The rate of ice melt is increasing in Greenland, but slowing in Antarctica. This conclusion was reached by an international group of scientists from the USA and the Netherlands. The study was published in the scientific journal magazine Geophysical Research Letters.
Experts evaluated the impact of winds that bring warm, dry air to the tops of glaciers. According to them, the rate of disappearance of the Greenland ice sheet due to air currents has increased by more than 10% in the last 20 years, while the impact of winds on the Antarctic ice sheet has decreased by 32% in the same period.
“We used regional climate model simulations to study ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica, and the results showed that downdraft winds were responsible for significant melting of the surface ice sheet in both regions,” said study co-author Professor Charlie Zender.
Wind-induced melting of Greenland’s surface ice has become worse as the giant island’s glaciers have become so hot that they can melt with sunlight alone, without the influence of wind, scientists said. Rising temperatures, combined with wind, increased the total amount of melting of Greenland ice by 34%.
At the same time, total melting of surface ice in Antarctica has decreased by approximately 15% since 2000. The shrinking of our planet’s ozone hole over the South Pole has helped slow the disappearance of Antarctic ice caps.
Previous scientists in the name The extent of ice loss in Antarctica over the last 25 years.