“Antarctica’s Thwaites Glacier  is what scientists call the weak underbelly of Antarctica. It is closely studied because if its melting starts accelerating, it has the potential to significantly elevate the sea level, and that amount of fresh water going into the ocean would affect ocean circulation, cause intense coastal flooding, and also impact ocean ecosystems. Of key importance, though, are the changes in the ice shelf holding the glacier in place. These floating shelves of ice are connected to the glacier and extend out into the ocean. As air and ocean temperatures get warmer, the ice shelf can weaken, fracture, and ultimately collapse, losing its ability to hold the glacier in place. 

“Thus far, it’s been difficult to measure fractures on ice shelves, as there is limited data available. But we are using a satellite tool developed by NASA that is capable of measuring topography and allows us to look at the vertical structure of ice shelf fractures. It uses green lasers to capture high resolution measurements of how ice shelf fractures are changing over time. The data, collected from 2018 to 2024, shows us a range of fracture types across the Antarctic landscape as it is changing.

“These measurements will help us come up with better models to predict the complex behavior of ice shelf fractures and the instability of ice from which they originate. That will then help us improve ice sheet models and, in turn, improve the projections for sea level rise.”