"A Times and Sunday Times Best Science and Environment Book of the Year" "A Choice Outstanding Academic Title of the Year" Jemma Wadham is Professor of Glaciology at UiT the Arctic University of Norway, the Norwegian Polar Institute, and the University of Bristol. She has led more than twenty-five expeditions to glaciers around the world, from Greenland and Antarctica to the Peruvian Andes and the Himalaya. She has received prestigious awards for her research, including a Philip Leverhulme Prize and a Royal Society Wolfson Award.
A passionate eyewitness account of the mysteries and looming demise of glaciers-and what their fate means for our shared future
The ice sheets and glaciers that cover one-tenth of Earth's land surface are in grave peril. High in the Alps, Andes, and Himalaya, once-indomitable glaciers are retreating, even dying. Meanwhile, in Antarctica, thinning glaciers may be unlocking vast quantities of methane stored for millions of years beneath the ice. In Ice Rivers, renowned glaciologist Jemma Wadham offers a searing personal account of glaciers and the rapidly unfolding crisis that they-and we-face.
Taking readers on a personal journey from Europe and Asia to Antarctica and South America, Wadham introduces majestic glaciers around the globe as individuals-even friends-each with their own unique character and place in their community. She challenges their first appearance as silent, passive, and lifeless, and reveals that glaciers are, in fact, as alive as a forest or soil, teeming with microbial life and deeply connected to almost everything we know. They influence crucial systems on which people depend, from lucrative fisheries to fertile croplands, and represent some of the most sensitive and dynamic parts of our world. Their fate is inescapably entwined with our own, and unless we act to abate the greenhouse warming of our planet the potential consequences are almost unfathomable.
A riveting blend of cutting-edge research and tales of encounters with polar bears and survival under the midnight sun, Ice Rivers is an unforgettable portrait of-and love letter to-our vanishing icy wildernesses. "An emotional, masterful science narrative. . . . Edifying and expressive, Ice Rivers documents how glaciers are integral to their icy ecosystems, to vulnerable human and wildlife populations, and to Earth as a whole. Wadham is an artful storyteller who makes a passionate case for taking bold, swift action on climate issues."---Rachel Jagareski, Foreword Reviews, starred review "[Ice Rivers] is extremely personal. A lifetime of hardship and tragedy provides a backdrop to scientific breakthroughs and soaring academic success."---Ben Spencer, The Times "A riveting tale of icy landscapes on the point of irreversible change and filled with stories of encounters with polar bears and survival in the wilds under the midnight sun, Ice Rivers is a memoir like no other – a passionate love letter, no less, to the glaciers that have been one woman's lifelong obsession."---Candice Pearson, British GQ "Ice Rivers doesn't just explain what glaciers are, it digs into who they are – the glaciers become characters of their own in Wadham's straightforward, yet often poetic, words."---Ysabelle Kempe, Grist "[Ice Rivers is] a breezy read, with an eager party host vibe ('let me introduce to you my friend the glacier; I think you two will get along'). . . . Where the book really comes alive is in its vivid snapshots of a scientist's life in the field. . . . These recollections are honest, funny and poignant, and reveal how the highs and lows of fieldwork are inextricably intertwined."---Carolyn Gramling, Science News "A stunning glimpse into a life studying glaciers all around the world. . . . Wadham skillfully explains concepts that are almost too big and vast to understand, like the ice sheets themselves, while being brutally honest about impending risks without losing hope."---Michelle Anya Anjirbag, Shelf
