Ice Sheet Thawing Will Lead to Ice-Free Peaks in California for First Time in Recorded History

Deep in the state of Sierra mountain range, massive ice formations are vanishing and projected to dissolve entirely by the beginning of the coming hundred years, leaving ice-free peaks for the first time in human history, new research has discovered.

Age-Old Origins of Sierra Nevada Glaciers

The mountain range’s ice sheets are more ancient than earlier understood, tracing back tens of thousands of years, with some as old as the most recent glacial period, according to a report published last week.

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

Worldwide Threat to Glaciers

Ice masses around the world are at risk during the climate crisis. A study released in the month of May of this year determined that almost forty percent of ice sheets are doomed to melt because of climate warming. If such heating rises by 2.7 degrees Celsius, which the planet is currently on course for, as many as seventy-five percent will vanish, leading to ocean level increase and mass displacement.

Throughout the American west, ice formations have shrunk significantly since they were initially recorded in the 1800s, according to the report.

Concentration on Key Glaciers

The recent study centers on several Sierra Nevada glacial masses – the Palisade, Lyell, Maclure and Conness glaciers – that are some of the biggest and probably oldest in the mountain chain. Their durability during climate warming makes them “bellwethers” for studying ice loss in the western region, the article states.

Research Methods and Results

Researchers looked at recently exposed base rock around the ice formations and collected specimens to ascertain how extensively the region was covered by ice. They determined that the glaciers have enveloped swaths of the mountain system for far longer than earlier believed – since prior to humans occupied North America.

The state's glaciers reached their peak extents as early as thirty thousand years ago, the study's researchers stated, and one of the ice bodies researchers studied is believed to have expanded 7,000 years ago, earlier than previously believed. The disappearance of glaciers, for the initial time in human history, demonstrates the profound impacts of the climate crisis, a researcher of the investigation said.

Ecological and Representational Consequences

“We’ll be the first to see the ice-free peaks,” said Andrew Jones, the principal investigator. “This has environmental implications for flora and fauna. And it’s a representational decline. Global warming is highly intangible, but these glaciers are tangible. They’re iconic features of the American West.”