A massive ice sheet, famously dubbed the ‘Doomsday Glacier’ for its potential catastrophic impact on human civilization, is teetering on the brink of collapse. Recent years have witnessed cracks in the ice shelf of Thwaite’s Glacier in Antarctica, initiating an ‘accelerated destabilization,’ as cautioned by scientists. A new study indicates that concealed storm-like formations beneath the surface might be expediting its deterioration.
Researchers have observed rapid swirling vortexes developing in the water layer below the glacier, drawing in warm sea currents that lead to the melting of the overlying ice sheet, causing fractures. This melting process intensifies turbulence, triggering a detrimental ‘vicious cycle’ that exacerbates the damage to the glacier.
Experts, writing in the journal Nature Geoscience, have attributed the changes in Thwaite’s Glacier, which has lost over 600 billion tonnes of ice since the 1980s, to underwater storms melting the ice shelf from below. They caution that as global ocean temperatures rise, this phenomenon is likely to unfold across Antarctica, with more warm water and melting expected to induce similar effects in various Antarctic regions.
Mattia Poinelli, the lead author and a glaciologist at the University of California, Irvine, emphasized the replication of these effects, stating, “In the future, with increased warm water and melting, we anticipate witnessing more of these impacts in different Antarctic areas.” Describing the vortices, she noted their storm-like appearance and energetic nature, with intense vertical and turbulent motions near the surface.
Thwaites Glacier, situated in the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, spans approximately 75 miles in width and covers around 74,000 square miles, akin in size to mainland Britain or the US state of Florida. Known as “the Doomsday Glacier” among climate experts, its collapse would significantly elevate global sea levels.
Should Thwaites Glacier disintegrate and melt into the surrounding ocean, sea levels could surge by one to two meters, endangering major cities like London, New York, Amsterdam, Bangkok, and Mumbai, inhabited by tens of millions. Additionally, low-lying islands such as the Maldives, Kiribati, Tuvalu, Polynesia, and Micronesia face imminent submergence. Satellite data indicates an escalating rate of fractures within the Thwaites Eastern Ice Shelf since the early 2000s, heightening concerns over a potential collapse within the next decade.
A proposal by glaciologist John Moore to install a physical barrier on the seafloor to shield the glacier from warm ocean water was met with criticism from over 40 researchers. They advocated for prioritizing efforts to reduce carbon emissions and mitigate global warming instead.