3 days ago
Researchers unveil precise new tool to study behavior of impending 'Doomsday Glacier': 'Much more complex than conventional models suggest'
Researchers unveil precise new tool to study behavior of impending 'Doomsday Glacier': 'Much more complex than conventional models suggest'
Researchers have unveiled a powerful new tool that gives unprecedented insight into the stability of Antarctica's so-called "Doomsday Glacier," the collapse of which could lead to a catastrophic 11 feet of sea level rise, according to Penn State University.
"We've seen ice shelves break off, but we've never seen one grow back," said Richard Alley, a Penn State geosciences professor. "This new research indicates that we can predict better the point at which these will break off."
"It's helping to establish the early-warning signals," he explained.
At 80 miles wide, the Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica is the world's widest glacier. In a groundbreaking study, scientists used NASA satellite data to analyze vertical cracks in the ice.
"We know little about fractures, and their behavior is much more complex than conventional models suggest," wrote Shujie Wang, a Penn State assistant professor of geography and the study's lead author.
These cracks destabilize the ice sheet and are a precursor to massive ice loss. Antarctica presently loses about 136 billion tons of ice every single year, according to NASA.
The Antarctic ice sheet is of special significance because, unlike sea ice, it sits atop a land mass rather than floating in water. When land ice melts, the water flows into the oceans, causing sea levels to rise.
If the entire Antarctic ice sheet were to melt, the world's oceans would rise a civilization-altering 200 feet, according to the National Snow and Ice Data Center.
If humans continue to release heat-trapping, planet-heating pollution into the atmosphere at current rates, the Antarctic ice sheet could be completely melted by the year 3000, a mere blink in geological time, according to NSIDC.
Researchers hope that by better understanding these ice sheets and the fractures that break them apart, humans will be better prepared to deal with the impacts of a changing climate.
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The study revealed that the Thwaites Glacier, which helps stabilize the entire Antarctic ice sheet, is melting faster than previously believed, largely because seawater has permeated miles into the ice, according to Scientific American.
"We really, really need to understand how fast the ice is changing," said Christine Dow, an associate professor of glaciology at the University of Waterloo who was involved with the study, per Scientific American.
"We were hoping it would take a hundred, 500 years to lose that ice. A big concern right now is if it happens much faster than that."
The best way to reduce the rate at which the Antarctic ice sheet is melting is to significantly reduce the amount of heat-trapping pollution entering the atmosphere.
While international, national, and state policies have a large role to play in this process, there are plenty of actions that people can take on the local and community level, such as riding a bicycle to taking public transit,driving an electric vehicle, or installing solar panels on their home.
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