We know there were animals during Earth’s chilliest era. The question is, What did they look like?
glaciers & ice sheets
Glacial Ice Offers Polar Bears a Precarious Climate Refuge
An isolated polar bear population in southeastern Greenland survives in fjords, despite spotty sea ice. But this pocket of bears is not a sign of how the species could be saved.
Underwater Sounds Help Reveal Extent of Glacial Calving
If a glacier calves into the Arctic Ocean, does it make a sound? Some scientists say yes and have devised a clever way to use those sounds to calculate the size of the fallen ice chunks.
Exploring a Warm Water Inflow Below an Antarctic Ice Shelf
Researchers guided an autonomous underwater submarine to capture the first direct observations of a warm water current flowing in below the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf in Antarctica.
Dissecting Ocean Dynamics in Greenland Fjords
Researchers explored the patterns and drivers of variability in fjords linking the Greenland Ice Sheet and the Atlantic Ocean using numerical simulations and in situ observations.
Surface Temperature Sets the Pace of Sea Level Rise
Reining in global mean sea level rise from land-ice wastage and ocean thermal expansion requires reducing global mean surface temperatures to near-preindustrial values.
A Close Look at Melting Below Antarctica’s Largest Ice Shelf
Radar data reveal where, when, and how fast the base of the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf has been losing mass in recent years.
Seafloor Reveals a Period of Rapid Retreat for Thwaites Glacier
New high-resolution seafloor imagery shows a series of delicate ridges produced by the glacier’s front as it bobbed daily with the tides, revealing a recent period of rapid retreat.New high-resolution seafloor imagery shows a series of delicate ridges produced by the glacier’s front as it bobbed daily with the tides, revealing a recent period of rapid retreat.
Arctic Glaciers, a Peruvian Volcano, and a Russian Famine
A team studying Russian glaciers found evidence that a volcanic eruption in southern Peru changed the planet’s climate at the beginning of the 17th century.
Melting Below the Pine Island Ice Shelf Minds the Gap
New research shows that increased calving from West Antarctica’s Pine Island Ice Shelf will likely drive increased circulation of warm water—and melting—below the ice.