The snow line on Mount Everest Region glaciers on Feb. 11, 2024 indicated by yellow dots on the Landsat image. Note that Nangpa La and Nup La-two high passes (5800-5900 m) are both snow free. The average snow line is 6000 m.
In several recent years including Winter 2017/18, 2020/21 and 2023/24 the snow line has risen substantially on Mount Everest glaciers from October into the mid-winter period (Pelto et al 2022).. This indicates not just dry conditions, but conditions that allow significant ablation at the snow line, which has risen 150-300 m during each of these periods on the glaciers. The ablation can be from melting or as the case this winter sublimation, which can lead to losses up to 2.5mm/day (Tenzing Chogyal Sherpa et al 2023). When will snow finely cover the glaciers in the Everest region?