News
The Complex Life of Ice Sheets
AWI glaciologist Angelika Humbert works on icesheet modelling. Her studies have shown that the ice masses in Greenland and Antarctica are actually changing even faster and more dramatically than previous models have suggested. In her TEDx Talk, she explains the causes and consequences of these changes and provides exciting insights into her work.
Antarctica
The formation of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet was very different than previously believed
Roughly 35 million years ago, Earth cooled rapidly. At roughly the same time, the Drake Passage formed between South America and the Antarctic, paving the way for the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. Thanks to these two factors, Antarctica was soon completely covered in ice. As a study from the Alfred Wegener Institute now shows, this massive glaciation was delayed in at least one region.
Nature Study
Intense glacial melting confirms changed wind patterns in the Arctic
Over the past twenty years, glaciers in northern Canada and on Spitsbergen have lost a total of 44 billion metric tons of ice a year. To date, the melting in these regions has been influenced by powerful westerly winds. A team of international researchers, led by the Alfred Wegener Institute, has now determined that both regions are characterised by increased, alternating inflows of cold air from the north and warm air from the south.