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Far in California’s Sierra mountain range, enormous ice formations are vanishing and expected to dissolve completely by the beginning of the next century, leaving ice-free peaks for the initial occasion in human history, new research has discovered.

Ancient Origins of Sierra Nevada Ice Masses

The range's ice sheets are more ancient than previously known, tracing back tens of thousands of years, with a few as ancient as the last ice age, according to a report released last week.

“Our pieced-together glacial history indicates that a coming ice-free Sierra Nevada is unprecedented in the history of humankind since known settlement of the Americas around twenty thousand years ago,” the study states.

Worldwide Threat to Glaciers

Glaciers around the world are under threat during the climate emergency. A study released in the month of May of this year determined that almost forty percent of ice sheets are destined to thaw because of climate warming. If this warming increases by 2.7C, which the planet is currently on track for, as up to seventy-five percent will disappear, causing sea level rise and mass displacement.

Throughout the Western United States, ice formations have diminished significantly since they were initially recorded in the 1800s, according to the article.

Focus on Key Glaciers

The recent study centers on several Sierra Nevada glaciers – the Palisade, Lyell, Maclure and Conness glaciers – that are some of the largest and likely most ancient in the mountain chain. Their durability during global heating makes them “indicators” for examining glacier disappearance in the western region, the study states.

Research Methods and Findings

Scientists looked at recently exposed base rock around the ice formations and collected specimens to determine how long the area was blanketed by glacial ice. They found that the glaciers have enveloped large areas of the mountain system for far longer than previously known – since prior to humans inhabited North America.

The state's glaciers attained their peak extents as early as thirty thousand years ago, the study's researchers wrote, and one of the ice bodies researchers looked at is thought to have expanded 7,000 years ago, earlier than previously believed. The disappearance of ice formations, for the initial time in recorded history, demonstrates the profound impacts of the climate crisis, a researcher of the study said.

Environmental and Symbolic Impact

“We’ll be the first to witness the glacier-less summits,” said the study's lead researcher, the study’s lead author. “This has ecological implications for plants and animals. And it’s a representational decline. Climate change is highly intangible, but these glaciers are concrete. They’re iconic features of the American West.”