( CNN ) Scientists have raised concerns about a large , rapidly thinning glacier in Antarctica , warning it could contribute significantly to rising sea levels . They say they 've discovered two openings that could channel warm seawater to the base of the huge Totten Glacier and bring the threat of potentially disastrous melting . The glacier is bigger and thinning faster than all the others in East Antarctica . It contains enough ice to raise the global sea level by at least 11 feet ( 3.4 meters ) , according to researchers from the University of Texas at Austin who were among the authors of a new study published this week in the journal Nature Geoscience . Scientists had previously detected warm water on the seaward side of the glacier . But until now , they had found no evidence that it could threaten coastal ice . `` We now know there are avenues for the warmest waters in East Antarctica to access the most sensitive areas of Totten Glacier , '' said Jamin Greenbaum , a University of Texas Ph.D. candidate and the lead author of the study . The two gateways on the seafloor that lead to the base of the glacier offer an explanation for why Totten Glacier has been melting so fast . Scientists have already warned about the consequences of melting ice in West Antarctica . NASA said last year that glacial retreat in some areas `` appears unstoppable . '' The increase in sea levels that would be caused by the melting of all the ice in Totten Glacier is estimated to be roughly equivalent to the contribution from a collapse of the entire West Antarctic Ice Sheet . The United Nations ' report on climate change last year estimated sea levels could rise between 1 foot and 3 feet by 2100 . Such a rise could displace tens of millions of people from coastal areas around the world . But that calculation does n't factor in the latest research on Antarctica . `` While the Totten melt may take several centuries , once change has begun our analysis reveals it would likely be irreversible , '' Greenbaum said in comments cited by the Australian Antarctic Division . To prevent the process from becoming unstoppable , atmospheric and oceanic conditions would need to change so that snowfall outpaces coastal melting , the researchers said . The scientists gathered their data through a series of aerial surveys using technology that can scan the ice and seafloors in areas that are inaccessible to icebreakers . The team included researchers from the United States , Australia and the United Kingdom .
New study reveals openings that threaten huge glacier with warm water . Score: 6