This dataset contains grounding lines for 5 North Greenland glaciers, derived from generated from ERS -1/-2 and Sentinel-1 SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) interferometry. This version of the dataset (v1.3) has been extended with grounding lines for 2017. Data was produced as part of the ESA Greenland Ice Sheets Climate Change Initiative (CCI) project by ENVEO, Austria.

The grounding line is the separation point between the floating and grounded parts of the glacier. Processes at the grounding lines of floating marine termini of glaciers and ice streams are important for understanding the response of the ice masses to changing boundary conditions and for establishing realistic scenarios for the response to climate change. The grounding line location product is derived from InSAR data by mapping the tidal flexure and is generated for a selection of the few glaciers in Greenland, which have a floating tongue. In general, the true location of the grounding line is unknown, and therefore validation is difficult for this product.

Remote sensing observations do not provide direct measurement on the transition from floating to grounding ice (the grounding line). The satellite data deliver observations on ice surface features (e.g. tidal deformation by InSAR, spatial changes in texture and shading in optical images) that are indirect indicators for estimating the position of the grounding line. Due to the plasticity of ice these indicators spread out over a zone upstream and downstream of the grounding line, the tidal flexure zone (also called grounding zone).