Characteristics and Prediction of the Dynamic Processes of Snow‐ and Ice‐Related Hazards in the Rangda Catchment, Southeastern Tibetan Plateau

ABSTRACT Snow‐ and ice‐related hazards pose significant threats in high‐altitude and high‐latitude regions, impacting natural environments and human infrastructure. Given their sensitivity to climate change, it is crucial to understand the underlying mechanisms of these hazards in the context of global warming to mitigate mountain disaster risk. This study focuses on the Rangda catchment along the CL (–Tibet) Railway on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau, a region prone to various snow‐ and ice‐related hazards. Through field investigations, remote sensing analyses, and numerical simulations, we characterized the spatial distributions and potential impacts of snow, glaciers, and glacial lakes in the catchment. The catchment hosts 28 glaciers covering 53.05 km 2 and five glacial lakes, with Zala Lake and Dalong Lake being prominent. Notably, Zala Lake has undergone significant expansion over the past three decades. The entire catchment is snow‐covered to varying depths during winter and spring, contributing to frequent snow avalanches and icefalls, particularly those originating from the Zangburi Glacier. These events have affected the makeshift road that is used for construction and pose a potential threat to the auxiliary tunnel exits and the Rangda Bridge. Although no current debris flows have been observed, the potential for glacial lake outburst floods exists due to ongoing climate warming and glacial retreat. Further simulations and exposure analyses indicate that the primary disaster‐causing patterns of snow‐ and ice‐related hazards in the catchment are snow avalanches, icefall–dam–outburst–debris chains, and glacial lake outburst debris flows. The study also examined the risks faced by engineering facilities along the ST railway in the catchment and proposes disaster reduction strategies. This research enhances the understanding of snow‐ and ice‐related hazards in the region and provides insights for disaster mitigation strategies along the ST Railway.