Glaciers and Ice Caps – Russian High Arctic and Canadian Arctic Archipelago

Carr, JR

doi:10.1016/B978-0-323-85242-5.00042-7

Glaciers and Ice Caps – Russian High Arctic and Canadian Arctic Archipelago

Lookup NU author(s): Professor Rachel Carr ORCiD

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Abstract

The Arctic is warming faster than the global average, causing its ice masses to shrink and contribute significantly to global sea level rise. The Russian High Arctic (RHA) and Canadian Arctic Archipelago (CAA) are primary sources of both contemporary and near-future ice loss but have received comparatively little study. Recent ice loss from the CAA has been almost entirely driven by increased melting, in response to warmer air temperatures, whereas the RHA ice masses range between melt-dominated (Novaya Zemlya) and ice dynamic dominated (Severnaya Zemlya). Retreat rates on outlet glaciers on both the CAA and RHA have increased from the 2000s onwards, but the controls differ: the main driver on Novaya Zemlya is likely ocean warming, compared to air temperatures in the CAA. Both regions are home to surge-type glaciers, which are likely thermally controlled and may be at the limits of the climate envelope for surging.