Glaciers are seen in the Arctic. (Xinhua/Dai Tianfang)
Norway's glaciers are dispearing amid record heatwave, setting off climate alarm.
Experts warn that many glaciers may disappear over the next 20-50 years, and some smaller glaciers can disappear completely in a few years.
OSLO, July 30 (Xinhua) -- Record high temperature that happened in Norway over the past few days led to big melting of glaciers and some of them might disappear in several years, public broadcaster NRK reported Tuesday.
"We have had temperatures of over 30 degrees, and it is clear that this leads to great melting both of the snow that is left and of the glaciers," said Atle Nesje, professor of geology at the University of Bergen.
According to him, the melting caused flooding of glacier rivers.
Floating ice is seen around Svalbard, a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic. (Xinhua/Dai Tianfang)
Liss Marie Andreassen, glacier researcher in the Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate, said that there is certainly a reason to be worried about the future of the glaciers, many of which may disappear over the next 20-50 years.
"The glaciers are climate indicators, and very sensitive to climate change. This may be an eye-opener showing how severe the climate change is," she said.
According to Nesje, some smaller glaciers can disappear completely in a few years.
"The larger glaciers will last for many years yet, but we see the glacier arms moving upwards and becoming shorter. As the glaciers become smaller, there will also be less meltwater, something that can have consequences for watering and farming," Nesje said.
"A part of the water reservoir can also be in danger of disappearing altogether, in addition to the fact that some hydropower plants rely on the glacier water," he said.
A polar bear is hunting on the Svalbard archipelago of Norway. (Xinhua/Dai Tianfang)
Climate forecasts indicate that winter precipitation will increase by 15 percent towards the end of this century, while summer temperatures will increase by 2-3 degrees Celsius, the report said.
"Certain forecasts predict that melting will only increase in the coming years. By the end of this century, many of the small and medium-sized glaciers may disappear altogether," Nesje said.
