An MIT and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution study published in Science on Oct. 15, 2026, reported that Antarctic ice cliff stability depends on more than height alone. The researchers analyzed satellite measurements of over 15,000 ice cliffs taken every three months from 2019 to 2023 by NASA's ICESat-2, and found the average cliff was about 30 meters tall, while a few exceeded 100 meters.

The team focused on four regions with cliffs roughly 100 meters tall, one reaching 127 meters, and reported that those cliffs collapsed and nearby ice retreated faster than marine ice cliff instability models had predicted. Authors Caroline Needell, Catherine Walker and Jeremy Bassis concluded that the retreat was short-lived and the glaciers stabilized. They reported that thicker mélange, deeper water and rising land beneath the ice could all help stabilize cliffs, and that taller cliffs thin faster, settling into shorter, more stable forms.

In the reported study, Needell said the findings indicate bed topography and ice thinning rates should be included in models; she said such dynamics matter for projecting sea level rise. The research was supported in part by NASA, the U.S. National Science Foundation and the DOMINOS project, part of the International Thwaites Glacier Collaboration.