A study led by Kiel University reconstructs the ice sheet's response during a warm period 400,000 years ago.
A study led by Kiel University reconstructs the ice sheet's response during a warm period 400,000 years ago.
The West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) is one of the most dynamic regions of the Antarctic continent. Much of its bed lies below sea level, making the region particularly sensitive to ocean warming. Understanding the development of the WAIS is central to anticipating future sea level changes. If the WAIS were to melt completely, global sea levels could rise by more than four meters. An international research team led by Kiel University (CAU) has now systematically investigated for the first time how the WAIS responded to temperature increases in the Southern Ocean during a natural warm period, Marine Isotope Stage 11 (MIS 11), about 400,000 years ago. The results, published in the journal Nature Communications, and provide valuable insights into the conditions under which the WAIS became unstable in the geological past and what parallels this could have for current and future warming scenarios.
"Our results show that the West Antarctic Ice Sheet has been sensitive to warming in the Southern Ocean, especially in the circumpolar deep water, in the past," says first author Lena Jebasinski, a doctoral researcher at the Institute of Geosciences at Kiel University. "This is an important warning signal, as we are currently observing similar trends in temperature development in the region, which could jeopardize the stability of the Antarctic ice sheet in the short or long term. The conditions at that time and today's developments show clear parallels."
Read More: Christian-Albrecht University of Kiel
Image: Prof. Dr. Gisela Winkler (left), Columbia Climate School, Columbia University (New York/USA) and Prof. Dr. Julia Gottschalk, Institute of Geosciences at Kiel University, examine a sediment core obtained during IODP Expedition 383 with the JOIDES Resolution. (Credit: © Tim Fulton)