Articles | Volume 14, issue 12
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4603-2020
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4603-2020
Brief communication
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18 Dec 2020
Brief communication | Highlight paper |  | 18 Dec 2020

Brief communication: Heterogenous thinning and subglacial lake activity on Thwaites Glacier, West Antarctica

Andrew O. Hoffman, Knut Christianson, Daniel Shapero, Benjamin E. Smith, and Ian Joughin

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ED: Publish subject to minor revisions (review by editor) (14 Oct 2020) by Etienne Berthier
AR by Lorena Grabowski on behalf of the Authors (23 Oct 2020)  Author's response
ED: Publish subject to technical corrections (26 Oct 2020) by Etienne Berthier
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Short summary
The West Antarctic Ice Sheet has long been considered geometrically prone to collapse, and Thwaites Glacier, the largest glacier in the Amundsen Sea, is likely in the early stages of disintegration. Using observations of Thwaites Glacier velocity and elevation change, we show that the transport of ~2 km3 of water beneath Thwaites Glacier has only a small and transient effect on glacier speed relative to ongoing thinning driven by ocean melt.