Greenland's Helheim Glacier Surrounded By Warm Ocean Water A Full 2,000 Feet Below The Surface
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NASA took CNN on a dramatic flight over Helheim -- one of the largest glaciers on Greenland and the fastest flowing on the eastern edge of the island. Helheim, named after the realm of the dead in Norse mythology, is majestic, standing at more than four miles wide and roughly the height of the Statue of Liberty.
As our plane approached Helheim, the scientists spotted an ice-free "lake" at the very front of the glacier, something they said they don't see often. The probes also brought back troubling data -- Helheim was surrounded by warm water along its entire depth, more than 2,000 feet below the surface.
"It's very rare anywhere on the planet to see 700 meters of no temperature variation, normally we find colder waters in the upper hundred meters or so, but right in front of the glacier it's warm all the way up," said Ian Fenty, climate scientist at NASA. "These warm waters now are able to be in direct contact with the ice over its entire face, supercharging the melting."
Helheim has become famous in recent years as it has been retreating at a stunning rate. In 2017, the glacier lost a whopping two miles, and a year later scientists from New York University captured a miles-long ice column break off the glacier's front. The melt doesn't seem to be slowing this year either. "It retreats by many meters per day, it's tens of meters per day. You can probably set your iPhone on timelapse and actually see it go by," Willis says as the data flashes up on his phone screen.
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https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/19/weather/greenland-nasa-climate-battle-intl/index.html
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