacial ponds Backdated satellite photographs of the glaciers straddling Nanda Devi, India’s second-highest mountain, close to where the Rishi Ganga Hydroelectric Project is located, show the changes in snow and ice cover over the past five years. “The ponds themselves also encourage the melting of the glacier through positive feedback since they’re warmer than the ice and are filled with sediment and debris that absorb heat. This could explain why the glaciers are losing mass so quickly.” Early warning systems A key recommendation from Carr’s research is the call for glacial ponds to be mapped and monitored for future risk assessment. “On one hand we have climate change making more water upstream, but downstream we’re also getting population and infrastructure growth.