Climate data collected by NASA over 40 years suggests the loss of ice has accelerated in recent years. The Himalayas are home to some of the largest glacial deposits of ice and snow on the planet and are sometimes known as the Third Pole. But if temperatures continue to rise around the planet unchecked, up to 75 percent of the Himalayan glaciers will be gone by the year 2100. Scientists are now sounding the alarm on climate change following a study led by NASA’s High Mountain Asia Team (HiMAT).
NASA said: “One of the more alarming conclusions is that glaciers will be 35 to 75 percent smaller in volume by 2100 due to rapid melting.
“A paper published on June 19 in Science Advances by HiMAT team members supports this conclusion with an analysis of 40 years of satellite data on glaciers in the Himalayan range.
“The early years of data that researchers used for this study come from declassified spy satellites.
“Not only are glaciers in the Himalayan Range losing ice, the average rate of ice loss doubled between the first 25 years of satellite data, 1975 to 2000, and the most recent 16 years, 2000 to 2016.”
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Snow and ice in the Himalayan range account for the largest volumes of freshwater of anywhere on the planet, outside of the polar ice sheets.
About one-seventh of the world’s total population thrives on rivers flowing from these icy reservoirs.
The life-giving liquid is a crucial source of drinking water and irrigation for crops and farms.
Scientists estimate the Himalayas hold an approximate 600 billions tonnes of frozen water.
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But with the threat of climate change and changing weather patterns, there is a growing threat to how the ice melt will impact those dependant on the water.
NASA said: “Rapid changes in the region’s climate, however, are affecting glacier melt and snowmelt.
“People in the region are already modifying their land-use practices in response to the changing water supply and the region’s ecology is transforming.
“Future changes are likely to influence food and water security in India, Pakistan, China and other nations.”
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More than a billion people rely on the Himalayan glaciers for water to survive.
NASA is keeping a watchful eye on this part of the world through satellites and ground-based observations.
According to NASA, satellite imaging has allowed for the first time in human history to observe and measure rates of ice melt “in places where no human has ever set foot”.
The space agency said: “The mountains are too high and steep, and the weather too dangerous.”
