Enormous Concealed Currents are Quickly Thawing Greenland’s Ice Sheets

A groundbreaking study published on November 14, 2025, reveals that massive hidden waves are accelerating the melting of Greenland’s glaciers. Researchers utilized a 10-kilometer fiber-optic cable placed on the seafloor near the Eqalorutsit Kangilliit Sermiat glacier to observe the dynamics of iceberg calving. This process, where large ice chunks break off and fall into the ocean, generates powerful internal waves that mix warm seawater with the glacier’s meltwater, intensifying the erosion at the glacier’s base and promoting further ice loss.

The study highlights the complex interactions between icebergs and seawater, showing that the impact of falling ice not only creates surface tsunamis but also persistently generates internal waves that mix water layers. This mixing lifts warm water toward the glacier, increasing melting and erosion at its edge, thereby fostering further calving. The researchers introduced the concept of a “calving multiplier effect,” illustrating how this process accelerates ice loss beyond prior estimations, contributing significantly to the rapid decline of ice sheets.

The implications are alarming, as the Greenland ice sheet contains enough water to raise global sea levels by about seven meters if completely melted. The accelerated melting observed could threaten coastal communities worldwide, underscoring the urgency for comprehensive monitoring of glacier dynamics to predict future changes and devise effective mitigation strategies.

This study adds to existing evidence indicating that Greenland’s glaciers are melting at unprecedented rates, highlighting an alarming trend in climate disruptions. Continuous research and monitoring are essential to understand and mitigate climate change impacts on polar ice systems effectively.