Scientists Concerned over Accelerating Loss of Ice Sheet in Greeenland

A recent report showed growing concern over the acceleration of the loss of ice in a section of northeast Greenland known as the Northeast Greenland Ice Stream (NEGIS). Recent data indicates that a once stable area of ice has not only shrunk, but the race of melting has nearly tripled in the last 10 years.

While many areas of the continent have shed some ice as global temperatures rise, researchers were surprised, and alarmed, to find that the NEGIS, an area which had remained stable for a quarter of a century has suddenly tripled its ice loss since 2003 – giving up roughly 10 billion tons of ice per year.

Scientists are ringing alarm bells as this change could dramatically affect the rest of Greenland. The NEGIS reaches about 370 miles into the heart of the continent where the main ice reservoir lies.

While the Jakobshavn Glacier in southwest Greenland took 150 years to retreat just under 22 miles, the NEGIS in comparison has 12.4 miles, over half as much, in just 10 years.

Scientists point out that this could have a large impact on the rise of sea levels, indicating that Greenland’s melting ice over the last 2 decades has accounted for close to 1/6 of the annual sea level rise. Only the ice sheets covering Antarctica are larger than the ice sheets covering Greenland.

The recent study was published on Sunday in the Journal Nature Climate Change.