Sea kayakers look at | the face of MeBride Glacier along Muir Inlet in Glacier Bay National Park, & Alaska. (Photo by Tom Bean/CORBIS) 153| ike the running water and groundwater that were the focus of Chapter 5, glaciers and [.: wind are significant erosional processes. They are responsible for creating many dif- ferent landforms and are part of an important link in the rock cycle in which the prod- ucts of weathering are transported and deposited as sediment. Climate has a strong influence on the nature and intensity of Earth's external processes. This fact is dramatically illustrated in this chapter. The existence and extent of glaciers is largely controlled by Earth’s changing climate. Another excellent example of the strong link between climate and geology is seen when we examine the development of arid landscapes. Today, glaciers cover nearly 10 percent of Earth's land surface; however, in the recent geologic past, ice sheets were three times more extensive, covering vast areas with ice thousands of meters thick. Many regions still bear the mark of these glaciers. The first part of this chapter examines glaciers and the erosional and depositional features they create, ‘The second part is devoted to dry lands and the geologic work of wind. Because desert and near-desert conditions prevail over an area as large as that affected by the massive glaciers of the Ice Age, the nature of such landscapes is indeed worth investigating, (aia Glaciers: A Part of Two Basic Cycles in the Earth System FIGURE 6.1 Scientists extracting an ioe core sample onthe Greenland ts ica sheet. Ic cores are valuable sourees of data used nthe analysis of ulpturing Earth's Sodptuing Earti past climates. Photo by Nick Cobbing/Pata Arno, nc) “Mae > Glaciers Many present-day landscapes were modified by the wide- spread glaciers of the most recent Ice Age and still strongly re- flect the handiwork of ice. The basic character of such diverse places as the Alps, Cape Cod, and Yosemite Valley was fash- toned by now vanished masses of glacial ice, Moreover, Long, Island, the Great Lakes, and the fiords of Norway and Alaska all owe their existence to glaciers. Glaciers, of course, are not justa phenomenon of the geologic past. As you will see, they are still modifying the physical landscapes of many regions today. Glaciers are a part of two fundamental cycles in the Earth system—the hydrologic cycle and the rock cycle. Earlier you learned that the water of the hydrosphere is constantly cy- cled through the atmosphere, biosphere, and geosphere. Time and time again the same water is evaporated from the oceans into the atmosphere, precipitated upon the land, and carried by rivers and underground flow back to the sea. However, when precipitation falls at high elevations or high latitudes, the water may not immediately make its way toward the sea Instead, it may become part of glacier. Although the ce will eventually melt, allowing the water to continue its path to the sea, water can be stored as glacial ice for many tens, hun- dreds, or even thousands of years. A glacier isa thick ice mass that forms over hundreds or thousands of years. It originates on land from the accumula~ tion, compaction, and recrystallization of snow. A glacier ap-pears to be motionless, but it is not—glaciers move very slowly. Like running water, groundwater, wind, and waves, glaciers are dynamic erosional agents that accumulate, trans- port, and deposit sediment. As such, glaciers are among the processes that perform a very basic function in the rock cycle. Although glaciers are found in many parts of the world, most are located in remote areas, either near Earth’s poles or in high mountains (Figure 6.1). Valley (Alpine) Glaciers Literally thousands of relatively small glaciers exist in lofty ‘mountain areas, where they usually follow valleys originally ‘occupied by streams. Unlike the rivers that previously flowed in these valleys, the glaciers advance slowly, pethaps only a few centimeters each day. Because oftheir setting, these mov- ing ice masses are termed valley glaciers or alpine glaciers (see chapter-opening photo). Each glacier is a stream of ice, bounded by precipitous rock walls, that flows downvalley from a snow accumulation center near its head. Like rivers, valley glaciers can be long or short, wide or narrow, single or with branching tributaries. Generally, the widths of alpine glaciers are small compared to their lengths; some extend forjusta fraction ofa kilometer, ‘whereas others go on for many dozens of kilometers. The west branch of the Hubbard Glacier, for example, runs through 112 Kilometers (nearly 70 miles) of ‘mountainous terrain in Alaska and the Yukon Territory. Ice Sheets Incontrast to valley glaciers, ice sheets exist on a much larger scale. In fac, they are often re- ferred to as continental ce sheets. ‘These enormous masses flow out in all directions from one or more centers and completely ob- scure all but the highest areas of underlying