Everest’s highest glacier to disappear in middle of this century

Everest’s highest glacier to disappear in middle of this century

TOPIC: Geography

Context- It has been estimated that the ice in the South Col glacier located at an elevation of 8,020 metres is thinning at a rate of nearly two-metre per year.

Concept-

• As per The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), Everest has been losing ice significantly since the late 1990s.
• It has been estimated that the ice in the South Col glacier located at an elevation of 8,020 metres is thinning at a rate of nearly two-metre per year, the report said.
• Glaciers in the Himalayas make a significant contribution to water resources for millions of people.
• These glaciers feed world’s 10 most important river systems.

Mt Everest:

• Mt Everest stands on the border between China and Nepal.
• Mt Everest is known as Sagarmatha in Nepal while in China it is called Mt Qomolangma, the Tibetan name for the world’s highest peak with a height of 8848.86 m.

The South Col Glacier:

• South Col Glacier is a sharp-edged col between Mount Everest and Lhotse.
• It is typically swept by high winds, which leaves it free of significant snow accumulation.
• It is around 7,900 metres above sea level and a kilometre below the peak of world’s highest mountain.