The Vanishing Icefield - a photo on Flickriver

            This is the Athabasca Glacier, the largest of the six ice sheets that make up the Columbia Icefield in Jasper National Park, Canada.

Fifteen years ago, this would have been a more impressive photograph.  That is because fifteen years ago the toe of the glacier was where I was standing to take this photo.

There are books that estimate the Columbia Icefield area at 325 square kilometres.  The books are quickly going out of date; current estimate is that the ice surface area is down to 200 square kilometres.

Parks Canada drives stakes into the ice near the toe of the Athabasca Glacier.  Each year, the thickness of the ice is decreasing by 5 metres. 

At the current rate the ice is melting, the entire Columbia Icefield will be gone by the end of this century.

If you look closely, there are some people walking near the toe of the glacier, which gives visual impact to the scale of the glacier.

Thanks to all of the people who viewed and thought about this photo. Almost all of my photos are intended to show off nature, whether landscapes or animals. Very few have any deeper purpose. This one was taken with the specific intention of illustrating where this glacier was the year my son was born. 

I have been to the Columbia Icefield many times and it always leaves a powerful impression. The debate over what is causing the ice to recede is irrelevant.... the fact is that life on our planet is going to be in serious trouble when the ice disappears.

Taken on: August 4, 2013

Tags:

columbia

icefield

glacier

jasper

national

park

alberta

rockies

rocky

mountains

ice

parkway

global

warming

evidence

shrinking

disappearing

explore

explored

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Sets appears in: • Jasper National Park, Canada • Explored Photos

Groups appears in: • in explore

Camera: Nikon D5100, f/18.0, 1/100 sec, 16mm (=24mm), ISO 400 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Nikon D5100
Aperture:	f/18.0
Exposure Time:	0.01 sec (1/100)
Focal Length:	16mm (35mm equivalent: 24mm)
ISO:	400
Exposure Bias:	+2 EV
Flash:	No Flash
Exposure Program:	Aperture-priority AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Manual
Light Source:	Cloudy
Gain Control:	Low gain up
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	PaintShop Pro 17.00
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