A mountaineer has captured the formation of an “alarming” lake high in the French Alps after glacial snow melted in the intense heatwave that gripped central Europe in late June.
Bryan Mestre was shocked to discover the large pool of water at an altitude of 11,100ft (3,400m) in the Mount Blanc mountain range – claiming the unusual sight was a worrying sign.
Scientists have warned that heatwaves in Europe are becoming increasingly frequent, with the intense temperatures linked to climate change.
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Arctic
The Arctic is warming at almost twice the global average with sea ice disappearing from the ecosystem. While this has made the waters more navigable through the Northwest Passage, it is also contributing to a rise in global sea level.
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Antarctica
Since 1992, the frozen continent has lost more than 3.3 trillion tons of ice, resulting in rise in global sea levels by a quarter inch (0.63 centimeters), according to a study published in the journal Nature. Researchers estimate that the rate at which ice is lost has soared from 73 billion metric tons per year in 2007 to 219 billion tons in 2017 – a triple increase that could increase sea levels six inches (15.2 centimeters) by 2100.
The west coast of the Antarctic Peninsula is one of the most rapidly warming parts of the planet. This has affected the distribution of penguin colonies along the coast as sea ice conditions have changed, reports Discovering Antarctica. Melting snow has seen increased plant coverage. Many glaciers have retreated and ice shelves have collapsed.
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“Time to sound the alarm,” said Mr Mestre. “Only 10 days of extreme heat were enough to collapse, melt and form a lake at the base of the Dent du Géant and the Aiguilles Marbrées.”
He added: “This is truly alarming … glaciers all over the world are melting at an exponential speed.”
Sharing the image on Instagram, the French rock climber said he took the photo on 28 June – only 10 days after fellow mountaineer Paul Todhunter captured the same area covered in snow.
“Needless to say, the lake was a real surprise,” Mr Mestre told the IFLScience website.
“It’s located in the 3,400 to 3,500-meter area. You’re supposed to find ice and snow at this altitude, not liquid water. Most of the time when we stay for a day at this altitude, the water in our water bottles starts freezing.”
“I have been up there a fair amount of times, in June, July and even August, and I have never seen liquid water up there,” he added.
Glaciologist Ludovic Ravanel previously noticed a lake appearing high in the French Alps in 2015 and linked its formation to global warming.
According to the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), last month was the hottest June ever recorded on Earth.
