Reducing uncertainties in projections of Antarctic ice mass loss

Abstract

Abstract. Climate model projections are often aggregated into multi-model averages of all models participating in an Intercomparison Project, such as the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP). A first initiative of the ice-sheet modeling community, SeaRISE, to provide multi-model average projections of polar ice sheets' contribution to sea-level rise recently emerged. SeaRISE Antarctic numerical experiments aggregate results from all models willing to participate without any selection of the models regarding the processes implemented in. Here, using the experimental set-up proposed in SeaRISE we confirm that the representation of grounding line dynamics is essential to infer future Antarctic mass change. We further illustrate the significant impact on the ensemble mean and deviation of adding one model with a known biais in its ability of modeling grounding line dynamics. We show that this biased model can hardly be discriminated from the ensemble only based on its estimation of volume change. However, tools are available to test parts of the response of marine ice sheet models to perturbations of climatic and/or oceanic origin (MISMIP, MISMIP3d). Based on recent projections of the Pine Island Glacier mass loss, we further show that excluding ice sheet models that do not pass the MISMIP benchmarks decreases by an order of magnitude the mean contribution and standard deviation of the multi-model ensemble projection for that particular drainage basin.