Greenland ice sheet

High school (ages 12+)
Environment & Earth

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/greenland-ice-sheet

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. How big is Greenland ice sheet?Approximately 1.71 million square kilometers (660,000 square miles)
2. What is the location?Greenland, an island nation and autonomous territory of Denmark
3. What is the maximum thickness?Over 3 kilometers (1.86 miles) in some central areas
4. How does the Greenland ice sheet affect sea level?If the whole sheet melted, sea level would rise about 7 meters (23 feet). That would change coastlines and affect people and animals that live near the sea.
5. Why is the Greenland ice sheet melting faster now?Global temperatures are rising because of human activities. The warmer air and water melt more ice and cause more icebergs to break off.

Isostatic Depression: The sinking of the Earth's crust under the immense weight of a large ice sheet.
Paleoclimate: The study of past climates using indirect evidence such as ice cores and tree rings.
Albedo: The measure of how much light that hits a surface is reflected without being absorbed.
Mass Balance: The difference between the amount of ice accumulated and the amount lost through melting and calving.