terrain. Although many ie sheets have existed in the past, just twoachieve this status at present (Figure 62). Nevertheless, their combined areas rep- resent almost 10 percent of Earth's land area. In the Northern Hemisphere, Greenland is covered by an imposing ice sheet that occupies 1.7 million square kilo- ‘meters (0.7 million square miles), or about 80 percent of this large island. Averaging nearly 2.3 kilometers (1.6 miles) thick, in places the ice extends 3,000 meters (10,000 feet) above the island’ bedrock floor. Glaciers: A Part of Two Basic Cycles inthe Earth System 155 Students Sometimes Ash... I's hard to imagine how large the Greenland ice sheet really is, Could you provide a comparison that we might be able to relate to? Try this. The ice sheet is long enough to extend from Key West, Florida, to 100 miles beyond Portland, Maine. Its width could reach from Washington, D.C. to Indianapolis, Indiana, Put an- other way, the ice sheet is 80 percent as big as the entire United States east of the Mississippi River. The area of Antarctica’s ice sheet is more than eight times as great! In the Southern Hemisphere, the huge Antarctic Ice Sheet attains a maximum thickness of nearly 4.3 kilometers (2.7 miles) and covers nearly the entire continent, an area of more than 139 million square kilometers (54 million square miles). ‘The Antarctic Ice Sheet represents 80 percent of the world’s FIGURE 6.2 The only present-day continental ice shests are those covering Greenland and ‘Antarctica, Their combined areas represent almost 10 percent of Ear’ land area. Greenland’s ice ‘sheet occupies 1.7 milion square kilometers, or sbout 80 percent ofthe iland. Te area of the ‘Antarcclee Sheet is elmost 14 milion equarelelomptrs. Along portions ofthe Antarctic coast, ‘lacal ce fows into bays, creating features called ice shelves. These largo masses of lating Ice ‘emain attached tothe land on one or more sides. lee shelves occupy an aditional 1.4 milion ‘square klometers adjacent o the Antarctic Ie Sheet156 CHAPTER 6 Glaciers, Deserts, and Wind FIGURE 6 These maps of a portion of North America show the present-day coastline compared to the coastline that existed during the last ice-age maximum 18,000 years ago (Map B) and the Castine that Would exist if present ice sheets in Groaniand anc Antarctica melted (Map A (After F. H. Dott, Jr and RL, Battan, Evolution of the Earth, New York: MoGeaw-Hil,1971,) ice and nearly two-thirds of Earth’s fresh water. If this ice melted, sea level would rise an estimated 60-70 meters (200-230 feet) and the ocean would inundate many densely populated coastal areas (Figure 6.3). ‘These enormous masses flow out in all directions from ‘one or more snow-accumullation centers and completely ob- scure all but the highest areas of underlying terrain. Even sharp variations in the topography beneath the glacier usually appear as relatively subdued undu- lations on the surface of the ice. Such topo- graphic differences, however, do affect the behavior of the ice sheets, especially near their margins, by guiding flow in certain di- rections and creating zones of faster and slower movement. Mal ‘Along portions of the Antarctic coast, gla- Glaciers: The movement of glacial ice is generally referred to as flow. The fact that glacial movement is described in this way seems paradoxical—how can a solid flow? The way in which ice flows is complex and is of two basic types. The first of these, plastic flow involves movement within the ice. Ie behaves as a brittle solid until the pressure upon it is equivalent to the eight of about 50 meters (165 feet) of ice. Once that load is surpassed, ice behaves as a plastic material and flow begins, Assecond and often equally important mechanism of glacial ‘movement consists of the entire ice mass slipping along the ‘ground. The lowest portions of most glaciers are thought to move by this sliding process. The upper 50 meters or so of a glacier is not under sulfi- cient pressure to exhibit plastic flow. Rather, the ice in this uppermost zone is brittle and is appropriately referred to as the zone of fracture. The ice in this zone is carried along “pig- gyback” style by the ice below. When the glacier moves over irregular terrain, the zone of fracture is subjected to tension, resulting in cracks called erevasses (Figure 6.5). These gaping cracks can make travel across glaciers dangerous and can ex- tend to depths of 50 meters (165 feet). Beyond this depth, plastic flow seals them off. Observing and Measuring Movement Unlike streamflow, glacial movement is not obvious. If we could watcha valley glacier move, we would see that like the ‘water in a river, all ofthe ice does not move downstream at the same rate. Flow is greatest in the center ofthe glacier be- ‘cause of the drag created by the walls and floor of the valley. Early in the nineteenth century, the first experiments in- volving the movement of glaciers were designed and carried out in the Alps. Markers were placed in a