Antarctica: Cracks in the ice

Date:
September 14, 2020
Source:
Delft University of Technology
Summary:
West Antarctica's Pine Island Glacier and Thwaites Glacier have
been undergoing rapid changes, with potentially major consequences
for rising sea levels. However, the processes that underlie these
changes and their impact on these ice sheets have not been fully
charted. One of these processes has now been described in detail:
the emergence and development of damage/cracks in part of the
glaciers and how this process reinforces itself.



FULL STORY ==========================================================================
In recent years, the Pine Island Glacier and the Thwaites Glacier on
West Antarctica has been undergoing rapid changes, with potentially
major consequences for rising sea levels. However, the processes that
underlie these changes and their precise impact on the weakening of
these ice sheets have not yet been fully charted.


==========================================================================
A team of researchers including some from TU Delft has now investigated
one of these processes in detail: the emergence and development of damage/cracks in part of the glaciers and how this process of cracking reinforces itself. They are publishing about this in the Proceedings of
the National Academy of Sciences.

Satellite imagery The researchers have combined satellite imagery
from various sources to gain a more accurate picture of the rapid
development of damage in the shear zones on the ice shelves of Pine
Island and Thwaites. This damage consists of crevasses and fractures in
the glaciers, the first signs that the shear zones are in the process
of weakening. Modelling has revealed that the emergence of this kind of
damage initiates a feedback process that accelerates the formation of
fractures and weakening.

Unstable According to the researchers, this process is one of the key
factors that determines the stability -- or instability- of the ice
sheets, and thus the possible contribution of this part of Antarctica
to rising sea levels. They are calling for this information to be taken
into account in climate modelling, in order to improve predictions of
the contribution these glaciers are making to rising sea levels.

Read more at: https://tudelft.pageflow.io/pig-damage

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Delft_University_of_Technology. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Related Multimedia:
* Satellite_images_of_glaciers ========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Stef Lhermitte, Sainan Sun, Christopher Shuman, Bert Wouters, Frank
Pattyn, Jan Wuite, Etienne Berthier, Thomas Nagler. Damage
accelerates ice shelf instability and mass loss in Amundsen Sea
Embayment.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Sept. 14, 2020;
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1912890117 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/09/200914151156.htm

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