The water may reach a height of 3 m, reaching a point where a large glacier cannot return!

In Antarctic, He a Glacier This is of particular concern to researchers. The Pine Island Glacier. We can also call it the Ile to Bin Glacier. This is similar to the fast flowing area, which filters an areaWest Antarctica Two-thirds of the UK. Most importantly, it is currently losing more snow than any other glacier in the region. In February 2020, he lost another large glacier – the size of the island of Malta.

Pine Island Glacier And his neighbor, The Glacier Twites, Is already responsible for 10% sea level rise. But what worries researchers is that they believe the area could reach a critical point, which is an irreversible point that could lead to irreversible withdrawal. It will resultDecline All from the west Close snow Antarctic. As a result, the water rises more than three meters!

Go to its bottom, Glacier specialists at the University of Northumbria (UK) used the power of an ice flow model to identify tipping points on ice. Their results: Pine Island Glacier Not at least three points. The third of them, triggered by an increase in sea temperature of 1.2 ° C, leads to an irreversible reversal of the entire glacier.

A wonderful, but worrying result

“Our study is the first study to confirm that the Pine Island glacier can cross important boundaries, Sebastian Rosier, researcher, a University of Northumbria press release. Although many simulations show periods of decline without being able to connect them to a terminal point, our algorithm helps identify these thresholds. ”

According to researchers, long-term trends in Warming in deep water Circular, along with variations of configuration Holes In the Amundsen Sea, can be exposed Ice float of Pine Island Glacier For hot water for a long time. The temperature is high enough to change the condition of the glacier.

“This study marks a major breakthrough in our understanding of Antarctic ice dynamics, and I am pleased to be able to provide definitive answers to this important question. But our results also concern me. If the glacier were to enter an unstable and irreversible retreat, its impact Sea level It can be measured in meters and it cannot be stopped once it starts to retreat ”, Concludes glacier expert Hilmer Goodmondson.