The comparative between these two images, taken by NASA on September 3, 1988, and October 22, 2023, shows the retreat of the Quelccaya Ice Cap, located in the Vilcanota mountain range in the Peruvian Andes. This is a tropical glacier that, despite being situated at an altitude above 5,100 meters, cannot withstand the global increase in temperatures.

If the current rate of retreat and climate conditions persist, the glacier could disappear entirely by the end of the 21st century, according to NASA.

1988: The Thematic Mapper (TM) in Landsat 5
2023: Operational Land Imager (OLI) in Landsat 8 
Source: NASA’s Earth Observatory