Researchers at Jiangsu Ocean University in China have estimated that the Greenland Ice Sheet lost about 120 gigatonnes of ice a year between 2002 and 2023, well under Nasa's widely cited figure of nearly 270 gigatonnes, the South China Morning Post reports.
The team built a model that converts satellite measurements of surface height into estimates of lost mass, while Nasa's figure is based on satellite readings of changes in gravity. The researchers said the height data gives much finer detail, at about 1.9km resolution, allowing them to pinpoint the glaciers shrinking fastest.
The scientists stressed that the lower number does not mean melting is less serious than thought, but aims to show more precisely where ice is being lost. Their paper appeared on 19 October in a Chinese-language marine technology journal.
Source: South China Morning Post
