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Far in the state of Sierra Nevada, enormous glaciers are disappearing and expected to melt away entirely by the beginning of the coming hundred years, resulting in ice-free peaks for the first time in human history, new research has found.

Ancient Beginnings of Sierra Range Ice Masses

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

“Our pieced-together ice age record indicates that a future glacier-free Sierra Nevada is without precedent in human history since documented peopling of the Americas around twenty thousand years ago,” the article states.

Worldwide Threat to Glaciers

Glaciers globally are at risk amid the climate crisis. A study published in the month of May of this year found that almost forty percent of glaciers are doomed to melt because of global heating. If this warming increases by 2.7 degrees Celsius, which the planet is presently on track for, as up to 75% will vanish, causing sea level rise and mass displacement.

Across the Western United States, ice formations have diminished substantially since they were initially recorded in the late 19th century, according to the article.

Focus on Key Ice Bodies

The new research centers on four Sierra Nevada glaciers – the Palisade, Lyell, Maclure and Conness glaciers – that are among the biggest and probably most ancient in the mountain chain. Their longevity amid climate warming makes them “indicators” for examining glacier disappearance in the west, the study notes.

Study Techniques and Findings

Scientists examined newly uncovered bedrock around the ice formations and collected specimens to ascertain how extensively the region was covered by ice. They found that the ice masses have covered large areas of the range for far longer than previously known – since prior to people inhabited North America.

The state's glaciers reached their peak extents as long ago as 30,000 years ago, the study's researchers stated, and one of the ice bodies experts looked at is thought to have expanded 7,000 years ago, sooner than previously believed. The loss of glaciers, for the initial time in recorded history, shows the dramatic impacts of the climate change, a researcher of the study said.

Ecological and Representational Consequences

“We’ll be the initial ones to see the ice-free peaks,” said Andrew Jones, the principal investigator. “This has environmental ramifications for flora and fauna. And it’s a symbolic loss. Global warming is very abstract, but these glaciers are tangible. They’re symbolic elements of the Western U.S..”