You’re looking at the Upsala Glacier on the Argentine side of the North Patagonian Icefield — or at least some of it. Because this photo shows that the glacier is rapidly retreating as a result of climate change.
Photographed by an astronaut aboard the International Space Station, you can see the glacier on the right which is (slowly) moving to the left. Or at least it used to be: remotely sensed data, including images like these, reveal that the lump of ice has actually retreated by more than 3km between January 2001 and October 2013. NASA explains that it believes that’s a result of climate change, a claim backed up by the fact that it’s observed this as a trend across 63 glaciers in Patagonia. And that’s sad. [NASA]
Picture: NASA