The ice in Greenland melts from bottom to top, faster than ever

According to CNN, the above conclusions were drawn from research published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Ice in Greenland.

The Cambridge researchers collaborated with scientists at the University of California Santa Cruz, as well as the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland, on this study. The study focused on the Store Glacier, a large part of the Greenland Ice Sheet.

Accordingly, unprecedented melting rates occur at the bottom of the ice sheet and are caused by a large amount of water flowing down from the surface.

As meltwater pours downward, gravitational potential energy converts to kinetic energy, which will eventually warm the water as it settles at the bottom of the ice sheet.

In the process, the study found that the ice in Greenland generates more energy than the 10 largest hydroelectric dams in the world combined. Mr Poul Christoffersen, senior scientist at the University of Cambridge, said: 'However, the heat generated by running water down is not used to generate electricity. Instead, it melts the ice'.

Unprecedented melting rates occur at the bottom of the Greenland ice sheet.

During the warmer months, the ice melts and forms lakes and streams on the surface of the ice sheet. Some of the water flows to the bottom of the ice sheet through major cracks and faults. These marks form in the ice when there is movement and pressure.

That amount of water contributes to more melting of the ice at the bottom, and it, like lubricants, promotes faster flow, increasing the amount of ice drifting into the ocean.

According to Christoffersen, when studying ice and glaciers melting from the bottom, studies tend to focus on external heat sources.

He said: 'But what we haven't really looked at is the heat generated by the meltwater itself. There's a lot of energy stored in the standing water on the surface of the ice, and as it flows down, the energy has to go somewhere'.

The ice in Greenland is melting at the surface faster than it is snowing.

The Greenland ice sheet is the second largest in the world and is the biggest cause of global sea level rise.

Mr Christoffersen said: 'The ice in Greenland is melting at the surface faster than it is snowing, so the ice is losing quite a bit because of the melting process. In a significant part of the ice sheet, we see melting rates maybe up to 5 or 6cm a day'.

However, directly determining conditions at the ice bottom about 1km above the surface is challenging, especially in Greenland, where glaciers are among the fastest moving in the world.

To measure the rate of melting, the researchers used an ice thickness measurement technique developed by the British Antarctic Survey. It's a method that has previously been used on floating ice sheets around Antarctica.