The ice melt has already contributed more than eight millimetres to global sea levels

Greenland glaciers: Melting of ice caps driven by wind shift, ocean currents

In northeast Greenland, an occurrence has raised alarm bells of climate change as a large chunk of ice in the Arctic has broken away.&nbsp;

The chunk that is separated from Arctic's largest remaining ice shelf has a length of 11 sq kms and satellite images have shown that it is broken away into several small pieces.&nbsp;

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In picture:&nbsp;The&nbsp;section of the northeast Greenland ice shelf that has disintegrated over the last two years.

It strengthens the argument that climate change is rapidly impacting Greenland.&nbsp;

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Scientists on Monday said the vast and ancient ice sheet sitting atop Greenland had sloughed off a 113 square kilometer chunk of ice last month. The section of the Spalte Glacier at the northwest corner of the Arctic island had been cracking for several years before finally breaking free on August&nbsp;27, clearing the way inland ice loss to the sea, the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland&nbsp;reported.

"The atmosphere in this region has warmed by about 3C since 1980," said Dr Jenny Turton, as quoted by BBC News, adding that in 2019 and 2020, the summer temperatures were at record high levels.&nbsp;

Nioghalvfjerdsfjorden is about 80 km long and 20 km wide and at 79N, the glacier splits into two.

There is a minor offshoot that turns towards north, called Spalte Glacier that has now separated.&nbsp;

With climate change driving up Arctic temperatures, the once-solid sea ice cover has been shrinking to stark, new lows in recent years.

This year’s minimum, still a few days from being declared, is expected to be the second-lowest expanse in four decades of record-keeping. The record low of 3.41 million square kilometers,&nbsp;reached in September 2012 after a late-season cyclonic storm broke up the remaining ice – is not much below what we see today.

In northeast Greenland, an occurrence has raised alarm bells of climate change as a large chunk of ice in the Arctic has broken away. The chunk that is separated from Arctic's largest remaining ice shelf has a length of 11 sq kms and satellite images have shown that it is broken away into several small pieces.

In northeast Greenland, an occurrence has raised alarm bells of climate change as a large chunk of ice in the Arctic has broken away. The chunk that is separated from Arctic's largest remaining ice shelf has a length of 11 sq kms and satellite images have shown that it is broken away into several small pieces. In picture: The section of the northeast Greenland ice shelf that has disintegrated over the last two years. It strengthens the argument that climate change is rapidly impacting Greenland. Also read | Climate change contributes to spread of diseases through mosquitoes, says study Scientists on Monday said the vast and ancient ice sheet sitting atop Greenland had sloughed off a 113 square kilometer chunk of ice last month. The section of the Spalte Glacier at the northwest corner of the Arctic island had been cracking for several years before finally breaking free on August 27, clearing the way inland ice loss to the sea, the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland reported. "The atmosphere in this region has warmed by about 3C since 1980," said Dr Jenny Turton, as quoted by BBC News, adding that in 2019 and 2020, the summer temperatures were at record high levels. Nioghalvfjerdsfjorden is about 80 km long and 20 km wide and at 79N, the glacier splits into two. There is a minor offshoot that turns towards north, called Spalte Glacier that has now separated. With climate change driving up Arctic temperatures, the once-solid sea ice cover has been shrinking to stark, new lows in recent years. This year’s minimum, still a few days from being declared, is expected to be the second-lowest expanse in four decades of record-keeping. The record low of 3.41 million square kilometers, reached in September 2012 after a late-season cyclonic storm broke up the remaining ice – is not much below what we see today.

Climate change: Massive chunk of ice twice the size of Manhattan separated

Greenland's ice sheet may have shrunk past the point of no return, with the ice likely to melt away no matter how quickly the world reduces climate-warming emissions.&nbsp;

For the new research, scientists studied 234 glaciers across the Arctic territory for 34 years through 2018, and found that annual snowfall was no longer enough to replenish glaciers of the snow and ice being lost to summertime melting.

That melting is already causing global seas to rise about a millimeter on average per year. If all of Greenland's ice goes, the water released would push sea levels up by an average of 6 meters -- enough to swamp many coastal cities around the world.

"Greenland is going to be the canary in the coal mine, and the canary is already pretty much dead at this point," said glaciologist Ian Howat at Ohio State University. He and his colleagues published the study Thursday in the Nature Communications Earth &amp; Environment journal.

The Arctic has been warming at least twice as fast as the rest of the world for the last 30 years, an observation referred to as Arctic amplification. The polar sea ice hit its lowest extent for July in 40 years.

The Arctic thaw has brought more water to the region, opening up routes for shipping traffic, as well as increased interest in extracting fossil fuels and other natural resources.

Greenland is strategically important for the US military and its ballistic missile early warning system, as the shortest route from Europe to North America goes via the Arctic island. Last year, President Donald Trump offered to buy Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory. But Denmark, a US ally, rebuffed the offer.&nbsp;

Scientists, however, have long worried about Greenland's fate, given the amount of water locked into the ice. 
The new study suggests the territory's ice sheet will now gain mass only once every 100 years -- a grim indicator of how difficult it is to re-grow glaciers once they hemorrhage ice.

In studying satellite images of the glaciers, the researchers noted that the glaciers had a 50% chance of regaining mass before 2000, with the odds declining since.

The sobering findings should spur governments to prepare for sea-level rise.

Still, the world can still bring down emissions to slow climate change, scientists said. Even if Greenland can't regain the icy bulk that covered its 2 million square kilometers, containing the global temperature rise can slow the rate of ice loss. 
&nbsp;

Greenland's ice sheet may have shrunk past the point of no return, with the ice likely to melt away no matter how quickly the world reduces climate-warming emissions.

Greenland's ice sheet may have shrunk past the point of no return, with the ice likely to melt away no matter how quickly the world reduces climate-warming emissions. For the new research, scientists studied 234 glaciers across the Arctic territory for 34 years through 2018, and found that annual snowfall was no longer enough to replenish glaciers of the snow and ice being lost to summertime melting. That melting is already causing global seas to rise about a millimeter on average per year. If all of Greenland's ice goes, the water released would push sea levels up by an average of 6 meters -- enough to swamp many coastal cities around the world. "Greenland is going to be the canary in the coal mine, and the canary is already pretty much dead at this point," said glaciologist Ian Howat at Ohio State University. He and his colleagues published the study Thursday in the Nature Communications Earth & Environment journal. The Arctic has been warming at least twice as fast as the rest of the world for the last 30 years, an observation referred to as Arctic amplification. The polar sea ice hit its lowest extent for July in 40 years. The Arctic thaw has brought more water to the region, opening up routes for shipping traffic, as well as increased interest in extracting fossil fuels and other natural resources. Greenland is strategically important for the US military and its ballistic missile early warning system, as the shortest route from Europe to North America goes via the Arctic island. Last year, President Donald Trump offered to buy Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory. But Denmark, a US ally, rebuffed the offer. Scientists, however, have long worried about Greenland's fate, given the amount of water locked into the ice. The new study suggests the territory's ice sheet will now gain mass only once every 100 years -- a grim indicator of how difficult it is to re-grow glaciers once they hemorrhage ice. In studying satellite images of the glaciers, the researchers noted that the glaciers had a 50% chance of regaining mass before 2000, with the odds declining since. The sobering findings should spur governments to prepare for sea-level rise. Still, the world can still bring down emissions to slow climate change, scientists said. Even if Greenland can't regain the icy bulk that covered its 2 million square kilometers, containing the global temperature rise can slow the rate of ice loss.

Greenland ice has shrunk beyond return, study finds

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