Greenland is less parts rock and more parts ice than previously thought.
Greenland, the world's largest island and home to its second largest
ice sheet, is a land of ragged cliffs, breathtaking fjords and
unimaginable amounts of water on either side of the freezing point.
It has also, until now, been something of a mystery.
Greenland drew some pointed attention during the world wars and the Cold War, thanks to its strategic location.
But it is only today, thanks to rapid climate change, that scientists
are beginning to take the full measure of all the earth, rock and ice
in a place that's now raising seas by nearly a millimetre every single
year.
Two
new studies of Greenland, using sophisticated technologies and large
scientific teams to pull together and process the data, have now gone
further in taking the full measure of the island through that
ever-so-basic scientific act: mapping.
Greenland ice melt is already predicted to raise sea levels, so the discovery of more ice is worrying.
The first, a comprehensive seabed mapping project, relying in part on
new data from NASA's OMG ("Oceans Melting Greenland") mission,
concludes that the Greenland ice sheet is far more exposed to the
planet's warming oceans than previously known - and has more ice to give
up than, until now, has been recognised.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/97568228/scientists-mapping-greenland-have-found-an-ice-surprise-but-its-not-a-nice-surprise
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