Glacier in Russian Arctic Goes From Moving 60 Feet a Year to 60 Feet a Day

<img class="styles__noscript__2rw2y" src="https://s.w-x.co/util/image/w/VavilovGlacier.gif?v=at&w=485&h=273" srcset="https://s.w-x.co/util/image/w/VavilovGlacier.gif?v=at&w=485&h=273 400w, https://s.w-x.co/util/image/w/VavilovGlacier.gif?v=ap&w=980&h=551 800w" > The cold-based glacier at the Vavilov Ice Cap in Russia suddenly surged after 2013. Changes there have scientists rethinking how rapidly glaciers in cold, dry areas can move. (NASA Earth Observatory images by Lauren Dauphin and Joshua Stevens, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey and topographic information from the ArcticDEM Project at the Polar Geospatial Center, University of Minnesota.)

At a Glance The outlet glacier on the Vavilov Ice Cap used to move about 60 feet a day.

After 2013, it accelerated to about 60 feet a day.

This may signal a change in how fast global warming is affecting glaciers in cold, dry areas. Satellite images of dramatic changes in a glacier in the Russian High Arctic is forcing scientists to rethink how cold-based glaciers work.

Cold-based glaciers exist at high latitudes that receive little snow or rain. They rarely move more than a few yards per year.

University of Colorado Boulder glaciologist Michael Willis was studying the Vavilov Ice Cap on October Revolution Island in the Kara Sea north of Siberia when he discovered the glacier began sliding dozens of times faster than is typical , according to a blog post from NASA.

“The fact that an apparently stable, cold-based glacier suddenly went from moving 20 meters per year to 20 meters per day was extremely unusual, perhaps unprecedented,” Willis said. “The numbers here are simply nuts. Before this happened, as far as I knew, cold-based glaciers simply didn’t do that ... couldn’t do that.”

The change is clear in Landsat satellite imagery that has been collected since 1985, according to NASA. From 2000 to 2013, the glacier continued to creep toward the sea.

After 2013, the glacier took off. By 2018, the glacier's ice shelf over the Kara Sea had more than doubled. On land, the glacier was also thinning rapidly.

The exact cause for the increased spreading isn't yet known. However, the surge raises concern for all cold-based glaciers, Willis said.

“This event has forced us to rethink how cold-based glaciers work,” Willis said. “It may be that they can respond more quickly to warming climate or changes at their bases than we have thought.”