Change in iceberg calving behavior preceded North Sea ice shelf disintegration during the last deglaciation

James D. Kirkham (), Kelly A. Hogan, Robert D. Larter, Neil S. Arnold, Ed Self, Ken Games, Jeremy C. Ely, Chris D. Clark, James D. Scourse, Calvin Shackleton, Jan Erik Arndt, Claus-Dieter Hillenbrand, Mads Huuse, Margaret A. Stewart, Dag Ottesen and Julian A. Dowdeswell
Additional contact information
James D. Kirkham: High Cross
Kelly A. Hogan: High Cross
Robert D. Larter: High Cross
Neil S. Arnold: University of Cambridge
Ed Self: Gardline Limited
Ken Games: Gardline Limited
Jeremy C. Ely: University of Sheffield
Chris D. Clark: University of Sheffield
James D. Scourse: University of Exeter
Calvin Shackleton: Norwegian Polar Institute
Jan Erik Arndt: Institute of Geomatics
Claus-Dieter Hillenbrand: High Cross
Mads Huuse: University of Manchester
Margaret A. Stewart: Research Avenue South
Dag Ottesen: Geological Survey of Norway
Julian A. Dowdeswell: University of Cambridge

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-11

Abstract: Abstract Understanding how regime shifts in iceberg calving behavior affect ice shelf stability remains a challenge for numerical models. This is an important question as we consider the fate of the ice shelves that currently buttress the Antarctic Ice Sheet and hold back the bulk of its potential upstream sea-level contribution. Using buried landforms, we demonstrate that ice shelves fringed the former British-Irish Ice Sheet (BIIS) and document their disintegration ~18,000 years ago. The ice shelves produced massive (5–10 s km wide, 50–180 m thick) tabular icebergs until widespread ice shelf break-up shifted the calving regime to smaller bergs; a change that coincided with the collapse of marine-based ice across the central North Sea. We propose that the BIIS reached a climatic threshold around 18 ka which caused massive surface melting of its ice shelves, triggering hydrofracturing of crevasses that ultimately led to their disintegration and likely enhanced ice-retreat rates.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-58304-5

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