A Reconciled Estimate of Glacier Contributions to Sea Level Rise: 2003 to 2009

Alex S. Gardner; Geir Moholdt; J. Graham Cogley; Bert Wouters; Anthony A. Arendt; John Wahr; Etienne Berthier; Regine Hock; W. Tad Pfeffer; Georg Kaser; Stefan R. M. Ligtenberg; Tobias Bolch; Martin J. Sharp; Jon Ove Hagen; Michiel R. van den Broeke; Frank Paul

doi:10.1126/science.1234532

A Reconciled Estimate of Glacier Contributions to Sea Level Rise: 2003 to 2009

Alex S. Gardner^*
, Geir Moholdt
, J. Graham Cogley
, Bert Wouters
, Anthony A. Arendt
, John Wahr
, Etienne Berthier
, Regine Hock
, W. Tad Pfeffer
, Georg Kaser
, Stefan R. M. Ligtenberg
, Tobias Bolch
, Martin J. Sharp
, Jon Ove Hagen
, Michiel R. van den Broeke
, Frank Paul

^*Corresponding author for this work

University of Colorado Boulder
University of Bristol
University of Alaska Fairbanks
Utrecht University
University of Zurich
University of Oslo
Clark University
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
Scripps Research Institute
Trent University
CNRS Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
Uppsala University
University of Innsbruck
University of Massachusetts Medical School
University of Alberta

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

Abstract

Glaciers distinct from the Greenland and Antarctic Ice Sheets are losing large amounts of water to the world's oceans. However, estimates of their contribution to sea level rise disagree. We provide a consensus estimate by standardizing existing, and creating new, mass-budget estimates from satellite gravimetry and altimetry and from local glaciological records. In many regions, local measurements are more negative than satellite-based estimates. All regions lost mass during 2003-2009, with the largest losses from Arctic Canada, Alaska, coastal Greenland, the southern Andes, and high-mountain Asia, but there was little loss from glaciers in Antarctica. Over this period, the global mass budget was -259 +/- 28 gigatons per year, equivalent to the combined loss from both ice sheets and accounting for 29 +/- 13% of the observed sea level rise.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	852-857
Number of pages	6
Journal	Science
Volume	340
Issue number	6134
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1234532
Publication status	Published - 17 May 2013

Funding

We thank K. Matsuo, M. Huss, T. Jacob, A. Kaab, S. Luthcke, A. Willsman, M. Willis, and I. Sasgen for updated or early access to regional estimates of glacier mass change; M. Flanner, T. Jacob, and S. Swenson for helping with analysis of the hydrologic models; A. Bliss, N. Molg, C. Nuth, P. Rastner, M. Willis, and G. Wolken for providing regional areas of ocean-terminating glacier basins; J. Lenaerts and J. van Angelen for providing RACMO2 output for Greenland and Antarctica; J. Box and C. Chen for making available Greenland Ice Sheet snowline estimates; G. A, R. Riva, and P. Stocchi for providing glacial isostatic adjustment models; and C. Starr and the NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center Scientific Visualization Studio for help with Fig. 1. This work was supported by funding to A. S. G. and M. J. S. from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, G. M. from NASA award NNX09AE52G, B. W. from a Marie Curie International Outgoing Fellowship within the 7th European Community Framework Programme (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-IOF-301260), E. B. from the TOSCA program of the French Space Agency (CNES), R. H. from NASA grants NNX11AF41G and NNX11A023G and NSF grant ANT-1043649, G. K. from Austrian Science Fund (FWF) grant P25362-N26, T. B. from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, BO 3199/2-1), and F. P. from European Space Agency project Glaciers_cci (4000101778/10/I-AM).

