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Far in the state of Sierra Nevada, massive ice formations are vanishing and expected to melt away completely by the start of the coming hundred years, resulting in summits without glaciers for the first time in recorded human existence, new research has discovered.

Age-Old Beginnings of Sierra Nevada Glaciers

The range's ice sheets are older than earlier understood, dating back many thousands of years, with some as ancient as the last ice age, according to a report published recently.

“Our pieced-together ice age record indicates that a future glacier-free Sierra Nevada is unprecedented in human history since documented settlement of the Americas ~20,000 years ago,” the article states.

Worldwide Risk to Glaciers

Glaciers globally are under threat during the climate crisis. A study released in the month of May of the current year determined that nearly 40% of glaciers are doomed to thaw because of climate warming. If such heating rises by 2.7 degrees Celsius, which the world is currently on track for, as up to 75% will vanish, causing ocean level increase and mass displacement.

Across the American west, glaciers have diminished significantly since they were first documented in the 1800s, according to the report.

Concentration on Key Glaciers

The recent study focuses on several Sierra Nevada glacial masses – the Palisade, Lyell, Maclure and Conness glaciers – that are some of the largest and likely most ancient in the mountain chain. Their longevity during global heating makes them “indicators” for studying ice loss in the western region, the article notes.

Study Techniques and Findings

Scientists examined recently exposed bedrock around the glaciers and collected specimens to ascertain how extensively the region was blanketed by glacial ice. They found that the ice masses have enveloped large areas of the mountain system for much longer than earlier believed – since before people inhabited North America.

California’s glaciers attained their peak extents as long ago as 30,000 years ago, the study's researchers wrote, and a particular of the ice bodies researchers studied is thought to have grown 7,000 years ago, earlier than previously believed. The disappearance of glaciers, for the initial time in human history, demonstrates the dramatic effects of the climate change, a researcher of the study said.

Environmental and Symbolic Impact

“We’ll be the first to see the ice-free peaks,” said the study's lead researcher, the principal investigator. “This has environmental implications for flora and fauna. And it’s a representational decline. Global warming is very abstract, but these glaciers are tangible. They’re symbolic elements of the American West.”