06.10.2024

Scientists in the Arctic have discovered a way to thicken the ice sheet

A team of British and American scientists announced alarming findings about the colossal Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica, reports Euronews.

The researchers said there was a "bleak outlook" for the ice sheet's future.

The ice mass, which is roughly the size of Great Britain, has been dubbed the 'Doomsday Glacier' because of the catastrophic effect its collapse would have on the planet.

If the glacier melts, the resulting sea level rise will affect hundreds of millions of people, scientists say.

However, there is no lack of good news. Initial trials involving pumping seawater onto snow in the Canadian Arctic have shown potential to make the ice beneath it thicker.

The collapse of the Doomsday Glacier would submerge large areas of planet Earth

The Antarctic ice sheet is retreating at a faster rate than in previous decades, raising fears of a total collapse.

British and American scientists have been monitoring Thwaites Glacier since 2018 and met at the British Antarctic Survey Society (BAS) to reveal their findings.

The ice sheet, which is over 2000 meters thick in places, is one of the largest and fastest changing glaciers in the world.

The volume of ice flowing into the sea from Thwaites and its neighboring glaciers more than doubled from the 1990s to the 2010s.

The wider region, called the Amundsen Sea, accounts for 8 percent of the current rate of global sea-level rise of 4,6 mm per year.

If Thwaites Glacier were to collapse completely, sea levels would rise by 65cm, the researchers said.

"Thwaites has been retreating for more than 80 years, accelerating significantly over the past 30 years, and our findings show it will retreat further and faster. There is consensus that the retreat of the Thwaites Glacier will accelerate sometime in the next century. However, there are also serious concerns that additional processes could lead to a more rapid acceleration of retreat," said Dr Rob Larter, marine geophysicist at BAS.

The findings suggest that the Thwaites Glacier and much of the West Antarctic ice sheet could be lost by the 23rd century.

Thwaites Glacier is extremely vulnerable because its ice rests on a trough far below sea level that slopes down toward the center of West Antarctica.

Using advanced technologies such as underwater robots, new research techniques, and new approaches to ice flow and fracture modeling, scientists have gained new knowledge of these processes.

Initial trials show that seawater can be used to thicken Arctic ice

British startup Real Ice conducted field trials earlier this year to pump seawater onto ice sheets.

Real Ice researchers aim to strengthen the ice sheets on which polar wildlife and Inuit communities depend.

The startup is experimenting with drilling through the ice to the ocean below and pumping water onto the snow above.

The water fills air pockets in the snow and freezes, gradually turning into ice.

"Our goal is to demonstrate that ice thickening can be effective in preserving and restoring Arctic sea ice," said Andrea Ceccolini, CEO of Real Ice.

The company's trials, conducted in collaboration with the University of Cambridge's Center for Climate Restoration, resulted in 25 cm of natural ice growth on the underside of the ice.

"The results confirm that there is indeed an additional growth rate of new sea ice on the underside of the sheet," confirmed Sean Fitzgerald, director of the Center for Climate Recovery.