Produced by: Mohsin Shaikh
Representative pic
Beneath Antarctica’s ice, an active volcanic rift lies dormant, waiting for change.
Subglacial volcanoes could erupt if ice melts sufficiently, triggering catastrophic feedback loops.
Representative pic
Antarctica loses 150 billion tons of ice annually, destabilizing the planet's delicate balance.
Melting ice reduces pressure on Earth's crust, increasing magma expansion and eruption risks.
Research led by geochemist Allie Coonin of Brown University revealed eruptions accelerate ice loss.
Credit: Brown University
Melting ice lets carbon dioxide and water form bubbles in magma, raising eruption chances.
Subglacial eruptions degrade ice from below, eroding it stealthily over centuries.
Coonin’s study warns of long-term feedback loops with permanently heightened volcanic activity.
Unaccounted volcanic heat could worsen sea-level rise, amplifying climate change impacts.
Representative pic
Published in Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, the study stresses updated Earth models.