Activity 2.2 - Cryosphere: Grinnell Glacier, Montana

 Original Photo 1938

(Grinnell Glacier, 1938)

Second Photo 2019

(Grinnell Glacier, 2019)

(Google Earth, 2023)

Grinnell Glacier, Glacier National Park, Montana 1938 to 2019

The Grinnell Glacier, which subsides in the Glacier National Park in Montana, has existed for about 900 million years. This was during the Proterozoic Era. (Dawes, 2001) The Grinnell Glacier has shrunk considerably, due to climate change and erosion. Most people tend to forget or ignore the impacts of erosion on our environment and only focus on climate change and global warming. But especially in this case, Glaciers like the Grinnell, have shrunk due to the freezing and refreezing of the ice and the breaking down of the rocks and other natural causes. In the span of 39 years, the Glinner glacier has lost almost 40 percent of its acreage. Researchers believe that by 2030, all the glaciers in the National Park will be gone. This is due to the increase in carbon dioxide, which has been inclining rapidly in the past several decades. This is the worst-case scenario. In the best-case scenario, some glaciers will remain until 2277. (Wikipedia 2021) A major part of the glacier has receded so severely that it has melted into a lake. There are several reasons why glaciers all around the world are melting at an alarming rate. One example is carbon dioxide. As I said previously, carbon dioxide or human resources is one of the leading causes of glaciers melting. (Rice, 2014) When there is a crack or inconsistency in the glacier, this creates a weak spot. The carbon dioxide molecules then enter the crack and move down the crack to the end, where the ice is the most fragile. While the carbon dioxide molecules are moving in the crack, it is bonding and breaking with water molecules. The broken water molecules cause the ice surrounding the crack to weaken and create a bigger chance of becoming brittle or breaking. (Qin, 2012) If we as a community find other solutions to our lives that will lower carbon dioxide emissions, we can potentially preserve glaciers like the Grinnell, and hundreds of other incredible ones like it. 

Problem

To continue, the problem here is carbon dioxide emissions. Over the past few centuries, even dating back to the beginning of the industrial revolution, carbon dioxide emissions have been a serious issue to our environment. Dangerous carbon dioxide emissions are rooted in humans. Things such as fossil fuels, cement production, and deforestation are all human activities that release carbon dioxide. 

Explanation

CO2 emissions are very harmful to our environment and to our health. Exposure to carbon dioxide can cause headaches, dizziness, and trouble breathing. It's a wake-up call to us humans. Our environment has been crying out for help for years and we just ignore it. But as soon as it happens to us we are putting up a fight. We need to think about our environment first because without it, human life as we know it can disappear. 

References

Dawes, R. L. (n.d.). Virtual Field Site Grinnell Glacier. Geology of the Pacific Northwest.   https://commons.wvc.edu/rdawes/virtualfieldsites/GrinnellGlacier/VFSGrinnell.html#:~:text=This%20took%20place%20during%20the,about%20900%20million%20years%20ago.

(n.d.). Grinnell Glacier. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grinnell_Glacier

Rice, D. (n.d.). Humans the main cause of glacier melt worldwide. USA Today. https://www.usatoday.com/story/weather/2014/08/14/glacier-melt-global-warming/14064023/

Qin, Z. (n.d.). Does carbon dioxide really attack ice cracks? Carbon Brief Clear on Climate. https://www.carbonbrief.org/does-carbon-dioxide-really-attack-ice-cracks/#:~:text=The%20carbon%20dioxide%20molecule%20then,and%20make%20it%20more%20brittle.