Towering artificial ice reservoirs called "ice stupas" have emerged since 2014 as an accessible means of storing irrigation water in dry, high-altitude mountain villages. Now, experiments with automated systems have demonstrated that construction of these giant ice cones, which top 30 meters (100 feet), can be accomplished with about one-tenth the volume of water manual methods use, according to new research being presented today at the Frontiers in Hydrology meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico and online.
