On a geological expedition in 1883, Israel Russell took the top photo of the Lyell Glacier, when its total volume was measured at 1.2 million square meters. The photo below was taken in 2015 by Keenan Takahashi from the same spot. In that span, the glacier had receded from 1.2 million square meters to 270,426 square meters, losing 90 percent of its volume and 80 percent of surface area. High on the Lyell Glacier in Yosemite National Park, a vein of water cut a narrow gouge as it streamed downslope from the melting ice.