What would happens if Thwaites glacier melts?

But if the Thwaites Glacier were to melt entirely, scientists have estimated it would drive sea levels up by more than 25 inches. That’s enough to swamp portions of the Thai capital Bangkok, as well as New Orleans, and cause more frequent flooding in places like New York City.

Why is it called the doomsday glacier?

The nickname ‘Antarctica’s doomsday glacier’ is given to Thwaites because if the ice shelf collapses, the glacier and the enormous volumes of ice upstream that funnel into the glacier will no longer be restrained from accelerating into the ocean.

Does Antarctica have glaciers?

Antarctic glaciers terminate on land or in the sea, as floating ice shelves or grounded or floating outlet glaciers. The Antarctic Ice Sheet contains 25,400,000 km3 of ice, which, if it melted, would be equivalent to a sea level rise of 58 m[1].

How much ice is there in Antarctica?

It covers an area of almost 14 million square kilometres (5.4 million square miles) and contains 26.5 million cubic kilometres (6,400,000 cubic miles) of ice. A cubic kilometer of ice weighs approximately one metric gigaton, meaning that the ice sheet weighs 26,500,000 gigatons.

What happens when a glacier collapses?

If an ice shelf collapses, the backpressure disappears. The glaciers that fed into the ice shelf speed up, flowing more quickly out to sea. Glaciers and ice sheets rest on land, so once they flow into the ocean, they contribute to sea level rise.

How much would the Thwaites Glacier raise sea level?

All the water in the Thwaites Glacier would raise sea levels by 2 feet — but if its collapse triggers nearby glaciers to fall, the global sea level could rise by up to 10 feet, Scambos said.

Why are glaciers collapsing?

Scientists attributed rapid ice shelf collapse to warmer air and water temperatures, as well as increased melt on the ice shelf surface. Retreating sea ice may also play a role. Warm air melts the ice shelf surface, forming ponds of meltwater.