Changes in the Velocity Structure of the Greenland Ice Sheet
Abstract
Using satellite radar interferometry observations of Greenland, we detected widespread glacier acceleration below 66° north between 1996 and 2000, which rapidly expanded to 70° north in 2005. Accelerated ice discharge in the west and particularly in the east doubled the ice sheet mass deficit in the last decade from 90 to 220 cubic kilometers per year. As more glaciers accelerate farther north, the contribution of Greenland to sea-level rise will continue to increase.
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References and Notes
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We thank the numerous people involved with airborne campaigns in Greenland and two anonymous reviewers for their comments. This work was performed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, and the University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, under a contract with NASA's Cryospheric Science Program. Satellite radar data were provided by the European and Canadian Space Agencies and distributed by the Alaska Satellite Facility. The development of ice thickness was partially supported by the NSF under grant OPP-0122520 to the University of Kansas.
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Science
Volume 311 | Issue 5763
17 February 2006
17 February 2006
Copyright
American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Submission history
Received: 14 October 2005
Accepted: 17 January 2006
Published in print: 17 February 2006
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