Overview
- Researchers produced the first multi-decade, continent-wide map of grounding-line change using nearly 30 years of satellite radar data.
- Antarctica lost 12,820 km² of grounded ice from 1996 to 2025, while 77% of the coastline showed no grounding-line migration.
- Retreat is concentrated in West Antarctica, with Smith Glacier moving inland about 42 km, Pine Island about 33 km, and Thwaites about 26 km.
- Roughly 23% of Antarctica’s ocean-reaching glaciers are in rapid retreat, especially where warmer subsurface waters reach grounding zones.
- Significant retreats on parts of the Antarctic Peninsula lack a clear ocean-heat cause, highlighting unresolved drivers and long-term sea-level risks.