NOAA@NSIDC is pleased to announce the release of the Contribution to High Asia Runoff from Ice and Snow (CHARIS) Melt Model Output, 2001 – 2014 data set. The CHARIS project aimed to distinguish the specific contribution of seasonal snow and glacier ice melt in five major river basins of High Mountain Asia: Ganges, Brahmaputra, Indus, Amu Darya, and Syr Darya. CHARIS investigators developed a systematic way of using remote sensing, reanalysis, and in situ data to calibrate and run temperature index melt models. Applying this approach, they were able to draw conclusions for the entire study region. This data set contains input and output data for the temperature index melt model that was run for the CHARIS project at NSIDC.
To learn more and to access the data, see the data set landing page.
Data Set DOI: https://doi.org/10.7265/TQFB-M828
The CHARIS project was funded by USAID Cooperative Agreement No. AID-0AA-A-11-00045.
To cite the data product:
Brodzik, M. J., R. Armstrong, A. P. Barrett, S. J. S. Khalsa, A. Racoviteanu, B. H. Raup, and K. Rittger. 2019. Contribution from High Asia Runoff from Ice and Snow (CHARIS) Melt Model Output, 2001 – 2014, Version 1. Boulder, Colorado USA. NSIDC: National Snow and Ice Data Center. doi: https://doi.org/10.7265/TQFB-M828.
To refer to the CHARIS project and its results:
Armstrong, R. L., K. Rittger, M. J. Brodzik, A. Racoviteanu, A. P. Barrett, S.-J. S. Khalsa, B. Raup, A. F. Hill, A. L. Khan, A. M. Wilson, R. B. Kayastha, F. Fetterer, and B. Armstrong. 2018. Runoff from glacier ice and seasonal snow in High Asia: separating melt water sources in river flow. Regional Environmental Change, doi:10.1007/s10113-018-1429-0.

CHARIS was the work of many. Here, University of Colorado scientists and researchers from CHARIS partner institutions in Asia are pictured at the sixth CHARIS meeting in Thimphu, Bhutan. It took place in 2018.