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Greenland ice melting four times faster than in 2003; serious implications for sea level rise

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8 years ago

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Threat of rising seas submerging coastal regions and islands of the world is becoming more real and getting closer: after news of Antarctic ice melting six times faster than 40 years earlier, a new report finds that climate change is causing Greenland’s massive ice sheets to melt four times faster than in 2003 – just 15 years ago.

The study says that it may be “too late” to do anything about it.

The study published on Monday, Jan 21, in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences says this could have dire implications for the planet’s low lying islands and coastal cities, reports CNN.

Eight of the 10 largest cities in the world are near coasts, and 40 per cent to 50 per cent of the planet’s population live in areas vulnerable to rising seas, it said.

Michael Bevis, a professor of geodynamics at The Ohio State University and the lead author of the study, said the research found that humanity may have passed the point of no return when it comes to combating climate change, reported a news agency.

“The only thing we can do is adapt and mitigate further global warming… It’s too late for there to be no effect,” said Bevis.

“This is going to cause additional sea level rise. We are watching the ice sheet hit a tipping point.”

Greenland’s ice has historically melted in cycles due to natural weather phenomena, but rising temperatures have exacerbated the trend, said Bevis.

Greenland, the world’s biggest island, appears to have hit a tipping point around 2002-2003 when the ice loss rapidly accelerated, said lead author Michael Bevis, a geoscientist at Ohio State University.

Bevis and his co-authors found that by 2012, the rate of ice loss had accelerated to nearly four times what it was in 2003. They also found this acceleration largely took place in Greenland’s southwest.

Before this study, scientists understood Greenland to be one of the Earth’s major contributors to sea-level rise — mostly because of its glaciers. Researchers studying sea level rise often focus on Greenland’s southeast and northwest regions, home to large glaciers which see large icebergs break off and flow into the Atlantic Ocean, CNN reported. Those chunks then melt and cause sea levels to rise.

But most of this ice loss is from the land-fast ice sheet itself, not Greenland’s glaciers. The largest sustained ice loss from early 2003 to mid-2013 came from Greenland’s southwest region, which is mostly devoid of large glaciers.

These new findings, Bevis said, show that scientists need to be watching the island’s snowpack and ice fields more closely, especially in and near southwest Greenland, reported Phys.org.

The Greenland ice sheet is 10,000 feet thick in places and contains enough ice to raise sea levels 23 feet (7 meters), said a National Geographic report. These ice sheets have been melting at an “unprecedented” rate, 50 per cent higher than pre-industrial levels and 33 per cent above 20th-century levels.

In the 20th century, Greenland has lost around 9,000 billion tons of ice in total, accounting for 25 millimeters of sea-level rise. (It takes about 360 billion tons of ice to produce one millimeter of global sea-level rise.)

Global warming of just 1 degree C is the main driver behind this massive meltdown of the world’s ice.

All it takes to melt Greenland’s ice sheet is a surface temperature of 1 C and sunlight. “It used to be rare to get temperatures above 0 degrees on the ice sheet, but no longer,” Bevis said. And each degree above 1 C doubles the amount of ice melt.

However, the National Geographic report said, Greenland is dwarfed by the Antarctic ice sheet, which could raise sea level 57 meters if fully melted. Alarmingly, the Antarctic is also undergoing an accelerated melt down, losing six times as much ice as it was four decades ago, a January 14 study reported. Its ice loss averaged 252 billion tons a year over the past decade.

It’s the same story for western North America’s glaciers where ice loss quadrupled since the early 2000s to 12.3 billion tons annually, a recent study revealed. A similar trend is reported elsewhere. In Himalayas, which have the largest number of glaciers after the polar ice caps – more than thirty thousand sq. km of the Himalayan region is covered by the glaciers – the glaciers are disappearing faster every year, said a report, with some smaller glaciers now only half the size they were in the 1960s. Research on the subject, however, pointed out a Down to Earth report, is still disparate and disjointed. Even the number of glaciers, the total area they cover, and the total volume of water stored in them remains clouded in uncertainty.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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PM Modi hails ISRO after successful GSLV-F17 launch, calls it proud moment

PM Modi congratulated ISRO after GSLV-F17 successfully launched EOS-05, calling the achievement a proud moment for India.

Published

2 days ago

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September 4, 2026

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday congratulated the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) after the successful launch of the GSLV-F17 rocket carrying the EOS-05 Earth observation satellite, describing the achievement as a proud moment for the nation.

