A data set of monthly freshwater fluxes from the Greenland ice sheet’s marine-terminating glaciers on a glacier–basin scale 2010–2020

• Published in: GEUS Bulletin
• Main Authors: Karlsson, Nanna B., Mankoff, Kenneth D., Solgaard, Anne M., Larsen, Signe H., How, Penelope R., Fausto, Robert S., Sørensen, Louise S.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 2023
• Subjects: /dk/atira/pure/sustainabledevelopmentgoals/life_below_water; name=SDG 14 - Life Below Water; /dk/atira/pure/sustainabledevelopmentgoals/life_on_land; name=SDG 15 - Life on Land; Greenland; glacier; greenlandic; Ice Sheet
• Online Access: https://orbit.dtu.dk/en/publications/ff6395cf-1635-4fd5-9821-e0ae751461f5; https://doi.org/10.34194/geusb.v53.8338; https://backend.orbit.dtu.dk/ws/files/335480688/GEUSB_A_8338_O.pdf

The loss of mass from the Greenland ice sheet causes an increasing influx of freshwater to the Greenlandic fjords and the oceans. Freshwater fluxes from marine-terminating glaciers are important to understand fjord circulation and ecosystem dynamics. Here, we present a data set constructed by reformulating existing products into a shared temporal and spatial framework. We combine three publicly available data sets of solid-ice discharge (iceberg), liquid-surface runoff (runoff) and basal melt to present a cohesive overview of the flow of freshwater from marine-terminating glaciers to the Greenlandic fjords. We also calculate glacier drainage basins and compare our findings to previous studies showing that drainage-basin sizes may vary considerably depending on how they were reconstructed. The data set will be a valuable asset to oceanographic, glaciological and marine biological research activities.