Scientists have recently discovered a previously-undetected phenomenon in Greenland territory, which has raised their eyebrows.
In the recent first-ever activity, a massive flood of subglacial lakewater burst through the ice sheet, unleashing 90 billion litres of floodwaters across its surface.
The findings were reported in the research paper published in the journal Nature Geoscience. According to the researchers, this unprecedented phenomenon hints at the fierce power being stored in the meltwater which lurks beneath the thick sheet of ice.
In this study, the researchers used multiple satellite sources to show the forceful activity of subglacial flood forced its way upward from the bed, tearing the ice sheets apart, and bursting through the surface.
The burst was triggered by the rapid drainage of a subglacial lake, where the ice was expected to be frozen.
According to findings, the released meltwater was the equivalent of 9 hours of water gushing over the Niagara Falls at its peak flow. Consequently, the massive release caused the fractured area of ice roughly twice the size of Central Park to appear.
The sudden outburst of copious amounts of water from Greenland has alarmed the scientists, prompting them to take climate change into consideration.
Jade Bowling, lead author and Lancaster University PhD said: “The existence of subglacial lakes beneath the Greenland Ice Sheet is still relatively a recent discovery. And according to our study, there is still much we don’t know about how they evolve and how they can impact on the ice sheet system.”
“When we first observed this, because it was so unexpected, we thought there was an issue with our data. However, as we dug deeper into the analysis, it became clear that what we were observing was the aftermath of a huge flood of water escaping from underneath the sea,” Bowling added.
The researchers are determined to find out the real cause and effects this phenomenon has on the area by pursuing further research.
