Glacier in Peru Loses 1,600 Years of Ice in Just 25

The rapid melting of glacial ice in the Andes mountains of Peru may mean a regional water shortage in on the way.

Scientists studying the Quelccaya ice cap, the largest glaciated area in the tropics, have found the ice there is melting so fast that 1,600 years-worth of accumulation has all but disappeared in just 25 years. 

The researchers say a spike in global temperatures is to blame for the melting. 

According to new findings published in the online journal Science, the cap is melting at 18,000 feet, exposing plants and other signs of ancient life that were covered up during the ice sheet's growth over thousands of year.

Located in the Cordillera Oriental section of the Andean range. the Quelccaya ice cap is at an average altitude of 5,470 meters (18,600 ft) and spans an area of about 44 square kilometers. As with a majority of the Earth's glaciers, the Quelccaya has diminished significantly since first being studied.

Since 1978, the ice cap has lost approximately 20 percent of its area and the rate of retreat appears to be accellerating.

The research team says the glacier is now smaller than it's ever been in the last five thousand years.

The progressive loss of glacial ice, says a report posted at Catholic Online, is greatly concerning to the country because many of its cities ---including Lima, Peru's capital --- rely on water from the glacier melt to survive annual dry seasons.

If the Quelccaya ice cap continues to shrink at its current pace, periodic droughts will threaten the municipal water stores, say researchers.

At the moment, of course, the region's communities have an abundance of water, thanks to the faster-than-typical melting. As a result, those population areas are experiencing significant expansion and development

Experts suggest all that new growth will make the expected water shortages even worse.

Satellite images and aerial photographs, in addition to scientific observation, suggest a dramatic loss of ice around the planet as Earth's climate in general grows progressively warmer.

The rise in sea levels will also force the relocation of coastal communities to higher elevations.