The Third Pole is melting at an accelerated pace, says a study led by scientists at the University of Leeds. The Himalayan region is often referred to as the “Third Pole” as they are known to have the third-largest amount of glacier ice after Antarctica and the Arctic.
Unfortunately, the Himalayan glaciers are melting at exponential rates, almost ten times higher than the average rate over the past centuries. They have lost around 40 percent of its Little Ice Age areas, which is equivalent to all the ice confined in the central European Alps, the Caucasus, and Scandinavia combined, at present.
Image: University of Leeds
Global warming has become one of the major nemesis causing glacier and ice melting. As per the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Arctic Report Card the rising temperature is destabilizing the Arctic Circle.
Recently, a report claimed that the Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica might collapse within the next three to five years. All these reports are an indicator of the upcoming future, which is going to be disastrous because of human-created climate change.
Jonathan Carrivick, report author and deputy head of the University Of Leeds School Of Geography said;
This acceleration in the rate of loss has only emerged within the last few decades, and coincides with human-induced climate change.
The ice melting will eventually result in increased sea levels. The annual melt from Himalayan glaciers fills the major rivers of Asia including the Ganges, which is the source of drinking water for a wide range of populations. The faster glacier melt is happening right now, and they eventually end in lakes causing heavy debris on surfaces.
Image: University of Leeds
The retreat of the Himalayan glaciers is an argumentative topic for researchers as a group of Indian scientists observed the glaciers, and they used satellite data to draw their conclusions. One such report highlighted that that the rate of retreat has declined in recent years.
Climate crisis is rising at alarming rates, the distressing ice melt fastening because of heightening temperatures does not seem to stop anytime soon. If the situations do not come under control we might not even have a future!
Via: University of Leeds