{
  "id": 15795281,
  "title": "NASA Study Refines Projections for Thwaites Glacier",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/20/nasa-study-refines-projections-for-thwaites-glacier",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-10-20T20:09:57.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "NASA Science",
    "slug": "nasa-science",
    "url": "https://science.nasa.gov/blogs/science-news/2026/10/20/nasa-refines-thwaites-glacier-projections/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A new study led by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, in collaboration with the University of California, Irvine, and Dartmouth College, has refined projections for Antarctica's Thwaites Glacier. The research suggests the glacier could contribute more to sea level rise by the end of the century than previously estimated by other models. In some simulations, Thwaites' contribution could be up to twice the current projections. Understanding the glacier's long-term impacts has been difficult due to complex processes. The study, published in Nature Communications on October 12, narrows this uncertainty by focusing on the transitional zone between glacial ice and floating ice. Existing models typically treat this area as a distinct boundary, known as a grounding line. However, the researchers' model treats it as a grounding zone, where seawater penetrates several miles beneath the grounded ice, lifting it during tidal cycles. This process exposes the ice to warmer seawater, accelerating its melt and destabilizing the glacier more than a grounded line would allow. By incorporating grounding zones, the model's accuracy in simulating glacial retreat improved significantly, matching historical satellite data from the 1990s four times better than models without this factor. The researchers believe this improved model could provide more reliable information on glacier dynamics, aiding coastal regions most affected by rising sea levels.",
  "summary": "Antarctica’s Thwaites Glacier could contribute more to sea level rise by the end of the century than some previous estimates. In some model simulations, the glacier’s contribution was as much as twice current projections. The post NASA Study Refines Projections for Thwaites Glacier appeared first on NASA Science .",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}