Yesterday The U.K. Daily Mail posted an article about one of the causes of the rise of sea level in Greenland.

The article reports:

Melting of ice in central Greenland is being accelerated by the heat of molten rocks rising from the core–mantle boundary, adding to sea-level rise, a study has found.

Researchers from Japan mapped out the extent and branches of the so-called ‘Greenland plume’ — the rising flow of molten rock ascending beneath the island.

Geothermal activity is abundant in the North Atlantic region. Iceland and the Norwegian island of Jan Mayen have active volcanoes with their own mantle plumes.

Iceland gets its electricity from the geothermal energy underneath the island and by using dams to capture glacial meltwater. Because energy is abundant and cheap there, it is one of the major places in the world where aluminum is made.

The article includes the following illustration:

The article concludes:

With their initial study complete, the researchers are hoping to examine the thermal process in greater detail.

‘This study revealed the larger picture, so examining the plumes at a more localized level will reveal more information,’ said Professor Toyokuni.

The full findings of the study were published in the Journal of Geophysical Research – Solid Earth. 

When you put something warm under ice, the ice melts. That is not man-made global warming. The existence of the molten rocks explains a lot.