Abstract:
River discharge is a significant hydrological variable, as it represents the basin-scale integrated
output of the hydrological cycle. At present, river discharge observations are usually measured at groundbased gauges across rivers worldwide. In some areas, however, measurements used in the practice of
flood prediction and disaster prevention are either fully inaccessible or difficult to obtain in a timely and
functional fashion [1]. It has also been reported that the scarcity of global river discharge observations
may have undermined the efforts to calculate a globally meaningful estimate of the adjusted biodiversity
threat [2]. The Tibetan Plateau (TP), also known as the “Asian Water Tower,” is the headwater of more
than 10 large rivers that provide water for billions of people and numerous ecosystems (Fig. 1). The TP
has an average elevation greater than 4000 m and an approximate area of 2.5 × 106
km2
. It is largely
covered by cryospheric components (glaciers, snow, and frozen soil), and is highly sensitive to climate
change [3,4]. Due to the TP’s rapid warming in recent decades, prominent glacial recession, snowmelt,
and permafrost degradation have occurred, resulting in water cycle modifications, as well as variations in
streamflow both over the plateau and in its downstream regions [5].
