This week, NASA reported that an iceberg roughly twice the size of New York City is expected to break off an ice shelf in Antarctica. Researchers say the iceberg could be the largest to break from the Brunt Ice Shelf in more than a hundred years.
Linda Ivany is a professor of Earth Sciences at Syracuse University’s College of Arts and Sciences.
Ivany says:
“There are suggestions that ice shelves are particularly vulnerable right now because of warming seawater. Warmer waters will melt them from below, and if that happens back underneath where the ice is still in contact with land, it can destabilize them and make them flow and/or break up faster. That will cause sea level to rise faster.
“So, is this particular one a catastrophe? No. But is it potentially a harbinger of more things to come? Perhaps. Time will tell.
“Calving of ice at the front of ice shelves is normal, and it happens as the ice pouring off the continent advances out over water and breaks off. The piece they’re talking about is big, but not giant by Antarctic standards – it’s about half the size of the famous Larsen B ice shelf that disintegrated in 2002, drawing global attention to the phenomenon.
“The Larsen ice shelves were evidently stable for thousands of years before breaking up, suggesting that something unusual might be happening. Losing part or all of an ice shelf won’t affect sea level, because the ice is already floating. But they do seem to have a buttressing effect on the flow of ground-based glacier ice, which does have an impact on sea level. If there is a broad ice shelf, ice doesn’t flow out as fast. It sounds like the Brunt ice shelf is in a bit of a precarious position now because a corner of it is grounded, hung up on a bump in the sea floor, and that is likely slowing its progress. If the impending crack breaks off the shelf landward of that, then there is the potential that ice could start flowing off the continent in that area faster.”
To request interviews or get more information:
Daryl Lovell
Media Relations Manager
Division of Marketing and Communications
T 315.443.1184 M 315.380.0206
dalovell@syr.edu | @DarylLovell
The Nancy Cantor Warehouse, 350 West Fayette Street, 2nd Fl., Syracuse, NY 13202
news.syr.edu | syracuse.edu
Syracuse University
In a move that’s turning heads both in Japan and abroad, the Japanese government is reportedly cracking down on so-called “shiny” names, unconventional names often inspired by pop culture references like “Pikachu” or “Nike” given to newborns. While some see…
The smoke from more than 100 Canadian wildfires is reaching many regions within the U.S., including as far south as Georgia. Air quality is deteriorating in the Midwest, Great Lakes and Northeast, prompting health advisories in many cities. In Canada,…
If you’re a reporter covering the U.S. Department of Defense’s acceptance of a luxury jet from Qatar, Alex Wagner, adjunct professor at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, is available for interviews. Please see his comments below….
As the Roman Catholic Church begins a new chapter under Pope Leo XIV, historians and scholars are helping the public interpret the significance of this moment. Among them is Margaret Susan Thompson, professor of history in the Maxwell School of…
President Trump recently signed an executive order focusing on educational opportunities surrounding artificial intelligence. Among other things, it establishes a task force to promote AI-related education and tools in the classroom. That is a major area of focus for Dr….
If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.
