Glacier Draining 4% Of Greenland Ice Sheet Moving At 3 Times 1996 Rate

[hatrack]

Scientists monitoring a glacier in Greenland have found it is moving into the sea three times faster than a decade ago. Satellite measurements of the Kangerdlugssuaq glacier show that, as well as moving more rapidly, the glacier's boundary is shrinking dramatically - probably because of melting brought about by climate change.

The Kangerdlugssuaq glacier on Greenland's east coast is one of several that drains the huge Greenland ice sheet. The glacier's movements are considered critical in understanding the rate at which the ice sheet is melting. Kangerdlugssuaq is about 1,000 metres (3,280ft) thick, about 4.5 miles wide, extends for more than 20 miles into the ice sheet and drains about 4 per cent of the ice from the Greenland ice sheet. Experts believe any change in the rate at which the glacier transports ice from the ice sheet into the ocean has important implications for increases in sea levels around the world.

EDIT

Measurements taken in 1988 and in 1996 show the glacier was moving at a rate of between 3.1 and 3.7 miles per year. The latest measurements taken this summer show it is now moving at 8.7 miles a year. Gordon Hamilton, professor of earth sciences at Maine University, who made the measurements using global positioning system (GPS) satellites, said the velocity measurements were accurate to within about 45 metres of movement per year and that Kangerdlugssuaq is probably the fastest-moving glacier in the world.

"This is a dramatic discovery. There is concern that the acceleration of this and similar glaciers and the associated discharge of ice is not described in current ice-sheet models of the effects of climate change," Professor Hamilton said.

EDIT

http://news.independent.co.uk/world/environment/article301493.ece

[htuttle]

1. It's starting to hydroplane

There are probably a lot of things we're going to see in the near future that didn't show up in our models.

Most of them will be bad.

This glacier is moving three times faster than it was 10 years ago? That's a 'glacier' -- the penultimate example of 'slowness' is moving 8 miles a year? That means that 'glacial' has now sped up to be about the same speed as "at a snail's pace", and is still probably accelerating.

That's bad.

[Nihil]

2. Not just sea level but salinity

> The Kangerdlugssuaq glacier on Greenland's east coast is one of
> several that drains the huge Greenland ice sheet. The glacier's
> movements are considered critical in understanding the rate at which
> the ice sheet is melting. Kangerdlugssuaq ... drains about 4 per cent
> of the ice from the Greenland ice sheet. Experts believe any change
> in the rate at which the glacier transports ice from the ice sheet
> into the ocean has important implications for increases in sea levels
> around the world.

Given the recent concern over changes in ocean salinity & acidity, this
departure from the previous models should be flashing a big red light!

If a glacier that drains about 4% of the Greenland ice sheet has more
than doubled its speed, this will surely invalidate many of the more
optimistic projections for the North Atlantic Conveyor ...

Non-linear systems ... don't you just love them?

[Dogmudgeon]

3. Heat transfer in the North Sea is already impaired

Several well-observed vertical currents have disappeared; it is this phenomenon that is probably driving the unusually hot weather and droughts that have hit Europe this summer.

This topic has been posted on in this forum; does anyone have any archive links?

--p!

[phantom power]

4. I think this is it:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=115&topic_id=24852

[Dogmudgeon]

5. "Exactamundo, Cunningham!"

... as famed Beat philosopher Arthur Fonzarelli once said to 60s acid guru, Richard J. Cunningham.

Scary article, that one. Next year, there will be a larger number of missing heat-transfer currents. Et cetera.

I think we've missed our window of opportunity to stop the process; but we dare not miss our window of opportunity to plan for the inevitable consequences.

--p!