Global warming doesn’t take breaks: another glacier is melting in Greenland.
Global warming continues to be hard at work, as another glacier is melting in Greenland. The matter has been neglected lately. This was found by a new study and points towards the fact that sea levels continue to rise in an alarming way.
The Science journal revealed the information which was reported by NASA. Much of the data was collected by satellites. The glacier, named Zachariae Isstrom, came loose in 2012 and has started to crumble. This phase is also called “accelerated retreat”.
With a formidable size of 92,000 square kilometers at the moment it seems to be draining a space which has the size of about 5% of the ice sheet of Greenland. Each year, the glacier loses a mass of 5 billion tons. If the process continues and leads to Zachariae Isstrom melting completely, the level of the oceans will rise with about 18 inches.
Eric Rignot, Earth System Science Chancellor’s professor at the California University in Irvine was also an author of the study. Rignot stated that the glacier is hit both from above and from below. The top of Zachariae Isstrom is melting because of the rising temperatures, and the bottom because of the warm currents of water. As a result, the glacier is splitting into bits and pieces.
Another author of the study, Jeremie Mouginot, stated that the glacier has changed its form and dynamics drastically in the last years. Zachariae Isstrom is splitting into huge icebergs, which will eventually lead sea levels to rise for many years to come.
John Paden, associate scientist at the Ice Sheet Remote Sensing Center brought into light the term “grounding line” which refers to the point the ice is starting to float and the glacier to melt. Paden declared that the terminus of this particular glacier is at this grounding line. He also added that scientists emphasize the importance of ice sheets because the rising sea levels will also affect other coasts. Apparently, countries which are lying low with a limited number of resources will surely be hit, but also the United States.
Researchers are currently working to determine when this process will happen in order to find out how to manage it with limited resources.
The study concluded that the fact that another glacier is melting in Greenland is of utmost importance as it will affect many people. The preservation of our planet should be one of our top priorities.
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