By Tanya Lewis
24 April 2015

(Business Insider) – Earth Day, which was on April 22 this year, is a time to celebrate and protect the pale blue dot we call home. But some of its crown jewels may be vanishing. Many parts of the globe face threats from warming temperatures, sea level rise, drought, and other effects of climate change and human activity. Here are 10 amazing places to visit before it’s too late. [Images: One-of-a-Kind Places on Earth]

1. Tuvalu

A beach on the island nation of Tuvalu. This Polynesian island nation, located between Hawaii and Australia, may be a tropical paradise, but it risks becoming submerged by rising seas as a warming climate melts ice sheets and causes water to expand. Photo: Nick Hobgood / Flickr

This Polynesian island nation, located between Hawaii and Australia, may be a tropical paradise, but it risks becoming submerged by rising seas as a warming climate melts ice sheets and causes water to expand. The islands — which are home to about 10,000 people — lie just 6.6 feet (2 meters) above sea level. Currently, seas there are rising at a rate of about 0.2 inches (5 millimeters) per year since 1993, compared with the global average of 0.11 to 0.14 inches (2.8 to 3.6 mm) per year, satellite data show. Experts predict that, even with a conservative greenhouse-gas-emissions scenario, sea levels in the region will rise by up to 17.7 inches (45 cm) by 2090, according to a report by Australia’s Pacific Climate Change Science Program, and such a rise could make Tuvalu uninhabitable.

2. Glacier National Park

Glacier National Park. Most of the 150 glaciers present in 1850 were still there when the park opened in 1910. But as of 2010, only 25 glaciers remained, and some climate models predict that the park's biggest glaciers will be gone by 2030, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Photo: Lee Coursey / Flickr

True to its name, this Montana park — which borders the Canadian provinces of Alberta and British Columbia and spans more than 1 million acres (4,000 square km) — was once home to hundreds of glaciers, but these stunning icescapes won’t be around forever. Most of the 150 glaciers present in 1850 were still there when the park opened in 1910. But as of 2010, only 25 glaciers remained, and some climate models predict that the park’s biggest glaciers will be gone by 2030, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. [more]

Places to visit before they’re ruined forever by climate change