Latest news with #geoscientists
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Photos show Swiss glaciers' uncertain future as 'ambassadors of climate change'
RHONE GLACIER, Switzerland (AP) — Drip, drip. Trickle, trickle. That's the sound of water seeping from a sunbaked and slushy Swiss glacier that geoscientists are monitoring for signs of continued retreat by the majestic masses of ice under the heat of global warming. In recent years, glaciologists like Matthias Huss of the Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, known as ETHZ, and others have turned to dramatic measures to help protect glaciers like the Rhone Glacier, which feeds into the river of the same name that runs through Switzerland and France. One of those desperate steps involves using giant sheets to cover the ice like blankets to slow the melt. Switzerland is continental Europe's glacier capital, with some 1,400 that provide drinking water, irrigation for farmland in many parts of Europe including French wine country, and hydropower that generates most of the country's electricity. The number has been dwindling. The Alpine country has already lost up to 1,000 small glaciers, and the bigger ones are increasingly at risk. Drilling into glaciers to track what's happening inside Huss hosted The Associated Press for a visit to the sprawling glacier this month, as he carried out his first monitoring mission as summer temperatures accelerate the thaw. Under normal conditions, glaciers can regenerate in the winter, but climate change is threatening that. 'I always say glaciers are the ambassadors of climate change because they can spread this message in a very understandable way," Huss said. "They also cause good feelings because glaciers are beautiful. We know them from our holidays.' The vast expanse of blue, gray and white ice is riddled with cracks and grooves, and Huss says his teams at the Swiss GLAMOS glacier monitoring group have spotted a new phenomenon in Switzerland: holes appearing beneath the surface that at times widen so much that the ice above collapses. Huss uses an auger to bore into the ice, sending frosty chips upward as if from a gushing fountain. It's part of a process that involves using stakes and poles to track ice loss from melting. A better understanding of glacier melt Huss monitors melting not just at the top but also from the base of glaciers. 'Normally glaciers melt from the top because of the warm air, because of their radiation from the sun. But in recent years we realized at several sites that there is a substantive melt from the bottom,' Huss said. 'If there are some channels in the ice through which air is circulating, this can excavate big holes under the ice.' The Alps were covered with ice 20,000 years ago, but no more. It's the same story elsewhere. Experts have warned that some two-thirds of the world's glaciers are set to disappear by the end of this century Huss says only humans can help save them. 'It's difficult to save this very glacier because it could only be saved — or at least made to retreat slower — by bringing down CO2 emissions," he said. 'But everybody can contribute on their own to reduce CO2 emissions as far as possible." 'This will not help this glacier immediately, but it will help all glaciers in the long range,' he added. "This is the important thing that we should think of if we see this melting ice and this big retreat — that it's time to act now.' A glacier gives way, and a village is destroyed The concerns about Switzerland's glaciers intensified recently after the southwestern village of Blatten, tucked near the Birch Glacier, was largely destroyed by a slide of rock and glacier ice in May. The village had been evacuated ahead of the slide, which covered dozens of homes and buildings and left just a few rooftops visible. A review of data showed that the Birch Glacier was a rarity in that it has been advancing while most glaciers have been receding. And its advance had been increasing in recent years, to the point that it was flowing at about 10 meters (about 30 feet) per day shortly before the collapse — a rate Huss called 'completely unsustainable.' Huss said the landslide was triggered by rocks piling onto the glacier, though he also called Birch's advance a 'precursor." The main takeaway from the Birch Glacier collapse, Huss says, is that 'unexpected things happen.' 'If you ask me, like three weeks ago, nobody would have guessed that the whole village is going to be destroyed,' he said. "I think this is the main lesson to be learned, that we need to be prepared.' ___ AP journalist Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report. ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Photos show Swiss glaciers' uncertain future as 'ambassadors of climate change'
