Greenland Glacier Sheds Manhattan-Sized Chunk #glacier #Greenland #climatechange - http://clapway.com/2015/08/24/greenland-glacier-manhattan123/

A massive chunk of ice, the size of Manhattan, has been severed from Greenland’s Jakobshavn glacier, BBC News reports.

ONE OF THE FASTEST GLACIERS IN GREENLAND

During the summer, the glacier movies at ten meters a day, according to scientists, a pace which makes it one of the fastest glaciers in Greenland. Using the European Union’s Sentinel satellites, the European Space Agency has been monitoring the glacier and its activity.

According to the European Space Agency, the berg that separated from the glacier has a 12.5 square kilometer area and is about 1,400 meters deep, making its total volume about 17.5 cubic kilometers. Which means that the iceberg has enough ice to cover Manhattan with a 300 meter layer of ice.

LARGEST ICE CHUNK EVER?

Members of the Arctic Sea Ice Forum first observed the ice chunk separating from the Jakobshavn glacier between the days of August 14 and 16. The members have speculated that it may be the largest chunk ever to be removed from a glacier in Greenland.

In an e-mail to the Washington Post, Pennsylvania State University glaciologist Richard Alley cautioned against speculation. “Overall, I don’t think that they really can nail the ‘largest’ [calving event] or not,” the scientist said. “I wouldn’t get too excited on this, even though it is not good news.

WHY DID IT HAPPEN?

It is generally accepted by the scientific community that the reason why glaciers are globally melting at record rates and ice chunks are frequently breaking from glaciers is the rising temperatures caused by climate change. As the Post pointed out, calving (the separation of ice chunks from ice sheets and glaciers and subsequently falling into the sea) isn’t an uncommon phenomenon in this area of Greenland because of increasing sea and air temperatures in the region.

This increase has made the Jakobshavn one of the fastest moving glaciers ever, so “it bleeds ice into the ocean at one of the highest rates of any ice sheet on Earth” according to the Post. Research from 2012 found that the glacier pours out 150 feet of ice per day. This rate is three times as fast as the way that it poured in the 1990s.

CHECK OUT PHOTOS

Though it may be bad news, you can check out a great view of the glacier captured by NASA here.

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It’s sad to see nature go. Preserve it in your living room forever with the Atmoph:

Greenland Glacier Sheds Manhattan-Sized Chunk

What will become of the #glaciers all up in #Asia? - http://clapway.com/2015/08/18/central-asian-glaciers-are-rapidly-depleting-335/

The Central Asian glaciers of the Tian Shan mountain range have lost more than a quarter of their mass at a rate four times faster than the global average. A study led by GFZ German Research Center for Geosciences determined that nearly 27% of the range’s total mass and 18% of its area has been depleted between the years 1961 and 2012. All of the research’s findings were published in the Nature Geoscience journal.

Central Asian Glaciers: WHAT IS TIAN SHAN?

Tian Shan is the largest mountain range in Central Asia. Its water supply, much of which is derived from the glaciers, is vital to the region.

Glacier soften and snow from the mountains are crucial to the supply of water to parts of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. As such, the consequences of the depletion could be devastating. Xinjiang Uyghur, a northwestern region of China, relies on the range’s melt for water. The province’s natural gas, coal and oil reserves are important to the entire country’s economic growth, as the Christian Science Monitor mentioned.

It is even possible that a regional water shortage could result in war, as Uzbekistan President Islam Karimov warned in 2012.

HOW SCIENTISTS STUDIED IT

Daniel Farinotti, the study’s lead author, analyzed data obtained by glaciological models, field research and satellites with his research team. The satellites – the Gravity Recovery And Climate Experiment (GRACE) and the Ice, Cloud, Land and Elevation Satellite (ICESat) – were used to determine measured changes in the ice between 2003 and 2009.

For one measurement project in the time period, the NASA-owned ICESat measured changes in the ice’s thickness by firing laser pulses at the surface of the glacier. For another, the GRACE did gravity readings on the surface to estimate ice mass.

As Farinotti told the Wall Street Journal, the purpose of using multiple methods was to minimize the harm of each one’s flaws: “Each method on its own is not ideal, but what gives us confidence is that the three methods see the same thing.”

CLIMATE CHANGE MAY BE CAUSING THE CENTRAL ASIAN GLACIERS TO MELT

“Currently we are in the golden phase, with relatively much water,” the scientist told Reuters. “But what could happen is quite worrisome.”

Researchers posited the loss of glacier mass’ cause to be the range’s increasing summer temperatures. If so, the phenomenon is likely the result of climate change.

“In the long term, the only way people are going to save glaciers is to reduce the increase of global temperatures,” Dr. Farinotti said.

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Central Asian glaciers are rapidly melting. We need to preserve nature before it’s too late:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vD63kwQuZ2I

Central Asian Glaciers Are Rapidly Depleting