NASA has released a new detailed map of the terrain hidden beneath the Greenland ice sheet, revealing an extensive network of subglacial valleys.
This map was created using an innovative method called Ice Flow Perturbation Analysis, which leverages subtle variations in the ice surface observed by satellites to infer the underlying topography.
Researchers have mapped 1,943 valleys, approximately one-third of which had never been identified before. Additionally, some previously known valleys extend further inland than earlier maps indicated, sometimes by several hundred kilometers.
These valleys are primarily located in the central-west region of Greenland, with some originating in the highlands of the south and east—areas where the ice sheet initially formed.
This discovery sheds new light on Greenland’s geological history and could help refine predictive models of the ice sheet’s evolution in response to climate change.
