Warming air temperatures are causing glaciers to melt and thin, lowering the walls and therefore accommodating less water. This reduces the total volume of water capacity available and increases the chances of a potential glacial lake outburst flood.
Glacial lakes are common in the Himalayas, as this satellite view shows. Some are dammed by glaciers, other by moraines. NASA In August 2023, residents of Juneau, Alaska, watched as the Mendenhall River swelled to historic levels in a matter of hours. The rushing water undercut the riverbank and swallowed whole stands of trees and multiple buildings. The source for the flood was not heavy rainfall – it was a small glacial lake located in a side valley next to the Mendenhall Glacier. Glacier-damm