When a glacier collapses, the ice falling into the sea will create waves due to seawater shifting, similar to dropping a ice cube into a glass of water. This phenomenon is quite rare, but for many years, there have been adventurous surfers who have surfed on such waves.
However, what will actually happen underwater when large icebergs separate from glaciers? This is being studied by scientists at the Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica. The Thwaites Glacier is also known as the "Apocalyptic Glacier".
According to researchers, the process of ice breaking at this glacier can create "underground tsunamis" with altitudes from 10 to hundreds of meters.
These giant underwater waves, with amplitudes up to tens, even hundreds of meters, can cause deep water to strongly mix with near-surface water. We need to understand this phenomenon to make more accurate forecasts about the sea ice melting process," said Dr. Alex Brearley, an oceanographer at the British Antarctic Survey (BAS).
To study this phenomenon, scientists use underwater unmanned devices in the form of torpedoes, helping to access and record data in extremely dangerous areas where humans can hardly be present directly.
The Thwaites Glacier is currently one of the fastest changing ice blocks on Earth. Thwaites is called the "Apocalyptic Glacier" because of the particularly serious impact that the thawing process here can cause on global sea levels.
According to Sky News, the Thwaites glacier alone contains enough ice to cause global sea levels to rise by about 60cm. If the entire Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) melts, sea levels could rise by more than 3m, enough to redraw the world map.
Underground tsunamis caused by large ice sheets separated from the Thwaites glacier are accelerating the mixing of cold and warm water, contributing to sea level rise and other complex changes in the ocean system. This may be an early warning sign of what will happen if environmental and climate crises continue to escalate.
Antarctica is thousands of kilometers away from where we live in the UK, but it has a profound impact on what is happening across the planet," emphasized Professor Dame Jane Francis, Director of the UK Antarctic Survey Agency.
