New Delhi, May 30 -- Glaciers around the world are melting faster and more extensively than previously feared, according to a study published in the journal Science. The findings, released just as global leaders gather in Tajikistan for the first United Nations conference on glaciers, reveal that keeping global warming below 1.5 degrees C could preserve more than twice as much glacier ice as if current climate policies continue on track, pushing warming to 2.7 degrees C.

The study, conducted by a team of 21 scientists from ten countries, used eight glacier models to simulate the long-term fate of more than 200,000 glaciers across the globe. Even if today's temperatures remain steady, glaciers are still committed to losing around 39 per ...