A recent study has uncovered 37 subglacial lakes beneath glaciers in the Arctic region of Canada, with 35 of them being previously undiscovered. This discovery sheds light on a concealed water system that could enhance scientists’ comprehension of glacier movement and ice loss. The network of interconnected water bodies flowing under the ice has remained largely unseen until now.
The newly identified lakes are relatively small, ranging from 0.3 to 15 square kilometers in size, and they gradually fill up over several years. However, their drainage can occur rapidly, sometimes within a year or even just a few months. According to Wesley Van Wychen, a co-author of the study and an associate professor at the University of Waterloo, the rapid drainage of a subglacial lake in certain instances caused a significant drop in the glacier’s surface by over 100 meters in just three to four months.
The origin of the water that fills these lakes remains unclear, though Van Wychen suggests it could come from the glacier surface. Meltwater may infiltrate crevices and channels in the ice, accumulating in lakes beneath the glacier. The potential implications of these findings are significant, especially in the context of understanding potential changes as temperatures rise in the Canadian Arctic due to climate change.
Collaborating with researchers from Taiwan, Japan, and the U.K., Van Wychen utilized data from ArcticDEM, a program hosted by the University of Minnesota that captures high-resolution images of the Arctic, enabling detailed analysis of glacier alterations. By examining changes in glacier surface elevation, the researchers inferred the presence of subglacial lakes and monitored their drainage and refilling patterns.
According to Shawn Marshall, a research scientist at Environment and Climate Change Canada not involved in the study, the discovery of these lakes is likely just the beginning. With hundreds of subglacial lakes already known in Greenland and Antarctica, more discoveries are anticipated in the future. Bridging the gap between measured glacier melt and the water reaching the ocean, which contributes to sea level rise, remains a challenge as some meltwater refreezes within the ice.
Further exploration using the newfound data on subglacial lakes could help refine projections of sea level rise associated with climate change. Van Wychen mentioned that a research team from the University of Ottawa has leveraged this data to conduct fieldwork and measurements at one of the lakes, currently undergoing a gradual water fill-up process. The aspiration is to accumulate a comprehensive dataset in the coming years to deepen the understanding of these phenomena.