Science Source Stock Photo - Grinnell Glacier, Glacier NP, 2008

Grinnell Glacier, Glacier NP, 2008

Description: Second of 2 images for glacial retreat comparison. In 1900 Grinnell Glacier's mass filled the cirque basin. This early photo shows the glacier's height along the headwall and how it was once joined the upper ice portion, now called The Salamander. Climate change research in Glacier National Park, Montana entails many methods of documenting the landscape change, including the decline of the parks namesake glaciers. While less quantitative than other high-tech methods of recording glacial mass, depth, and rate of retreat, repeat photography has become a valuable tool for communicating effects of global warming. With evidence of worldwide glacial recession and modeled predictions that all of the parks glaciers will melt by the year 2030, USGS scientists have begun the task of documenting glacial decline through photography. The striking images created by pairing historic images with contemporary photos has given global warming a face and made climate change a relevant issue to viewers. The images are an effective visual means to help viewers understand that climate change contributes to the dynamic landscape changes so evident in Glacier National Park.

Credit:

USGS/Lisa McKeon/Science Source

Unique identifier: SS2538360

Legacy Identifier: BW7698

Type: Image

Size: 4800px × 3573px (~49 MB)

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