Keywords

ICESAT LASER ALTIMETRY
MASS-BALANCE
CAPS
GREENLAND
AMERICA

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Gardner, A. S., Moholdt, G., Cogley, J. G., Wouters, B., Arendt, A. A., Wahr, J., Berthier, E., Hock, R., Pfeffer, W. T., Kaser, G., Ligtenberg, S. R. M., Bolch, T., Sharp, M. J., Hagen, J. O., van den Broeke, M. R., & Paul, F. (2013). A Reconciled Estimate of Glacier Contributions to Sea Level Rise: 2003 to 2009. Science, 340(6134), 852-857. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1234532

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title = "A Reconciled Estimate of Glacier Contributions to Sea Level Rise: 2003 to 2009",

abstract = "Glaciers distinct from the Greenland and Antarctic Ice Sheets are losing large amounts of water to the world's oceans. However, estimates of their contribution to sea level rise disagree. We provide a consensus estimate by standardizing existing, and creating new, mass-budget estimates from satellite gravimetry and altimetry and from local glaciological records. In many regions, local measurements are more negative than satellite-based estimates. All regions lost mass during 2003-2009, with the largest losses from Arctic Canada, Alaska, coastal Greenland, the southern Andes, and high-mountain Asia, but there was little loss from glaciers in Antarctica. Over this period, the global mass budget was -259 +/- 28 gigatons per year, equivalent to the combined loss from both ice sheets and accounting for 29 +/- 13\% of the observed sea level rise.",

keywords = "ICESAT LASER ALTIMETRY, MASS-BALANCE, CAPS, GREENLAND, AMERICA",

author = "Gardner, \{Alex S.\} and Geir Moholdt and Cogley, \{J. Graham\} and Bert Wouters and Arendt, \{Anthony A.\} and John Wahr and Etienne Berthier and Regine Hock and Pfeffer, \{W. Tad\} and Georg Kaser and Ligtenberg, \{Stefan R. M.\} and Tobias Bolch and Sharp, \{Martin J.\} and Hagen, \{Jon Ove\} and \{van den Broeke\}, \{Michiel R.\} and Frank Paul",

year = "2013",

month = may,

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doi = "10.1126/science.1234532",

language = "English",

volume = "340",

pages = "852--857",

journal = "Science",

issn = "0036-8075",

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T2 - 2003 to 2009

AU - Gardner, Alex S.

AU - Moholdt, Geir

AU - Cogley, J. Graham

AU - Wouters, Bert

AU - Arendt, Anthony A.

AU - Wahr, John

AU - Berthier, Etienne

AU - Hock, Regine

AU - Pfeffer, W. Tad

AU - Kaser, Georg

AU - Ligtenberg, Stefan R. M.

AU - Bolch, Tobias

AU - Sharp, Martin J.

AU - Hagen, Jon Ove

AU - van den Broeke, Michiel R.

AU - Paul, Frank

PY - 2013/5/17

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N2 - Glaciers distinct from the Greenland and Antarctic Ice Sheets are losing large amounts of water to the world's oceans. However, estimates of their contribution to sea level rise disagree. We provide a consensus estimate by standardizing existing, and creating new, mass-budget estimates from satellite gravimetry and altimetry and from local glaciological records. In many regions, local measurements are more negative than satellite-based estimates. All regions lost mass during 2003-2009, with the largest losses from Arctic Canada, Alaska, coastal Greenland, the southern Andes, and high-mountain Asia, but there was little loss from glaciers in Antarctica. Over this period, the global mass budget was -259 +/- 28 gigatons per year, equivalent to the combined loss from both ice sheets and accounting for 29 +/- 13% of the observed sea level rise.

AB - Glaciers distinct from the Greenland and Antarctic Ice Sheets are losing large amounts of water to the world's oceans. However, estimates of their contribution to sea level rise disagree. We provide a consensus estimate by standardizing existing, and creating new, mass-budget estimates from satellite gravimetry and altimetry and from local glaciological records. In many regions, local measurements are more negative than satellite-based estimates. All regions lost mass during 2003-2009, with the largest losses from Arctic Canada, Alaska, coastal Greenland, the southern Andes, and high-mountain Asia, but there was little loss from glaciers in Antarctica. Over this period, the global mass budget was -259 +/- 28 gigatons per year, equivalent to the combined loss from both ice sheets and accounting for 29 +/- 13% of the observed sea level rise.

KW - ICESAT LASER ALTIMETRY

KW - MASS-BALANCE

KW - CAPS

KW - GREENLAND

KW - AMERICA

U2 - 10.1126/science.1234532

DO - 10.1126/science.1234532

M3 - Article

SN - 0036-8075

VL - 340

SP - 852

EP - 857

JO - Science

JF - Science

IS - 6134

ER -

A Reconciled Estimate of Glacier Contributions to Sea Level Rise: 2003 to 2009

Abstract

Funding

Keywords

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