Antarctica could melt ‘irreversibly’ because of global warming, study warns

Climate change has destabilized the Earth’s poles, putting the rest of the planet in peril. New research shows how rising temperatures have irreversibly altered both the Arctic and Antarctic. Ripple effects will be felt around the globe.

The ice shelf was cracking up. Surveys showed warm ocean water eroding its underbelly. Satellite imagery revealed long, parallel fissures in the frozen expanse, like scratches from some clawed monster. One fracture grew so big, so fast, scientists took to calling it “the dagger. ”“It was hugely surprising to see things changing that fast,” said Erin Pettit. The Oregon State University glaciologist had chosen this spot for her Antarctic field research precisely because of its stability. While other parts of the infamous Thwaites Glacier crumbled, this wedge of floating ice acted as a brace, slowing the melt. It was supposed to be boring, durable, safe. Now climate change has turned the ice shelf into a threat — to Pettit’s field work, and to the world. Planet-warming pollution from burning fossil fuels and other human activities has already raised global temperatures more than 1. 1 degrees Celsius (2 degrees Fahrenheit). But the effects are particularly profound at the poles, where rising temperatures have seriously undermined regions once locked in ice.


Video advice: Massive Antarctica ice shelf melting faster than expected; could raise sea levels sharply

California researchers say a faster than expected melt of a major glacier in western Antarctica could impact local sea levels. KPBS Environment Reporter Erik Anderson has details.


Global warming: Antarctica’s Pine Island glacier could COLLAPSE within 20 years, study warns

The Pine Island ice shelf – located on the West Antarctic Ice Sheet – has been known to have been thinning now for decades as a result of climate change.

Antarctica’s Pine Island ice shelf is ‘ripping apart’, meaning the 180 trillion ton glacier it is helping to hold back could COLLAPSE within 20 years, study warns – Antarctica’s 180 trillion ton Pine Island glacier could collapse within 20 years as the floating ice shelf helping to hold it back is ‘ripping apart’, a study has warned. The Pine Island ice shelf — located on the West Antarctic Ice Sheet — has been known to have been thinning now for decades as a result of climate change. However, analysis of satellite images undertaken by researchers led from the University of Washington has shown a more dramatic loss in recent years. From 2017 to 2020, large icebergs at the edge of the ice shelf have broken off into the Amundsen Sea, resulting in an acceleration of the glacier further inland. The Pine Island Glacier is already responsible for a quarter of Antarctica’s ice loss — and its complete loss could see sea levels rise by some 1. 6 feet (0. 5 metres). Scroll down for video Antarctica’s 180 trillion ton Pine Island glacier could collapse within 20 years as the floating ice shelf helping to hold it back is ‘ripping apart’. Pictured, a view across the ice showing the crevasses that form where the grounded glacier flows into the floating ice shelf’We may not have the luxury of waiting for slow changes on Pine Island; things could actually go much quicker than expected,’ said lead author Ian Joughin, a glaciologist at the UW Applied Physics Laboratory.

2022 in climate change

This article documents notable events, research findings, effects, and responses related to global warming and climate change during the year 2022.

31 March: a study published in the PNAS concluded that if food waste is diverted from landfills to avoid methane emissions, food-waste-derived n-paraffin volatile fatty acid-based sustainable aviation fuels could enable up to a 165% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions relative to fossil-derived aviation fuels.

25 February: a Nature Geoscience article reported an “unprecedented” (since AD 400) decline in the twentieth century of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC), which is now in its weakest state in more than 1,000 years. The AMOC redistributes heat on the planet and has a major impact on climate. In particular, weakness in the AMOC, which includes the Florida Current and the Gulf Stream, counteracts its moderating effect on the climate in Europe.

Antarctic ice-sheet destabilized within a decade: A new Study provides critical insights into ice mass loss in Antarctica

After the natural warming that followed the last Ice Age, there were repeated periods when masses of icebergs broke off from Antarctica into the Southern Ocean. A new data-model study now shows that it took only a decade to initiate this tipping point in the climate system, and that ice mass loss then continued for many centuries.

The results are also relevant for ice retreat observed today: “Our findings are consistent with a growing body of evidence suggesting the acceleration of Antarctic ice-mass loss in recent decades may mark the begin of a self-sustaining and irreversible period of ice sheet retreat and substantial global sea level rise,” says study leader Dr. Michael Weber from the University of Bonn.

