Greenland’s vast Helheim Glacier sprawls before oceanographer David Holland (left) and safety officer Brian Rougeux as they repair a solar panel array last summer. The setup powers a nearby seismometer that detects “icequakes” and helps researchers learn how the ice fractures. It’s part of a land-, sea- and air-based program led by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, dubbed Oceans Melting Greenland. The effort will help scientists better understand the effect of rapidly warming deep ocean currents and how they melt Greenland’s coastal ice from below.
[This story originally appeared in print as "On Shaky Ice."]
