Abstract: We selected four typical glaciers in the Qilian Mountains and investigated their movements and variation using advanced technologies such as remote sensing, photographic measurements, and global positioning systems. The velocity of glacier movements in the Qilian Mountains is relatively low, and there has been no significant variation during the past 50 years. Glacier motion has maintained a normal style. The movement velocity of Laohugou Glacier No. 12 presented a decreasing trend (by 48%) from 1960 to 2012. The movement velocity of the Qiyi Glacier also presented a decreasing trend (by 48.1%) from 1958 to 2012; it decreased by 29.4% from 1958 to 1977 and by 26.5% from 1977 to 2012. Therefore, the Qiyi Glacier's movement velocity varied greatly over the earlier 20 years (1958-1977), but presented a small decreasing trend during the latter 30 years (1977-2012). By comparing the movement velocity variation of these typical glaciers, we determined that the extent of variation was consistent among large glaciers (such as Laohugou Glacier No. 12) and small glaciers (such as the Qiyi Glacier and Yanglonghe Glacier No. 5), despite their different sizes.

Key words: typical glaciers, movement velocity, variation, extent, Qilian Mountains