Human activity halted the onset of a new ice age, study suggests

Canadian researchers have found that human-induced climate change likely halted the onset of a new ice age. Euronews reported that the scientists examined the vast Barnes Glacier in north-eastern Canada, which was still expanding around 2,000 years ago. [1]

The Barnes Ice Cap covers approximately 6,000 square kilometres. Euronews reported that the icy area was expanding until about 1960, but it has been shrinking for several decades. Young, a geochemist at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of the Columbia Climate School, stated that the growth had only just begun before climate change counteracted the expansion. [1]

Humans have altered their surroundings for tens of thousands of years across every continent except Antarctica. By 12,000 years ago, human activities had inhabited and altered more than 90 percent of tropical forests and 95 percent of temperate forests on Earth. [2]

As FTMQ News reported earlier, recent research continues to underline the wide-reaching impacts of climate change, including summer heatwaves that caused an estimated 50,000 deaths across European cities in 2026. [4]