A tipping point in refreezing accelerates mass loss of Greenland’s glaciers and ice caps

B. Noël (), W. J van de Berg, S. Lhermitte, B. Wouters, H. Machguth, I. Howat, M. Citterio, G. Moholdt, J. T. M. Lenaerts and M. R. van den Broeke
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B. Noël: Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research Utrecht, Utrecht University
W. J van de Berg: Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research Utrecht, Utrecht University
S. Lhermitte: Delft University of Technology
B. Wouters: Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research Utrecht, Utrecht University
H. Machguth: University of Zürich
I. Howat: Ohio State University
M. Citterio: Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland GEUS
G. Moholdt: Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre
J. T. M. Lenaerts: Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research Utrecht, Utrecht University
M. R. van den Broeke: Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research Utrecht, Utrecht University

Nature Communications, 2017, vol. 8, issue 1, 1-8

Abstract: Abstract Melting of the Greenland ice sheet (GrIS) and its peripheral glaciers and ice caps (GICs) contributes about 43% to contemporary sea level rise. While patterns of GrIS mass loss are well studied, the spatial and temporal evolution of GICs mass loss and the acting processes have remained unclear. Here we use a novel, 1 km surface mass balance product, evaluated against in situ and remote sensing data, to identify 1997 (±5 years) as a tipping point for GICs mass balance. That year marks the onset of a rapid deterioration in the capacity of the GICs firn to refreeze meltwater. Consequently, GICs runoff increases 65% faster than meltwater production, tripling the post-1997 mass loss to 36±16 Gt−1, or ∼14% of the Greenland total. In sharp contrast, the extensive inland firn of the GrIS retains most of its refreezing capacity for now, buffering 22% of the increased meltwater production. This underlines the very different response of the GICs and GrIS to atmospheric warming.

Date: 2017
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DOI: 10.1038/ncomms14730

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