Tropics and Glaciers: Why Antarctica Temporarily Gained Mass

Antarctica temporarily gained 695 billion tons of ice from July 2021 to April 2023 due to heavy snowfall caused by anomalous warming of the tropical basin. Scientists warn that this is not a recovery but a temporary masking of losses.

Antarctica has shown anomalous dynamics: from July 2021 to April 2023, the ice sheet gained 695 billion tons of ice. The main increase occurred in East Antarctica. The cause was unprecedented heavy snowfall triggered by warming of the tropical warm pool in the Pacific and Indian Oceans by 0.5 °C above normal. This altered global atmospheric circulation, generating Rossby waves that redirected moisture southward. Atmospheric rivers carried the moisture. However, scientists warn: West Antarctica continued to lose mass, including the Thwaites Glacier. The temporary gain only masked overall losses. Satellite data from 2003–2024 show the continent is losing an average of about 140.5 billion tons annually. The article references a publication by Spiders Web.