Innovations in Geoengineering- Seabed Curtains

Climate change, in recent decades, has accelerated to unprecedented levels, and the malignant effects are being felt in all ecosystems on our planet. The Seabed Curtains project, a collaborative effort among international institutions, aims to develop an engineered solution to mitigate the rate of basal melting of glaciers. Density-driven currents, which arise due to the difference in salinity between the fresh melt-off water and the naturally stratified saline water (additional differences in temperature as well), intrude into the lower parts of the glaciers, reducing the buttressing effect of ice shelves and accelerating the rate of melting. To promote better mixing of the two streams of water and reduce the overall temperature of the density-driven plume, a soft and flexible barrier- a curtain is being developed and tested. The main objectives of the curtain will be to disrupt the circulation in front of the glacier and act as a protective thermal barrier, promoting improved mixing of the two streams of water, reducing the overall temperature of recirculation currents, and thereby reducing basal melting. The flexibility of the curtain ensures that it’s not damaged by floating icebergs. The project aims to deploy curtains in vulnerable areas such as the Thwaites Glacier and the Pine Island Glacier. The novel solution will mitigate the rate of melting in glaciers and assist in slowing down the rise in global sea levels in conjunction with the decrease in GHG emissions. With the curtain’s purpose as a thermal barrier, the project offers a scalable and flexible solution to counteract the rise in sea-level caused by global warming