From 1997 to 2021, 71 of the 162 ice shelves around Antarctica (43%) have shrunk, releasing 7.5 trillion tons of meltwater into the oceans. British scientists from the University of Leeds came to this conclusion. The study was published in the scientific journal magazine Science Developments.
Experts analyzed more than 100,000 satellite radar images and found that nearly all of the glaciers on Antarctica’s western side have shrunk, with some losing 30% of their original volume.
Some of the largest losses were observed on the Goetz Ice Shelf, where 1.9 trillion tons of ice was lost over a 25-year period. Only 5% of these are due to calving, when large chunks of ice break off the shelf and fall into the ocean. The rest of the ice turned into water.
1.3 trillion tons of ice have been lost from the Pine Island Ice Shelf. Approximately one-third of these losses (450 billion tonnes) resulted from spillage; the rest melted away.
“There is a mixed picture of ice shelf collapse, and this is due to ocean temperatures and currents around Antarctica. The western part of the continent is exposed to warm water, while much of East Antarctica is currently protected from melting by cold waters on the coast,” he said. Dr. who directed the research. Benjamin Davison.
Scientists say human-caused global warming is likely a major factor in ice loss. If we were talking about natural changes, there would be signs of repairing glaciers in some places in the west.
“We expected that most ice shelves would go through cycles of rapid but short-term contraction and then slowly regrow. Instead we see nearly half shrinking without any signs of renewal,” the researchers explained.
Previous scientists was recorded Record decrease in sea ice extent in Antarctica.