The Conversation

How solar heat drives rapid melting of parts of Antarctica's largest ice shelf

Author: Craig Stewart, Marine Physicist, National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research

Scientists measured the thickness and basal melt of the Ross Ice Shelf.Supplied, CC BY-ND

The ocean that surrounds Antarctica plays a crucial role in regulating the mass balance of the continent’s ice cover. We now know that the thinning of ice that affects nearly a quarter of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet is clearly linked to the ocean.

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