Climate Change Is Real; Avalanche In Tibet Is Yet Another Proof Of Global Warming

The avalanche in Tibet that occurred in July 2016 attracted a lot of attention of scientists around the world due to its unexpected occurrence and unexplained reason. NASA studied the debris of the avalanche with the help of satellite images and described it as one of the largest avalanches ever recorded in history. An international group of scientists from Climate Research Center, China and Ohio State University made careful analysis of the event and revealed that climate change and seepage of warm water are responsible for its occurrence.

According to available information, the avalanche lasted for about 5 minutes, but the level of devastation brought by it was unprecedented. It covered an area of 3.7 square miles including the Dungru village, in which ice deposits were about 30 feet in depth. Nine herders and around 350 sheep lost their lives in the avalanche.

Initially, the cause of the avalanche could not be understood by climatologists. Tian Lide, glaciologist at Chinese Academy of Sciences, said that, "The site of collapse is baffling... the Rutog avalanche initiated at quite a flat spot. It doesn't make sense."

After careful analysis, it was found that the Aru glacier was slowly melting, which led to the formation of a slick of warm melted water between the surface of the mountain and ice layers. This led to the collapse of a huge chunk of ice, reported Live Science.

Lonnie Thompson, a professor of Earth sciences at The Ohio State University, revealed that, "Given the rate at which the event occurred and the area covered, I think it could only happen in the presence of meltwater."

"Given that the average temperature at the nearest weather station has risen by about 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) over the last 50 years, it makes sense that snow and ice are melting and the resulting water is seeping down beneath the glacier," Thompson added.

A similar event happened again in the September 2016, which has alarmed climatologists and glaciologists in the region. It looks like climate change and global warming are real after all, and they have started showing their effects.