A glacier in Antarctica just pulled off what might be the fastest retreat ever seen, and scientists are now scrambling to figure out exactly what happened—and what it means for the rest of the planet. New research suggests that the Hektoria Glacier retreated more than 5 miles in only two months during late 2022, a pace that the authors of the study say is nearly 10 times faster than anything recorded from a grounded glacier before. The findings, published in Nature Geoscience, have sparked what the BBC calls a "whodunnit" in the scientific community, as researchers debate what actually triggered the event and what it might mean for global sea levels.
"This is astonishing; the rate of retreat is just crazy," study co-author Ted Scambos tells CNN. The glacier's rapid retreat appears to follow a chain reaction set off decades ago, per the BBC. Back in 2002, the Larsen B ice shelf, which had been acting as a brake on Hektoria's movement, collapsed spectacularly. That allowed the glacier to speed up and thin out. Some stability returned when sea ice filled the void, but that, too, broke up in early 2022.
What makes the latest episode so contentious? The study's authors believe the glacier was "grounded"—resting on top of the seabed—when it retreated, which is significant because grounded glaciers are usually much more stable than their floating counterparts. The process could have major implications if it happens elsewhere in Antarctica, especially at glaciers like Thwaites, which holds enough ice to significantly raise global sea levels.
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Not everyone is convinced this is as big of a deal as it sounds. Some scientists argue that the part of Hektoria in question was actually floating, making the rapid retreat less remarkable. The precise location of the "grounding line"—where the glacier meets the seabed—is hard to pin down in such a fast-moving region. Even so, there's agreement on one thing: Antarctica is changing faster than expected, and the world should be paying attention.
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