Table of Contents
Why in News?
- The Indian Department of Post has released a ‘special stamp cover on Ice Stupa’.
- Ice Stupa is a form of glacier grafting technique that creates artificial glaciers, used for storing winter water (which otherwise would go unused) in the form of conical shaped ice heaps
Background
- Ladakh is cold desert
- Water requirement when streams dry up
- In the month of May, Sonam Wangchuk noticed the ice under a bridge. Despite summer and lowest elevation in Ladakh, the ice had not melted since it was not under direct sunlight.
Why are they built?
- The idea behind artificial glaciers:
- To freeze and hold the water
- Water that is wasted away down the streams
- Instead, this ice will melt in the springtime, just when the fields need watering.
Shape of glacier
Working
- Water always maintains its level.
- Water piped from 60m upstream would easily rise close to 60m up from ground
- Water is made to fall from that height in cold winter nights (with wind chill factor).
- The water would freeze by the time it reaches the ground and slowly form a huge cone or Ice Stupa
Significance
- The Ice Stupa is a survival technique
- Each stupa has the capacity to store at least 30-50 lakh liters of water
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