Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs):

Why in News? The Uttarakhand government has constituted two teams of experts to evaluate the risk posed by five potentially hazardous glacial lakes in the region. These lakes are prone to Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs).
• The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), which operates under the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, has identified 188 glacial lakes in the Himalayan states that can potentially be breached because of heavy rainfall. Thirteen of them are in Uttarakhand.

What is Glacial Lake Outburst Floods?
• GLOFs stand for “Glacial Lake Outburst Floods.” These are sudden, often catastrophic floods that occur when a glacial lake – a body of water formed by the melting of a glacier – breaches its natural dam or moraine, leading to a rapid release of water.
• Glacial lakes can form when glaciers retreat and leave behind depressions that fill with meltwater. As the climate warms, glaciers worldwide are melting at accelerated rates, leading to the formation and expansion of glacial lakes.
• These lakes can pose significant risks to communities downstream, particularly in mountainous regions, where they can lead to devastating floods, loss of life, and destruction of infrastructure.