Ellesmere IslandA rare epishelf lake drained into the Arctic.
The drainage cannot be reversed, ending a distinct freshwater habitat.
An ice shelf dams meltwater atop denser seawater, and Canada’s Milne shelf broke apart in 2020.
The lake’s ecosystem now exists only in data recorded before 2020.
How each outlet framed it
- Phys.org leans critical
- confirms Milne epishelf lake permanently lost: freshwater drained within months of 2020 shelf collapse after 6+ decades of prior thinning
Sources: Phys.org