Afghanistan, Sept. 21 -- Greenland and Antarctica lost about 11.3 trillion metric tonnes of ice between 1979 and 2023, contributing roughly 3.14 centimetres to global sea-level rise, according to a new study published in Scientific Data.
The assessment, led by the Ice Sheet Mass Balance Inter-comparison Exercise (IMBIE), combines 42 independent estimates from 27 satellite missions to produce one of the most comprehensive long-term assessments of changes in the two major ice sheets. The record extends back to 1972 for Greenland and 1979 for Antarctica.
Researchers found that 84 percent of the combined ice loss resulted from faster-flowing glaciers discharging more ice into the ocean, while 16 percent was linked to changes in surface mass b...