One of the snowiest places on Earth is losing its glaciers

The result could be massive flooding during extreme weather.

ByIrene Berman-Vaporis and Eric Knight
This story appears in the May 2019 issue of National Geographic magazine.

Washington’s Mount Rainier boasts the largest collection of glaciers on a single peak in the contiguous United States. But those glaciers have lost approximately 18 percent of their volume since 1970. The most substantial thinning is occurring on south-facing glaciers and at elevations below 6,562 feet (2,000 meters). During extreme weather this could set the stage for massive floods and debris flows in the park and surrounding areas.