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Increased crevassing across accelerating Greenland Ice Sheet margins


Greenland-wide observations of crevasse volume and distribution suggest substantial increases in crevassing between 2016 and 2021 at marine-terminating sectors with accelerating ice flow.

Finally, the unique distribution of sector CW, with the bulk of crevassing between the 200–800 m AMSL elevation bands, reflects the dominance of large marine-terminating outlets with short trunks and high calving fronts such as Sermeq Kujalleq (Jakobshavn Isbræ; SKJI). To show this, we extract 2016–2021 annual crevasse volume at six select Greenlandic outlets where data availability is sufficient: three where substantial acceleration occurs over the time period (Anorituup Kangerlua fjord, KIV Steenstrups and Kjer Glacier); and three where stable or decelerating trends are prevalent (Umiammakku Sermiat, SKSG and Rink Isbræ) (Supplementary Fig. These data support our assumption that interannual variation is low and dynamic response occurs on timescales greater than one year (for example, KIV Steenstrups and Kjer Glacier both continue to increase in volume in 2021 despite peaking in velocity in 2020), and align with previous studies on this topic 44, 68.

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Greenland Ice Sheet

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