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6h ago

Melting Glaciers Threaten to Reactivate Hundreds of Subglacial Volcanoes

Scientists say melting ice sheets are already decompressing Antarctic magma chambers, providing a centuries-long window for enhanced monitoring.

© Pablo Moreno-Yaeger / UW-Madison
A drone view shows the San Jose volcano in the Chilean Andes, where glaciers are facing the risk of rising temperatures, at a zone named Cajon del Maipo in San Jose de Maipo, Chile June 24, 2025. REUTERS/Pablo Sanhueza
Sheep farmers Raul Aguiar and Abelardo Rios walk through the snow back to their home in the Chilean Andes, where glaciers are facing the risk of rising temperatures, at a zone named Cajon del Maipo in San Jose de Maipo, Chile June 24, 2025. REUTERS/Pablo Sanhueza
A drone view shows the Maipo River bed in the Chilean Andes, where glaciers are facing the risk of rising temperatures, at a zone named Cajon del Maipo in San Jose de Maipo, Chile June 24, 2025. REUTERS/Pablo Sanhueza

Overview

  • Latest Goldschmidt Conference findings show that present-day glacier retreat is already reducing pressure on Antarctic magma chambers, raising the prospect of more frequent, explosive eruptions.
  • Researchers used argon dating and crystal analysis on six Chilean Andes volcanoes to reveal that rapid deglaciation around 13,000 years ago unleashed powerful eruptions by letting deep silica-rich magma expand.
  • Thick ice cover during the last ice age suppressed eruption volume and allowed magma reservoirs to accumulate 10–15 km below the surface, a mechanism now reversing as ice disappears.
  • Scientists warn that hundreds of dormant subglacial volcanoes worldwide—most notably under West Antarctica—could awaken as climate change accelerates glacier loss.
  • While volcanic response to ice retreat is geologically swift, gradual magma-system evolution over centuries offers a critical window for bolstered geophysical monitoring and early warning systems.