The Big Thaw (Greenland's ice cap melting faster than expected)

[Thom Little]

Greenland's glaciers have begun to race towards the ocean, leading scientists to predict that the vast island's ice cap is approaching irreversible meltdown, The Independent on Sunday can reveal.

Research to be published in a few days' time shows how glaciers that have been stable for centuries have started to shrink dramatically as temperatures in the Arctic have soared with global warming. On top of this, record amounts of the ice cap's surface turned to water this summer.

The two developments - the most alarming manifestations of climate change to date - suggest that the ice cap is melting far more rapidly than scientists had thought, with immense consequences for civilisation and the planet. Its complete disappearance would raise the levels of the world's seas by 20 feet, spelling inundation for London and other coastal cities around the globe, along with much of low-lying countries such as Bangladesh.

More immediately, the vast amount of fresh water discharged into the ocean as the ice melts threatens to shut down the Gulf Stream, which protects Britain and the rest of northern Europe from a freezing climate like that of Labrador.



http://news.independent.co.uk/environment/article328217.ece

[SpiralHawk]

1. Commander Bush Has Ordered IMMEDIATE Action

He has designated the Smith Jr. High School Chemistry Club as the Lead Investigators who will head up a 20-year Longitudinal Study of the factors which may be obscured so the USA can continue to IGNORE global climate change.

[autorank]

2. And congratulations to the stupid Tony bLIAR for ruining his country.

The British have know about this for some time. bLIAR hatched some idiotic scheme to 'adapt' to the change...yeah right, adapt to the same weather as Newfoundland, Canada. Welcome to the ironic ice age. You had a precious gift and you blew it. Lord knows what this portends for the USA.

I think people need to go to jail forever for this. Round up all the political leaders who denied this and all the faux scientists and their sponsors, jail them, and toss away the key. Look at them as irredeemable and unable to ever function in society.

[Briar]

3. As usual

Bliar is borrowing his policy second hand from the US. With all the world to choose from, and far more progressive and effective policies being adopted in Europe, the UK has chosen instead to trail after its big, English-speaking cousin. It is really far too much effort to think constructively, act with long term consequences in mind rather than merely short term effects on corporate profit, risk offending the US and even <gasp> try to read documents in a language other than English.

[rodeodance]

4. Blaire, at one time stood up for the enviroment--now he under the spell

of the Bushies!

More immediately, the vast amount of fresh water discharged into the ocean as the ice melts threatens to shut down the Gulf Stream, which protects Britain and the rest of northern Europe from a freezing climate like that of Labrador.

[Briar]

5. He has always been under their spell

I suspect. He is a power-groupie, at heart. He turned out rhetoric to please environmentalists as long as all that was required was talk - when it became a matter of championing policies in the G8 which Bush opposes, that was too much like disloyalty to the Empire for him to stomach.

[AndyTiedye]

6. I Think Bliar is Being Blackmailed by the BFEE

[anotherdrew]

7. isn't london building a massive sea wall to prevent flooding?

Still, I doubt it can withstand a 20 foot rise. We are fucked, this is happening. And this with the siberian not-so-perma-frost bogs releasing methane... This is gonna get ugly folks.

[ovidsen]

16. It's built

http://www.answers.com/topic/thames-barrier

The Thames Barrier is a flood control structure on the River Thames at Woolwich Reach in London. It is the world's largest movable flood barrier.

Built across a 523 m wide stretch of the river the barrier divides the river into six channels between nine large concrete piers. The flood gates across the openings are radial, i.e., half-cylindrical, and they operate by rotating, raised by hydraulics out of a horizontal sill below the water to form the barrier. They can rotate further to allow for 'underspill' for maintenance. All the gates are made of steel. The four large central gates are 61 metres long, 10.5 metres high (above local ground level) and weigh 1,500 tonnes; the outer two gates are 31 meters.

Many environmentalists warn, though, that this barrier will have to be reinforced if the ocean rises as much as is predicted.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/4162905.stm

Plans to build a 10-mile barrier along the Thames to protect London from flooding are being considered.
Climate change experts say the existing Thames barrier, built in the 1970s, may not be able to cope with rising tides.

To quote Bill Cosby... "...how long can you tread water?"

[Chicago Democrat]

8. ooops

we broke the planet

[1620rock]

11. NOT we, * broke the planet!

[meganmonkey]

12. Well, it's been going on for awhile now,

and Bush certainly isn't helping.

Welcome to DU!

:toast:

[tavalon]

25. You know, Bush and his minions are evil

But they just accelerated what we had already had well on the way. Read Al Gore's Earth in the Balance.

