World ocean level has risen by 14 mm in 16 years

World ocean level has risen by 14 mm in 16 years
World ocean level has risen by 14 mm in 16 years
Anonim

These are the results of calculations performed at the Scripps Institute of Oceanography (San Diego, California). The results of the work were published in mid-May in the scientific journal EOS.

The researchers used satellite data for a 16-year period from 2003 to 2019. The data obtained from the ICESat and ICESat-2 spacecraft were used as the initial data. The article notes the unprecedented reliability of the results of measurements of the thickness of the ice cover using these devices.

When calculating the decrease in the layer of ice cover, the density of snow and other factors, including the processes of ice formation from firn, were taken into account.

Calculations have shown that the Greenland ice sheet loses an average of 200 gigatons of ice per year, while the Antarctic ice sheet loses an average of 118 gigatons of ice per year. This amount of ice is equivalent to a half-inch (12.7 mm) layer of water on top of all the oceans.

Experts noted that ice losses in Greenland concern only coastal areas, in the central part of the island there is a preservation or even an increase in the height of the ice layer. This phenomenon may be associated with a relatively small increase in the amount of snowfall in some parts of Greenland as a consequence of global warming, which alters atmospheric circulation.

The results obtained and the methods tested during the work are planned to be used in the study of glaciers in other regions of the world, such as glaciers in Alaska, in the Andes and the Himalayas.

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