EDMONTON --
The recent heat wave amplified glacier melt in the Rocky Mountains along the Icefields Parkway, resulting in lasting consequences for Alberta and areas relying on glacial headwaters.
University of Alberta atmospheric sciences associate professor Jeff Kavanaugh examined the impacts the heat wave had on the Wapta Icefield, a headwater source for waters flowing past Calgary.
He looked at temperatures registered at weather stations along the Icefields Parkway, a 232-km stretch of highway winding along the Continental Divide that is home to 100 glaciers.
“What I saw was that it was incredibly warm,” Kavanaugh said, as he compared temperatures experienced in the area over the past 12 years.