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Victoria Falls — Victoria Falls, on the border of Zimbabwe and Zambia, usually stretches for 2 kilometers and its waters plummet 100 meters into the canyon below.
During the dry season, it declines, but last year, the water dropped to just a trickle when a climate-change-driven mega-drought hit the region.
Now, their waterfalls are back.
But changes like these between extreme weather can be devastating to the people and ecosystems that depend on a reliable source of water.
(Shutterstock)
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Florida Keys — The Florida Keys are among the most vulnerable places in the United States from the effects of the climate crisis.
Warm ocean temperatures are bleaching the surrounding reefs.
The threat of sea level rise continues to grow.
And, as always, the possibility looms that hurricanes with climate change will increase their destructive potential.
(Shutterstock)
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Glacier National Park — The park's iconic landscapes were carved by ice over thousands of years.
But today, its glaciers are in danger.
In 1966, the park had 35 named glaciers, according to the National Park Service.
By 2015, nine of them were already dormant, and all of the park's glaciers have shrunk since 1966. (Shutterstock)
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Venice — During its more than 1,000-year history, Venice is no stranger to flooding.
But with rising seas, their annual floods have become more common and damaging.
In 2019, in a cruel twist of irony, the Veneto City Regional Council was flooded minutes after they voted to reject measures to combat climate change.
(Shutterstock)
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Colorado River — The Colorado River is picturesque, but it also provides water for more than 40 million people, from Denver to Los Angeles.
However, its flow has decreased by 20% compared to the last century, and researchers say the climate crisis is to blame.
More than half of the decrease in river flow is related to rising temperatures.
As warming continues, they say the risk of "severe water shortages" for the millions who depend on it is expected to grow.
(George Rose/Getty Images)
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Antarctica — Like the Arctic, Antarctica is warming faster than most of the rest of the world, and the continent is undergoing alarming changes.
The warmest temperature ever measured in Antarctica was recorded in 2020, an iceberg the size of Atlanta has broken off a glacier, and the beloved penguins that call the continent home are on the decline.
The effects of climate change here will be felt around the world.
Antarctica's ice sheets contain enough water to raise sea levels by almost 60 meters, according to the World Meteorological Organization.
(Alelessandro Dahan/Getty Images)
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Maldives — This exotic getaway is one of the lowest-lying countries in the world, with an average elevation of around 1 meter above sea level.
As sea levels continue to rise, islands like these are at risk of sinking beneath the waves for decades to come.
(Shutterstock)
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Philippine Cordilleras — For 2,000 years, the high rice fields of the Philippines have shaped the landscape of the Cordilleras on the island of Luzon.
But they are more susceptible than ever to mudslides as extreme rainfall events become more frequent in Southeast Asia.
(Shutterstock)
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Great Barrier Reef — Covering almost 345,000 square kilometers, the Great Barrier Reef is the largest in the world and is home to 1,500 species of fish, 411 species of hard coral, and dozens of other species.
But as ocean temperatures warm due to the climate crisis, the reef is bleaching, and scientists fear it may never recover.
Earlier this year he experienced his third mass whitening event in the last five years.
(Shutterstock)
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Mount Everest — Even the highest peak on Earth is not immune to the climate crisis.
The scientists found that melting due to warmer temperatures has led to more vegetation at all elevations.
(Joya Samad/AFP/Getty Images)
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The Amazon — The Amazon rainforest is one of the most important ecosystems in the world.
Its trees absorb excess CO2 from the air and convert it into the oxygen we need to thrive.
But deforestation has reclaimed an area the size of 8.4 million football fields in the past decade, and it was devastated by wildfires in 2019. A recent study found that the rainforest could, by 2050 or sooner, begin to contribute the air with more gases that warm the planet than it absorbs.
(Shutterstock)
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Alaska — Alaska and the Arctic are warming twice as fast as the rest of the planet.
This rapid increase in temperature is melting glaciers, intensifying algal blooms, killing salmon and fueling wildfires.
(Shutterstock)
(CNN) --
The world is full of natural wonders, but at a time when borders have closed and travel is restricted, seeing them in person isn't a realistic option for many people.
Fortunately, technology allows us to see the world virtually and we can visit these magical places, if only through our screens.
You can recognize many of the stunning landscapes in this gallery from your own travels, Instagram, or your desktop screen savers.
For some, they can bring calm to a hectic day or an escape from the reality of a pandemic.
Earth Day 2020 in the midst of the pandemic: be good to the environment and yourself
But these images also serve as a warning.
Due to man-made climate change, these amazing places are at serious risk of being changed forever.
For 50 years, Earth Day has drawn attention to the impacts people are having on the planet and serves as a rallying cry to protect the natural world, from your neighborhood green space to bucket list destinations. of wishes
This year, the Earth Day theme is a call to action to stop the climate crisis and preserve these landmarks for generations to come.
If not, these photos could look drastically different in another 50 years.
Take a look at the gallery that accompanies this note to see some of the natural wonders that are at risk.
Earth day
