Kang Shichang, the leader of a research team, checks supplies at Mount Qomolangma base camp on May 1 before a scientific expedition. JIANG FAN XINHUA LHASA The tan line on Kang Shichang's face is a reminiscence of the eight days and seven nights he spent doing glacier research work on Mount Qomolangma, the world's highest peak.
Sunscreen apparently didn't work well since I spent eight to nine hours in the sun, says Kang, a researcher at the Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources, Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Kang is the leader of the glacier and pollutant research squad, a part of the scientific research team in the comprehensive scientific expedition on Mount Qomolangma, also known as Mount Everest in the West.
From May 1 to 8, the 18- member squad scanned a record area of 22 square kilometers at the East, Middle and West Rongbuk glaciers at altitudes between 5,200 meters and 6,500 meters using a drone and a high precision 3 D laser scanner. They also measured the thickness of ice and snow and collected samples at the East Rongbuk Glacier.
The highly-intensive work was physically challenging, according to Wang Shaoyong, a squad member and doctor from the institute.
Wang and his teammates took turns dragging ground-penetrating radar to measure the glacier ice thickness, following a zigzag trajectory on the surface of East Rongbuk Glacier.
Wang, 29, said he felt like his heart was going to explode and that his heartbeat reached as high as 160 beats per minute.
The team gather for last minute instructions at the base camp before their expedition. JIANG FAN XINHUA During the period, the squad spent a night in a tent erected at an altitude of 6,350 meters.
The low-oxygen environment made it hard to fall asleep, according to Gao Tanguang, associate professor at the College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University.
When the day broke, their sleeping bags were all soaked with condensation in the freezing tent.
He says that we couldn't air the sleeping bags outside because they would become ice bags in the extremely cold conditions.
Gao, who was responsible for operating the drone to scan the glaciers, says that the cold temperature at such a high altitude made his remote control inoperable, causing his drone to be grounded.
He says that I had to warm the remote with my body to make sure it was normal operation.
Despite all the difficulties, the squad members say their field investigations were valuable.
Based on the data collected, the research team will draw a 3 D digital elevation map of glaciers in the Mount Qomolangma area, and compare it with the data collected in the past, including remote sensing data, to get the trend and pattern of glacier change. The scientists will examine the ice and snow samples to see the chemicals in the glaciers.
The study of glacier changes and glacier air pollutants shows the impact of global and regional human activities in the Qomolangma area, Kang says.