Scientists in Bolivia will use new equipment to track changes in glaciers ultra-fast.
A device installed on the Huayna Potosí peak will measure the mass of glaciers in real time, providing an alternative to older methods, which deliver much slower results.
Edson Ramírez, a glacier expert at the Universidad Mayor de San Andrés in Bolivia, said the equipment can take hourly measurements of glacier mass, compared to classical methods that can only take monthly or annual readings.
“The time it will take to do [a análise] it’s very small or in real time,” he said.
He added that the measurements can help calculate melt rates or how much life a glacier has left.
Glaciers play a key role in water supply in the Andes, and studies have shown that they provide around 27% of the water in Bolivia’s Cordillera Real region during the dry season.
Heat waves and droughts have put pressure on water supply systems in South America, making more accurate measurement of glaciers a crucial tool.
Source: CNN Brasil
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