Linear response of the Greenland ice sheet's tidewater glacier terminus positions to climate. Issue 262 (5th April 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Fahrner, Dominik; Lea, James M.; Brough, Stephen; Mair, Douglas W. F.; Abermann, Jakob
• Is Part Of: Journal of Glaciology. Volume 67:Issue 262(2021)
• Page Start: 193
• Page End: 203
• Publication Date: 2021-04-05
• Subjects: Glacier discharge, -- ice and climate, -- ice dynamics, -- ice/ocean interactions
• DOI: 10.1017/jog.2021.13
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0022-1430

Abstract

Abstract: Gaining knowledge of tidewater glacier (TWG) margin evolution, solid ice flux and their responses to climate over large spatio-temporal scales provides valuable context for the projection of future Greenland ice sheet (GrIS) change. Although studies of sector-wide responses of TWGs exist, studies at an ice-sheet-wide scale have only just become feasible. Here, we present a dataset of 224 annual TWG margins for 1984–2017 ( n = 3801), showing that averaged over regional scales, normalised terminus change is linear. Regionally linear retreat trends were identified across most sectors of the GrIS starting in the mid-1990s, although in contrast to previous studies, the northeastern sector is shown to have experienced sustained retreat since the mid-1980s. Through cointegration analyses, individual glaciers are shown to have differing sensitivities to potential climate drivers, though on a sector-wide scale the northwest and southeast are shown to be especially sensitive to annual sea surface temperature and June–July–August air temperature, respectively. Although 92% of the analysed glaciers experience retreat across the GrIS, observed increases in absolute flux for the entire ice sheet can be explained by changes in just 11 of these TWGs.