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Deep in the state of Sierra mountain range, massive glaciers are disappearing and projected to dissolve entirely by the beginning of the next century, resulting in ice-free peaks for the initial occasion in recorded human existence, new research has discovered.

Age-Old Origins of Sierra Nevada Glaciers

The mountain range’s glaciers are more ancient than earlier understood, dating back tens of thousands of years, with some as old as the last ice age, according to a report published last week.

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

Worldwide Threat to Glaciers

Ice masses globally are under threat during the climate emergency. A research released in May of this year found that nearly 40% of glaciers are doomed to melt because of climate warming. If this warming rises by 2.7C, which the world is presently on track for, as many as 75% will vanish, causing ocean level increase and mass displacement.

Across the Western United States, ice formations have shrunk significantly since they were initially recorded in the late 19th century, according to the report.

Focus on Key Ice Bodies

The recent study focuses on four Sierra Nevada glaciers – the Palisade, Lyell, Maclure and Conness ice sheets – that are some of the biggest and likely most ancient in the range. Their durability during global heating makes them “bellwethers” for examining ice loss in the western region, the article notes.

Research Methods and Findings

Scientists examined newly uncovered bedrock around the glaciers and collected specimens to determine how extensively the region was covered by ice. They found that the ice masses have covered swaths of the mountain system for far longer than previously known – since before people occupied North America.

California’s glacial sheets attained their maximum positions as early as 30,000 years ago, the study's researchers wrote, and one of the ice bodies researchers looked at is thought to have grown 7,000 years ago, earlier than once thought. The loss of ice formations, for the initial time in human history, shows the dramatic impacts of the climate crisis, a researcher of the investigation said.

Environmental and Representational Impact

“We’ll be the initial ones to witness the ice-free peaks,” said Andrew Jones, the principal investigator. “This has ecological 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..”