Antarctica ice sheet gains record 695 billion tonnes of mass

Antarctic ice sheet ice mass gain Rossby wave tropical warm pool climate change

A study published in the journal Nature reveals that Antarctica's ice sheet experienced a significant mass gain of approximately 695 billion tonnes between July 2021 and April 2023. This represents the largest 22-month increase recorded by satellite-gravity missions.

Researchers found that this mass gain was driven by exceptional snowfall in East Antarctica, specifically within Queen Mary Land and Wilkes Land. The phenomenon was triggered by sustained warming in the tropical warm pool, located where the tropical western Pacific meets the eastern Indian Ocean. This warming initiated a Rossby-wave train—a sequence of large-scale atmospheric disturbances—that altered circulation patterns and directed moisture from the mid-latitude Indian Ocean toward the Antarctic snowfields.

While the ice sheet has historically lost mass at an average rate of 140.5 billion tons per year, this recent period saw a temporary reversal. Data suggests that from 2020 to 2024, the Antarctic Ice Sheet gained mass at a rate of 67.5 Gt/yr. Despite these recent gains, Antarctica has contributed a total of 0.35 cm to global sea level rise since 2003.

Entities

Antarctica · GRACE · Institute of Oceanology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences · NASA · Nature

Claims

What the coverage asserts, and how many sources carry each claim.

[● 2 SOURCES] Sustained warming in the tropical warm pool triggered a Rossby-wave train that altered atmospheric circulation. spacedaily.com · www.sciencedaily.com
[○ 1 SOURCE] The moisture that supplied the increased snowfall originated mainly from the mid-latitude Indian Ocean. spacedaily.com
[● 2 SOURCES] Antarctica gained approximately 695 billion tonnes of ice-sheet mass between July 2021 and April 2023. spacedaily.com · www.sciencedaily.com
[● 2 SOURCES] The mass increase was driven by exceptional snowfall in East Antarctica, specifically in Queen Mary Land and Wilkes Land. spacedaily.com · www.sciencedaily.com
[○ 1 SOURCE] Antarctica has contributed a total of 0.35 cm to sea level rise since 2003. wattsupwiththat.com
[○ 1 SOURCE] Between 2020 and 2024, the Antarctic Ice Sheet gained mass at a rate of 67.5 Gt/yr. wattsupwiththat.com