Tropical mountain top glaciers may melt by next decade: Study

December 10, 2019 11:28

The last remaining glaciers in the Earth's tropical zone -- between the Himalayas in the North, and the Andes in the South -- will disappear within the next ten years, or possibly sooner, due to the ongoing climate crisis, according to a study.

The researchers from Ohio State University in the US said the first glaciers to go could be the ones in Papua, Indonesia, which they called "the canaries in the coal mine" for other mountain top glaciers around the world.

The study, published in the journal PNAS, noted that the melting of mountain top glaciers on the western half of New Guinea have increased rapidly due to a strong 2015-2016 El Nino. The researchers explained that the El Nino -- a phenomenon that causes tropical ocean water and atmospheric temperatures to get warmer -- is a natural climate process, but has been amplified by global warming.

According to the researchers, the New Guinea mountain glaciers will disappear in the next 10 years -- most likely during the next strong El Nino. Study co-author Lonnie Thompson said it is likely that other tropical glaciers, such as those on Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, and Quelccaya in Peru, will follow.

"I think the Papua, Indonesia, glaciers are the indicators of what's going to happen around the world," Thompson said. The researchers have been monitoring the glacier since 2010, when they drilled ice cores to determine the composition and temperature of the atmosphere around the glacier throughout history. -- PTI

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