🔗 Share this article

Far in the state of Sierra Nevada, massive ice formations are vanishing and expected to melt away entirely by the beginning of the coming hundred years, leaving summits without glaciers for the initial occasion in human history, recent studies has found.

Age-Old Beginnings of Sierra Nevada Ice Masses

The mountain range’s glaciers are older than previously known, dating back tens of thousands of years, with a few as ancient as the last ice age, according to a report published recently.

“Our pieced-together ice age record indicates that a coming ice-free Sierra Nevada is without precedent in human history since documented peopling of the Americas ~20,000 years ago,” the article states.

Global Risk to Glaciers

Glaciers globally are under threat during the climate crisis. A research released in the month of May of the current year determined that almost forty percent of ice sheets are destined to thaw because of global heating. If such heating increases by 2.7 degrees Celsius, which the planet is presently on track for, as up to seventy-five percent will disappear, leading to ocean level increase and large-scale relocation.

Throughout the American west, glaciers have shrunk substantially since they were first documented in the 1800s, according to the article.

Concentration on Key Glaciers

The recent study centers on several Sierra Nevada glacial masses – the Conness, Maclure, Lyell and Palisade ice sheets – that are among the largest and probably oldest in the range. Their longevity amid global heating makes them “indicators” for examining glacier disappearance in the west, the study states.

Study Techniques and Findings

Researchers looked at newly uncovered bedrock around the glaciers and collected specimens to ascertain how extensively the region was covered by glacial ice. They determined that the glaciers have enveloped swaths of the range for far longer than previously known – since prior to people inhabited North America.

The state's glaciers reached their peak extents as long ago as 30,000 years ago, the study's researchers stated, and one of the ice bodies experts looked at is thought to have expanded 7,000 years ago, sooner than previously believed. The loss of glaciers, for the initial time in human history, demonstrates the profound impacts of the climate crisis, one author of the investigation said.

Environmental and Representational Impact

“We’ll be the initial ones to see the glacier-less summits,” said the study's lead researcher, the study’s lead author. “This has ecological implications for plants and animals. And it’s a symbolic loss. Climate change is highly intangible, but these ice masses are tangible. They’re iconic features of the American West.”