Larsen B is a massive Antarctic ice shelf that’s rapidly weakening and will probably collapse by according to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena (California). NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, JPL, Pasadena (California) says Larsen B could disappear completely by . It is approximately the same size as Rhode Island. The 2002. ice shelf was partially destroyed. Scientists discovered that the last section of ice shelf is now flowing faster and becoming more fragmented. Larsen B is home to three tributary glaciers. Two of these are moving much faster and thinning fast, scientists added. Larsen B’s ice shelf measures approximately the same size as Rhode Island. Image: Wikipedia. Dr. Ala Khazendar of JPL’s Radar Science Group stated that these are signs that the remaining ice shelf is in danger. Although it’s fascinating scientifically to have a front-row seat to watch the ice shelf becoming unstable and breaking up, it’s bad news for our planet.” “This ice shelf has existed for at least 10,000 years, and soon it will be gone.” Ice shelves keep glaciers in check Ice shelves stop glaciers from flowing from Antarctica into the sea, they are the glacier gatekeepers. Glacier ice flowing into the ocean faster when an ice shelf is gone can cause rising sea levels to worsen. A separate Princeton study forecast an almost 10-foot sea-level rise by the end of this century. Their findings were published in Earth and Planetary Science Letters. The researchers examined and collected data from special instrument-equipped aircraft that participated in Operation IceBridge. This NASA aerial survey mission provides unparalleled data about the continent’s glaciers, ice sheets, and ice shelves. Dr. Khazendar, along with his colleagues, obtained flow speed data using synthetic aperture radars (from space). According to Dr. Khazendar and colleagues, their estimation of the Larsen B Ice Shelf Remainder’s Life span was based upon the possibility that a large, expanding rift would form near the ground line of the ice shelves, creating a crack across the entire thing. Dr. Khazendar says that the remnant free to drift will eventually become hundreds of icebergs, which will allow the glaciers unimpeded and at an accelerating speed towards the ocean. The fate of Larsen B and its two tributaries. The Larsen B fragment is large. It covers approximately 625 sq miles (1 ,600 km) and has a thickness around 1 ,640 foot metre. There are three main tributary glaciers, Flask, Starbuck, and Leppard. Each has its own tributary farther inland. Dr. Khazendar said: “What’s really remarkable about Larsen B? The speed at which the changes are occurring. The pace of change has been unstoppable.” Thirteen years after Larsen B’s partial melt, scientists were surprised at how little the glaciers had changed in thickness and flow speed. Scientists assumed that they had maintained their stability. However, this latest study found that the Flask and Leppard glaciers have thinned by 65-72 feet (20-22 metres), and have accelerated considerably over the last decade. Flask’s glacier reached an average flow speed of 2 ,300 miles (700 meters per year in 2012,, which was an acceleration of 36%.. Flask could accelerate even more after Larsen B’s remnant falls completely. The glaciers that surrounded Larsen B collapsed 13 years ago accelerated eight times to their original speed. Starbuck appears to be the smallest glacier. The channel it has is much narrower than those of Flask or Leppard. Starbuck’s stability is probably due to its strong anchoring to the groundrock. Co-author and principal scientist at JPL’s Radar Science and Engineering Section Professor Eric Rignot said that the study of Antarctic Peninsula glaciers provided insights into how the ice shelves further south (which hold more land ice) will respond to warming. The team also featured scientists from University of California in Irvine and University Centre Svalbard. Eric Rignot and Helene Seroussi. “The emerging instability of the Larsen B Ice Shelf and its Tributary Glaciers.” Earth and Planetary Science Letters (June 2015).). DOI: 10.1016/j.epsl.2015.03.014. Video: Larsen B Ice Shelf Final Act
NASA: Larsen B, the huge Antarctic ice shelves, will be gone by 2020
