In a stark manifestation of the relentless march of climate change, Venezuela has lost its last glacier. The Humboldt glacier, also known as La Corona, has shrunk to such an extent that scientists have reclassified it as an ice field, marking Venezuela as the first country to lose all its glaciers in modern times.
The Humboldt glacier, nestled near Pico Humboldt, the country's second-highest peak, was the last of the six glaciers that once graced the Sierra Nevada de Mérida mountain range. These glaciers, which once covered a combined area of 1,000 square kilometers, have been steadily retreating due to global warming. By 2011, five of these glaciers had vanished, leaving only the Humboldt glacier.
The Humboldt glacier was projected to endure at least another decade. However, political turmoil in the country had hindered scientists' ability to monitor the site for several years. Recent assessments revealed that the glacier had melted much faster than anticipated, shrinking to an area of less than two hectares. Consequently, its classification was downgraded from a glacier to an ice field.
Maximiliano Herrera, a climatologist and weather historian, noted that "other countries lost their glaciers several decades ago after the end of the little ice age but Venezuela is arguably the first one to lose them in modern times." He warned that Indonesia, Mexico, and Slovenia are next in line to become glacier-free, with record-high warmth in Indonesia’s Papua island and Mexico expected to hasten the glaciers’ retreat.
The Venezuelan government, in a desperate attempt to halt further melting, has installed a thermal blanket over the area. However, experts are skeptical about its effectiveness. Dr. Caroline Clason, a glaciologist and assistant professor at Durham University, stated that the loss of La Corona signifies more than just the loss of ice. It also marks the loss of the many ecosystem services that glaciers provide, from unique microbial habitats to environments of significant cultural value.
The disappearance of glaciers also has cultural implications. Luis Daniel Llambi, an ecologist at Adaptation at Altitude, a program for climate change adaptation in the Andes, said, "Glaciers were a part of the region’s cultural identity, and for the mountaineering and touristic activities."
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