The Cryosphere
The Cryosphere
TC
Articles | Volume 19, issue 10
Articles | Volume 19, issue 10
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-4471-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-4471-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Articles | Volume 19, issue 10
Research article
 | 
10 Oct 2025
Research article |  | 10 Oct 2025

Warm proglacial lake temperatures and thermal undercutting enhance rapid retreat of an Arctic glacier

Adrian Dye, Robert Bryant, Francesca Falcini, Joseph Mallalieu, Miles Dimbleby, Michael Beckwith, David Rippin, and Nina Kirchner

Related authors

Simulating the Holocene evolution of Ryder Glacier, North Greenland
Jamie Barnett, Felicity A. Holmes, Joshua Cuzzone, Henning Åkesson, Mathieu Morlighem, Matt O'Regan, Johan Nilsson, Nina Kirchner, and Martin Jakobsson
The Cryosphere, 19, 3631–3653, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-3631-2025,https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-3631-2025, 2025
Short summary
Sea level rise contribution from Ryder Glacier in northern Greenland varies by an order of magnitude by 2300 depending on future emissions
Felicity A. Holmes, Jamie Barnett, Henning Åkesson, Mathieu Morlighem, Johan Nilsson, Nina Kirchner, and Martin Jakobsson
The Cryosphere, 19, 2695–2714, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-2695-2025,https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-2695-2025, 2025
Short summary
Impact of the Nares Strait sea ice arches on the long-term stability of the Petermann Glacier ice shelf
Abhay Prakash, Qin Zhou, Tore Hattermann, and Nina Kirchner
The Cryosphere, 17, 5255–5281, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-5255-2023,https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-5255-2023, 2023
Short summary
Seasonal evolution of the supraglacial drainage network at Humboldt Glacier, northern Greenland, between 2016 and 2020
Lauren D. Rawlins, David M. Rippin, Andrew J. Sole, Stephen J. Livingstone, and Kang Yang
The Cryosphere, 17, 4729–4750, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-4729-2023,https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-4729-2023, 2023
Short summary
Antarctic Bedmap data: Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable (FAIR) sharing of 60 years of ice bed, surface, and thickness data
Alice C. Frémand, Peter Fretwell, Julien A. Bodart, Hamish D. Pritchard, Alan Aitken, Jonathan L. Bamber, Robin Bell, Cesidio Bianchi, Robert G. Bingham, Donald D. Blankenship, Gino Casassa, Ginny Catania, Knut Christianson, Howard Conway, Hugh F. J. Corr, Xiangbin Cui, Detlef Damaske, Volkmar Damm, Reinhard Drews, Graeme Eagles, Olaf Eisen, Hannes Eisermann, Fausto Ferraccioli, Elena Field, René Forsberg, Steven Franke, Shuji Fujita, Yonggyu Gim, Vikram Goel, Siva Prasad Gogineni, Jamin Greenbaum, Benjamin Hills, Richard C. A. Hindmarsh, Andrew O. Hoffman, Per Holmlund, Nicholas Holschuh, John W. Holt, Annika N. Horlings, Angelika Humbert, Robert W. Jacobel, Daniela Jansen, Adrian Jenkins, Wilfried Jokat, Tom Jordan, Edward King, Jack Kohler, William Krabill, Mette Kusk Gillespie, Kirsty Langley, Joohan Lee, German Leitchenkov, Carlton Leuschen, Bruce Luyendyk, Joseph MacGregor, Emma MacKie, Kenichi Matsuoka, Mathieu Morlighem, Jérémie Mouginot, Frank O. Nitsche, Yoshifumi Nogi, Ole A. Nost, John Paden, Frank Pattyn, Sergey V. Popov, Eric Rignot, David M. Rippin, Andrés Rivera, Jason Roberts, Neil Ross, Anotonia Ruppel, Dustin M. Schroeder, Martin J. Siegert, Andrew M. Smith, Daniel Steinhage, Michael Studinger, Bo Sun, Ignazio Tabacco, Kirsty Tinto, Stefano Urbini, David Vaughan, Brian C. Welch, Douglas S. Wilson, Duncan A. Young, and Achille Zirizzotti
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 2695–2710, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-2695-2023,https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-2695-2023, 2023
Short summary
More articles (4)

Cited articles

Benn, D. I., Warren, C. R., and Mottram, R. H.: Calving processes and the dynamics of calving glaciers, Earth-Science Reviews, 82, 143–179, 2007. 
Boyce, E. S., Motyka, R. J., and Truffer, M.: Flotation and retreat of a lake-calving terminus, Mendenhall Glacier, southeast Alaska, USA, J. Glaciol., 53, 211–224, https://doi.org/10.3189/172756507782202928, 2007. 
Brugger, K. A.: The non-synchronous response of Rabots Glaciär and Storglaciären, northern Sweden, to recent climate change: a comparative study, Ann. Glaciol., 46, 275–282, 2007. 
Carr, J. R., Stokes, C., and Vieli, A.: Recent retreat of major outlet glaciers on Novaya Zemlya, Russian Arctic, influenced by fjord geometry and sea-ice conditions, J. Glaciol., 60, 155–170, 2014. 
Carrivick, J. L. and Quincey, D. J.: Progressive increase in number and volume of ice-marginal lakes on the western margin of the Greenland Ice Sheet, Global and Planetary Change, 116, 156–163, 2014. 
More articles (47)
Download
Short summary
Thermal undercutting of the terminus has enhanced recent rapid retreat of an Arctic glacier. Water temperatures (~4 °C) at the ice front were warmer than previously reported and thermal undercutting was over several metres deep. This triggered phases of high calving activity, playing a substantial role in the rapid retreat of Kaskasapakte Glacier since 2012, with important implications for processes occurring at glacier-water contact points and implications for hydrology and ecology downstream.
Read more
Share