A new study published last week in Nature Communications reveals that rising levels of atmospheric moisture caused by climate change are expected to dramatically increase the frequency and intensity of “atmospheric rivers” over Antarctica – long, narrow plumes of warm, moist air that can travel thousands of kilometres and deliver intense precipitation.
A new study published last week in Nature Communications reveals that rising levels of atmospheric moisture caused by climate change are expected to dramatically increase the frequency and intensity of “atmospheric rivers” over Antarctica – long, narrow plumes of warm, moist air that can travel thousands of kilometres and deliver intense precipitation.
Using a high-resolution climate model and future greenhouse gas emissions scenarios, the international research team analysed how atmospheric rivers might change over Antarctica in the coming decades.
They predict that by the end of the century, these atmospheric rivers could double in number and increase atmospheric river precipitation by 2.5 times under a high-emission scenario, where there are limited or no efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This intensification adds a new level of uncertainty to the stability of Antarctic ice sheets and could significantly impact global sea-level rise.
Read more at: British Antarctic Survey
Thwaites Eastern Ice Shelf, Michelle Maclennan, BAS
