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Far in the state of Sierra mountain range, enormous glaciers are disappearing and projected to dissolve entirely by the start of the next century, leaving ice-free peaks for the first time in recorded human existence, new research has found.

Ancient Origins of Sierra Nevada Glaciers

The range's glaciers are older than earlier understood, dating back tens of thousands of years, with some as old as the most recent glacial period, according to an article released recently.

“Our pieced-together ice age record shows that a coming glacier-free Sierra Nevada is unprecedented in the history of humankind since documented settlement of the Americas ~20,000 years ago,” the study declares.

Global Threat to Glaciers

Ice masses around the world are at risk during the climate crisis. A research published in the month of May of the current year found that nearly 40% of ice sheets are doomed to thaw because of global heating. If such heating increases by 2.7 degrees Celsius, which the world is currently on track for, as up to 75% will disappear, leading to ocean level increase and large-scale relocation.

Throughout the American west, glaciers have shrunk significantly since they were first documented in the late 19th century, according to the article.

Focus on Major Ice Bodies

The new research focuses on several Sierra Nevada glaciers – the Conness, Maclure, Lyell and Palisade glaciers – that are among the largest and probably most ancient in the range. Their longevity during climate warming makes them “indicators” for studying glacier disappearance in the western region, the study states.

Research Methods and Results

Scientists examined recently exposed base rock around the ice formations and collected specimens to determine how long the region was blanketed by ice. They determined that the glaciers have covered swaths of the range for far longer than previously known – since before humans occupied North America.

The state's glacial sheets reached their peak extents as early as thirty thousand years ago, the article’s authors wrote, and one of the glaciers experts looked at is thought to have expanded seven thousand years ago, earlier than previously believed. The disappearance of glaciers, for the initial time in recorded history, demonstrates the dramatic effects of the climate crisis, one author of the investigation said.

Environmental and Symbolic Consequences

“We’ll be the first to see the glacier-less summits,” said the study's lead researcher, the principal investigator. “This has environmental ramifications for plants and animals. And it’s a representational decline. Climate change is very abstract, but these ice masses are tangible. They’re iconic features of the American West.”