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A recent study conducted by the University of Miami (and supported by the National Science Foundation and NASA), indicates that Greenland's ice is melting so quickly that the land underneath it is rising at an accelerated pace.The north Atlantic island nation, which features a rocky coast of stunning fjords formed by moving glaciers, and a dense icecap that covers much of country, is literally rising as the ice pressing down the land beneath it continues to melt. According to the study some coastal areas are lifting by nearly one inch per year and if current trends continue, that number could accelerate to as much as two inches per year by 2025.The idea behind the study is that if Greenland is losing its ice cover, the resulting loss of weight causes the rocky surface beneath to rise, therefore literally giving a boost to the country's elevation.Melting of Greenland's ice contributes to global sea level rise. Experts say if the acceleration of uplift and the implied acceleration of melting continue, Greenland could soon become the largest contributor to global sea level rise.
Satellite images reveal that a giant crash earlier this month between Antarctica's Mertz glacier's giant floating tongue of ice and another iceberg has resulted in a new iceberg (the size of Luxembourg) to break off the continental shelf.
Yet another instance of "ice calving" that may be related to climate change (refer to previous blog post on January 14), the occurrence is feared by scientists to ultimately affect ocean circulation patterns.
Exactly how would that happen? Well the collision halved the size of the tongue that drains ice from the vast East Antarctic ice sheet into the Southern Ocean. The removal of this tongue of floating ice would reduce the size of that area of open water, which would slow down the rate of salinity input into the ocean, which would also slow down the rate of Antarctic bottom water formation.
Oceans act like a giant flywheel for the planet's climate by shifting heat around the globe via myriad currents above and below the surface. When such instances disrupt this process the end result could prove quite significant as it relates to our evolving climate.
I find it interesting that after blogging a couple days ago about the creation of the Himalayan Mountain chain; a story hit the news about Himalayan glaciers. 
Apparently some leaders on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) made a boo-boo when they said Himalayan glaciers would disappear by 2035. A poorly substantiated claim that also misstates the total land area covered by these glaciers, was considered “extremely embarrassing and damaging." Uhmm duh, of course it was -- in a time when a majority of people across the globe don’t believe in global warming or think it’s a hoax; you just can’t make these mistakes!A professor from the University of Arizona who is also a subject matter expert on the issue said the IPCC had such a stellar reputation that people view it as an authority -- as indeed they should -- and so they see a bullet that says Himalayan glaciers will disappear by 2035 and they take that as a fact.Well, after reading more into the subject this morning it seems there is some blame game back-and-forth going on. Who wrote this? Who reviewed it? Who sent it? Blah, blah blah… who cares? Fact! The Himalayan glaciers are reportedly going to be around for 15 more years, estimated to disappear by 2350, not 2035.So enjoy them… I guess!?!?
A recent study conducted by the University of Miami (and supported by the National Science Foundation and NASA), indicates that Greenland's ice is melting so quickly that the land underneath it is rising at an accelerated pace.
