Patrick A. Burkhart, Richard B. Alley, Lonnie G. Thompson, James D. Balog, Paul E. Baldauf, Gregory S. Baker

GSA Today

Published date March 30, 2017

Savor the Cryosphere

  • States that satellites are useful for assessing the loss of ice across regions with the passage of time
  • States that ground-based glaciology, particularly through the study of ice cores, can record the history of environmental conditions present during the existence of a glacier
  • Presents repeat photography that vividly displays the rapid retreat of glaciers that is characteristic across the planet
  • States that this loss of ice has implications to rising sea level, greater susceptibility to dryness in places where people rely upon rivers delivering melt water resources, and to the destruction of natural environmental archives that were held within the ice
  • Highlights multimedia productions that are useful for teaching this story effectively