Peru's melting glaciers a deadly threat as temperatures rise
Peru's melting glaciers a deadly threat as temperatures rise
ReutersBy By Mitra Taj | Reuters – 1 hour 0 minutes ago.
By Mitra Taj
CARHUAZ, Peru (Reuters) - High in the Peruvian Andes, the glacier-fed lake Laguna 513 brims with meltwater atop a populated valley in a region prone to earthquakes.
Scientists warn that if a giant chunk of ice from the Hualcan glacier breaks off it could trigger a tsunami-like wave in Laguna 513 and send a lethal torrent of water cascading down the valley.
It has happened before in the Andean nation. In 1970, a 7.9 magnitude earthquake shook ice blocks into highland lakes and unleashed an avalanche that buried the town of Yungay and killed more than 20,000 people.
Peru has more tropical glaciers than any other nation but rising temperatures linked to global warming have helped shrink the ice masses by up to 40 percent, filling existing lakes to the brim and spawning hundreds of new ones. As the glaciers retreat, the ice contorts and fissures and lumps fall off.
More:
https://in.news.yahoo.com/perus-melting-glaciers-deadly-threat-temperatures-rise-185051194.html