Arête Glacier Initiative

There is increasing evidence that the world is at significant risk of catastrophic sea-level rise (SLR) this century from the rapid collapse of Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica (dubbed the Doomsday Glacier by Rolling Stone), which flows into the Amundsen Sea. Recent research suggests Thwaites and the broader West Antarctic Ice Sheet are now unstable and heading toward a collapse that will raise sea levels by 1-2 meters – requiring trillions of dollars in infrastructure to be built for protection, wiping out low-lying coastal areas and countries, and creating half a billion or more climate refugees.  Unfortunately, our understanding of glacial processes, particularly at the glacial bed and ice-ocean interface, is vastly inadequate to develop reliable projections of SLR and evaluate opportunities for slowing glaciers to reduce its rate. The best available sea-level rise models significantly underestimate observed rates of ice flow and calving due to a lack of observational and experimental data. Despite this uncertainty and the existential threat posed by glacier destabilization in West Antarctica, funding from most of the major Antarctic research programs, particularly in the US, has been declining for decades. The only realistic strategy for avoiding catastrophic SLR is to intervene directly to address the key factors destabilizing and accelerating Thwaites. Arête Glacier Initiative is focused on advancing research to better forecast the risk of sea-level rise and evaluate potential solutions for stabilizing the West Antarctic Ice Sheet to prevent or mitigate catastrophic sea-level rise, with a focus on Thwaites Glacier.