Context
Recently, the 100-km long body of ice in Antarctica, which has been experiencing rapid melting, was formally named Glasgow after the Glasgow climate summit.
- The 26th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 26) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is being held in Glasgow, UK.
Key-Points
- Research: Scientists at the University of Leeds in England have studied a series of glaciers in the Getz area of ??Antarctica.
- The 14 glaciers in the Getz Basin of West Antarctica are shrinking at an average rate of 25% between 1994 and 2018 due to climate change. 315 gigatonnes of ice have been lost in the region over the past 25 years and have contributed to rising sea levels worldwide.
- The Getz basin is part of Antarctica's largest glacier. The shelf is subject to the increasing pressure of the ocean - a process in which relatively warm seawater melts glaciers below - than other Antarctic shelves.
Other Glaciers Named
The eight newly named glaciers are based on-
- Stockholm Conference (1972): One of the major outcomes of the Stockholm conference was the creation of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP).
- World Climate Conference, Geneva (1979): The World Climate Conference, now commonly called the First World Climate Conference, was held in Geneva.
- Rio Summit (1992): Recommended a list of development processes called Agenda 21. It provided a concept of sustainable development to integrate economic growth and ecological responsibility.
- COP1 (Berlin, Germany, 1995): The first UN General Assembly in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP-1) was held in Berlin in 1995.
- Kyoto Protocol (1997): In Kyoto, developed countries agree on a common goal of reducing emissions by 5.2% below 1990 levels between 2008 and 2012.
- COP13 (Bali, Indonesia, 2007): The parties agree on the Bali Road Map and the Bali action plan, which paved the way for the post-2012 outcome.
- COP21 (Paris, 2015): Keeping the earth's temperature below 2.0C above pre-industrial times and trying to limit it to even more than 1.5C.
- It requires rich nations to maintain USD 100bn a year funding pledge beyond the year 2020.
- Incheon: The Green Climate Fund (GCF) is based in Incheon, South Korea.
Significance
- Over the past 40 years, satellites have observed huge iceberg calving events, changes in the flow of glaciers and rapidly thinning ice demonstrating the devastating impact of global warming.
- The naming of the glaciers after the locations of major climate treaties, conferences and reports is a great way to celebrate the international collaboration on climate change science and policy over the last 42 year
