Abstract: Snow and ice core samples were collected from the glaciers located in the Tibetan Plateau (TP) and Xinjiang of west China. Black carbon (BC) was measured and its radiative forcing after deposition in snow was simulated. The average BC concentration in the snow of west China was about 63 ng/g, higher than the other measurements in the Northern Hemisphere; and its spatial distribution was primarily affected by surrounding emissions. Simulated mean radiative forcing caused by BC deposits in snow was about (+4.0±2.0) W/m². An ice core (aged 1951-2001) drilled in the middle Himalayas and transport analysis shows that black carbon was primarily transported from South Asia by Indian summer monsoon, causing a forcing over 4.5 W/m² in the summer of 2001. BC emitted from South Asia could penetrate into the inland of TP and might have significant effects on the surface energy balance of the glaciers in the TP.

Key words: black carbon, radiative forcing, ice core, snow