Marmolada glacier shrinks by half in 25 years
The surface area of the Marmolada glacier in the Dolomites dropped to 112 hectares in 2022 as the glacier continues to shrink rapidly while global temperatures rise, according to data released on Wednesday, Azernews reports, citing ANSA.
In the coming years the glacier's surface area will be under a square kilometer, half the level of 2000 and a quarter of the level of 1900, according to measurements made by experts from Padua University, the Italian Glaciological Committee and Veneto's ARPAV environmental protection agency.
"The retreat (of the glacier) at the greatest point of regression is close to 90 metres a year, with an average retreat of 20 metres a year," said Mauro Varotto, the head of the team measuring the glacier.
The world's glaciers, an important source of fresh water, have been shrinking rapidly in recent years due global heating caused by human greenhouse gas emissions.
Last year 11 people were killed when a serac collapsed on the Marmolada, following a heatwave in which abnormally high temperatures were registered.
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