What inspired you to get into polar or cryospheric research? Perhaps it was a passion for the outdoors, a drive to protect the environment for the people and animals that live there, or a fascination with wild places. For me, it was all three – and the more I learned about Antarctic climate science, the more I realised that the polar regions are vital to the functioning of a healthy planet, and so ...[Read More]
Did you know… about the fluctuating past of north-east Greenland?
Fig. 1: Map of the north-east sector of Greenland showing the location of the North East Greenland Ice Stream (NEGIS) with its three outlet glaciers (Nioghalvfjerdsfjorden (79N), Zachariae Isstrøm (ZI) and Storstrømmen Glacier (SG)), and the offshore bathymetry and the position of its margin reconstructed for the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) (dotted black line) [Credit: Ilaria Tabone].
Recent geological data shows that during a very cold phase of our Earth’s climate (between 40,000 and 26,000 years ago), there was a huge expansion of polar ice sheets, yet the north-eastern part of the Greenland ice sheet was less extensive than today. How could this have occurred? In this post we shed light on the potential causes of this ice sheet behaviour. What do we know about present- ...[Read More]
For Dummies – How do wildfires impact permafrost? [OR.. a story of ice and fire]
Wildfire – like the ones observed in the Northwest Territories, Canada in 2014 (Fig. 1) – is a natural part of permafrost landscapes, but fires are expected to get more frequent and severe as the climate warms. This could accelerate the degradation of permafrost, with negative consequences on the local and global scale! We have a pretty good understanding of how permafrost responds to fire t ...[Read More]
Ice-hot news: The IPCC Special Report on the Oceans and the Cryosphere under Climate Change
[Credit: Martin Robles on Unsplash]
You have probably heard the name “Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)” mentioned frequently over the last few years. The IPCC is the United Nations body for assessing science related to climate change and it publishes global assessment reports on this topic every 5 to 10 years. Due to the current urgency of the global climate crisis and the need for more information by decision makers ...[Read More]
Cryo-adventures – Behind the scenes of cryo-fieldwork
Figure 1: On top of Svínafellsjökull glacier, Iceland 2018 [Credit: Saule Akhmetkaliyeva].
As the Arctic is warming faster than the global average, Arctic glaciers are rapidly melting. My research is about the fate of glacial organic carbon when the ice containing it melts. To investigate these processes, I travelled to several glaciers, an activity full of challenges… and rewards! My research Glacier ice covers about 11% of Earth’s land surface, and contains within it a globally ...[Read More]
Did you know? – Proglacial lakes accelerate glacier retreat!
In a global context, New Zealand’s small mountain glaciers often get overlooked and yet they are a beautiful part of New Zealand’s landscape. They are the water towers for the South Island and an essential part of its tourism, thanks to a few undeniable heroes (Frans Josef and Fox Glaciers), but sadly, they may not be as prominent in the future. In this post we review the state of modern glaciatio ...[Read More]
Cryo-Comm – Degrading Terrains
Outside the Murtèl-Corvatsch monitoring site used in this study [Credit: Global Terrestrial Network for Permafrost ]
Beneath dusted peaks of mountain dew A dense and rigid backcloth skulks, Worn down and compacted with Fractured decades of aged powder; Trodden into rocky outcrops To lie barrenly against This frozen, ancient soil. Subtle shifts of these forgotten rocks Ripple across subterranean sediments, Dislodging once-stable foundations That now cascade like an ocean; Echoing across the fragile firmame ...[Read More]
Cryo-Adventures – The Glacial Isostatic Adjustment (GIA) Training School: Personal and Virtual Attendance
The 2019 Glacial Isostatic Adjustment (GIA) Training School was hosted by Lantmäteriet (the Swedish Mapping, Cadastral, and Land Registration Authority) in Gävle, Sweden from 26 – 30 August. GIA is the response of the solid Earth to past and present-day changes of glaciers and ice sheets. Research interests in GIA span the geosciences: from regional planning applications (reclamation/flooding of l ...[Read More]
Cryo-Comm – Capturing Ice
Marlo Garnsworthy’s artwork is inspired by her time spent on the rough seas of the Antarctic [Credit: Marlo Garnsworthy].
In this week’s blogpost, author, editor, artist, and outreach expert Marlo Garnsworthy gives some insights into her recent trip to Iceberg Alley, gives you some tips on how to communicate icy science, and shows us her inspirational artwork. If you’re reading this, ice may be on your mind. Ice is surely on mine. During my day job as a creative and editor, I dip frequently into Twitter for the lates ...[Read More]
Climate Change & Cryosphere – Summer 2019: The year that the Arctic was sunburned
June, July and August 2019 saw extensive heat waves across Europe, with air temperatures reaching above 40°C in many countries. In response, record breaking ice melt was observed in Greenland and wildfires in Siberia, Alaska, Arctic Canada and Greenland occurred. A particularly dry and warm summer was responsible for hemisphere-wide changes to the cryosphere. In this week’s post, we will review so ...[Read More]