straight line across an alpine glacier. The position of the line was marked on the valley walls so that if the ice moved, the change in position could be detected. Periodically the positions of the markers ‘were noted, revealing the movement just described. Although most glaciers move too slowly for direct visual detection, the experiments succeeded in demonstrating that movement nev- ertheless occurs. The experiment illustrated in Figure 6.6 was carried out at Switzerland's Rhone Glacier later in the nine- teenth century. It not only traced the movement of markers FIGURE 6.5 _Crevasses form inthe brite fe of the zone of fracture. ‘They can extend to depths of 50 meters and can obviously make travel across glaciers dangerous. Gasherbrum Il expedition, Pakistan. (Photo by Galen Fowel/Mountain Light Photography, Inc) within the ice but also mapped the position of the glacier’s terminus. How rapidly does glacial ice move? Average rates vary considerably from one glacier to another. Some move so slowly that trees and other vegetation may become well es- tablished in the debris that accumulates on the glacier’s sur- face, Others advance up to several meters per day. The ‘movement of some glaciers is characterized by periods of ex- tremely rapid advance followed by periods during which movement is practically nonexistent. Budget of a Glacier Snow is the raw material from which glacial ice originates ‘Therefore, glaciers form in areas where more snow falls in win- ter than can melt during the summer. Glaciers are constantly gaining and losing ice. Snow accumulation and ice formation 187158 CHAPTER 6 — Glaclors, Deserts, and Wind 1874 poston fates ron in Terminus, inter “Terminus of lacerin 1874 FIGURE 6.6 Ice movement and changes inthe terminus at Rhone Glacier, Switzerland, ln this Classic study of a valley glacir, the movernent of stakes clearly showed that ica along the sides of the glacier moves sowest. Also notice that even though the ie front was retreating, the ke within the glacier was advancing FIGURE 67 The snowline separates the zone of accumulation an he zane of wastage. Above the snowin, mar snow fas ach winter than mats each surnmer Gaiow tho snowne, th snow fem the previo winter completly mes, as ces sam ofthe unseryng ie, Whether the margin ofa siacier advances, retreats, or eains stationary dapends onthe balance ot ack of balance between ceumultion and wastage (elation) When a glacier moves across equa eran, crevasses form inthe brite orton. *ieseanow atseach £7 ‘wnt han mets ach summerCccur in the zone of accumulation (Figure 6.7). Here the ad- dition of snow thickens the glacier and promotes movement. Beyond this area of ice formation isthe zone of wastage. Here there isa net loss to the glacier when the snow from the pre- ‘vious winter melts, as does some ofthe glacial ice (Figure 6.7) In addition to melting, glaciers also waste as large pieces ‘fice break off the front of a glacier in a process called calving. ‘Where glaciers reach the sea, calving creates icebergs (Figure 6.8). Because icebergs are just slightly less dense than seawa- ter, they float very low in the water, with nearly 90 percent of their mass submerged. The margins of the Greenland Ice Sheet produce thousands of icebergs each year. Many drift southward and find their way into the North Atlantic, where they are a hazard to navigation. Whether the margin of a glacier is advancing, retreating, ot remaining stationary depends on the budget of the glacier. The glacial budget is the balance or lack of balance between accumulation at the upper end of a glacier and loss at the ower end. This loss is termed ablation. If ice accumulation exceeds ablation, the glacial front advances until the two fac- tors balance. At this point, the terminus of the glacier becomes stationary. Ifa warming trend increases ablation and/or ifa drop in snowfall decreases accumulation, the ice front will retreat. As the terminus of the glacier retreats, the extent of the zone of ‘wastage diminishes. Therefore, in time a new balance will be reached between accumulation and ablation, and the ice front will again become stationary. ‘Whether the margin ofa glacier is advancing, retreating, or stationary, the ice within the glacier continues to flow for- ‘ward. In the case of a receding glacier, the ice still flows for- FIGURE 6.8 Icebergs are created wien large pieces calve from the front of a glacier after it reaches ‘waterbody, Here, ce i caving from the torminus of Alaska's Hubbard Glacier in Wrangel-St. Elias National Park Photo by Tom and Susan Bean, Inc) As the inset inthe lower left ilustates ess than 20 pereent ofan iceberg protrces above the waterline. Some icebergs can be very large. The Satelite image in the upper ight shows a huge iceberg that broke from an Antarctic ice she ts area (3,000 square klometers/t,200 square mies) s about the same asthe state of Rhode Island, (image courtesy of NASA) Glacial Erosion 159 Students Sometimes Ash... Do we know