Ice flux evolution in fast flowing areas of the Greenland ice sheet over the 20th and 21st centuries

• Published in: Journal of Glaciology
• Main Authors: DANIELE PEANO, FLORENCE COLLEONI, AURÉLIEN QUIQUET, SIMONA MASINA
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge University Press 2017
• Subjects: climate change; ice-sheet mass balance; ice-sheet modelling; ice streams; Environmental sciences; GE1-350; Meteorology. Climatology; QC851-999; Greenland; East Greenland; glacier; Ice Sheet; Jakobshavn; Journal of Glaciology; Petermann glacier
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2017.12; https://doaj.org/article/035cd68f5e4c4f719fd1067f73cc15f6

This study investigates the evolution of Greenland ice sheet flux focusing on five of the main fast flowing regions (Petermann glacier, North East Greenland Ice Stream, Kangerdlugssuaq glacier, Helheim glacier and Jakobshavn glacier) in response to 20th and 21st century climate change. A hybrid (shallow ice and shallow shelf) ice-sheet model (ISM) is forced with the combined outputs of a set of seven CMIP5 models and the regional climate model MAR. The ISM simulates the present-day ice velocity pattern, topography and surface mass balance (SMB) in good agreement with observations. Except for the Kangerdlugssuaq glacier, over the 21st century all the fast-flowing areas have exhibited a decrease in ice flux as a result of a negative SMB rather than dynamical changes. Only the fronts of Kangerdlugssuaq and Helheim glaciers have shown an interannual variability driven by dynamical rather than climate changes. Finally, the results predict a substantial inland ice margin retreat by the end of the 21st century, especially along the northern coasts.