“The third pole" Research

8. August 2019

Second expedition of the International Research Training Group to Tibet

In August 2019, doctoral researchers and professors from the International Research Training Group TransTiP will embark on their second expedition to Tibet. "TransTiP" stands for "Geo-ecosystems in transition on the Tibetan Plateau" and deals with changes in geo-ecosystems on the Tibetan Plateau in China. Main focus is the study of sediment fluxes, carbon fluxes and water fluxes as well as water quality in and around Lake Nam Co.

The Tibetan Plateau is of great importance for the global water and energy cycle and is home to one of the most sensitive geo-ecosystems. This high mountain region in South Asia - the so-called Hindu Kush-Karakorum-Himalayan region - is also known as the third pole: It has more snow and ice than any other region on earth, except the North and South Poles. As a result, the Tibetan Plateau reacts particularly sensitive to climate changes, which makes it particularly important for analyzing climate impacts. In this “natural laboratory”, the international research team would like to quantify the extent and causes of short and long-term changes in sediment and carbon flows as well as water availability with high temporal and spatial resolution.

This year, the journey begins with a two-week summer school in Chengdu, China, the city of the panda bears. The "2019 TPE & TransTiP Science and Technology Training" will take place between August 12 - 23, 2019. It will bring 85 young scientists together, e.g. from China, Germany, Nepal, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Myanmar, Iran and Singapore.

As part of the summer school, excursions to the Hailuogou glacier in the Gongga Mountains and the 2,000-year-old Dujiangyan irrigation system will take place. The summer school is funded by the Sino-German Center for Research Promotion, the TPE program (Third Pole Environment) and TransTiP.

Following the summer school, the TransTiP-team will set off for Lhasa on August 25, 2019, from where field work will begin. This year, a total of 22 researchers from Germany will be at Nam Co, the second largest salt lake on the Tibetan Plateau. They will work on their research projects on the Zhadang Glacier, the surrounding steppe and wetlands and on the lake. They will return at the end of September 2019.