Scientists have made a groundbreaking discovery on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau, identifying the thickest glacier in the region\u2014which is also known as Asia’s water tower\u2014after uncovering an ice field nearly 400 meters thick.
The colossal ice field is part of the Purog Kangri Glacier located in Tsonyi County, southwest China’s Xizang Autonomous Region. Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) reported that the glacier’s maximum measured thickness reaches almost 400 meters, surpassing previous records.
This measurement establishes the Purog Kangri Glacier as the thickest glacier on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau, overtaking the Guliya Ice Cap in Ngari Prefecture, which previously held the title.
Glaciers are vital archives of Earth’s climate history, containing invaluable information within their layers of ice. In earlier studies, scientists extracted a 308.6-meter ice core from the Guliya Ice Cap, which provided climate data spanning over 700,000 years.
The research team is now extracting ice cores from the Purog Kangri Glacier, anticipating that these cores may contain even older climatic records.
“Currently, glaciers worldwide are retreating. Once they melt, the historical records encapsulated within them will also disappear,” said Lonnie Thompson, a foreign academician of the CAS and a member of the American Academy of Sciences. Thompson participated in the measurement process of the glacier.
“Therefore, extracting and preserving ice cores is crucial for retrieving historical information,” he added, emphasizing the importance of this endeavor.
The discovery not only marks a significant milestone in glaciology but also underscores the urgent need to study and preserve these natural archives amid global climate change.
Reference(s):
Scientists discover thickest glacier on Qinghai-Xizang Plateau
cgtn.com