The GSLV-F17 lifted off at 2:55 a.m. IST from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh. The EOS-05 satellite was subsequently placed into its designated sub-geosynchronous transfer orbit.

PM Modi praises ISRO’s growing capabilities

In a post on X, PM Modi said the successful mission reflected the excellence, innovation and expanding capabilities of India’s space sector.

He also highlighted the growing partnership between ISRO and Indian industry, saying it was strengthening India’s space programme and expanding capabilities across the wider space ecosystem.

The prime minister described the successful launch of GSLV-F17 carrying EOS-05 as another outstanding achievement by ISRO and a matter of national pride.

EOS-05 strengthens earth observation capabilities

According to the report, EOS-05 is India’s first-ever imaging satellite from geosynchronous orbit. The satellite is designed to provide continuous observation of the country from an altitude of nearly 36,000 km above Earth.

The mission is expected to strengthen India’s earth observation capabilities and support advanced imaging and observation applications.

ISRO Chairman Dr V Narayanan expressed satisfaction with the mission, saying the satellite was precisely injected into its intended orbit.

Mission Director Thomas Kurian described the launch as a significant milestone for the GSLV programme. He said it was the 19th flight of the GSLV and noted that EOS-05 is the heaviest satellite the launch vehicle has placed into a geosynchronous transfer orbit or sub-GTO orbit.

GSLV-F17 launch vehicle details

The GSLV-F17 stands 51.7 metres tall and has an approximate liftoff mass of 420.5 tonnes.

Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh also congratulated the ISRO team following the successful mission. He described EOS-05 as a state-of-the-art Earth observation satellite capable of advanced imaging across visible, infrared, multispectral and hyperspectral bands.

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Latest Science News

Indian-origin astronaut Anil Menon begins first mission to International Space Station

Indian-origin NASA astronaut Anil Menon has launched aboard Soyuz MS-29 on his first mission to the International Space Station, where he is expected to spend around eight months conducting research.

Published

2 months ago

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July 14, 2026

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Indian-origin NASA astronaut Anil Menon has embarked on his first journey into space after successfully launching aboard Russia’s Soyuz MS-29 spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS).

The mission lifted off from the historic Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 8:17 PM on Tuesday. Menon was accompanied by Russian cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina as the three-member crew began their expedition to the orbiting laboratory.

Crew to spend about eight months aboard ISS

The Soyuz MS-29 spacecraft is expected to dock with the International Space Station a little over three hours after launch. Once aboard the ISS, the crew will carry out a range of scientific research and technology demonstration projects during their mission.

The expedition is scheduled to last approximately eight months, with the crew expected to return to Earth in 2027 after completing their planned activities in orbit.

Menon’s maiden spaceflight marks a significant milestone in his astronaut career as he joins the International Space Station crew for long-duration research and operational work.

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Latest Science News

Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla to meet PM Modi after return from historic space mission

Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla, who recently returned from the ISS as part of the Axiom-4 mission, will meet PM Modi this evening. Parliament will also hold a special discussion on his historic journey.

Published

1 year ago

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August 18, 2025

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Subhanshu shukla

Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, the first Indian to visit the International Space Station (ISS), will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi this evening at his official residence in New Delhi.

PM Modi to host meeting with astronaut

According to officials, the meeting at 7 Lok Kalyan Marg is expected to take place between 5 pm and 5:30 pm. Shukla, who arrived in India on Sunday, will also be part of the National Space Day celebrations scheduled for August 23.

Warm welcome in India

The astronaut was greeted at the airport by his family, Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, and hundreds of citizens waving the national flag. Shukla had been in the United States for a year, preparing for the Axiom-4 mission, which launched from Florida on June 25 and docked at the ISS the next day. He served as the mission’s pilot.

Emotional note from Shukla

Before his return, Shukla shared an emotional post on Instagram, expressing mixed feelings of leaving his space colleagues while being eager to meet his loved ones and people of India. He also quoted a song from the film Swades, which he had chosen as his anthem on the launch day.

Parliament session on India’s space journey

In honour of Shukla’s mission, the Lok Sabha is holding a special session today to discuss “India’s first astronaut aboard the ISS – critical role of space programme for Viksit Bharat by 2047.” Union minister Kiren Rijiju said the discussion would highlight the importance of India’s space achievements and future goals.

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