Why Are Kilimanjaro's Glaciers Fading?

       The glaciers of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania started melting a century ago. Unfortunately, the loss retreat of the glacier has become more apparent in the past ten years. According to Lonnie Thompson, a glaciologist at Ohio State University, “"We've lost 26% of the ice since 2000 alone. And that, unfortunately, is just what we predicted would happen’” (Lemonick 1). The glaciers are not only retreating due to global warming, like Al Gore stated in an Inconvenient Truth. Although global warming may be a factor of the glaciers disappearance, they have been retreating since the early 1900’s (before the planet began to warm). Glacial experts have been arguing for years on the true cause of the retreating glacier. Scientists argue that the temperature at the summit of Kilimanjaro is constantly below freezing, which makes it difficult to accept the warming theory. Most of the ice loss is now suggested to be a result of sublimation, or ice turning directly into water vapor with no intermediate step. This tends to happen when temperatures are cold and the air is extremely dry, which is the case for Kilimanjaro. Because there is less precipitation to build the glaciers back up, loss of ice occurs. Although this theory is likely possible, it does not cancel out global warming as a cause of glacier retreat. The climate changes caused by global warming may even be resulting in sublimation.
     I found this article very engaging. It is interesting that scientists’ two theories that prove the glacial retreat may actually be stronger if used together. In the world of science, theories are always changing and being adjusted.

Link to article and picture (once again I was unable to upload a picture): http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1934203,00.html