After the natural warming that followed the last Ice Age, there were repeated periods when masses of icebergs broke off from Antarctica into the Southern Ocean. A new data-model study led by the University of Bonn (Germany) now shows that it took only a decade to initiate this tipping point in the climate system, and that ice mass loss then continued for many centuries. Accompanying modeling studies suggest that today’s accelerating Antarctic ice mass loss also represents such a tipping point, which could lead to irreversible and long-lasting ice retreat and global sea level rise. The study has now been published in the journal Nature Communications.

Melting of Greenland ice may accelerate as glaciers get shorter

A swathe of the Greenland ice sheet may be nearing a “tipping point” into a new unstable state of melting that would be irreversible in the short term, scientists warn.

DARKER SURFACE – (Reuters) – A swathe of the Greenland ice sheet may be nearing a “tipping point” into a new unstable state of melting that would be irreversible in the short term, scientists warn. As the central-western Greenland ice sheet melts, it is also shrinking in height, with its surface exposed to warmer temperatures at lower altitudes that contributes further to melting, according to research published here on Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. In a second study here published Monday, a different group of researchers highlights how changing snowfall patterns over the Greenland may also cause the ice sheet to absorb more heat. The two studies are among many in recent months to warn of the increasing rate of ice melt in the Arctic, where climate change is causing temperatures to rise much faster than in the rest of the world. Greenland’s ice sheet — the world’s second largest after the Antarctic ice sheet — is estimated to contain enough water to raise the average sea level by more than 7 metres (23 feet).


Video advice: How climate change is impacting Antarctica’s ecosystem

The frozen continent of Antarctica may be far from the world’s population centers – but what happens in the rest of the world is having a big impact there. Roxana Saberi traveled to the region with researchers to see what must be done to protect the area.


Some catastrophic changes to the climate can still be headed off

The most comprehensive report yet on climate change looks at potentially irreversible climate dangers, from sea level rise to ocean circulation slowdowns, that can still be avoided with strong climate action.

EnvironmentNewsThe most comprehensive report yet on climate change looks at potentially irreversible climate dangers, from sea level rise to ocean circulation slowdowns, that can still be avoided with strong climate action. Climate change has already touched every corner of the planet and will continue to reshape the human experience for centuries to come, its impacts intensifying as warming grows, scientists warn. The 2. 0 degrees Fahrenheit (1. 1 degrees Celsius) the planet has warmed since the preindustrial period has pushed Earth toward irreversible change, some of which is unavoidable. But decisive action to cut emissions quickly and thoroughly—keeping total temperature rise as low as possible—can greatly reduce the risks of crossing further dangerous thresholds that would put the planet even more at risk, according to a massive new Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report released Monday. “In order to stabilize climate, we have to stop emitting immediately, full stop,” says Charles Koven, one of the report authors and a climate scientist at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California.

antarctic ice melt: Latest News & Videos, Photos about antarctic ice melt

antarctic ice melt Latest Breaking News, Pictures, Videos, and Special Reports from The Economic Times. antarctic ice melt Blogs, Comments and Archive News on Economictimes.com.

Melting East Antarctic ice sheet may cause global sea level rise – Rising seas and melting glaciers: These changes are now irreversible, but we have to act to slow them downWe can also say with high confidence that oxygen levels have dropped in many ocean regions since the mid-20th century and that marine heatwaves have doubled in frequency since 1980, also becoming longer and more intense. 11 Aug, 2021, 11. 11 AM IST1. 5 degrees Celsius warming cap could ‘halve’ sea level rise from melting iceSince 1993, melting land ice has contributed to at least half of global sea level rise and scientists have previously warned that the vast ice sheets of Antarctica were disappearing faster than worst-case scenarios. 05 May, 2021, 10. 53 PM ISTThird of Antarctic ice shelf area at collapse risk due to global warmingThe researchers noted that limiting temperature rise to two degrees Celsius rather than four degrees Celsius would halve the area at risk, and potentially avoid significant sea-level rise. 09 Apr, 2021, 12. 16 PM ISTChina steps up plans for Arctic foray raising fears of military build-upThe plan states that China would “participate in pragmatic cooperation in the North Pole” and “raise its ability to participate in the protection and utilisation of the South Pole”.

Global heating pace risks ‘unstoppable’ sea level rise as Antarctic ice sheet melts

World faces ‘abrupt jump’ in pace of ice loss around 2022 unless emissions reduced to meet Paris agreement goals, study warns.

