Satellite Monitors Peru Glacier Threat

An interesting and not unworrying one for anyone thinking of going to Peru's Cordillera Blanca, one of the world's most beautiful mountain areas.

Check out this page for a story (with pics) on how NASA satellites are monitoring a glacier in the area which is threatening to disgorge a huge chunk of ice into a glacial lake which would trigger a huge flood in the area, which would hit Huaraz - pop. 60,000 - the main city in the area within 15 minutes.

The Cordillera Blanca has a long history of 'alluvions' often triggered by earthquakes causing huge chunks of ice to slide into huge glacial lakes which then break the banks of morraine holding them in position and trigger catastrophic flooding.

Most of the towns in the area have been destroyed, often with huge loss of life, and it's noticeable that there are very few old, traditional buildings in, say, Huaraz. The last time Laguna Palcacocha burst its bank in 1941, the floods swept through Huaraz killing some 5000 people.

The Peruvian government has set up an organisation to monitor the threat - one station is sited just by Alpamayo base camp in the Santa Cruz valley and the satellite data is being used to provide more information for Peruvian scientists.