RHONE GLACIER, Switzerland (AP) — Drip, drip. Trickle, trickle. That's the sound of water seeping from a sunbaked and slushy Swiss glacier that geoscientists are monitoring for signs of continued retreat by the majestic masses of ice under the heat of global warming. In recent years, glaciologists like Matthias Huss of the Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, known as ETHZ, and others have turned to dramatic measures to help protect glaciers like the Rhone Glacier, which feeds into the river of the same name that runs through Switzerland and France. One of those desperate steps involves using giant sheets to cover the ice like blankets to slow the melt. Switzerland is continental Europe's glacier capital, with some 1,400 that provide drinking water, irrigation for farmland in many parts of Europe including French wine country, and hydropower that generates most of the country's electricity. The number has been dwindling. The Alpine country has already lost up to 1,000 small glaciers, and the bigger ones are increasingly at risk. Drilling into glaciers to track what's happening inside Huss hosted The Associated Press for a visit to the sprawling glacier this month, as he carried out his first monitoring mission as summer temperatures accelerate the thaw. Under normal conditions, glaciers can regenerate in the winter, but climate change is threatening that. 'I always say glaciers are the ambassadors of climate change because they can spread this message in a very understandable way," Huss said. "They also cause good feelings because glaciers are beautiful. We know them from our holidays.' The vast expanse of blue, gray and white ice is riddled with cracks and grooves, and Huss says his teams at the Swiss GLAMOS glacier monitoring group have spotted a new phenomenon in Switzerland: holes appearing beneath the surface that at times widen so much that the ice above collapses. Huss uses an auger to bore into the ice, sending frosty chips upward as if from a gushing fountain. It's part of a process that involves using stakes and poles to track ice loss from melting. A better understanding of glacier melt Huss monitors melting not just at the top but also from the base of glaciers. 'Normally glaciers melt from the top because of the warm air, because of their radiation from the sun. But in recent years we realized at several sites that there is a substantive melt from the bottom,' Huss said. 'If there are some channels in the ice through which air is circulating, this can excavate big holes under the ice.' The Alps were covered with ice 20,000 years ago, but no more. It's the same story elsewhere. Experts have warned that some two-thirds of the world's glaciers are set to disappear by the end of this century Huss says only humans can help save them. 'It's difficult to save this very glacier because it could only be saved — or at least made to retreat slower — by bringing down CO2 emissions," he said. 'But everybody can contribute on their own to reduce CO2 emissions as far as possible." 'This will not help this glacier immediately, but it will help all glaciers in the long range,' he added. "This is the important thing that we should think of if we see this melting ice and this big retreat — that it's time to act now.' A glacier gives way, and a village is destroyed The concerns about Switzerland's glaciers intensified recently after the southwestern village of Blatten, tucked near the Birch Glacier, was largely destroyed by a slide of rock and glacier ice in May . The village had been evacuated ahead of the slide, which covered dozens of homes and buildings and left just a few rooftops visible. A review of data showed that the Birch Glacier was a rarity in that it has been advancing while most glaciers have been receding. And its advance had been increasing in recent years, to the point that it was flowing at about 10 meters (about 30 feet) per day shortly before the collapse — a rate Huss called 'completely unsustainable.' Huss said the landslide was triggered by rocks piling onto the glacier, though he also called Birch's advance a 'precursor." The main takeaway from the Birch Glacier collapse, Huss says, is that 'unexpected things happen.' 'If you ask me, like three weeks ago, nobody would have guessed that the whole village is going to be destroyed,' he said. "I think this is the main lesson to be learned, that we need to be prepared.' ___ AP journalist Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report. ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at .
Associated Press
4 days ago
- Science
- Associated Press
Photos show Swiss glaciers' uncertain future as 'ambassadors of climate change'
RHONE GLACIER, Switzerland (AP) — Drip, drip. Trickle, trickle. That's the sound of water seeping from a sunbaked and slushy Swiss glacier that geoscientists are monitoring for signs of continued retreat by the majestic masses of ice under the heat of global warming. In recent years, glaciologists like Matthias Huss of the Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, known as ETHZ, and others have turned to dramatic measures to help protect glaciers like the Rhone Glacier, which feeds into the river of the same name that runs through Switzerland and France. One of those desperate steps involves using giant sheets to cover the ice like blankets to slow the melt. Switzerland is continental Europe's glacier capital, with some 1,400 that provide drinking water, irrigation for farmland in many parts of Europe including French wine country, and hydropower that generates most of the country's electricity. The number has been dwindling. The Alpine country has already lost up to 1,000 small glaciers, and the bigger ones are increasingly at risk. Drilling into glaciers to track what's happening inside Huss hosted The Associated Press for a visit to the sprawling glacier this month, as he carried out his first monitoring mission as summer temperatures accelerate the thaw. Under normal conditions, glaciers can regenerate in the winter, but climate change is threatening that. 'I always say glaciers are the ambassadors of climate change because they can spread this message in a very understandable way,' Huss said. 