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Deep in California’s Sierra Nevada, massive glaciers are vanishing and expected to dissolve completely by the beginning of the next century, resulting in ice-free peaks for the first time in human history, new research has found.

Ancient Beginnings of Sierra Range Glaciers

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

“Our reconstructed ice age record indicates that a future ice-free Sierra Nevada is without precedent in human history since known settlement of the Americas around twenty thousand years ago,” the study declares.

Worldwide Risk to Glaciers

Ice masses globally are at risk during the climate emergency. A study published in the month of May of this year found that nearly 40% of glaciers are doomed to melt because of global heating. If this warming rises by 2.7C, which the planet is presently on track for, as up to 75% will vanish, leading to sea level rise and mass displacement.

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

Focus on Major Ice Bodies

The recent study focuses on four Sierra Nevada glacial masses – the Palisade, Lyell, Maclure and Conness ice sheets – that are some of the biggest and probably oldest in the mountain chain. Their longevity amid climate warming makes them “indicators” for examining glacier disappearance in the west, the article notes.

Study Techniques and Results

Scientists looked at recently exposed bedrock around the glaciers and took samples to ascertain how extensively the area was covered by glacial ice. They determined that the ice masses have covered large areas of the range for far longer than previously known – since prior to people occupied North America.

The state's glacial sheets reached their maximum positions as long ago as 30,000 years ago, the study's researchers wrote, and one of the glaciers researchers studied is thought to have expanded 7,000 years ago, earlier than once thought. The loss of glaciers, for the initial time in human history, demonstrates the profound impacts of the climate crisis, a researcher of the study said.

Ecological and Symbolic Impact

“We’ll be the initial ones to see the ice-free peaks,” said Andrew Jones, the study’s lead author. “This has ecological implications for flora and fauna. And it’s a representational decline. Global warming is very abstract, but these ice masses are tangible. They’re iconic features of the Western U.S..”