Given its potential to cause global sea level rise, it’s no wonder Thwaites Glacier has earned the nickname “Doomsday Glacier.”
Now, scientists have revealed worrying findings about how and when the glacier could collapse.
Researchers from the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) used underwater robots to take new measurements of the glacier, which is the same size as Great Britain.
Data indicate that Thwaites Glacier and much of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet could be completely lost by the 23rd century.
Worryingly, if it collapses completely, experts say global sea levels would rise by 65cm, plunging huge areas underwater.
With the potential to cause sea level rise across the globe, it’s no wonder Thwaites Glacier has earned the nickname “Doomsday Glacier.”
Thwaites Glacier is approximately 120 km (74.5 mi) wide, the same size as Great Britain or Florida, making it the widest glacier on the planet.
Thwaites Glacier is about 120 km (74.5 mi) wide – the same size as Great Britain or Florida.
This makes it the widest glacier on the planet.
In some places it is more than 2,000 metres thick – 2.5 times the size of the Burj Dubai, the world’s tallest building.
Previous studies have shown that the volume of ice flowing into the sea from Thwaites and its neighbouring glaciers has more than doubled between the 1990s and 2010s.
What’s more, the wider region, called the Amundsen Sea, accounts for a staggering eight percent of the current rate of global sea level rise of 4.6 mm/year.
Thwaites Glacier is approximately 120 km (74.5 mi) wide, the same size as Great Britain or Florida, making it the widest glacier on the planet.
Researchers from the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) used underwater robots to take new measurements of the glacier, which is the same size as Great Britain.
In their new study, the team set out to develop a more reliable prediction of how and when Thwaites will change in the future.
BAS marine geophysicist Dr Rob Larter said: ‘There is consensus that Thwaites Glacier’s retreat will accelerate at some point over the next century.
‘However, there is also concern that additional processes revealed by recent studies, which have not yet been studied well enough to be incorporated into large-scale models, could cause the retreat to accelerate sooner.’
The new study indicates that Thwaites will collapse no later than the 23rd century.
“It is concerning that the latest computer models predict continued ice loss that will accelerate during the 22nd century and could lead to widespread collapse of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet in the 23rd century,” said Dr. Ted Scambos, ITGC U.S. science coordinator and a glaciologist at the University of Colorado.
Thwaites is “exceptionally vulnerable” due to its position, according to researchers.
Its ice rests on a bed far below sea level, which descends towards the heart of West Antarctica.
“Thwaites has been retreating for more than 80 years, accelerating considerably in the last 30 years, and our findings indicate that it will continue to retreat even further and faster,” Dr Larter added.
The worrying thing is that if the entire West Antarctic ice sheet collapses, global sea levels would rise by as much as 3.3 metres.
Most worryingly, if the entire West Antarctic ice sheet collapses, global sea levels will rise by a whopping 3.3 metres.
This would have a huge impact on the hundreds of millions of people living on coastlines from Bangladesh to the low-lying Pacific islands, from New York to London.
Based on these findings, the researchers are calling for urgent action to curb greenhouse gas emissions, one of the main factors causing the melting of the Thwaites Glacier.
Dr Scambos added: ‘Immediate and sustained climate intervention will have a positive, albeit delayed, effect, particularly in moderating the input of warm water to the deep ocean, which is the main driver of retreat.’