Thwaites Glacier, a massive ice formation in Antarctica, is destabilizing rapidly, necessitating urgent mapping of its surrounding seafloor and currents. The U.S. icebreaker Nathaniel B. Palmer is currently the only vessel successfully reaching Thwaites for critical research. Without continued funding from the National Science Foundation, the NBP’s vital expeditions could end, leaving significant gaps in understanding sea-level rise linked to Thwaites. Projections indicate that the glacier's collapse could contribute to a substantial increase in global sea levels, disproportionately affecting U.S. coasts.
'Only one vessel—the U.S. research icebreaker Nathaniel B. Palmer—has successfully penetrated the area's phalanx of sea ice...to reach a critical location on Thwaites, widely considered the world's most dangerous glacier.'
'If the Thwaites glacier were to implode, it could raise the average global sea level by 65 centimeters, and it could potentially trigger wider Antarctic ice sheet collapse that could raise global sea level by more than three meters.'
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