'They also cause good feelings because glaciers are beautiful. We know them from our holidays.' The vast expanse of blue, gray and white ice is riddled with cracks and grooves, and Huss says his teams at the Swiss GLAMOS glacier monitoring group have spotted a new phenomenon in Switzerland: holes appearing beneath the surface that at times widen so much that the ice above collapses. Huss uses an auger to bore into the ice, sending frosty chips upward as if from a gushing fountain. It's part of a process that involves using stakes and poles to track ice loss from melting. A better understanding of glacier melt Huss monitors melting not just at the top but also from the base of glaciers. 'Normally glaciers melt from the top because of the warm air, because of their radiation from the sun. But in recent years we realized at several sites that there is a substantive melt from the bottom,' Huss said. 'If there are some channels in the ice through which air is circulating, this can excavate big holes under the ice.' The Alps were covered with ice 20,000 years ago, but no more. It's the same story elsewhere. Experts have warned that some two-thirds of the world's glaciers are set to disappear by the end of this century Huss says only humans can help save them. 'It's difficult to save this very glacier because it could only be saved — or at least made to retreat slower — by bringing down CO2 emissions,' he said. 'But everybody can contribute on their own to reduce CO2 emissions as far as possible.' 'This will not help this glacier immediately, but it will help all glaciers in the long range,' he added. 'This is the important thing that we should think of if we see this melting ice and this big retreat — that it's time to act now.' A glacier gives way, and a village is destroyed The concerns about Switzerland's glaciers intensified recently after the southwestern village of Blatten, tucked near the Birch Glacier, was largely destroyed by a slide of rock and glacier ice in May. The village had been evacuated ahead of the slide, which covered dozens of homes and buildings and left just a few rooftops visible. A review of data showed that the Birch Glacier was a rarity in that it has been advancing while most glaciers have been receding. And its advance had been increasing in recent years, to the point that it was flowing at about 10 meters (about 30 feet) per day shortly before the collapse — a rate Huss called 'completely unsustainable.' Huss said the landslide was triggered by rocks piling onto the glacier, though he also called Birch's advance a 'precursor.' The main takeaway from the Birch Glacier collapse, Huss says, is that 'unexpected things happen.' 'If you ask me, like three weeks ago, nobody would have guessed that the whole village is going to be destroyed,' he said. 'I think this is the main lesson to be learned, that we need to be prepared.' ___ AP journalist Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report. ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
The Independent
4 days ago
- Science
- The Independent
Photos show Swiss glaciers' uncertain future as 'ambassadors of climate change'
Drip, drip. Trickle, trickle. That's the sound of water seeping from a sunbaked and slushy Swiss glacier that geoscientists are monitoring for signs of continued retreat by the majestic masses of ice under the heat of global warming. In recent years, glaciologists like Matthias Huss of the Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, known as ETHZ, and others have turned to dramatic measures to help protect glaciers like the Rhone Glacier, which feeds into the river of the same name that runs through Switzerland and France. One of those desperate steps involves using giant sheets to cover the ice like blankets to slow the melt. Switzerland is continental Europe's glacier capital, with some 1,400 that provide drinking water, irrigation for farmland in many parts of Europe including French wine country, and hydropower that generates most of the country's electricity. The number has been dwindling. The Alpine country has already lost up to 1,000 small glaciers, and the bigger ones are increasingly at risk. Drilling into glaciers to track what's happening inside Huss hosted The Associated Press for a visit to the sprawling glacier this month, as he carried out his first monitoring mission as summer temperatures accelerate the thaw. Under normal conditions, glaciers can regenerate in the winter, but climate change is threatening that. 'I always say glaciers are the ambassadors of climate change because they can spread this message in a very understandable way," Huss said. "They also cause good feelings because glaciers are beautiful. We know them from our holidays.' The vast expanse of blue, gray and white ice is riddled with cracks and grooves, and Huss says his teams at the Swiss GLAMOS glacier monitoring group have spotted a new phenomenon in Switzerland: holes appearing beneath the surface that at times widen so much that the ice above collapses. Huss uses an auger to bore into the ice, sending frosty chips upward as if from a gushing fountain. It's part of a process that involves using stakes and poles to track ice loss from melting. A better understanding of glacier melt Huss monitors melting not just at the top but also from the base of glaciers. 'Normally glaciers melt from the top because of the warm air, because of their radiation from the sun. But in recent years we realized at several sites that there is a substantive melt from the bottom,' Huss said. 