Even if the temperature rise is limited to 1.5 degrees, about half of the glaciers will disappear by the end of this century

Recently NHK News on-line reported the following:

気温上昇1.5度に抑えても“今世紀末までに約半数の氷河消滅”

2023年1月10日 9時45分

世界の氷河に対する地球温暖化の影響について、平均気温の上昇を「パリ協定」で各国が努力すると定めた1.5度に抑えられたとしても、およそ半数の氷河が今世紀末までに消滅するというシミュレーション結果を、アメリカなどの研究チームが発表しました。

この研究結果は、アメリカのカーネギーメロン大学などの研究チームが、今月5日に科学雑誌の「サイエンス」に発表しました。

研究チームは、世界中の氷河、あわせて21万余りがどのくらい溶けるか、温暖化により上昇する世界の平均気温を変えてシミュレーションを行いました。

その結果、気温の上昇を2015年のパリ協定で各国が努力すると定めた「1.5度」に抑えられたとしても、およそ49％の氷河が今世紀末までに溶けて消滅することがわかったということです。

さらに気温上昇を4度と仮定した場合、およそ83％の氷河が消滅し、これはおよそ15センチの海面上昇に相当すると試算しています。

近年、世界各地で気温の上昇が原因とみられる氷河の崩落や洪水が報告されていて、研究グループは「多数の氷河が消滅するのを避けるにはもう遅いが、気温上昇を抑える取り組みは将来、失われる氷河の数を減らすのに有効だ」としています。

Translation

It was announced by a research team in the United States that regarding the impact of global warming on the world's glaciers, simulation results showed that even if the average temperature rise was limited to 1.5 degrees, which all countries stipulated in the "Paris Agreement", about half of the glaciers could disappear by the end of this century.

The results of this research were published by a research team at Carnegie Mellon University in the United States on the 5th of this month in the science magazine "Science".

The research team simulated how much glaciers around the world, a total of more than 210,000, would melt, by the changes in the average global temperature which went up due to global warming.

As a result, it was found that even if the rise in temperature could be limited to "1.5 degrees", which all country were striving for in the 2015 Paris Agreement, about 49% of the glaciers could melt and disappear by the end of this century.

Furthermore, assuming a temperature rise of 4 degrees, about 83% of the glaciers could disappear, which was estimated to be equivalent to a sea level rise of about 15 cm.

In recent years, glacier collapses and floods had been reported around the world that appeared to be caused by rising temperatures, and the researchers said that "it is too late to avoid the disappearance of many glaciers, but efforts to limit temperature rise will be effective in reducing the number of glaciers lost in the future."

              So, according to the report, even if the average temperature rise is limited to 1.5 degrees, about half of the glaciers will disappear by the end of this century. I am wondering are we doing enough to save our planet.