New satellite data reveals that Himalayan glaciers are melting far more SLOWLY than predicted

• Himalayan glaciers lose 4 billion tons of ice annually - but were predicted to lose up to 50
• Melting around the world is slower than predicted
• Previous surveys based on ground-based estimates
• First accurate satellite study
• 'Results really were a surprise,' says lead scientist

Glaciers in the Himalayas: The new survey, using data from Nasa satellites reveals that Himalayan glaciers are melting far more slowly than predicted

Himalayan glaciers are melting far more slowly than predicted, according to a new satellite study from the University of Colorado Boulder.

Previous estimates of ice loss in the high Asia mountains have ranged up to 50 billion tons a year, said the university's Professor John Wahr.

The actual figure is a mere four billion tonnes, according to a survey using data from Nasa satellites.

Previously, it had been claimed that Himalayan glaciers would have melted to a fifth of current levels by 2035, leading to sea level rises and drought.

Those predictions used ground-based measurements, whereas the new study measured the effect of gravity on twin Nasa satellites to give an accurate measure of the mass of ice being lost.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2098798/New-satellite-data-reveals-glaciers-melting-far-slowly-UN-estimates.html