Ice in the Greenland Sea, via NASA Earth Observatory.

Austfonna ice field has thinned by more than 150 feet in just 3 years

Staff Report

FRISCO — If sudden changes on a small island in the Svalbard Archipelago are any indication, then the Greenland Ice Sheet could be in big trouble as the Arctic warms up.

Satellite images show that the Austfonna ice cap has thinned by more than 50 metres since 2012 — about one sixth of its original thickness — and that the ice is flowing 25 times faster than just a few years ago.

Scientists analyzing the data said they’re not exactly sure why the ice cap has changed so suddenly, but noted that the island is smack in the middle of one of the fastest-warming areas on the planet.