Greenland Ice Sheet is melting faster than previously believed

Washington, June 13 : A new study has suggested that the Greenland Ice Sheet is melting faster than previously believed, and as a result, freshwater runoff from the area will more than double by the end of the century.

It was covered in a scientific paper by University of Alaska Fairbanks researcher Sebastian H. Mernild. The study is based on the results of state-of-the-art modeling using data from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change as well as satellite images and observations from on the ground in Greenland.

Mernild and his team found that the total amount of Greenland Ice Sheet freshwater input into the North Atlantic Ocean expected from 2071 to 2100 will be more than double what is currently observed.

The current East Greenland Ice Sheet freshwater flux is 257 km3 per year from both runoff and iceberg calving. This freshwater flux is estimated to reach 456 km3 by 2100.

Mernild's results further show a change in total East Greenland freshwater flux from present day values of 438 km3 per year to 650 km3 per year by 2100.

This indicates an increase in global sea level rise estimates from 1.1 millimeters per year to 1.6 millimeters per year.

According to Mernild, the Greenland Ice Sheet mass balance is changing as a response to the altered climatic state, which is faster than expected.

"This affects freshwater runoff input to the North Atlantic Ocean, and plays an important role in determining the global sea level rise and global ocean thermohaline circulation," he said.

ANI