Published 12:21 IST, March 21st 2020
Antarctica and Greenland losing ice sheets six times faster than in 1990s
A team of researchers from the (IMBIE) has revealed that the ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica are losing ice six times faster as compared to decades ago.
- World News
- 3 min read
A team of researchers from the Ice Sheet Mass Balance Intercomparison Exercise (IMBIE) has reportedly revealed that the ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica are losing ice six times faster than they were back in the 1990s. As per reports, these findings are based on observations from 11 different satellites missions monitoring the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets.
Could raise sea levels drastically
According to the report, if the ice in Greenland and Antarctic continues to melt at the same rate then the ‘worst case’ scenario presented by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) may come to fruition. They have predicted that sea levels will rise by 6.7 inches (17 centimetres) by 2100. The study was published in the Journal Nature. The Ice Sheet Mass Balance Intercomparison Exercise team looked at 26 surveys in order to determine the ice melting pattern of Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets between 1992 and 2018.
Their calculations and research revealed that the ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctic lost 81 billion tons of ice per year in the 1990s while in the 2010s they lost 475 billion tons of ice per year, a six-fold increase. The findings also revealed that the two regions had lost 6.4 trillion tons of ice since the 1990s.
As per reports, the melting of ice sheets at Greenland and Antarctic has led to an increase in sea levels by 0.7 inches and that the melting of ice at these two regions account for a third of all sea-level rise.
Nearly 400 million people at risk
According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) which has been tracking climate change, by the year 2100 around 400 million more people would be exposed to coastal flooding due to the melting of ice sheets. A team of 50 international organizations with 96 polar scientists have conducted the most shocking survey of ice loss in Greenland.
The Ice Sheet Mass Balance Inter-Comparison Exercise (IMBIE) Team carried 26 in-depth surveys to calculate the losses in the mass of Greenland's ice sheets. These surveys were conducted between 1992 and 2018. The IMBIE Team used the data of 11 satellites and they also used the data of the measurements of the ice sheet's changing volume, flow, and gravity.
Updated 12:11 IST, March 21st 2020