One of the few stable glaciers in a warming world, Perito Moreno, in Santa Cruz province, Argentina, is now undergoing a possibly irreversible retreat, scientists say.
Over the past seven years, it has lost 1.92 sq km (0.74 sq miles) of ice cover and its thickness is decreasing by up to 8 metres (26 ft) a year.
For decades, Perito Moreno defied the global trend of glacial retreat, maintaining an exceptional balance between snow accumulation and melting. Its dramatic calving events, when massive blocks of ice crashed into Lago Argentino, became a symbol of natural wonder, drawing millions of visitors to southern Patagonia.
Is this disaster tourism emblamatic of human stupidity ? I see people saying they want to go to the Great Barrier Reef before it’s conplelty fucked. Seems every year now there’s some story in Greece and 1000s of tourists being evacuated becase of some wildfire or other. I see instead of visiting Portugal, Spain or Greece people are considering tourism in Norway etc,
Between pollution and GHG’s destroying rhe biosphere, we make a place horrible, then move on and do the same thing, what is wrong with our species anon’s ?
The calving referred to here as a tourist attraction has been happening for centuries as part of the natural outflow of the glacier, and tourism hasn’t had any direct impact on it.
Climate change is definitely affecting this glacier and every glacier though. There’s a realistic point in the not too distant future where there are no more glaciers.
and tourism hasn’t had any direct impact on it.
What ? Of course it has a direct impact, millions of people emitting zillions of tonnes of GHGs to look at ice cubes IS the problem.
Blaming climate change on tourism is a bit like blaming a janitor in Kentucky for the US deficit.
Maybe it should start making short term profits
