glacier loss Archives - State of the Planet

Statistical Modeling for Glacier Loss: Is It Accurate?

A study based on Iceland’s Bruarjokull glacier investigates whether to rely on statistical models to provide accurate insights into glacier retreat.

by Domino Jones |September 28, 2023

“Urgency. Gravity. Hope.” World’s Top Climate Report Highlights Dire Need for Climate Action

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s assessment report issues catastrophic warning if immediate climate action is not taken by governments across the globe.

by |March 23, 2023

Covering Glaciers With Blankets to Hide the Ice — and the Real Problem

Glacier-saving campaigns are becoming more popular as ice across the globe disappears at an alarming pace. A new analysis examines the actors, motives, and implications of these campaigns in the fight against climate change.

by |January 13, 2023

Summer Heat Waves Caused Several Glaciers to Collapse

Europe’s deadly summer 2022 heat waves caused two dramatic glacier collapses and fueled the melting of a third.

by Jaden Hill |September 13, 2022
A photograph shows Earth from space.

Melting Glaciers Have Shifted the Earth’s Axis

New research from the Chinese Academy of Sciences shows that polar drift experienced in the 1990s was caused by a redistribution of water from glaciers to oceans.

by |May 19, 2021
An image captured through a microscope shows two tiny fungi who look like people with long long limbs doing jumping jacks.

Glacier Melt Leads to Increased Carbon Dioxide Levels Due to These Tiny Fungi

New research links reduced glacier cover to higher rates of fungal decomposition of organic material. If these rates continue to rise, it could further disrupt the carbon cycle.

by |April 30, 2021
A small house with a red roof sits in a field of golden grass. Behind the house is a massive mountain, with a river of ice running down it.

In Iceland, Melting Glaciers Give Way to Plant Life

A recent study examines the changes in the foreland of a melting Icelandic glacier. With ice gone, new plant life is springing up and changing a centuries-old ecosystem.

by |February 24, 2021