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NASA Explains How Do Glaciers Melt
Space.com
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05/07/2025
Learn how glaciers melt and contribute to seas rising in this animated explainer from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
Credit: NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Category
š¤
Tech
Transcript
Display full video transcript
00:00
The sheet of ice that covers Greenland contains enough frozen water to raise oceans by 25
00:06
feet across the globe.
00:08
As the planet warms, glaciers melt, causing sea levels to rise.
00:12
But not all of that melt happens at the surface.
00:16
In the summertime, rivers and pools of meltwater find their way down through the glacier to
00:22
the bed below.
00:23
From there, the water runs beneath the glacier until it reaches the ocean.
00:27
Because meltwater contains no salt, it weighs less than ocean water and rises up the front
00:33
of the glacier in what scientists call a plume.
00:37
Around Greenland, oceans are cold and fresh near the surface and warm and salty at depth.
00:42
As the plume rises, it draws in the warm, salty water melting the glacier face from the bottom
00:48
up.
00:49
Eventually, a piece of the glacier breaks off, making an iceberg in a process known as calving.
00:57
As the oceans warm, calving speeds up, causing glaciers to retreat and flow faster.
01:05
Faster glaciers dump more ice into the oceans and drive sea levels higher across the globe.
01:10
the waterŃŠ¾Ń and inlet water.
01:12
The water falls each other under the glacier.
01:13
This is theorde of the ocean.
01:15
Aside from the ocean where the earth runs north,�넼 turn the lake at the glacier,
01:17
the ocean.
01:19
This is what's quite points for the ocean.
01:20
It's sobie changing!
01:21
The water falls of the ocean.
01:21
This is abbot down...
01:22
It's small % of our water.
01:23
...
01:24
It's really how you change the sea.
01:26
This integral requires sand for the ocean of gain water is camminting.
01:27
It's got lots of growing water intoć” vegetation near the ocean.
01:29
It's a special place for the ocean.
01:30
It's located almostŃŃŠ²Š¾ of water back into the ocean.
01:32
Let us back into the ocean.
01:34
The ocean of the ocean of the ocean is wide ocean czyt when ...
01:36
a lot of water to the ocean.
01:37
The ocean on California level will be found,
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