This Week: Goodbye Glaciers, Jan 21 edition

Recently published stories about glaciers melting because of climate change:

Greenland Ice Sheet lost 20% more ice mass than thought

A comprehensive new study points to faster ice mass losses throughout Greenland.

Axios: “The data indicates that the rate of ice retreat stayed steady until the 1990s, with a faster rate of loss since 2000.”

NASA Study: More Greenland Ice Lost Than Previously Estimated – NASA

A new, comprehensive analysis of satellite data finds that majority of glaciers on the landmass have retreated significantly.

NASA: “The majority of glaciers on the landmass have retreated significantly, and icebergs are falling into the ocean at an accelerating rate. This additional ice loss has had only an indirect impact on sea levels, but could hold implications for ocean circulation in the future.”

Labour MP stirred by disappearing Antarctic ice and her father’s legacy

Anna McMorrin says Labour ‘absolutely determined’ on net zero after visiting Antarctica and finding report by her father, a polar researcher

The Guardian: “It described the Larsen ice shelf, a beautiful stretch of thousands of miles of thick, white, crystalline snow – which has now almost completely melted away.

Her shock at witnessing the change first-hand has reinforced for her the urgency of slowing climate breakdown in Antarctica to prevent a dangerous tipping point that could disrupt ocean currents and weather systems, with catastrophic implications for humanity.”

As Switzerland’s Glaciers Shrink, a Way of Life May Melt Away

Rising temperatures and retreating glaciers threaten Europe’s water tower, forcing local farmers to adapt and presaging larger troubles downstream.

New York Times: “Today, the Alps are warming about twice as fast as the global average, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. In the past two years alone, Swiss glaciers have lost 10 percent of their water volume — as much as melted in the three decades from 1960 to 1990.”

Australia not prepared for how Antarctic ice changes will pummel economy, scientist warns

Exclusive: Prof Matt King says accelerated melting could transform country and affect viability of some agricultural industries

The Guardian: “The head of the Australian Centre for Excellence in Antarctic Science, Prof Matt King, said he found it embarrassing how little was known about the local and global ramifications of changes including a historic drop in floating sea ice cover, the accelerating melting of giant ice sheets and the slowing of a deep ocean current known as the Southern Ocean overturning circulation.”

Mountain glaciers will lose 50% of their volume by 2050 no matter what humans do

Alpine glaciers are set to lose at least a third of their volume by 2050, regardless of any immediate halt in global warming

Earth.com: “Climate change poses the biggest challenge, with predictions suggesting that many of the glaciers could disappear by the year 2050.”

Why melting polar ice is a debt we can’t afford to carry

We now know it’s official – 2023 was the warmest year ever recorded. Citizens across the globe felt the impacts long before it was confirmed. There were unprecedented wildfires in Canada that turned the New York sky orange. Phoenix saw a record-breaking 31 consecutive days with temperatures toppi

EDF: “To reduce our sea level rise debt, we need to stop emitting greenhouse gases and further increasing the temperature as soon as possible. That’s why it’s critical that we accelerate efforts to stabilize the climate and achieve a just transition.”