Patagonian media picked up the story immediately became: the Perito Moreno Glacier sealed the passage of water through the Iceberg Channel. Put another way, it initiated a new process of breaking. Glacier, besides being a unique natural and tourist phenomenon in the world, is the central character of the local ecosystem.
Like other glaciers, the melting guarantees the supply of water to the rivers that are sources of water for the population and agriculture. Furthermore, glaciers play a global function, because the surface repels the sun’s rays and help make the planet absorb less solar energy.
Why the glacier breaks?
When the giant advances icing on the peninsula of Magallanes blocks in their growth, the natural flow of water between the Rico arm of Lake Argentino and the rest of the lake, acting as a dam. With this gesture, it separates the two and, like a dam, the water begins to accumulate in the arm Rico, producing a gap between them. The pressure caused by that difference makes the water begins to pierce the walls of the glacier, which leads to its rupture. The dramatic fall of the giant portions of ice attracts the interest of both local and tourism.
An aerial view of Perito Moreno glacier where you can see the ice tongue resting on the Peninsula de Magallanes, left the Iceberg Canal and on the right arm Rico. The decision is 2004
An aerial view of Perito Moreno glacier where you can see the ice tongue resting on the Peninsula de Magallanes, left the Iceberg Canal and on the right arm Rico. The decision is the 2004.Foto: National Parks
Tourism
Secretary of Tourism of El Calafate, Laura Santiago, National Calafate confirmed that «there are 3.85 meters of altitude and continues to grow», but explained that «does not mean that the glacier will break in the next few days, as it can be a process of months. This will depend on the thickness of the ice, his toughness, but is a process that has already begun. »
The breaking of the glacier is, different from other glaciers of Glacier National Park (356 glaciers in 724,000 hectares) that, in general, are declining single process. In recent years, the previous big rupture of the glacier was in 2012 (although there was a minor in 2013), after a phenomenon not seen since 1988, when it was almost was repeated in 2004, 2006 and 2008 4 years regularly.
Climate change
This year, a study by the Institute of Snow Research, Glaciology and Environmental Sciences (IANIGLIA) said that in the last 50 years the Argentine glaciers had lost up to 20 percent of mass. The IANIGLIA is the institution responsible for developing the national inventory ordered make the Glacier Law, passed in 2010.
The agency warned that the 48 glaciers that are in the near Santa Cruz region between Argentina and Chile, is known -is only one stepped on the Chilean side and there is another that remains stable: the famous Perito Moreno. The rest fell. While Santa Cruz is where glaciers there more (and larger) Tierra del Fuego, Mendoza, Neuquen and Chubut Black River also have glaciers and shrinking
