Scienceclimate changeGreenlandglaciersfjord science-366-6462-greenland-fjords Our future in the fjords HEven after decades of study, researchers can’t say how quickly the Greenland Ice Sheet will melt under the strain of human-driven global warming. Melt from Greenland already accounts for 25% of global sea level rise, and its share is growing. Even by conservative estimates, Greenland could contribute another quarter-meter of sea level rise by 2100—within the lifetime of children living today. At Helheim Glacier, an ambitious new project is seeking to understand how Greenland’s 300 marine-terminating glaciers lose their ice in the island’s long, narrow fjords. The project will chart infiltrating warm Atlantic Ocean water, along with every angle of Helheim’s fracturing face. If successful, the researchers could help constrain an important uncertainty about the future of sea level rise. By Paul Voosen Oct 11th, 2019 Previous Next
