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# Climate change may be baring Mount Everest

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  51

A study of satellite imagery and weather data shows that glacial ice is in decline at the world's highest peak, Mount Everest. (Pavel Novak / May 14, 2013)

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By Geoffrey Mohan

May 14, 2013, 1:16 p.m.

A warming climate is melting the glaciers of Mount Everest, shrinking the frozen cloak of Earth’s highest peak by 13% in the last 50 years, researchers have found.

Rocks and natural debris previously covered by snow are appearing now as the snow line has retreated 590 feet, according to Sudeep Thakuri, a University of Milan scientist who led the research.

The pessimistic view of Earth’s tallest peak was presented during a meeting Tuesday of the American Geophysical Union in Cancun, Mexico.

Researchers said they believe the observed changes could be due to human-generated greenhouse gases altering global climate, although their research has not established a firm connection.

The team reconstructed the glacial history of the area using satellite imagery and topographic maps of Everest and the surrounding 713-square-mile Sagarmatha National Park. Their statistical analysis shows that the majority of the glaciers in the national park are retreating at an increasing rate, Thakuri said.

Small glaciers of less than a square kilometer (about 247 acres), are vanishing fastest, registering a 43% decline in surface area since the 1960s.

Average temperatures have risen about 1 degree Fahrenheit since 1992, according data from the Nepal Climate Observatory stations and Nepal’s Department of Hydrology and Meteorology, the researchers found. Since 1992, precipitation has declined nearly four inches during the pre-monsoon and winter months, they found.

“The Himalayan glaciers and ice caps are considered a water tower for Asia since they store and supply water downstream during the dry season,” said Thakuri. “Downstream populations are dependent on the melt water for agriculture, drinking and power production.”

The topic of glacial melt in the Himalayas has been controversial. Initial reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predicted glaciers in the region would disappear by 2035. Subsequent analysis by the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellite mission showed that the melt was one-tenth the reported rate, and that some areas were experiencing growth, particularly in the Tibetan plateau.

Research published last year, however, showed that glaciers have been retreating over a 30-year period on the Tibetan plateau. It also showed that areas that depend on snow during regional monsoon seasons are particularly vulnerable to small rises in temperature.

The plateau is of concern because it is the ultimate source of drinking and irrigation water for more than 1 billion people in Asia.

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### Comments (51)

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XeYi99 at 6:23 AM May 18, 2013

What scientists (and politicians) are grappling with is the fact that the Himalayan glaciers which provide water to 1 billion people are disappearing. That will be DEVASTATING when it comes to pass. We are talking about massive crop failure, severe famine, huge population displacements and most likely, civil wars (which happen when people are threatened with starvation). Both China and India as well as many neighboring countries (Nepal, Burma, Pakistan, Afghanistan etc.) will be affected. The irony is that NOBODY seems to care. China and India continue burning fossil fuels at BREAKNECK speed. Those countries are HORRIBLY polluted (I know I've been there, they don't even use catalytic converters on their vehicles). They burn massive amounts of coal and oil like there's no tomorrow. Eventually, they (and everyone else) will pay a VERY HEAVY PRICE for this incredible ignorance and hubris. The fact is however, that CALIFORNIA will also pay a very heavy price. Just like 1 billion people depend on Himalayan glaciers for their drinking water and irrigation water, MILLIONS of Californians depend on snow melt from the Sierra Nevada for ALL our water needs. That snow melt is projected to become very scarce in the coming years leading to water CRISIS especially in Central and Southern California. So this is OUR STORY as well. ALL RENEWABLES ALL THE TIME NOW!!!!!!!!!

kwilson3 at 12:07 PM May 17, 2013

Well, it is what it is, I guess.

Liberum Paine at 11:13 AM May 17, 2013

You guys are so funny: Drop fossil fuels immediately? OK, where are you going to get your food from? Will a magic horse drop it off at your local market for you? Are you game to pay 5-10 times more for your food than you are now? Going to walk to work? Remember, everything we take for granted is connected to those fossil fuels. Nothing can replace it or the free market would have gone in that direction (yes, free markets go to the most effiecient means of doing things unlike markets run/influenced by governments...thus we see things like Solyndra in our economy). Humans are causing this? Based on what? The fact that Mars is warming up. Darn that NASA they put a machine on that planet and it is increasing the temp. CO2? Laughable concept. There is no SCIENTIFIC evidence linking CO2 to increased temperatures (lots of pseudo-scientific evidence though. Think "Silent Spring"). CH4? Another supposed "greenhouse gas". It's great if you are in a lab but it doesn't behave the same way in the real world. We are on the natural upward trend of temperatures that have been seen over the last 100 million years (based on evidence). We are on our way out of a glacial period (note, 10K yrs may be long to us but in glacial periods it is short). I guess we should just go back to the 10th century and here I thought most people wanted progress.

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