Srinagar, Aug. 28 -- The devastating flash floods that struck Nepal's Himalayan frontier have delivered a chilling message: the mountains are changing, and the danger is no longer confined to distant glaciers. What was initially mistaken for an earthquake was, according to emerging scientific evidence, triggered by a massive glacial collapse that unleashed an avalanche of ice, rock and debris into downstream river valleys. The distinction matters. An earthquake is a sudden geological event; a collapsing glacier in a warming Himalaya points towards a hazard that can be monitored, anticipated and, to some extent, managed. The disaster shows how rapidly conditions at high altitude can translate into catastrophe hundreds of kilometres downstr...