Rapid increases in satellite-observed ice sheet surface meltwater production
Zheng, L.; Shang, X.; van den Broeke, M.R.; Noël, B.; Li, X.; Fettweis, X.; Liang, Q.; Wang, K.; Liu, J.; Cheng, X. (2025). Rapid increases in satellite-observed ice sheet surface meltwater production. Nat. Clim. Chang. 15(7): 769-774. https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41558-025-02364-4
In: Nature Climate Change. Nature Publishing Group: London. ISSN 1758-678X; e-ISSN 1758-6798, more
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| Authors | | Top |
- Zheng, L.
- Shang, X.
- van den Broeke, M.R.
- Noël, B., more
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- Li, X.
- Fettweis, X., more
- Liang, Q.
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- Wang, K.
- Liu, J.
- Cheng, X.
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| Abstract |
Surface meltwater production influences the contribution of ice sheets to global sea-level change. Ice-sheet-wide meltwater production has thus far primarily been quantified by regional climate models. Here we present a 31-year (1992–2023) time series of daily satellite-observed surface melt flux for the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. The annual meltwater volume in Greenland has significantly increased, with intensified melt in the northern basins dominated by a negative North Atlantic Oscillation and elevated melt flux in western basins driven by the decline in Arctic sea-ice. In East Antarctica, high melt rates since 2000 are attributed to warm air incursions from the Southern Ocean due to anomalous atmospheric circulations associated with a negative Southern Annular Mode and the recovery of the Antarctic ozone hole. This region, previously less prone to surface melt, has become a melt hotspot, potentially leading to meltwater ponding and future ice shelf destabilization. |
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