Scientists track Greenland's melting ice sheets with 'icepod' - video

As the ice sheets on Greenland melt, scientists are developing an icepod that can measure and photograph the effects of climate change. The Icepod, which is attached to a transport plane, consists of laser, radar, infrared and photographic sensors that provide a comprehensive picture of ice-sheet dynamics. The melting of Greenland's on-land ice is the leading contributor to sea-level rise.

Transport and accommodation for Suzanne Goldenberg's trip was sponsored by the National Science Foundation. The 109th airlift wing of the New York Air National Guard provided co-ordination and support

Contributor

Ian Cheney and Suzanne Goldenberg

The GuardianTramp

Related Content

Article image
Greenland's disappearing lakes leave giant ice sheets largely unmoved

Research allays fears that the rapid draining of water from the top of Greenland's ice sheet may be contributing to the rise of global sea levels

Alok Jha, science correspondent

18, Apr, 2008 @1:56 AM

Article image
Greenland's ice melting faster than scientists previously thought – study
The pace of ice loss has increased four-fold since 2003 as enormous glaciers are depositing ever larger chunks of ice into the Atlantic ocean, where it melts, causing sea levels to rise

Oliver Milman

22, Jan, 2019 @12:13 PM

Article image
Polar ice caps melting six times faster than in 1990s
Losses of ice from Greenland and Antarctica are tracking the worst-case climate scenario, scientists warn

Damian Carrington Environment editor

11, Mar, 2020 @4:00 PM

Article image
Arctic sea ice is melting at its fastest pace in almost 40 years

The Northwest Passage was, again, free of ice this summer and the polar region could be unfrozen in just 30 years

John Vidal, environment editor

11, Sep, 2011 @9:20 PM

Article image
Global warming: Sea level rises may accelerate

By the end of the century sea levels may be rising three times as fast as they are at present, as a result of rapid melting of the Greenland ice sheet

Ian Sample

01, Sep, 2008 @11:26 AM

Article image
Greenland ice sheet is safer than scientists previously thought

New study overturns fears that increased melting could lubricate the ice sheet, causing it to sink ever faster into the sea

Damian Carrington

26, Jan, 2011 @6:00 PM

Article image
Greenland's ice sheet is melting fast – I'm not surprised | Edward Hanna
Edward Hanna: The ice sheet has been living on borrowed time for many years, with dire consequences

Edward Hanna

26, Jul, 2012 @2:46 PM

Article image
Global warming is melting the Greenland Ice Sheet, fast | John Abraham
John Abraham: The Greenland Ice Sheet is losing 110 million Olympic size swimming pools worth of water each year.

John Abraham

25, Aug, 2016 @10:00 AM

Article image
Collapsing Greenland glacier could raise sea levels by half a metre, say scientists
Huge Zachariae Isstrom glacier has begun to break up, starting a rapid retreat that could continue to raise sea levels for decades to come

Ian Sample Science editor

12, Nov, 2015 @7:00 PM

Article image
Greenland's ice sheet melting seven times faster than in 1990s
Scale and speed of loss much higher than predicted, threatening inundation for hundreds of millions of people

Fiona Harvey in Madrid

10, Dec, 2019 @4:00 PM