Glaciers are melting at an exceptional rate... and warnings of a "disaster"

A new study has concluded that global warming is causing Himalayan glaciers to melt at an extraordinary rate, amid warnings of a future catastrophe.

The study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, said that Himalayan glaciers are melting faster than any other region in the world, threatening the water supply of nearly two billion people.

It is noteworthy that only Antarctica and the Arctic have more snow than the Himalayas.

"Our findings show that Himalayan glaciers are retreating snow at a rate of at least 10 times higher than the average over the past centuries," researcher and professor at the University of Leeds Jonathan Karivik, lead author of the study, said in a statement.

He added, "This acceleration in the pace of snow reduction has appeared over the past few decades, and coincided with climate change caused by human behavior."

The study concluded that the Himalayan glaciers lost about 40% of their area, most of them since the 1970s.

Glaciers provide water for people who live in mountains and valleys near rivers such as the Ganges, Indus, Brahmaputra and other rivers.

A colleague told Karivik that time is running out to prevent another catastrophe.

"This research is the latest confirmation that these changes are accelerating and will have a powerful impact on entire countries and regions," said Simon Cook, a researcher at the University of Dundee and co-author of the study.

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