New findings could change how we understand ice melt and rising sea levels

Scientists have recorded thousands of tiny ice quakes within the Greenland Ice Sheet for the first time. These seismic events are occurring deep inside ice streams, where fractures in the ice trigger a chain reaction of quakes propagating over hundreds of meters.

What are ice quakes?

Similar to earthquakes, ice quakes happen when ice fractures and two slabs press against each other. Scientists believe these previously undetected quakes could provide critical insights into how Greenland’s massive frozen rivers move toward the sea.

The study, published in the journal Science, was led by ETH Zurich professor Andreas Fichtner.

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Why weren’t these quakes discovered before?

Until now, these ice quakes went unnoticed because their signals were blocked by a layer of volcanic particles buried 900 meters (2,950 feet) beneath the ice.

These particles originated from the eruption of Mount Mazama in Oregon, USA, around 7,700 years ago. The researchers were astonished by this unexpected link between ice stream movement and ancient volcanic activity.

How was the study conducted?

To detect the ice quakes, researchers lowered a fiber-optic cable into a 2.7-kilometer (1.7-mile) borehole inside the Northeast Greenland Ice Stream, the island’s largest frozen river.

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This marks a major breakthrough in glaciology, as scientists now understand that ice streams don’t just flow like viscous honey but also move in a stick-slip motion, similar to how tectonic plates shift.

Why this matters for climate science

Greenland’s ice sheet is the second-largest body of ice in the world, covering 80% of the island and reaching up to 3 kilometers thick. It has existed for at least 18 million years.

Understanding these hidden ice quakes will improve how scientists track ice melt and rising sea levels, which is crucial for climate change research.

“The fact that we’ve now discovered these ice quakes is a key step toward understanding the deformation of ice streams on small scales.” — Professor Olaf Eisen, Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research

This discovery reshapes how experts model glacier movement, offering new insights into how Greenland’s ice streams contribute to rising sea levels in a warming world.