The current pace of global heating risks unleashing “rapid and unstoppable” sea level rise from the melting of Antarctica’s vast ice sheet, a new research paper has warned. Unless planet-heating emissions are swiftly reduced to meet the goals of the Paris climate agreement, the world faces a situation where there is an “abrupt jump” in the pace of Antarctic ice loss around 2060, the study states, fueling sea level rise and placing coastal cities in greater peril. “If the world warms up at a rate dictated by current policies we will see the Antarctic system start to get away from us around 2060,” said Robert DeConto, an expert in polar climate change at the University of Massachusetts and lead author of the study. “Once you put enough heat into the climate system, you are going to lose those ice shelves, and once that is set in motion you can’t reverse it. ”DeConto added: “The oceans would have to cool back down before the ice sheet could heal, which would take a very long time. On a societal timescale it would essentially be a permanent change.

The change will take thousands of years, but we only have a century to stop it.

Antarctica contains more than half of the world’s freshwater in its sprawling, frozen ice sheet, but humanity’s decisions over the next century could send that water irreversibly into the sea. If global warming is allowed to continue unchecked, Antarctica will soon pass a “point of no return” that could reduce the continent to a barren, ice-free mass for the first time in more than 30 million years, according to a new study published Sep. 23 in the journal Nature. “Antarctica is basically our ultimate heritage from an earlier time in Earth’s history. It’s been around for roughly 34 million years,” study co-author Anders Levermann, a researcher at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) in Germany, said in a statement. “Now our simulations show that once it’s melted, it does not regrow to its initial state (until) temperatures go back to pre-industrial levels … a highly unlikely scenario. In other words: What we lose of Antarctica now, is lost forever. “Related: 6 Unexpected effects of climate changeIn the study, PIK researchers ran computer simulations to model how Antarctica will look thousands of years from now, depending on how high average global temperatures rise in response to modern greenhouse gas emissions.

West Antarctica could melt away

A new study warns of collapse at the South Pole: The giant ice crust of West Antarctica could disappear completely. This would mean an eventual 3-meter rise in global sea levels.

Scientists at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research warned in a recent study that a tipping point may have been reached in the melting of West Antarctica’s ice mass. Even though the ice surface of West Antarctica has not changed for some time, this stability – according to the scientists – could tilt “fairly quickly. ” The study was published November 2 in the United States National Academy of Sciences journal. These new results are consistent with those of past studies, which confirm that the stability of West Antarctica’s ice crust in could be irrevocably disturbed. Long-term consequences “Our simulations showed that 60 years of melting at today’s observable rate will initiate an unstoppable process of ice loss, which will go on for thousands of years,” said Johannes Feldmann. According to Feldmann, the lead author of the study, the gradual melting of the ice mass will eventually lead to a rise in sea level of at least 3 meters – in about 10,000 years. “Of course, it will take a very long time for the ice crust to disappear – but the process is irreversible,” Feldmann added.


Video advice: Could Global Warming Start A New Ice Age?

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[FAQ]

Is Antarctica melting due to climate change?

A summary study in 2018 incorporating calculations and data from many other studies estimated that total ice loss in Antarctica due to climate change was 43 gigatons per year on average during the period from 1992 to 2002 but has accelerated to an average of 220 gigatons per year during the five years from 2012 to 2017 ...

What is happening to Antarctica because of climate change?

The warming of the Antarctic Peninsula is causing changes to the physical and living environment of Antarctica. The distribution of penguin colonies has changed as the sea ice conditions alter. Melting of perennial snow and ice covers has resulted in increased colonisation by plants.

What happens if Antarctica melts?

If all the ice covering Antarctica, Greenland, and in mountain glaciers around the world were to melt, sea level would rise about 70 meters (230 feet). The ocean would cover all the coastal cities. And land area would shrink significantly. But many cities, such as Denver, would survive.

How does climate change affect seals in Antarctica?

The climate crisis is limiting the availability of krill – small crustaceans that are vital in the marine food chain – during summer in some areas of the Antarctica. This involves a decrease in the food abundance for female Antarctic fur seals in summer and a decrease in their reproductive success.

Is Antarctica warming or cooling?

Antarctica seems to be both warming around the edges and cooling at the center at the same time. Sea ice extent surrounding Antarctica has trended higher since satellite measurements began in 1979. The central and southern parts of the west coast of the Antarctic Peninsula have warmed by nearly 3 °C.

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