#Antarctica is now losing about 160 billion tonnes of ice a year to ocean- twice as much as when the continent was last surveyed, scientists say. A team of scientists from the #UK Centre for Polar Observation and Modelling, led by researchers at University of Leeds, have produced first complete assessment of Antarctic ice sheet elevation change. On an average West Antarctica lost 134 gigatonnes of ice, East Antarctica 3 gigatonnes, and the Antarctic Peninsula 23 gigatonnes in each year between 2010 & 2013- a total loss of 159 gigatonnes each year. The polar ice sheets are a major contributor to global sea level rise and, when combined, the Antarctic losses detected by CryoSat-2 are enough to raise global sea levels by 0.45 millimetres each year alone.
Posted on: Tue, 20 May 2014 09:17:52 +0000