'If there are some channels in the ice through which air is circulating, this can excavate big holes under the ice.' The Alps were covered with ice 20,000 years ago, but no more. It's the same story elsewhere. Experts have warned that some two-thirds of the world's glaciers are set to disappear by the end of this century Huss says only humans can help save them. 'It's difficult to save this very glacier because it could only be saved — or at least made to retreat slower — by bringing down CO2 emissions," he said. 'But everybody can contribute on their own to reduce CO2 emissions as far as possible." 'This will not help this glacier immediately, but it will help all glaciers in the long range,' he added. "This is the important thing that we should think of if we see this melting ice and this big retreat — that it's time to act now.' A glacier gives way, and a village is destroyed The concerns about Switzerland's glaciers intensified recently after the southwestern village of Blatten, tucked near the Birch Glacier, was largely destroyed by a slide of rock and glacier ice in May. The village had been evacuated ahead of the slide, which covered dozens of homes and buildings and left just a few rooftops visible. A review of data showed that the Birch Glacier was a rarity in that it has been advancing while most glaciers have been receding. And its advance had been increasing in recent years, to the point that it was flowing at about 10 meters (about 30 feet) per day shortly before the collapse — a rate Huss called 'completely unsustainable.' Huss said the landslide was triggered by rocks piling onto the glacier, though he also called Birch's advance a 'precursor." The main takeaway from the Birch Glacier collapse, Huss says, is that 'unexpected things happen.' 'If you ask me, like three weeks ago, nobody would have guessed that the whole village is going to be destroyed,' he said. "I think this is the main lesson to be learned, that we need to be prepared.' ___ AP journalist Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report. ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
Yahoo
17-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Solid Rock Caught Flowing 1,700 Miles Beneath Surface in Experimental First
The D" layer, some 2,700 kilometers (nearly 1,700 miles) below our feet, has been mystifying scientists for decades. Now we may have an answer as to what exactly goes on in this special zone deep inside Earth – solid rock is flowing. Seismic waves unexpectedly speed up as they pass through the boundary of the D" layer, and a 2004 study seemed to find the answer: it showed that extreme pressures and extreme temperatures could turn the lower mantle mineral perovskite into a different form labeled 'post-perovskite', somewhere around the D" layer boundary. However, it was later found that this new phase isn't enough on its own to explain the acceleration of seismic waves. For the new study, scientists in Switzerland and Japan ran computer simulations and lab tests to determine that the crystals in post-perovskite all need to be pointing in the same direction for seismic waves to speed up. "This discovery not only solves the mystery of the D" layer but also opens a window into the dynamics in the depths of the Earth," says geoscientist Motohiko Murakami, from ETH Zurich in Switzerland. "We have finally found the last piece of the puzzle." The researchers essentially recreated the deep layers of Earth in their lab, on a much smaller scale. They found that the alignment of the post-perovskite crystals determines its hardness, and thus the movement of waves rippling through it. They found something else, too: that the solid rock above the D" layer can flow in a convection pattern. This type of movement, which varies across different parts of Earth's layers, determines the alignment of post-perovskite crystals. It's driven by a combination of cooler material, which is sinking, and hotter material, which is rising. It's the first experimental evidence we have of such movement in this region of Earth's insides – though of course direct observations are impossible. "These findings indicate that the texture of the post-perovskite phase can explain most of the key features of the D" discontinuity," write the researchers in their published paper. This all feeds into our knowledge of the complex interplay of heat, pressure, and movement that's happening way down deep under Earth's surface. Having a better understanding of these forces then tells us more about everything from volcanic eruptions to Earth's magnetic field. The core-mantle boundary (CMB), which is where the solid mantle hits Earth's liquid outer core, is of particular interest to scientists. It represents a huge switch between materials in terms of density, composition, conductivity, and other measures – making it vital to the most fundamental forces driving our planet. "Our discovery shows that the Earth is not only active on the surface, but is also in motion deep inside," says Murakami. While the study helps answer some questions, there are still a lot of mysteries left down there. The research has been published in Communications Earth & Environment. Hundreds of Mysterious Giant Viruses Discovered Lurking in The Ocean Scientists Just Solved a 100-Million-Year-Old Mystery About Platypus Sex Deep-Sea Wonderland Found Thriving Where Humans Have Never Been
