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Far in the state of Sierra Nevada, massive glaciers are disappearing and expected to melt away entirely by the beginning of the next century, leaving summits without glaciers for the initial occasion in human history, recent studies has found.

Ancient Origins of Sierra Range Ice Masses

The range's ice sheets are more ancient than earlier understood, dating back tens of thousands of years, with some as old as the most recent glacial period, according to a report released last week.

“Our pieced-together glacial history shows that a coming glacier-free Sierra Nevada is without precedent in human history since known peopling of the Americas ~20,000 years ago,” the article declares.

Worldwide Risk to Ice Formations

Glaciers globally are at risk amid the climate emergency. A research released in the month of May of this year determined that nearly 40% of ice sheets are destined to melt because of climate warming. If such heating increases by 2.7C, which the world is currently on track for, as up to seventy-five percent will disappear, leading to sea level rise and mass displacement.

Across the American west, glaciers have shrunk significantly since they were first documented in the 1800s, according to the report.

Concentration on Major Glaciers

The recent study centers on several Sierra Nevada glaciers – the Conness, Maclure, Lyell and Palisade glaciers – that are among the biggest and probably oldest in the mountain chain. Their longevity during climate warming makes them “bellwethers” for examining glacier disappearance in the western region, the article states.

Study Techniques and Findings

Scientists looked at newly uncovered bedrock around the glaciers and collected specimens to determine how long the region was covered by ice. They determined that the ice masses have covered swaths of the mountain system for far longer than earlier believed – since prior to humans occupied North America.

The state's glacial sheets reached their peak extents as early as thirty thousand years ago, the study's researchers stated, and one of the glaciers experts looked at is believed to have expanded 7,000 years ago, earlier than once thought. The disappearance of glaciers, for the first time in recorded history, shows the profound impacts of the climate crisis, one author of the investigation said.

Ecological and Symbolic Impact

“We’ll be the initial ones to see the ice-free peaks,” said Andrew Jones, the study’s lead author. “This has ecological ramifications for flora and fauna. And it’s a representational decline. Climate change is highly intangible, but these glaciers are concrete. They’re symbolic elements of the Western U.S..”