The Cryosphere, 8 February 2022 New modeling suggests that warm seawater can slip underneath grounded ice sheets — ice resting on land or bedrock — and travel tens of kilometers inland beneath the grounded ice. When the ground below the ice is flat or slopes downward and is impermeable, such as bedrock; seawater can mix […]

Geology, 11 February 2022 New research resolves a long-standing discrepancy between marine records from the Ross Sea, which indicate complete ice sheet loss in that region during interglacials (warmer periods, with CO2 around 280ppm); versus land records that show persistent cold, sub-freezing conditions which should have maintained the ice sheet. This study resolved this discrepancy […]

This fascinating COP-26 session delves into the factors causing glacier loss and downstream impacts, as well as discussing the similarities and differences in behavior between very large glaciers (often near the margins of ice sheets) and the ice sheets themselves. It includes keynote presentations by Dr. Matthias Huss, ETH-Zurich, Switzerland and Dr. John Pomeroy, Global […]

NPJ Climate and Atmospheric Science, 3 February 2022 The South Col Glacier next to the peak of Mount Everest has lost 55 meters of thickness in the last 25 years. The layers of snow and ice covering the surface of this glacier took more than 2,000 years to accumulate, but they are now melting and […]

Remote Sensing of Environment, 7 January 2022 The compounding effects of climate change are particularly evident in Western Canada, where this detailed study of glaciers in Alberta and British Columbia found that ice loss was seven times faster between 2011-2020 than between 1984-2010. This extreme loss was even more pronounced for small and low-altitude glaciers […]

Nature Geoscience, 7 February 2022 Widespread media coverage of this study unfortunately has resulted in a mischaracterization of its main conclusions, by claiming that the world’s glaciers “hold 20% less ice than previously estimated.” In reality, their estimate of global glacier volume excludes huge areas of Antarctica that were included in previous estimates. The ice […]

For more on current losses and future projections for the world’s glaciers and snowpack, and impacts on water resources, watch this great overview by Dr. Regine Hock, IPCC Coordinating Lead Author (SROCC) and Professor at the University of Oslo and the University of Alaska. https://youtu.be/LBETRQXYD9E?list=PL7jYwbz8AZmjj2sl72pp7bT4JaLHiN0C0

Scientific Reports, 10 January 2022 Rising global temperatures have shifted westerly winds closer to the Antarctic continent, sending warm eddies of water into cavities at the base of Antarctica’s ice sheets, and accelerating the flow of meltwater into the ocean. During the past 20 years, the flow of Antarctic meltwater into the Southern Ocean has […]

The Cryosphere, 25 January 2022 Alaska and northwestern Canada contain more than 27,000 glaciers, which account for the second-largest area of ice in the world outside of Greenland and Antarctica. “Ice-marginal” lakes form along the edges of these glaciers when their outflow is dammed by either ice or sediment deposits. Glacial lakes with different types […]

Nature, 19 January 2022 Svalbard contains more than one thousand glaciers located across a “climate gradient” – distinct geographical regions that experience different temperature and precipitation levels. While studies often attempt to predict the response of glaciers to future warming by examining glacier behavior patterns from a few glaciers over a long period of time, […]

In keeping with the contrasting Greenland and Antarctica studies in this week’s Capsules, this COP-26 session explains the differences between melting and potential sea-level rise rates from Earth’s two major ice sheets of Greenland (7 meters of potential sea-level rise) and Antarctica (about 58 meters, or 190 feet); with Dr. Julie Brigham-Grette of University of […]

Science Advances, 1 January 2022 Warm water from the Atlantic Ocean fills the bottom of Greenland’s deepest fjords, where its major outlet glaciers meet the ocean. During the summer, this dense layer of ocean water mixes with glacial meltwater, sending a plume of warmer water to the surface. This process, known as “undercutting,” accelerates melting […]

Nature Geoscience, 13 January 2022 Scientists are observing unusually rapid retreat along the undersides of several glaciers in the Amundsen Sea of West Antarctica. Rising global temperatures send fast-moving currents of relatively warm seawater into cavities along the base of these glaciers and their adjoining ice shelves. These currents have accelerated the melting of ice […]

This jam-packed COP-26 Cryosphere Pavilion session looks at how effective management of wetlands can contribute to climate adaptation and mitigation, as well as conservation of biodiversity in the face of rapid permafrost thaw, including lake drainage as outlined above; and was organized by the CAFF (Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna) Working Group of the […]

Nature Reviews Earth & Environment, 4 January 2022 This global inventory provides a detailed map of the current size and stability of glacial lakes, in part to allow continual assessment of projected changes as the climate warms. 80% of these lakes in Antarctica, Greenland, Iceland, and glacial valley regions (such as the Alps) were found […]