Caused by climate warming, the Meili Snow Mountain, located in Deqin county in the northwest of Diqing Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, is continuously melting.

According to observations, Mingyong Glacier, the biggest and largest glacier in Meili, has shrunken back 1200 meters since 2000.

The ice wall, that once measured a three-story-building tall now retreats dramatically. The outlet of Mingyong Ice River is littered with boulders, and the flow of the river is smaller year by year.

Facing the serious situation, the management center of Meili Snow Mountain has adopted a series of measures to protect the glacier, such as stopping visitors to take photos on the ice.

Background info:

Meili Snow Mountain is a mountain range in Yunnan Province. It lies bounded by the Salween River on the west and the Mekong on the east. The crest of the range rises to over 6,000 meters (20,000 ft) above sea level, making for impressive prominence over the river valleys to the east and west, which are between 1,500 meters (4,900 ft) and 1,900 meters (6,200 ft) in elevation. The highest peak is Kawagebo, which rises to 6,740 meters (22,110 ft). Kawagebo is considered sacred for Tibetan Buddhists. Other significant peaks include Mianzimu, Peak 6509 and Jiariren-an. Because of restrictions and dangerous conditions, none of the major peaks in the range have ever been summited.

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