Articles | Volume 16, issue 6
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2545-2022
© Author(s) 2022. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2545-2022
© Author(s) 2022. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Rapid fragmentation of Thwaites Eastern Ice Shelf
Douglas I. Benn
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
School of Geography and Sustainable Development, University of St
Andrews, St Andrews, KY16 9AL, UK
Adrian Luckman
Department of Geography, Swansea University, Swansea, SA2 8PP, UK
Jan A. Åström
CSC-IT Center for Science, 02101 Espoo, Finland
Anna J. Crawford
School of Geography and Sustainable Development, University of St
Andrews, St Andrews, KY16 9AL, UK
Stephen L. Cornford
Department of Geography, Swansea University, Swansea, SA2 8PP, UK
Suzanne L. Bevan
Department of Geography, Swansea University, Swansea, SA2 8PP, UK
Thomas Zwinger
CSC-IT Center for Science, 02101 Espoo, Finland
Rupert Gladstone
The Arctic Centre, University of Lapland, 96101 Rovaniemi, Finland
Karen Alley
Department of Environment and Geography, University of Manitoba,
Winnipeg, MB R3T 2M6, Canada
Erin Pettit
College of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State
University, Corvallis, OR 97331-5503, USA
Jeremy Bassis
Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of
Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1005, USA
Video supplement
Sentinel-1 animation from Thwaites Eastern ice Shelf Adrian Luckman https://doi.org/10.5446/57379
Short summary
Thwaites Glacier (TG), in West Antarctica, is potentially unstable and may contribute significantly to sea-level rise as global warming continues. Using satellite data, we show that Thwaites Eastern Ice Shelf, the largest remaining floating extension of TG, has started to accelerate as it fragments along a shear zone. Computer modelling does not indicate that fragmentation will lead to imminent glacier collapse, but it is clear that major, rapid, and unpredictable changes are underway.
Thwaites Glacier (TG), in West Antarctica, is potentially unstable and may contribute...