Aerial and Ground Tours of Greenland: Exploring by Helicopter and Dogsled
In March 2018, a research team from the University of California San Diego ventured to Disko Island in West Greenland to study the melting of polar ice and its impact on global sea levels, particularly in San Diego, California.
The team, comprising three scientists, students, and instructors from around Europe, joined Scripps physical oceanographer Fiamma Straneo and graduate students Jacob Morgan, Margaret Lindeman, and Maya Becker for the CHESS Arctic Glacier Field Course at the University of Copenhagen Arctic Station.
Their focus was on the amount of snow accumulation on different parts of the ice cap, with the aim of gaining insights into the processes affecting the larger Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets.
The melting ice cap contributes to global sea level rise by flowing off the land and into the ocean. Data like snowfall observations help predict the rate and magnitude of sea level rise due to melting ice. These snowfall observations can be used to improve computer simulations predicting the future size of the ice cap.
At Disko Island, the current state of Lyngmarksbreen, the ice cap on Disko Island, shows that it is melting faster than snowfall is replenishing it. The expected future state of Lyngmarksbreen is that it is unlikely to exist at the end of this century.
The research team also observed sea-ice thickness and oceanographic conditions in Disko Bay, where sea ice was also being studied. Increasing ocean and air temperatures are reducing sea-ice extent in many Arctic areas, affecting both polar bears and fishermen.
The process of glacial ice formation involves snowflakes at the bottom of the pile being compressed by the weight of the snow above them and gradually fusing into ice crystals. The type of ice on Greenland is glacial ice, formed by the accumulation of many years of snowfall.
The purpose of the research was to investigate the delicate balance between melting and replenishment of the ice cap. The team experienced logistical difficulties due to Arctic winter conditions, but their findings highlight the urgent need to understand the effects of climate change on polar ice and its impact on global sea levels.
This research reinforces the connection between the melting ice caps on Disko Island and the overall mass loss of the Greenland Ice Sheet. This mass loss adds freshwater to the ocean, contributing to global sea level rise, a phenomenon that affects coastal cities like San Diego, California.
References:
- https://www.nature.com/articles/nature12584
- https://www.nature.com/articles/nature23733
- https://www.nature.com/articles/nature24453
- https://www.nature.com/articles/nature25081
- https://www.nature.com/articles/nature25407
- The members of the research team from the University of California San Diego, who were studying climate-change-induced polar ice melting in Disko Island, are also involved in environmental-science education-and-self-development programs like the CHESS Arctic Glacier Field Course, to facilitate learning about the intricate processes affecting glacial ice formation and sea level rise.
- With the findings from their research, the team emphasizes the importance of learning how climate change impacts the delicate balance between melting and replenishment of polar ice, not only for understanding the disappearance of Lyngmarksbreen in Disko Island but also for predicting the future mass loss of the Greenland Ice Sheet and its consequences on global sea levels, such as the increased risk of flooding in coastal cities like San Diego, California.
