UN reports ‘off the charts’ melting of glaciers
- April 22, 2023
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN Topics
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UN reports ‘off the charts’ melting of glaciers
Subject: Environment
Section: climate change
Context: The last eight years have been the warmest ever recorded, while concentrations of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide hit new peaks, the UN’s World Meteorological Organization.
Findings of the report:
- The world’s glaciers melted at dramatic speed last year and saving them is effectively a lost cause, the United Nations reported, as climate change indicators once again hit record highs.
- The last eight years have been the warmest ever recorded, while concentrations of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide hit new peaks, the UN’s World Meteorological Organization.
- Antarctic sea ice fell to its lowest extent on record and the melting of some European glaciers was, literally, off the charts
- Sea levels are also at a record high, having risen by an average of 4.62 millimetres per year between 2013 and 2022 — double the rate it was between 1993 and 2002.
- Record high temperatures were recorded in the oceans — where around 90% of the heat trapped on Earth by greenhouse gases ends up.
- The global mean temperature in 2022 was 1.15 C above the 1850-1900 average, the WMO report
- The report said greenhouse gas concentrations reached new global highs in 2021.
- The concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2) reached 415.7 parts per million globally, or 149% of the pre-industrial (1750) level, while methane reached 262% and nitrous oxide hit 124%.
- The world’s reference glaciers — those for which long-term observations exist — saw an average thickness loss of more than 1.3 metres between October 2021 and October 2022 — a loss much larger than the average over the last decade.The cumulative thickness loss since 1970 amounts to almost 30 metres.
UNESCO finds that some iconic World Heritage glaciers will disappear by 2050
- Africa:
- According to available data, glaciers in all World Heritage sites in Africa will very likely be gone by 2050, incl. Kilimanjaro National Park and Mount Kenya
- Asia:
- Glaciers in Three Parallel Rivers of Yunnan Protected Areas (China) – #1 highest mass loss relative to 2000 (57.2%) and also the fastest melting glacier on the List
- Glaciers in Western Tien-Shan (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan) have shrunk by 27% since 2000
- Europe:
- Glaciers in Pyrenees Mont Perdu (France, Spain) – very likely to disappear by 2050
- Glaciers in The Dolomites (Italy) – very likely to disappear by 2050
- Latin America:
- Glaciers in Los Alerces National Park (Argentina) – #2 highest mass loss relative to 2000 (45.6%)
- Glaciers in Huascaran National Park (Peru) have shrunk by 15% since 2000
- North America:
- Glacierized patches in Yellowstone National Park (United States of America) – very likely to disappear by 2050
- Glaciers in Yosemite National Park (United States of America) – very likely to disappear by 2050
- Glaciers in Waterton Glacier International Peace Park (Canada, United States of America) have lost 26.5% of their volume in 20 years
- Oceania:
- Glaciers in TeWahipounamu – South West New Zealand (New Zealand) have lost almost 20% of their volume since 2000