[Chicago Democrat]

9. Megawelcome to DU!

such a happy sunny warm place...


and gettin warmer apparently!

[Strelnikov_]

10. No More Florida

Here is what the earth would look like if all the ice sheets (Greenland, Antarctica, etc.) melted, resulting in an estimated 250' (80m) rise in sea level:



Larger version here (remove the extra g):

g


You can visual your personal sea rise scenario here:

http://atlas.geo.cornell.edu/education/quest/

Global Sea Level Change > Step One

In an open QUEST window, click on the Menu button and set the Map Area to World.

From the Main Menu click on Data Sets and choose Topography from the pull down menu.

Next, select the Show Sea Level Change button and raise sea level by 125 meters using the Change in Sea Level text box.

When you are done be sure to click on both OK buttons in the green Topography window and the tan Data Sets window.

Lastly, click on the Get Map button.

Once your map appears look it carefully. The black lines indicate the new coastline and the grey lines the present day coastline.



Personally, the rate things are accelerating, I think ice free is a possibility.

[Odin2005]

14. Ice free? I don't think so.

the East Antarctic Ice Sheet, where most of the world's Ice is is very stable. we will have invented carbon free fuels long before it gets that bad. the consesus estimite is, I think, 5-7F by 2100, there will be some major melting in Greenland and West Antartica, and there will be no arctic sea ice in the summer, but ALL the ice, no.

[Strelnikov_]

17. Did I Not Say A Possibility? Did I Say By 2100?

Likely, no. Possible, in the next 500-1000 years, yes.

What about the effects of release of methane from thawing permafrost? What about release of methane hydrates from warming oceans?

What impresses me most is how little we know about the long range implications of global warming.

[Odin2005]

18. This hysteria is just giving the right-wingers propaganda material.

By a hundred years from now we should be using mostly unpollutiong energy sources. Will sea levels rise? Yes. Will most of the ice melt? No. Will there be enviromental disasters? Yes. Will it be the End of the World? No. And I think the newer computer models take permafrost methane into acount, but I may be wrong on that. I would rather listen to computer models done by respected climatologists than crazy hysteria.

[barb162]

20. how does it give right-wingers propaganda material

Almost all of the scientists are saying the same thing and what they are saying is frightening..

[Strelnikov_]

21. Personally, I Really Don't Care What Reich-Wingers Think Or Say

You say there is no possibility, whatsoever, that the caps will melt, yet you don't know if arctic and ocean methanes have been taken into account in the models.

Ok. Got it.

Again, do I think there is much chance of it happening. No. Do I think it is remotely possible, even if current models do not predict it. Yes. Why? Because our understanding of the climatic feedback loop being pushed is limited.

[Media_Lies_Daily]

30. Do some research on the Little Ice Age and get back to us. Thanks!

[TX-RAT]

32. Do some research on the Little Ice Age

Which one?

[Media_Lies_Daily]

29. You need to do some additional research on Antarctica...

..it's no longer "very stable".

[Mojorabbit]

24. Well a twenty foot rise

will put me on oceanfront property here in Orlando.

[TX-RAT]

31. If all the ice melts, it will be worse than that.

At one time, 50% of the US, and a large part of Canada was under water, from the arctic ocean to the Gulf of Mexico. Where i live is an ancient sea bed, and we're 2600ft above sea level.

[mom cat]

33. This is a great tool, but why did you suggest 125 meters if the melting of

all the ice will get us to 80 meters?

[VegasWolf]

13. "Honey, I Broke the Planet!" nt

[lovuian]

15. They asked for it and they are going to get it!!!

Hang onto your hats people!!!

[MadisonProgressive]

26. I think I'll let go of my hat and hold on to the driftwood passing by..

[ThePopulist]

19. YES!! KEEP BUYING SUV'S!! KEEP THAT TANK RUNNING MISTER!!!!!!!

I mean you know, I only want to breathe in your filthy ass exhaust fumes so I can love that wonderful lung cancer you know!! And what about all that smog you help create!! Holy shitters!! I want some of that smog! That's good, wholesome stuff!!

[buddysmellgood]

22. We need to attack Greenland!

[MadisonProgressive]

27. JEEBUS! Dumbass doesn't need to hear that!

[Blue_Tires]

23. good luck trying to explain this to the RWers in power

they still think things like global warming and evolution are scams

[TX-RAT]

28. Again?

How many times has it already done this? It seems like just 13 to 14 thousand years ago we had or last one.My the time just fly's by.