«I think it might actually be worth building a continuous platform for monitoring
grounding line retreat rates based on our approach,» Konrad said.
This feedback could potentially result in the rapid loss of parts of the ice sheet,
as grounding lines retreat along troughs and basins that deepen towards the ice sheet's interior.
Rignot, E., J. Mouginot, M. Morlighem, H. Seroussi, and B. Scheuchl (2014), Widespread,
rapid grounding line retreat of Pine Island, Thwaites, Smith, and Kohler glaciers, West Antarctica, from 1992 to 2011, Geophys.
Similarly if PIG
grounding line retreats into the deeper basin, it is hard to imagine a stable position during a resultant calving retreat, in that deep basin stretch.
But scientists increasingly attribute much of the
observed grounding line retreat — particularly in West Antarctica — to the influence of warmer ocean water seeping beneath the ice shelves and lapping against the bases of glaciers, melting the ice from the bottom up.
Warm waters have been eating away at ice from below in this region, and
once grounding lines retreat far enough inland, entire glaciers can become unstable and collapse.
Around the Antarctic Peninsula, a number of ice shelves have recently dramatically collapsed [2 - 4], resulting in glacier acceleration, thinning and grounding line retreat [5 - 7].
For several of the key ice sheets the elevation is below sea level for considerable distances,
so grounding line retreat dynamics have different forcings, such as mid-level «warm» water penetration.
But scientists increasingly attribute much of the
observed grounding line retreat — particularly in West Antarctica — to the influence of warmer ocean water seeping beneath the ice shelves and lapping against the bases of glaciers, melting the ice from the bottom up.
In addition to Rignot, the authors of the paper in Geophysical Research Letters, «Widespread,
Rapid Grounding Line Retreat of Pine Island, Thwaites, Smith and Kohler Glaciers, West Antarctica From 1992 to 2011,» include Jeremie Mouginot, Mathieu Morlighem, Helene Seroussi and Bernd Scheuchl.
Rignot, E., Mouginot, J., Morlighem, M., Seroussi, H. & Scheuchl, B. Widespread, rapid
grounding line retreat of Pine Island, Thwaites, Smith, and Kohler glaciers, West Antarctica, from 1992 to 2011.
Melting would make
the grounding line retreat — this is where the ice on the continent meets the sea and starts to float.
When
the grounding line retreats from its current position on a ridge into the valley, the rim of the ice facing the ocean becomes higher than before.
As warm ocean water erodes the bottom of the ice shelf,
the grounding line retreats inland.
The team, led by Dr Hannes Konrad from the University of Leeds, found that
grounding line retreat has been extreme at eight of the ice sheet's 65 biggest glaciers.
Ice - stream behaviour and
grounding line retreat is therefore unique to every ice stream.
Thwaites, meanwhile, also continues to rank among of the fastest - shrinking glaciers, and has seen
its grounding line retreat rate increase slightly compared to the earlier period, which Konrad said «should emphasize once more that this glacier is under threat.»
For instance, if a particular sector has been shown to potentially experience ocean warming in the future — one of the main triggers to
grounding line retreat — we would assign a relatively high probability; while a sector already experiencing grounding line retreat would have a very high probability.
In the somewhat good news department, the new study shows that Pine Island Glacier, the fastest - shrinking glacier on the planet, has actually seen
its grounding line retreat slow down markedly compared to measurements taken from 1992 - 2011.
If
the grounding line retreat is irreversible, how did the grounding line advance as far as it did in the first place?
The rapid shrinkage of glaciers around the Antarctic Peninsula, coupled with the potential for ice - shelf collapse and
grounding line retreat, raises concerns for the future of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, and this is an area of urgent current research [3].
Since the trough is impeding the outward flow of the glacier, doesn't this suggest that if
the grounding line retreats into the trough, the glacier mass will no longer be impeded, and the driving stress which would previously build up would now be able to move the ice forward, and so tend to offset the retreat of the grounding line?
On the other hand, the point at which
the grounding line retreats from its current high ground is a clearly - defined physical location — hence another tipping point.
Terran: You are correct a reduction in driving stress would occur, if
the grounding line retreats off of the current higher terrain.
As a result, when
the grounding line retreats and sinks, it allows warm water to flow into the cavity.
This means
the grounding line retreats underneath inland ice that is increasingly thicker, leading to an increase in the volume of ice that flows past the grounding line.
But if
the grounding line retreats, sending inland ice further afloat, the shelf may begin a runaway collapse.
For instance, if a particular sector has been shown to potentially experience ocean warming in the future — one of the main triggers to
grounding line retreat — we would assign a relatively high probability; while a sector already experiencing grounding line retreat would have a very high probability.
When
the grounding line retreats from its current position on a ridge into the valley, the rim of the ice facing the ocean becomes higher than before.
Both saw the center of
their grounding lines retreat dramatically.
Ocean heat eats away at the ice,
the grounding line retreats inland and ice shelves lose mass.
From 1992 to 2011, Pine Island's
grounding line retreated by 19 miles (31 kilometers) while the center of the Thwaites grounding line retreated by nearly 9 miles (14 kilometers).