Central Asian glaciers shrinking fast: Study
Central Asian glaciers have melted at four times the global average since the early 1960s, shedding 27 per cent of their mass, according to a study released today.
By 2050, warmer temperatures driven by climate change could wipe out half the remaining glacier ice in the Tien Shan mountain range, reported the study, published in Nature Geoscience.
At stake is a critical source of water for people in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, as well as a section of northwest China.
“Glaciers are actually huge water stores. They can balance water between wet and dry years,” said co-author Doris Duethmann, a researcher at the GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences in Potsdam.
http://www.financialexpress.com/article/lifestyle/science/central-asian-glaciers-shrinking-fast-study/121111/