What's going on
The melting of glaciers is one of the consequences of climate change. The average temperature of the Earth has almost reached 15 degrees Celsius, and this is the highest in 3 million years. More than 1 million tons of ice melts every day — for comparison, the iceberg that sank the Titanic is estimated at "only" 75 thousand tons. All this is fraught with hurricanes, floods, flooding of cities and countries, a sharp decline in agriculture and other economic losses.
Danger is closer than it seems
Melting glaciers are not as far away as it seems — 70% of the world's population lives within 160 km from the coast, which means they depend on the level of the World Ocean. If all the ice on the poles and mountain peaks melts, a significant part of Europe will be under water.
Ancient viruses can come to life
There are also concerns about bacteria and viruses "waking up" after defrosting. An outbreak of anthrax has already been observed in Yamal — it may have been caused by the body of an infected deer, which thawed 75 years after burial. Biologists suggest that pathogens may be hiding in the bowels of the earth, which in the past caused epidemics of Spanish flu, smallpox and bubonic plague. And researchers from the United States have already found 33 viral populations in ice samples, 28 of which were previously unknown.
How to save glaciers
It cannot be argued that absolutely all glaciers on the planet are melting. But the growth of some of them is an exception, not a positive trend. The main ice reserves are located in the Arctic and Antarctic and are steadily decreasing. Therefore, scientists put forward a variety of ideas for their salvation:
restoration of Arctic and Antarctic ice using wind pumps and pumping water to the surface, where it will freeze faster;
submarines for the production of icebergs that will dive to the depths of the ocean, collect seawater, filter it from salts and freeze it into hexagonal pieces of ice. They are proposed to be joined with natural ice floes or thrown under a glacier;
white blankets for the shelter of glaciers, which should reflect sunlight and slow down the melting processes.
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