Climate Apron: Thwaites

August 2020

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The Thwaites Glacier, sometimes referred to as the 'Doomsday Glacier,' is one of the largest and most rapidly retreating glaciers in Antarctica. Thwaites loses nearly 90 billion tons of ice per year, an amount so significant that it has altered the gravitational pull of the region. A Thwaites could lead to the destabilization of surrounding glaciers resulting in 11 feet of sea level rise.

 

This apron depicts the phenomenon leading to the destabilization of the glacier, wherein water that is warmer than freezing is pushed up onto the continental shelf, makes contact with the bottom of the ice sheet, and rapidly thins the ice from below, leading to retreat.  

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The apron is made of material from discarded umbrellas collected from the gutters of NYC - more on that here.  The message is not subtle: it's time to get to work.

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See ThwaitesGlacier.org for more information. The image I quilted onto the pocket is adapted from their figures.