Speaker: Caroline Needell, MIT-WHOI Joint Program

Topic: At the breaking point: Antarctica's ice cliffs and the potential for sea level rise

The single largest source of uncertainty in projections of sea level rise is the speed at which the Antarctic Ice Sheet will retreat. Much of this uncertainty is related to the potential for towering ice cliffs at the margins of the continent—where the ice sheet meets the ocean—to collapse under their own weight in a form of iceberg calving. This talk highlights recent efforts to collect data from Antarctica's changing ice cliffs using satellite and ship-based field measurements, and the implications of these measurements for existing projections