Freshwater Runoff From The Greenland Ice Sheet Will More Than Double
Pastor Dale Morgan
Freshwater Runoff From The Greenland Ice Sheet Will More Than Double *
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 well before 2100.
by Staff Writers
Fairbanks AK (SPX) Jun 17, 2008
The Greenland Ice Sheet is melting much faster than previously
calculated according to a scientific paper by University of Alaska
Fairbanks researcher Sebastian H. Mernild published recently in the
journal "Hydrological Processes."
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 2041 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 well before 2100.
Mernild's results further show a change in total East Greenland
freshwater flux from today's values of 438 km3 per year to 650 km3 per
year well before 2100. This indicates an increase in global sea level
rise estimates from 1.1 millimeters per year to 1.6 millimeters per year.
"The Greenland Ice Sheet mass balance is changing as a response to the
altered climatic state," said Mernild.
"This 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."
Mernild is conducting the research as part of the University of Alaska's
International Polar Year efforts. He was appointed a University of
Alaska IPY postdoctoral fellow by UA president Mark Hamilton in 2007.