Watch | What is happening to the world’s glaciers?

Watch | Why are glaciers important to human life?

A video on what is causing glaciers to slowly disappear across the world

November 11, 2022 11:34 am | Updated January 11, 2023 01:53 pm IST

Glaciers are found on every continent except Australia. Most of these are thousands of years old. They are made of layers of compressed snow that move or “flow” due to gravity and the softness of ice relative to rock. 

But now, a third of the glaciers on the UNESCO World Heritage list are under threat, according to a study conducted by the UN body. However, the study said, it was still possible to save the other two-thirds.  This could be possible if the rise in global temperatures did not exceed 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to the pre-industrial era. 

UNESCO said that this would be a major challenge facing delegates at the 27th United Nations Climate Change conference in in Egypt’s Sharm El Sheik. The UNESCO is also pushing for a new international fund for glacier monitoring and preservation.

Production and voiceover: Abhinaya Sriram 

Top News Today

Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.