Antarctica’s ‘end of the world glacier’ is melting FASTER than expected and could raise global sea level up to two feet, study finds
- Autonomous robot took measurements of the water under the Thwaites Glacier
- Thwaites is called the ‘doomsday glacier’ due to its impact on sea level rise
- New data from water currents below sheds light on Thwaites melt
The Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica is warming and melting faster than previously thought.
Data obtained from a cold-resistant underwater robot reveals that Thwaites, dubbed the “ doomsday glacier, ” is being rocked by more hot water than previously thought.
Thwaites in West Antarctica is the size of Britain and is melting at an alarming rate.
If it were to collapse, it would cause sea level to rise by around 65cm and already accounts for 4% of the world’s sea level rise each year.
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The Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica (pictured) is heating up and melting faster than previously thought
The sightings were collected by the unequipped submarine Ran which made its way under the glacier, which is part of the West Antarctic ice cap.
Data were collected on the strength, temperature, salinity and oxygen content of the water under the glacier.
Lead author Professor Anna Wahlin, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, said: “These are the first measurements ever taken under the Thwaites Glacier”.
He updated scientists’ understanding of the underwater terrain and found three channels through which hot water enters and flows under Thwaites.
One was particularly interesting, say the researchers, because it reveals a passage to Pine Island Bay to the north.
This passage was previously thought to be blocked by a ridge, but Ram discovered that this passage is in fact open, allowing hot water to gush out beneath the precarious glacier.
The sightings were collected by the unequipped submarine Ran which made its way under the glacier, which is part of the West Antarctic ice sheet.
Co-author Dr Alastair Graham, University of South Florida, said: ‘The hot water channels to access and attack Thwaites were not known to us prior to the research.
“ Using on-ship sonar, nested with very high-resolution ocean mapping from Ran, we were able to discover that there are distinct paths that the water takes and exits the platform cavity. of ice, influenced by the geometry of the ocean floor.
A closer analysis of the Pine Island tunnel reveals that it is solely responsible for the melting of 75 cubic kilometers of ice per year.
The study published in Science Advances is based on data collected from the autonomous robot which was deployed between February and March 2019.
His observations reveal warm water approaching from all sides of the ice sheet at the “pinnacles”, sites where the pack ice is connected to the seabed.
A previous study claimed the Thwaites Glacier is heading for ‘instability’ that could see all of the icy content floating in the sea within 150 years as it melts below (pictured)
Dr Rob Larter, co-author of the British Antarctic Survey study, said: “ This work highlights how and where warm water affects the Thwaites Glacier is influenced by the shape of the seabed and the basis of the pack ice as well as by the properties of the water itself.
“The successful integration of new seabed survey data and observations of water properties from Ran’s missions demonstrates the benefits of the multidisciplinary ethos within the Thwaites Glacier International Collaboration.
Thwaites has been nicknamed the ‘Apocalyptic Glacier’ because it sits like a keystone right in the center of the West Antarctic Ice Cap.
The vast basin contains over three meters of potential additional sea level rise and this study is the most detailed study of the glacier to date.
Professor Wahlin said: “The good news is that we are now collecting, for the first time, the data needed to model the dynamics of the Thwaites Glacier. These data will help us to better calculate the ice melt in the future.
“With the help of new technologies, we can improve models and reduce the great uncertainty that now exists around global variations in sea level.”
Project member Professor Karen Heywood, University of East Anglia, said: “This was Ran’s first adventure in the polar regions.
“His exploration of the waters under the pack ice was much more successful than we had dared to hope.
“We plan to build on these exciting discoveries with other ice missions next year.
THE THWAITES GLACIER RETIREMENT
The Thwaites The glacier is slightly smaller than the UK’s total size, approximately the same size as Washington state, and is located in the Amundsen Sea.
It measures up to 4,000 meters (13,100 feet thick) and is considered a key component in making projections of sea level rise around the world.
The glacier is receding in the face of the warming ocean and is considered unstable because its interior is more than two kilometers (1.2 miles) below sea level while, on the coast, the bottom of the glacier is quite low. shallow.
The Thwaites Glacier is the size of Florida and is located in the Amundsen Sea. It measures up to 4000 meters thick and is considered a key element in making projections of sea level rise around the world.
The Thwaites Glacier has experienced a significant acceleration in flow since the 1970s.
From 1992 to 2011, the center of the Thwaites ground line retreated nearly 14 kilometers (nine miles).
The annual ice discharge for this region as a whole has increased by 77 percent since 1973.
Because its interior connects to the vast portion of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet that lies deep below sea level, the glacier is seen as a gateway to most of the potential contribution from the level of the West Antarctic Sea.
The collapse of the Thwaites Glacier would cause global sea level to rise between one and two meters (three and six feet), with a potential more than double that of the entire West Antarctic ice sheet.