*Recently, photos of glacier decay have been added to this story either by the institution or a reporter seeking to "prove" these observations are inaccurate. See added section below
Shame, Shame, Shame. As young journalists
Here's why this headline and the observations made in it are a misrepresentation of climate change.
Permanence is NOT Natural - Since the development of photography in the years before the Civil War, the human psyche has accepted photography as definitive proof that something exists. All too often, particularly when reputations and publicity are involved, the photographs are staged or filtered in order to stand with the bias of the moment. Countless photos have been taken to prove that climate change is destroying the planet--yet all that is really proven is that nature is constantly changing. Permanence is an illusion set by mankind who selfishly holds on to his buildings and monuments. Nature has no such attachment and has been changing the landscape through erosion, wildfires, earthquakes and volcanic erupsions for thousands of years. Photos only prove our human bias.
Computer Modeling is NOT Real Science - In the same way that banks and credit agencies use computer data to determine who can and cannot get credit, programming by humans allows for data to be prejudicial even if it is factual. Much of what is passed off as climate change science is based on financial and promotional agendas and not proven science.
Research Studies are Higher Education's Marketing System- Generally part of a faculty members contract, professors are required to have Xnumber of studies or articles published each year. Add that matter to the fact that funding for such studies is coming from high profile donors or government grants and you get a double-whammy effect for climate change misinformation. Find a topic that the public or donor already believes in (such as the Bill Gates Foundation or the EPA), design a field trip and salary that goes along with it,wite a long, detailed by favorable report and you have naive journalists spreading the word based on the institution's reputation alone. It''s all advertising.
Glacier Movement / Melting is Normal - The formation, movement and breaking apart of glaciers has been happening for centuries. In geology terms it is one of nature's processes to recycle fresh water and minerals into the sea to keep it "salty". Any high school or freshman geology class will teach you that. Thousands of small pieces of glaciers break off each year and have done so for years Remember it was an iceberg that caused the damage to the Titanic in 1912 when the population of the Earth was a mere 1.8 billion people - a quarter of what it is today. Not everything that happens in nature is because of human interactions.
Awareness Gone Wrong - Before 1912, there was no record system for icebergs or their movement. Mariners simply knew to steer clear of waters where icebergs were frequently seen. The Titanic was taking a shorter, more dangerous route and going nearly full speed, in order to dock faster than scheduled. Without historical data to support or refute current findings, it is natural to conclude that this phenomenon is "NEW" but in real time it has been quietly going on for centuries..
Nature Doesn't Keep a Schedule - Just because the human brain prefers order does not mean nature does. Scientists can create controlled experiments and make deductions based on those actions but it does not replicate 2000 years of history. As it states in the article, the installation of two self-reporting weather stations by this team was the FIRST of its kind. Again with out records to refute them, the scientists guessed as to how much snow was deposited AND how much melted in each time period.
Human Caused Climate Change: Notice that these types of articles never pinpoint what humans actually do to cause this hypothetical situation. The simple number of people who are success in reaching the summit of Everest is enough to alter the way the glacier might act. In 1950, only six people succeeded in reaching the top. In 2020 an estimated 400 people and their crews made the journey. This was down by almost over a third from 2019. Tourism numbers estimate 10,000 people make some part of the journey. Vehicles, heaters, pack animals and more could heavily impact the formation of glacial ice. Again there are no hard conclusions because there are no hard facts.
Climate change isn't a hoax. Nature is adapting to the artificial lifestyle we have created for ourselves. Why should the fact that the World is changing concern us when it is what we wanted in the first place?