SERMeQ model produces a realistic upper bound on calving retreat for 155 Greenland outlet glaciers
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2020GL090213.pdf
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Author(s)
Ultee, Lizz
Bassis, Jeremy N.
Date Issued
August 5, 2020
Journal
Geophysical Research Letters
Publisher
Wiley
Citation
Ultee, Lizz and Bassis, Jeremy N. 2020. "SERMeQ model produces a realistic upper bound on calving retreat for 155 Greenland outlet glaciers." Geophysical Research Letters.
Version
Final published version
Abstract
Abstract
The rate of land ice loss due to iceberg calving is a key source of variability among model
projections of the 21st century sea level rise. It is especially challenging to account for mass loss due to
iceberg calving in Greenland, where ice drains to the ocean through hundreds of outlet glaciers, many
smaller than typical model grid scale. Here, we apply a numerically efficient network flowline model
(SERMeQ) forced by surface mass balance to simulate an upper bound on decadal calving retreat of 155
grounded outlet glaciers of the Greenland Ice Sheet—resolving five times as many outlets as was
previously possible. We show that the upper bound holds for 91% of glaciers examined and that simulated
changes in terminus position correlate with observed changes. SERMeQ can provide a physically
consistent constraint on forward projections of the dynamic mass loss from the Greenland Ice Sheet
associated with different climate projections.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences
Terms of Use
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license
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DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1002/essoar.10502537.2
