Greenland melts and fractures at an alarming speed. New satellite observations show that the crevices that stream its ice cream cap grow and multiply much faster than expected. Published in Nature Geoscience, a study by researchers from the University of Durham, Ohio State University and the University of Washington reveals that these cracks, by facilitating the flow of cast iron to the base Ice glacial, accelerate the disintegration of the INLANDESIS.
Disturbing acceleration of glacial cracks
The present study therefore highlights a hitherto underestimated phenomenon: the capacity of crevices to amplify the dynamics of melting the ice cap. These cracks are not simple surface marks. They play a structuring role in the mechanics of glaciers.
The mechanisms behind this acceleration are directly linked to the combined effects of atmospheric and oceanic warming. The increase in temperatures promotes cast iron, the water of which infiltrates crevices and lubricates the base of the glacier. This thus reduces friction with the rocky substrate and accelerates the flow of ice to the ocean. In addition, the warming of coastal waters weakens the glacial fronts, intensifying the processes of fracturing and calving. The study also stresses that these crevices play a fundamental role in the projections of the rise of waters. By facilitating the rapid evacuation of cast iron water and the fragmentation of glaciers, they could contribute to an elevation of the level of the seas faster and more important than expected by current models.
The researchers have exploited high -precision satellite data from the Arcticdem project, which provides digital land models with a resolution of 2 meters, allowing detailed map of the crevices. By comparing more than 8,000 three -dimensional cards of the glacial cap between 2016 and 2021, they measured the evolution of fractures through almost 89 % of the Greenland cast iron area. They found a much faster progression than in previous decades. “” The most surprising is the speed of the phenomenon », Underlines Tom Chudley, of the University of Durham. “” What once took decades now occurs in five years ».
Fractures unequally distributed according to the Greenland region
Satellite observations show that on average, the total volume of crevices increased by 4.3 % between 2016 and 2021, but this value masks significant regional disparities. In the sectors where glaciers throw themselves directly into the ocean, the so-called “-term” glaciers, notably the south-east and the center-east of Greenland, the crevices have experienced spectacular expansion, reaching a 25 % increase In volume between 2016 and 2021. These sectors are already vulnerable to warmer ocean currents.
This increase is explained by the acceleration of the ice flow, stimulated by higher temperatures of air and ocean waters which weaken the ice fronts. As these high-time glaciers are thinning, their structure becomes more vulnerable to internal tensions. This causes the opening of new cracks and the enlargement of those already present. This process creates a vicious circle where the increase in crevices promotes the disintegration of glaciers, thus accelerating their flow towards the sea.
Conversely, in the central-west sector, which includes the Sermeq Kujalleq glacier (Jakobshavn isbræ), the crevices decreased by 14 % over the same period. This slowdown is attributed to a temporary thickening of the glacier. The latter reduced the mechanical constraints responsible for the formation of cracks. However, this trend already seems to be reversed. The study stresses that Sermeq Kujalleq begins to go back to thinning and accelerating his flow, a sign that the closure of the crevices observed in recent years could be only a transient phenomenon. A resumption of fracturing in this strategic region could have cascade repercussions, by facilitating the rupture of the glacial platforms and by amplifying the mass losses of the Groenland cap, with a direct impact on the elevation of the level of the seas.
A direct impact of Greenland on elevation of sea level
Since 1992, Greenland's melting has contributed to 14 mm elevation of sea level. And the most recent projections indicate that this contribution could reach 30 cm by 2100. More alarming, if the current trend of warming persist, scientists believe that the total melting of Greenland and Antarctica could lead to an elevation of 12 to 20 meters from the ocean level on several millennia.
Evolution of crevasse fields from Arcticdem bands, at the head of the Anorituup Kangerlua fjord, between 2016 and 2021. © T. Chaudley et al., 2025
The problem is very worrying. Indeed, these new data reveal the existence of dynamic instability mechanisms still poorly integrated into current climatic models. “” Several of our large -scale models find it difficult to anticipate these instabilities, which could in themselves train up to 1 meter of the water rise by 2100 and 10 meters by 2300 “Warn Chudley.
The study also highlights a direct link between accelerating the flow of glaciers and the expansion of crevices. In the sectors where the ice rate increased between 2016 and 2021, the crevices were widely enlarged. This fact indicates that the dynamics of the glaciers play a major role in the process of fragmentation of the cap. In other words, the faster the ice moves, the more it cracks. And the more she cracks, the more she accelerates her own disintegration.
Better plan to anticipate better
Faced with these observations, scientists insist on the urgency to improve climate and sea level projection models. The study benefited from the high -resolution digital models of the Arcticdem. They offer an unprecedented three -dimensional vision of crevices and their temporal evolution. This approach opens the way to better integration of fracturing dynamics in climatic predictions.
A, Evolution of the volume of crevices between 2016 and 2021. B, Evolution of the average annual flow between periods 2011-2016 and 2017-2021. HMB, Harald Moltke Bræ; SKSG, Sermeq Kujalleq (Grand Glacier); Skji, Sermeq Kujalleq (Jakobshavn isbræ). © T. Chaudley et al., 2025
Researchers also call for continuous monitoring and the integration of this new data into adaptation strategies. “” We absolutely must better anticipate the elevation of sea level in order to plan and adapt our infrastructure “Insists Chudley.
While 2024 was the first year when the average global temperature exceeded 1.5 ° C compared to the pre -industrial era, this study once again highlights the urgency of a coordinated climate action. Greenland cracks are not just a glacial phenomenon. They are also the visible beginnings of an upheaval that threatens coastlines around the world.
Source: Chudley, T. R., Howat, IM, King, MD et al., “” “Increased Crevassing Across Accelerating Greenland Ice Sheet Margins”. Nat. Geosci. (2025).
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