According to research conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), ice shelves in the southern section of the Antarctic Peninsula are retreating due to climate change.

A press release issued early this week stated that every ice front in the southern part of the Antarctic Peninsula has been retreating overall from 1947 to 2009, with the most dramatic changes occurring since 1990. The USGS previously documented that the majority of ice fronts on the entire Peninsula have also retreated during the late 20th century and into the early 21st century.

The Antarctic ice sheet covers about 98% of the whole continent and is held in place by ice shelves attached to the continent. As the ice shelves break off, it is easier for outlet glaciers and ice streams from the ice sheet to flow into the sea. The transition of that ice from land to the ocean is what raises sea level.

“This research is part of a larger ongoing USGS project that is for the first time studying the entire Antarctic coastline in detail, and this is important because the Antarctic ice sheet contains 91 percent of Earth’s glacier ice,” said USGS scientist Jane Ferrigno.

“The loss of ice shelves is evidence of the effects of global warming. We need to be alert and continually understand and observe how our climate system is changing.”

pic2The Antarctic Peninsula is a region of rapid change due to the fact it is the farthest continental point from the South Pole. It is thought that its ice shelf loss could foreshadow changes in other parts of Antarctica and even the world if warming continues.

The Antarctic Peninsula’s southern section has five major ice shelves. One of these, the Wilkins shelf, has lost more than 4,000 square kilometers, an area larger than the state of Rhode Island, since 1998.

The USGS is still working with the British Antarctic Survey, monitoring and describing glacier extent and change over the whole planet using satellite imagery.

If you are interested in learning more, the report, “Coastal-Change and Glaciological Map of the Palmer Land Area, Antarctica: 1947—2009” and its accompanying map are available online.

Reprinted with permission from Celsias