Scientists confirm that warm ocean water is melting the biggest glacier in East Antarctica

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Sidney Morning Herald

December 18 2016 - 4:26PM
Chris Mooney


Scientists at institutions in the US and Australia on Friday published a set of unprecedented ocean observations near the largest glacier of the largest ice sheet in the world: Totten glacier, East Antarctica. And the result was a troubling confirmation of what scientists already feared – Totten is melting from below.

The measurements, sampling ocean temperatures in seas over a kilometre deep in some places right at the edge of Totten glacier's floating ice shelf, affirmed that warm ocean water is flowing in towards the glacier at the rate of 220,000 cubic metres per second.

These waters, the paper asserts, are causing the ice shelf to lose between 63 and 80 billion tonnes of its mass to the ocean per year, and to lose about 10 metres of thickness annually, a reduction that has been previously noted based on satellite measurements.

This matters because more of East Antarctica flows out towards the sea through the Totten glacier region than for any other glacier in the entirety of the East Antarctic ice sheet. Its entire "catchment", or the region of ice that slowly flows outward through Totten glacier and its ice shelf, is larger than California. If all of this ice were to end up in the ocean somehow, seas would raise by about 3.5 metres.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/world/scientists-confirm-that-warm-ocean-water-is-melting-the-biggest-glacier-in-east-antarctica-20161218-gtdgeg.html

[LuckyLib]

1. Hey, what do they know? It's a complete hoax, I tell ya!

We are so screwn.

[Sunlei]

2. epic size avalanche when that ice shelf lets go. wonder how high the wave will be.

was 100 foot high wave when a rock shelf slid into a pacific NW river.

[Achilleaze]

3. And so the Ruskie-Republicans put an arrogant friggen climate change denier in charge

GOP is beyond stupid into the realm of willfully criminally blind.

[Achilleaze]

4. Maybe when the GOP frat house at Mar a Lago goes under the waves, the Repukes will get a clue

[briv1016]

5. Anyone else watching Continent 7: Antarctica on Nat Geo?

It's truly disheartening when they discuss how Antarctica is a pristine environment and must be preserved. We had a chance.

[tclambert]

6. Well, you'll just believe any Chinese propaganda you hear, won't cha?

Fortunately, we have a president-elect who will protect our economy from the forces that want to hurt our oil companies. Because whatever is best for Exxon-Mobil is best for the entire fuckin' world. Until it isn't. And then, human civilization may crumble. But who cares? Exxon-Mobil will have made a few more pennies of profit. And really, what matters more than that? Certainly not the lives of your stupid, ugly children.

How much does a good survivalist bunker cost? I'm gonna have to get me one of them.