Antarctic ice sheet loses area nearly the size of Connecticut over three decades of grounding line retreat

New study tracks 30 years of Antarctic grounding line retreat, showing ice loss the size of Connecticut despite stability across 77% of the coastline.

By: AXL Media

Published: Mar 3, 2026, 7:52 AM EST

Source: The information in this article was sourced from EOS

Defining the boundaries of ice sheet stability

Glaciologists have completed a comprehensive thirty year evaluation of Antarctica’s grounding line, the specific point where land-based ice grounded on bedrock meets a floating ice shelf. This boundary is considered the definitive measure for documenting the advance and retreat of ocean-terminating glaciers. Using synthetic aperture radar (SAR), which researchers describe as the "gold standard" for monitoring ice sheet stability, the study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences provides a high-resolution map of continental changes from 1992 to 2025.

Regional disparities in ice loss

The data reveals a stark contrast between the stable and unstable portions of the continent. Approximately 77 percent of Antarctica’s coastline has remained stable over the last three decades. However, the remaining 23 percent, primarily located in West Antarctica, the Antarctic Peninsula, and southern East Antarctica, is losing ice at an accelerated pace. Since 1996, the total grounded ice loss has reached 12,820 square kilometers, an area nearly large enough to cover the state of Connecticut or ten cities the size of Greater Los Angeles.

The impact of warm ocean currents

The most significant retreats were observed in West Antarctica, where wind patterns push warm ocean water toward the base of major glaciers. Smith Glacier recorded the farthest retreat at 42 kilometers, followed by Pine Island Glacier at 33 kilometers and Thwaites Glacier, often referred to as the "Doomsday Glacier", at 26 kilometers. Research suggests that the retreat of the Thwaites and Pine Island glaciers may have been triggered as early as the 1940s during a prolonged El Niño event that brought warmer-than-average temperatures to the Southern Ocean.