CHASING ICE directed by Jeff Orlowski (USA, 2012)

Scientists can show us charts, produce statistics and even talk about the real possibility of a ‘mass extinction event’  but it is hard visual evidence that real makes you see that global warming is real.

The astonishing work of nature photographer  James Balog and his Extreme Ice Survey shows what Balog calls the  “miraculous horror” of what is happening.

By documenting the collapse of glaciers in Greenland, Iceland and Alaska with time-lapse pictures we can see with our eyes what no-one has ever witnessed before.  The images are beautiful but terrifying.

Changes in atmospheric conditions brought about by carbon dioxide emissions are the main reason why these cities of ice are retreating and disappearing at an unprecedented rate.  Footage of the fall of the Illulissat glacier in Greenland should, in itself, be enough to illustrate the scale of the problem.

James Balog

These catastrophic changes are throwing  the delicate balance of the planet out of sync as the increase of freak weather and natural disasters across the globe are showing.  The shift seems irreversible  and time is a luxury we don’t have  – maybe it’s already too late but we can all do something if it’s only to convince those with their heads in the sand that global warming is not a hoax but something that is happening now.

This amazing documentary  (which you can watch online  here) is beautiful but very scary.

To learn more about climate science or to be part of the solution watch James Balog’s TED talk and visit:

Chasing Ice.com

Extreme Ice Survey

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