Surface meltwater draining through the ice and beneath Antarctic glaciers is causing sudden and rapid accelerations in their flow towards the sea, according to new research.
Surface meltwater draining through the ice and beneath Antarctic glaciers is causing sudden and rapid accelerations in their flow towards the sea, according to new research.
This is the first-time scientists have found that melting on the surface impacts the flow of glaciers in Antarctica.
Using imagery and data from satellites alongside regional climate modelling, scientists at the University of Sheffield have found that meltwater is causing some glaciers to move at speeds 100 per cent faster than average (up to 400m per year) for a period of several days multiple times per year.
Glaciers move downhill due to gravity via the internal deformation of ice, and basal sliding – where they slide over the ground beneath them, lubricated by liquid water.
The new research, published today in Nature Communications, shows that accelerations in Antarctic Peninsula glaciers’ movements coincide with spikes in snowmelt. This association occurs because surface meltwater penetrates to the ice bed and lubricates glacier flow.
Read more at University of Sheffield
Image: Drygalski Glacier, Antarctic Peninsula. Credit: Google Earth.
