Ice melt is a global problem with a variety of impacts. It contributes to rising sea levels, changes in ecosystems, and alters the water supply for human populations, especially those living near coastlines. It also causes glacial lake outburst floods, which are a significant risk to communities and infrastructure.
A large proportion of Earth’s freshwater is frozen in glaciers and ice sheets, including the Antarctica and Greenland ice sheets. When this ice melts, the water flows into the oceans and the overall volume of the oceans increases. The weight of these ice sources is continuously monitored by NASA’s twin GRACE satellites from 2002 to 2017 and the GRACE-Follow On satellites since 2018. These measurements show that the glaciers and ice sheets are losing mass at a faster rate than they are being replaced by snowfall.
Melting ice sheets are a significant contributor to global warming because they reduce the Earth’s albedo (how much sunlight it reflects). Darker surfaces absorb more heat, which accelerates melting and fuels this self-perpetuating cycle.
The loss of ice is also causing the climate system to change, disrupting long-term atmospheric and ocean circulation patterns. This, in turn, is affecting the distribution of Earth’s temperature and its rotation. In the Arctic, these effects are most pronounced and can cause an abrupt slowing of the planet’s rotation that creates polar vortex disturbances. The widespread impact of melting ice highlights the need to curb greenhouse gas emissions and support conservation efforts for the natural world around us.
About the Author
