So-called Doomsday Glacier is 'in trouble,' scientists say after finding surprising formations under ice shelf | CNN
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Antarctica's "Doomsday Glacier" -- nicknamed because its collapse could drive catastrophic sea level rise -- is melting rapidly in unexpected ways, according to new research.

A team of researchers reports Antarctica’s enormous Thwaites Glacier is on the verge of collapse, with warm water seeping under the weakest parts of the glacier and melting it from below. Researchers deployed a robotic submarine to penetrate the vast ice sheet, which is roughly the size of Florida. They found the glacier is susceptible to rapid and irreversible ice loss that could raise global sea levels by more than half a meter. Its collapse could destabilize surrounding glaciers that could raise the Earth’s oceans by a further three meters — or nearly 10 feet.

From DemocracyNow!

  • CanYouFeelItMrKrabs [any, he/him]
    ·
    2 years ago

    The scientists were also surprised by a second finding. They discovered an underwater glacial landscape much more complex than expected, dominated by strange staircaselike terraces and crevasses – big cracks going all the way through the ice shelf.

    who is walking on those stairs

    A 2021 study found the ice shelf could shatter within the next five years, and last year scientists said the Thwaites Glacier is hanging on “by its fingernails” as the planet warms, with the potential for rapid retreat in the coming years.

    :scared: