An ice sheet is glacial land that is more than 50,000 square kilometers which is 20,000 square miles. Greenland and Antartica are the only places today that are covered by the ice sheet. The Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets make up more than 99% of the freshwater ice on Earth.
The Antarctic Ice Sheet extends almost 5.4 million square miles
The Greenland Ice Sheet extends about 656,000 square miles
How do ice sheets form?
Why are ice sheets important?
The Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets influence weather and climate.
What impact has climate change had on the ice sheets?
The mass of ice in the Greenland Ice Sheet has begun to decline. In October 2016, Arctic sea ice extent averaged 2.5 million square miles, the lowest October in the satellite record.
The decline continues to outpace accumulation because warmer temperatures have led to increased melt and faster glacier movement.
The Antarctic ice sheet has not experienced melting such as Greenland. There has been a slight decline.
The Antarctic Ice Sheet extends almost 5.4 million square miles
The Greenland Ice Sheet extends about 656,000 square miles
How do ice sheets form?
Why are ice sheets important?
The Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets influence weather and climate.
What impact has climate change had on the ice sheets?
The mass of ice in the Greenland Ice Sheet has begun to decline. In October 2016, Arctic sea ice extent averaged 2.5 million square miles, the lowest October in the satellite record.
The decline continues to outpace accumulation because warmer temperatures have led to increased melt and faster glacier movement.
The Antarctic ice sheet has not experienced melting such as Greenland. There has been a slight decline.