GLACIERS in the northern Antarctic Peninsula are melting faster than ever and small glaciers in that area could disappear within 200 years, warns new research.
Researchers warned that increased snowfall will not prevent the continued melting, and the "unpreceden-ted" glacier recession will result in "significant" contributions to sea level rises.
Glacial geologist Dr Bethan Davies, from Royal Holloway, University of London, who led an international team of researchers, said: "These small glaciers around the edge of the Antarctic Peninsula are likely to contribute most to rising sea levels over the coming decades, because they can respond quickly to climate change.
"Our findings demonstrate that the melting will increase greatly even with a slight rise in temperature, offsetting any benefits from increased snowfall."
The researchers carried out extensive fieldwork on James Ross Island to map and analyse the changes to a glacier, which is currently 4km long, over the past 10,000 years.
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