The Pastoruri

glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...

is a

cirque glacier A cirque glacier is formed in a cirque, a bowl-shaped depression on the side of or near mountains. Snow and ice accumulation in corries often occurs as the result of avalanching from higher surrounding slopes. If a cirque glacier advances far eno ...

, located in the southern part of the

Cordillera Blanca The Cordillera Blanca (Spanish for "white range") is a mountain range in Peru that is part of the larger Andes range and extends for between 8°08' and 9°58'S and 77°00' and 77°52'W, in a northwesterly direction. It includes several peaks ove ...

, part of the

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

mountain range, in Northern

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

in the

Ancash Ancash ( qu, Anqash; es, Áncash ) is a department and region in northern Peru. It is bordered by the departments of La Libertad on the north, Huánuco and Pasco on the east, Lima on the south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. Its capital i ...

region. It is one of the few glaciers left in the tropical areas of South America.

Description

The glacier is around in size, and around long with a terrestrial snout ending. The glacier is currently retreating quickly. It has lost 22% of its size and 15.5% of its ice mass in the last 30–35 years. The glacier occupies an Andean peak around 5,250 metres (17,200 feet) above sea level, and so has steep, cliff like edges, with heavily

crevasse A crevasse is a deep crack, that forms in a glacier or ice sheet that can be a few inches across to over 40 feet. Crevasses form as a result of the movement and resulting stress associated with the shear stress generated when two semi-rigid pie ...

d areas characteristic of a cirque glacier. The area and the glacier is usually covered in soft snow and is a popular area with tourists,

snowboarders Snowboards are boards where the user places both feet, usually secured, to the same board. The board itself is wider than most skis, with the ability to glide on snow."snowboarding." Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. 17 Mar ...

and ice climbers.

Maintenance

Engineer Benjamin Morales Arnao, local glaciologist, has tested a method to reverse the thaw; cover the ice with a layer of sawdust 15 cm thick. The experiment was carried out on Mount Chaupijanca and Pastoruri. The first glacier managed to keep four meters of ice and the second kept five meters. "This material acts as an insulator. It contains cellulose and thus we managed to decrease the melting glacier. Although this method has worked well, we'll be testing other alternatives", said Morales. "Those experiments curb glacial retreat on a small scale, but cannot bring ice blocks like Pastoruri back from the brink," said Selwyn Valverde with the Huascaran National Park, home to Pastoruri and more than 700 other shrinking Peruvian glaciers. "It's irreversible at this point," he said, adding that Pastoruri is no longer technically a glacier because it does not build up ice in the winter to release in the summer. "It's just loss, loss, loss now. It doesn't accumulate anymore."

References

{{reflist Glaciers of Ancash Region