Volcanic activity adds further to instability of West Antarctic Ice Sheet

Volcanic activity detected near the Executive Committee range in Marie Byrd Land in West Antarctica adds another factor to the instability of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS). A small eruption under the ice could result in melt water adding substantial lubrication to the bottom of a portion of the ice sheet, speeding up the ice stream discharge into the Ross Sea.

The West Antarctic Ice sheet is buttressed by huge ice shelves at it's edges which hold back the ice streams. Warming Southern ocean currents are melting ice shelves, causing them to retreat, allowing faster discharge of ice flows from the interior. Much of the ice sheet is grounded on a sub-glacial basin below sea level, so as the ice shelf grounding line retreats, more warm water can interact with the ice to speed the discharge and collapse of the ice sheet. Volcanic activity adds further potential instability to this process.