Scientists and environmentalists are sounding the alarm as climate change melts glaciers at an unprecedented speed. Over the past year alone, Swiss glaciers have lost six percent of their ice, according to glaciologists who are comparing the devastating impact of this summer’s heat waves to an Alpine hurricane.
As climate change thaws more glaciers, it is creating both a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and a dismaying task: the emergence of ancient artifacts from the shrinking layers of their ice.
Archeologists face an existential threat to preserving these objects as the planet’s rapid warming exposes them faster than they can be saved. Some of the most invaluable finds are organic artifacts, such as leather, wood, and human remains, which decompose without the ice.
In one example, European researchers recently grew plants from 100-year-old seeds discovered “frozen in time” in a World War I bunker on the border of Italy and Switzerland.
With climate warming temperatures rising two times as fast in the Alps as elsewhere, glaciers in Europe and around the world are rapidly shrinking. Large swathes of history are literally melting away in the Alps due to global warming. As a result, archeologists and researchers are running out of time to preserve our past.
As scientists, archaeologists, and environmentalists worry that it may already be too late to stop glacier destruction, SEEC members are working 24/7 to pass bold, proactive legislation combating the climate crisis and mitigating further global warming. Can you let our SEEC members know you’re standing with them by donating today?