if Earth's glaciers are growing or shrinking? If you were to visit the world’s high mountain regions, you ‘would probably see less glacial ice today than you would have seen a few decades ago. In Montana's Glacier National Park, more than 110 glaciers have disappeared over the past 150 years Researchers estimate thatthe park's remaining 37 glaciers may be gone in another 25 years. A recent research project called Global Land Ice Measurements from Space (GLIMS) concluded that the ‘great majority of the world’s glaciers appear to be shrinking, ward, but not rapidly enough to offset wastage. This point is illustrated in Figure 66. As the line of stakes within the Rhone Glacier continued to move downvalley, the terminus of the glacier slowly retreated upvalley. Glacial Erosion Glaciers are capable of great erosion. For anyone who has ob- served the terminus of an alpine glacier, the evidence of its erosive force is clear. You can witness firsthand the release of rock fragments of various sizes from the ice as it melts. All signs lead to the conclusion that the ice has scraped, scoured, and torn rock debris from the floor and walls of the valley and carried it down- valley. It should also be pointed out that in mountainous regions mass- wasting processes also make substan- tial contributions to the sediment load ofa glacier, Once rock debris is acquired by the glacier, it cannot settle out as does the load carried by a stream or by the wind. Consequently, glaciers can carry huge blocks that no other erosional agent could possibly budge. Although today’s glaciers are of limited impor- tance as erosional agents, many land- scapes that were modified by the widespread glaciers of the recent Ice Age still reflect to a high degree the ‘work of ice. How Glaciers Erode Glaciers erode land primarily in two ways: plucking and abrasion. First, as, a glacier flows over a fractured bedrock surface, it loosens and lifts blocks of‘rant n Cafori's Yosemite National Park. (Photo by E. J. Tarbuck) rock and incorporates them into the ice. This process, known as plucking, occurs when meltwater penetrates the cracks and joints along the rock floor of the glacier and freezes. ‘When water freezes it expands, exerting tremendous leverage that pries the rock loose. In this manner, sediment of all sizes becomes part ofthe glacier’s load. ‘The second major erosional process is abrasion (Figure 68). As the ice and its load of rock fragments slide over bedrock, they function like sandpaper to smooth and polish the surface below. The pulverized rock produced by the gla- Deserts and Winds The dry regions of the world encompass about 42 million square kilometers—a surprising 30 percent of Earth's land sur- face (Figure 6.26). No other climatic group covers so lange a land area.* The word desert literally means deserted or unoccu- pied. For many dry regions this isa very appropriate dlescrip- tion. Yet where water is available in deserts, plantsand animals thrive. Nevertheless, the world’s dry regions are among the least familiar land areas on Earth outside of the polar realm. Desert landscapes frequently appear stark. Their profiles are not softened by a carpet of soil and abundant plant life. Instead, barren rocky outcrops with steep, angular slopes are common. At some places the rocks are tinted orange and red. At others they are gray and brown and streaked with black, ‘Am exmination of dy climates is foun in Chapter 20 FIGURE 6.28 In this view of Earth from space, North Africa's Sahara Desert, the adjacent Arabian Desert, andthe Kalahari and Namib deserts in southern Aca ae clearly visible as tan-colored, coud ree zones. ‘These low-latitude deserts are dominated bythe dry, subsiding air ‘sociated with pressure belts knaw asthe subropical highs. By contrast, the band of clouds that extends across central Africa andthe adjacent oceans coincides withthe equatorial low-pressure blt, the rainist region on Earth, (mage courtesy of NASA) aDiatealt, Sinielines.Ask ... Theard somewhere that deserts are expanding. Is that actu- ally occurring? Yes. The problem is called desertification, and it refers to the al: land to desertiike conditions as the result of human ac- tivities. It commonly takes place on the ma results primarily from inappropriate land use, It is triggered when the modest natural vegetation in marginal areas is removed by plowing or grazing. When drought occurs, as it inevitably does in these regions, and the vegetative cover has been de- stroyed beyond the minimum to hold the soil against erosion, the destruction becomes irreversible, Desertification is occurring in many places but is particularly serious in the region south of teration o ns of deserts and the Sahara Desert known as the Sahel For many visitors desert scenery exhibits a striking beauty; to others the terrain seems bleak. No matter which feeling is clicited, itis clear that deserts are very different from the more humid places where most people live. ‘As you will see, arid