Watch: Massive Ice Blocks Fall From Argentina’s Famous Perito Moreno Glacier

Huge ice chunks as tall as 70 meters, roughly the height of a 20-storey building, are breaking off Argentina’s Perito Moreno glacier, crashing into the blue waters of Lake Argentina with thunderous roars.

Tourists gather on viewing platforms or ride boats nearby to witness the view. Perito Moreno, located in Los Glaciares National Park in the southern province of Santa Cruz, is one of Argentina’s most iconic glaciers.

For years, it has remained mostly stable, a rare case, as many glaciers across the world are shrinking quickly due to global warming. But now, even Perito Moreno appears to be giving in to the changing climate.

Tourist guides who have worked around the glacier for decades said that such massive calving events have been uncommon in the past 20 years. They stated that only in the last four to six years have they started seeing icebergs of this size breaking off the glacier.

The glacier flows down from the Andes mountains and ends in the cold waters of Lake Argentina. It had stayed in a more or less fixed position for nearly 80 years, sometimes advancing, other times retreating, but always maintaining its general mass. However, in the last five years, scientists say a steady retreat has begun.

A glaciologist working with Argentina’s national science agency, CONICET, explained that parts of the glacier’s front face have started to show visible signs of retreat since 2020.

While there is still a possibility that the glacier could recover as it has done in the past, recent data suggests otherwise. The glacier is currently losing about one to two meters of water equivalent each year. If this continues, the loss could speed up.

A 2024 state-supported report, co-authored by the same glaciologist and presented to Argentina’s Congress, revealed that although Perito Moreno maintained a stable mass for nearly 50 years, the most significant and long-lasting ice loss has occurred since 2015.

On average, it has lost around 0.85 meters of mass per year over this recent period, the fastest rate in the past 47 years.

These changes are not just limited to Argentina. A UNESCO report released in March stated that glaciers worldwide are vanishing faster than ever before. The last three-year period recorded the highest glacial mass loss ever observed.

Scientists monitoring Perito Moreno say instruments have detected a slight but steady increase in air temperatures in the area, approximately 0.06°C per decade. At the same time, precipitation has decreased, which means less snowfall and, therefore, less new ice forming at the glacier’s top. Meanwhile, melting and calving have increased at the base.

This imbalance, less accumulation above and more melting below, is now clearly visible. Experts say the glacier is not only thinning but also shrinking in size.

Despite the concern, Perito Moreno still leaves a powerful impression on visitors. Boats sail close to the glacier, giving travellers a closer look at the floating icebergs and the glacier’s towering wall of ice.

A tourist from Brazil, watching from one of the boats, described the experience as unforgettable. She said the glacier’s size and beauty are hard to capture even in photos and believes it’s a place everyone should visit at least once in their lives.

For now, Perito Moreno continues to amaze travellers, but the growing cracks and falling ice remind us that even nature’s giants are not immune to the effects of a warming planet.

Reference: Reuters

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