Articles | Volume 19, issue 10
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-4969-2025
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-4969-2025
Research article
 | 
23 Oct 2025
Research article |  | 23 Oct 2025

An assessment of the disequilibrium of Alaska glaciers

Daniel R. Otto, Gerard H. Roe, and John Erich Christian

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Cited articles

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Short summary
Glaciers respond slowly to changes in climate, meaning that they are not yet adjusted to the present-day level of warming. Using a simple model, we find that the median Alaska glacier has undergone only 27 % of the retreat necessary to equilibrate to the current climate. Our findings hold even when accounting for large uncertainties, suggesting that substantial retreat is inevitable even if future warming slows or stabilizes.
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