regions are not dominated by a single _geologic process. Rather, the effects of tectonic forces, running ‘water, and wind are all apparent. Because these processes combine in different ways from place to place, the appearance of desert landscapes varies a great deal as well (Figure 6.27). Geologic Processesin Arid Climates 173 Geologic Processes in Arid Climates Deserts and Winds ‘The angular rock exposures, the sheer canyon walls, and the pebble- or sand-covered surface of the desert contrast sharply with the rounded hills and curving slopes of more humid places. To a visitor from a humid region, a desert landscape may seem to have been shaped by forces different from those operating in wetter areas. However, although the contrasts might be striking, they do not reflect different processes. They merely disclose the differing effects of the same processes that operate under contrasting climatic conditions. In humid regions, relatively well-developed soils support an almost continuous cover of vegetation. Here the slopes and rock edges are rounded. Such a landscape reflects the strong influence of chemical weathering in a humid climate. By con- trast, much of the weathered debris in deserts consists of un. altered rock and mineral fragments—the result of mechanical weathering processes. In dry lands rock weathering of any types greatly reduced because of the lack of moisture and the scarcity of organic acids from decaying plants. Chemical weathering, however, is not completely lacking in deserts. (Over long spans of time, clays and thin soils do form, and {scene in Southarn Utah near the San Juan River. The appearance of desert landscapes varies a great deal rom place to place. (Photo © by Carr Cin. Al rights reserved) Wirt,FIGURE 6.28 A. Most of the time, desert stream channels ae dy. B. An ephemeral stream shorty ‘tera heavy shower. Although sich fleods are short-lhe, large amounts of erasion accur. Photos by EJ. Tarbuck) ‘many iron-bearing silicate minerals oxidize, producing the rust-colored stain found tinting some desert landscapes, The Role of Water Permanent streams are normal in humid regions, but practi- cally all desert streams are dry most of the time (Figure 6.28A). Deserts have ephemeral streams, which means that they carry water only in response to specific episodes of rain- fall. Atypical ephemeral stream might flow only a few days or perhaps just a few hours during the year. In some years the channel may carry no water at all ‘This fact is obvious even to the casual observer who, while traveling in a dry region, notices the number of bridges with no streams beneath them or the number of dips in the road where dry channels cross. However, when the rare heavy showers do ‘occur, so much rain falls in such a short time that all of it can- not soak in. Because the vegetative cover is sparse, runoff is largely unhindered and consequently rapid, often creating flash floods along valley floors (Figure 628B). Such floods, however, are quite unlike floods in humid regions. A flood on ariver such as the Mississippi may take many days to reach its crest and then subside. But desert floods arrive suddenly and subside «quickly. Because much of the surface material is not anchored by vegetation, the amount of erosional work that occurs during a single short-lived rain event is impressive In the dry western United States a number of different names are used for ephemeral streams. Two of the most com- ‘mon are wash and arroyo. In other parts of the world, a dry desert stream may be called a wadi (Arabia and North Africa), 1 donga (South America), ora nullait (India). Humid regions are notable for their integrated drainage systems, But in arid regions streams usually lackan extensive system of tributaries. In fact, a basic characteristic of desert streams is that they are small and die out before reaching the sea. Because the water table is usually far below the surface, few desert streams can draw upon it as streams do in humid 174 regions. Without a steady supply of water, the combination of evaporation and infiltration soon depletes the stream. ‘The few permanent streams that do cross arid regions, such as the Colorado and Nile rivers, originate outside the desert, often in well-watered mountains. Here the water sup- ply must be great to compensate for the losses occurring as the stream crosses the desert (Box 6.2). For example, after the Nile leaves the lakes and mountains of central Africa that are its source, it traverses almost 3,000 kilometers (nearly 1,900 miles) of the Sahara without a single tributary. By contrast, in humid regions the discharge of a river usually increases in the downstream direction because tributaries and ground ‘water contribute additional water along the way. Itshould be emphasized that running water, although infe- quent, nevertheless does most ofthe erosional work in desers. This is contrary to a common belief that wind is the most impor- tant erosional agent sculpturing