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Stabilizing the West Antarctic Ice Sheet by surface mass deposition
Johannes Feldmann1, Anders Levermann1,2,3, Matthias Mengel1
1Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Potsdam, Germany.
Science Advances
|July 23, 2019
Summary
Researchers propose stabilizing the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) by depositing 7400 Gt of snow over 10 years. This intervention could prevent catastrophic sea level rise threatening global coastal cities.
Area of Science:
- * Glaciology and Climate Science
- * Antarctic Ice Sheet Dynamics
Background:
- * Evidence suggests the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) has begun self-sustaining ice discharge, risking disintegration.
- * Potential disintegration could cause over 3 meters of global sea level rise, endangering major coastal populations.
Purpose of the Study:
- * To investigate the feasibility of stabilizing the WAIS through artificial mass deposition.
- * To determine the required volume and timeframe for intervention to prevent catastrophic ice loss.
Main Methods:
- * Utilized numerical simulations to model ice sheet behavior under mass deposition scenarios.
- * Focused simulations on coastal regions of the Pine Island and Thwaites glaciers.
Main Results:
- * A minimum of 7400 Gt of additional snowfall over 10 years can stabilize WAIS ice flow.
- * This intervention is equivalent to -2 mm/year sea level rise.
- * Lower deposition rates require longer intervention times and greater total snow volume.
Conclusions:
- * Artificial snow mass deposition presents a potential method to stabilize the WAIS.
- * The success of such an operation is highly dependent on precise conditions and execution.
- * Significant environmental, technical, and risk-related challenges must be addressed before implementation.
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