This article, by the USGS, discusses how glaciers in Glacier National Park reveal the “big picture” of climate change in the hydrosphere. Because glaciers are unable to adapt similar to living creatures, they are a good indicator of the impacts of climate change throughout the park. Weather data analyses shows an increase in summer temperatures and a decrease in winter snowpack (that forms and maintains glaciers), resulting in glacial melt. The mean annual temperature for Glacier National Park and the surrounding region has increased 1.33C (1.8 times greater than the global mean increase) according to USGS. This has consequently resulted in rain, rather than snow, increasing with precipitation over the past century. The fact that glaciers have continued to shrink in the region shows that the snowpack is not enough to counteract the temperature increase.
Climate proxies that we have talked about in class, such as tree-ring data, were used to obtain the temperature records for this study. Tree-ring based climate records indicate Pacific Decadal Oscillation impacts such as 20-30 year periods of “hot, dry summers coupled with decreased winter snowpack.” These proxies are important because they help scientists determine the causes for the induced rapid recession of the glaciers which now influence the current rate of recession. However, it has also been observed that even during the cooler phases of the PDO, the glaciers have continued to shrink – leading us to believe that this melt is not caused by natural cycles alone but by anthropogenic causes. In the end, the continual loss of glaciers in Glacier National Park will have significant consequences on the park’s ecosystems, as well as impact the landscape aesthetics valued by park visitors.