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Deep in California’s Sierra Nevada, enormous ice formations are disappearing and expected to melt away entirely by the start of the next century, leaving summits without glaciers for the initial occasion in human history, recent studies has discovered.

Ancient Beginnings of Sierra Range Ice Masses

The mountain range’s ice sheets are older than previously known, dating back tens of thousands of years, with a few as old as the last ice age, according to an article released recently.

“Our reconstructed glacial history shows that a coming ice-free Sierra Nevada is without precedent in the history of humankind since known settlement of the Americas ~20,000 years ago,” the article states.

Global Threat to Ice Formations

Ice masses around the world are under threat during the climate crisis. A research released in May of the current year determined that nearly 40% of glaciers are doomed to thaw because of climate warming. If such heating increases by 2.7 degrees Celsius, which the world is presently on track for, as up to seventy-five percent will disappear, leading to sea level rise and large-scale relocation.

Across the Western United States, ice formations have diminished substantially since they were first documented in the 1800s, according to the article.

Focus on Key Glaciers

The recent study focuses on several Sierra Nevada glaciers – the Conness, Maclure, Lyell and Palisade glaciers – that are some of the largest and likely oldest in the mountain chain. Their durability amid global heating makes them “indicators” for examining glacier disappearance in the west, the study notes.

Research Methods and Findings

Researchers looked at newly uncovered bedrock around the ice formations and collected specimens to ascertain how extensively the area was blanketed by ice. They determined that the ice masses have covered large areas of the range for far longer than previously known – since before people occupied North America.

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

Environmental and Symbolic Consequences

“We’ll be the initial ones to see the glacier-less summits,” said the study's lead researcher, the study’s lead author. “This has environmental implications for flora and fauna. And it’s a symbolic loss. Climate change is very abstract, but these ice masses are concrete. They’re iconic features of the Western U.S..”