Recent findings reveal that Greenland’s 79° N Glacier has experienced an enormous loss of ice since 1998, measuring over 160 meters in thickness. Ground-based measuring devices and aircraft radar operated in the far northeast of Greenland have shown the extent of this significant ice loss. These measurements were conducted by the Alfred Wegener Institute, highlighting the impact of global warming on the stability of floating ice tongues.
The study shows how the combination of a warm ocean inflow and a warming atmosphere affects the floating ice tongue of the 79° N Glacier. Extremely high melt rates occur over a large area near the grounding line where the ice comes into contact with the ocean. Large channels form on the underside of the ice from the land side, probably because the water from huge lakes drains through the glacier ice. Both processes have led to a strong thinning of the glacier in recent decades. Due to extreme melt rates, the ice of the floating glacier tongue has become 32% thinner since 1998, especially from the grounding line where the ice comes into contact with the ocean.