Globally elevated chemical weathering rates beneath glaciers

Xiangying Li (), Ninglian Wang (), Yongjian Ding (), Jon R. Hawkings, Jacob C. Yde, Robert Raiswell, Jintao Liu, Shiqiang Zhang, Shichang Kang, Rongjun Wang, Qiao Liu, Shiyin Liu, Roland Bol, Xiaoni You and Guoyu Li
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Xiangying Li: Northwest University
Ninglian Wang: Northwest University
Yongjian Ding: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Jon R. Hawkings: University of Pennsylvania
Jacob C. Yde: Western Norway University of Applied Sciences
Robert Raiswell: University of Leeds
Jintao Liu: Hohai University
Shiqiang Zhang: Northwest University
Shichang Kang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Rongjun Wang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Qiao Liu: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Shiyin Liu: Yunnan University
Roland Bol: Wilhelm-Johnen-Straße
Xiaoni You: Tianshui Normal University
Guoyu Li: Chinese Academy of Sciences

Nature Communications, 2022, vol. 13, issue 1, 1-13

Abstract: Abstract Physical erosion and chemical weathering rates beneath glaciers are expected to increase in a warming climate with enhanced melting but are poorly constrained. We present a global dataset of cations in meltwaters of 77 glaciers, including new data from 19 Asian glaciers. Our study shows that contemporary cation denudation rates (CDRs) beneath glaciers (2174 ± 977 Σ*meq+ m−2 year−1) are ~3 times higher than two decades ago, up to 10 times higher than ice sheet catchments (~150-2000 Σ*meq+ m−2 year−1), up to 50 times higher than whole ice sheet means (~30-45 Σ*meq+ m−2 year−1) and ~4 times higher than major non-glacial riverine means (~500 Σ*meq+ m−2 year−1). Glacial CDRs are positively correlated with air temperature, suggesting glacial chemical weathering yields are likely to increase in future. Our findings highlight that chemical weathering beneath glaciers is more intense than many other terrestrial systems and may become increasingly important for regional biogeochemical cycles.

Date: 2022
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-28032-1

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