Abstract Antarctic ice shelves control the flow of ice into the ocean, affecting the rate of sea level rise. This flow is regulated by ice‐shelf thickness, which depends on tributary flux across the grounding line and the balance between surface accumulation and ocean‐induced melting. Consequently, ice shelves that are tributary‐sustained will be more susceptible to dynamic changes upstream of the grounding line. In contrast, atmospherically sustained ice shelves will be more susceptible to changing local atmospheric and oceanographic conditions. Our results differentiate between these internal and external regimes by mapping which ice shelves are tributary‐ and which are atmospherically sustained and we compare these findings with published estimates of local ice‐shelf buttressing strength. This approach identifies buttressing relevant areas, particularly near pinning points, in West Antarctica and the Peninsula, which are highly dependent on surface accumulation and therefore vulnerable to the predicted decline of coastal snowfall through the end of the century.

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