desert landscapes. Although wind erosion is indeed more significant in dry areas than else- where, most desert landforms are nevertheless carved by ru rning water. As you will see shortly, the main role of wind is in the transporiation and deposition of sediment, which cre- ates and shapes the ridges and mounds we call dunes Basin and Range: The E\ of a Mountainous Desert Lanc ‘Soulpturing Earth's Surface Deserts and Winds Because arid regions typically lack permanent streams, they are characterized as having interior drainage. This means that they have a discontinuous pattern of intermittent streams that do not flow out of the desert to the ocean. In the United States, the dry Basin and Range region provides an excellent example. The region includes southern Oregon, all of Nevada, western Utah, southeastern California, southern Arizona, and southern New Mexico. The name Basin and Range is an apt description for‘The Disappearing Aral Sea ‘The Aral Sea lies on the border between Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan in central Asia (Figure 6.0). The setting is the Turkestan desert, a middlle-latitude desert in the rain- shadow of Afghanistan's high mountains. Inthis region of interior drainage, two large rivers, the Amu Darya and the Syr Darya, carry water from the mountains of northern Afghanistan across the desert to the Aral Sea. Water leaves the sea by evaporation. Thus, the size of the water body depends ‘on the balance between river inflow and evaporation, Tn 1960 the Aral Sea was one of the world’s largest inland water bodies, with an area of about 67,000 square kilometers (26,000 square miles). Only the Caspian Sea, Take Superior, and Lake Victoria were larger By the year 2000 the area ofthe Aral Sea was less than 50 percent ofits 1960 size, and its volume was reduced by 80 percent. ‘Theshrinking of this water body is depicted in Figure 6.D. By about 2010 all that will ‘main will be three shallow remnants ‘What caused the Aral ea to dry up over the past 40 years? The answer is that the flow of water from the mountains that sup- plied the sea was significantly reduced and then all but eliminated. As recently as 1965, the Aral Sea received about 50 cubic kilo- meters (12 cubic miles) of fresh water per year. By the early 1980s this ruumber fel to ‘nearly 2er0, The reason was that the waters ‘of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya were di verted to supply a major expansion of irr ‘gated agriculture in this dry realm. FIGURE 6.0 The Aral Sea lies east of the Caspian Sea in the Turkestan Desert Two rivers, the Amu Darya and Sye Daya, bring water from the mountains tothe ea, Basin and Range: The Evolution of a Mountainous Desert Landscape 175 FIGURE 6.D The shrinking Aral Soa. By the year 2010 all that wil remain are tives small remnants, ‘The intensive irrigation greatly increased agricultural productivity, but not without significant cost. The delta ofthe two major rivershave lost their wetlands, and wildlife hhas disappeared. The once thriving fishing industry is dead, and the 24 species of fish that once lived in the Aral ea are no longer there, The shoreline is now tens of kilome- ters from the towns that were once fishing, centers (Figure 6). ‘The shrinking sea has exposed millions of acres of former seabed to sun and wind, ‘The surface is encrusted with salt and with agrochemicals brought by the rivers. Strong ‘winds routinely pick up and deposit thou sands of tons of newly exposed material every year. Tis process has not only con- tributed to a significant reduction in air quality for people living in the region but has also appreciably affected crop yields due to the deposition of salt-rch sediments ‘on arable land. —| BOX 6.2 A PEOPLE AND THE ENVIRONMENT jp} ‘The shrinking Aral Sea has had a notice- able impact on the region’s climate. With- ‘out the moderating effect ofa large water body, there are greater extremes of temper- ature, a shorter growing season, and re- duced local precipitation. These changes have caused many farms to switch from growing cotton to growing rice, which de- ‘mands even more diverted water. Environmental experts agree that the current situation cannot be sustained. Could this crisis be reversed if enough fresh water ‘were to once again flow into the Aral Sea? Prospects appear grim, Experts estimate that restoring the Aral Sea to about twice its present size would require stopping all iri- gation from the two major rivers for 50 years. This could not be done without ri ing the economies of the countries that rely fon that water* ‘The decline of the Aral Sea isa major en- vironmental disaster that sadly is of human making. ‘for mors on this, soe “Coming t Grips with the Ara S's Grim Legs” n Scie vol. 288, Apel 2199, pp, M3 and “To Save a Vasshing Ses" in Soy, ‘ol a0, Febrary 18,2085, pp 1052-3, FIGURE 6. nthe fovm of Jamboul, Kaze Kintan, boats now la inthe sand because the Aral Sea has ded up. (Photo by Ergun ‘Cagatay/Laizon Agere, ne) &