Summer melt on Greenland ice sheet had slightly late start this summer but the surface has been now melting very quickly.
In the last three months the melt has been spreading rapidly over the significant area, extending over more than 20% of the ice sheet in early June and reaching above 2000 meters elevation in some areas.
The satellite used for the research reported small lakes that started to form on the ice sheet.
After the annual re-calibration of the melt algorithm in mid March, very little melt was detected until May.
A few southern coastal areas began melting in mid-May, followed by inland higher-elevation ice and all remaining coastal areas about June 3, when warmer conditions arrived.
Surface melting reached the "Saddle" region of the ice sheet on June 11 and 13. Only the central eastern coast remains relatively melt free.
Cool conditions in April and May shifted to warmer-than-average weather along both coasts in early June, which initiated more widespread melt on the ice sheet.
The sea ice on both sides of Greenland remained at near-normal extent through the period.
More information about this year´s melt of Greenlandic ice sheet is available at National Snow and Ice Data Center, University of Georgia.
Source