Scientific and observational data from Antarctica are driving home the message that we have entered a period of consequences.
Most recently, scientists have discovered ice streams hiding bigger reservoirs of water in West Antarctica. The evidence has "major implications for glacial melt rates and associated sea-level rises" and the rate of warming.
Equally frightening is that the ice streams feed into the Ross Ice Shelf, a major southern ice shelf whose melting would indicate "the end of the road" according to one scientist.
In 1999, scientists began to observe pools of water on top of the Larsen Ice Shelf (green shaded area near upper left peninsula), which soon after broke apart and shocked the world. At that time, scientists expressed concern were the warming to continue and move southward, particularly to the Ross Ice Shelf.
Now it has. Whether the discovery of the ice streams, water reservoirs, and lakes follows any climate model seems dwarfed by the rapid progression of direct observation succeeding intuition. Trouble is gushing forth.
New interactive map shows devastating effects of global temperature rise
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Delay And Deny Posted 4:55 am
27 Apr 2007
They discovered ice...next to water!
Head for the hills...the End is Neigh.
The Texeme Construct
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Biodiversivist Posted 5:11 am
27 Apr 2007
In the end, it all comes down to biodiversity. Poison Darts--Protecting the biodiversity of our world
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Chris Schults Posted 5:48 am
27 Apr 2007
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Billhook Posted 6:14 am
27 Apr 2007
to put a stop to the function of international freight docks
which are the key facility in the chain of enterprises
that cause the pollution driving the rise of sea-levels ?
Regards
Bill
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ataremove Posted 6:26 am
27 Apr 2007
"If the Ross and Ronne shelves broke up, it would be the end of the road."
What's he mean "the end of the road" ?
Is this where they are saying that once a major ice shelf is gone, the nearby Antartic ice sheet will flow off the land en masse to float in the sea? And not wait to be melted in place?
I remember a few years ago some Brit scientist speculating about this happening.
at a remove
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Energy745 Posted 6:49 am
27 Apr 2007
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Steve Bloom Posted 10:15 pm
27 Apr 2007
Energy745, all of this subglacial water was discovered quite recently, so it's hard to know what the trend is. The significance is that its presence means that there is a potential new mechanism for very rapid collapse of the WAIS. The extent to which that mechanism will come into play is not yet known.
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