Fear of 'catastrophic' sea-level rise as ice sheets melt faster than predicted

[Bill USA]

... as climate models are being revised to improve their accuracy ... scientists keep finding that their previous predictions of temperature and sea level rise were too conservative. What is unfortunate is that the general public will only begin to appreciate this fact only too late. The scientists are finding out we have less time than they previously thought to do something to rein in - or at least slow down - Global Warming.

Of course, to look on the 'bright' side, you will be able to buy that beach cottage much cheaper than you thought possible as people begin heading for higher ground. Coastal dwellers will probably learn to appreciate GW deniers when they can sell their currently coastal property to them at a price they never dreamed of getting.


http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/fear-of-catastrophic-sealevel-rise-as-ice-sheets-melt-faster-than-predicted-8440277.html

Glaciologists fear they may have seriously underestimated the potential for melting ice sheets to contribute to catastrophic sea-level rises in coming decades which could see increases of a metre or more by 2100.

The ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica contain about 99.5 per cent of the Earth's glacier ice and could raise sea levels by 65 metres if they melted completely – although experts think this is highly unlikely in the foreseeable future. However, a survey of the world's top 26 glaciologists found most believe melting of the ice sheets could be more rapid and severe than previously estimated. They believe that melting of the ice sheets alone this century would be likely to raise the average global sea level by 29cm, the poll found, but there is a five per cent chance of it increasing even further by a catastrophic 84cm.

This would take the total sea-level increase to well over a metre if other factors such as the thermal expansion of oceans and runoff from mountain glaciers are taken into account.

"Our analysis shows the biggest uncertainty when it comes to sea levels is the contribution from the ice sheets," said Professor Jonathan Bamber of Bristol University, lead author of the study published in the journal Nature Climate Change.

"It shows glaciologists believe there is a one-in-20 chance of sea levels rising by a metre or more by 2100, and a metre rise in sea level is really very serious.
(more)

[longship]

1. We won't do anything until we... Glub, grub, glubber, glub. R&K nt

[blkmusclmachine]

2. Extinction/mass hardship awaits the planet; too many of our electeds believe "god's got it covered."

[HuskyOffset]

3. "We'll all go together"

I give you "We'll All Go Together", by Big Country

A skyhole here, the sun’s let in
It melts the ice, it melts my skin
The oceans rise, the lands recede
Cities crumble, vermin feed

We will all go together when we go, when we go (repeat 2)
We will all go together when we go

The chainsaw roars, the forests fall
The natives hide, the cattle call
The water boils with toxic waste
We catch the fish to get a taste

We will all go together when we go, when we go (repeat 2)
We will all go together when we go

The atoms split to heat the town
And build a bomb to knock it down
Nothing is done For all of this
Till most to blame is most at risk

We will all go together when we go, when we go (repeat 2)
We will all go together when we go

A skyhole here, the sun’s let in
It melts the ice, it melts my skin
The oceans rise, the lands recede
Cities crumble, vermin feed

We will all go together when we go, when we go (repeat to end)
We will all go together when we go

[bemildred]

4. Well, actually, certain people have been yelling about this for years now. nt

[CrispyQ]

5. "Chasing Ice"

Stunning visual evidence that the planet is warming. James Balog was a climate change denier until he started Chasing Ice. Two members of his team catch a spectacular calving event on film that was massive! They said it took a total of 75 minutes to complete. They superimposed Manhattan over the calved section to show the scope.

http://www.chasingice.com/

Netflix has it. Highly recommended.

Personally, I think we're toast. The changes we need to make are systemic & no one with any voice or power is addressing it.

[Bill USA]

7. it's not just GW deniers that are a problem. There are many who consider themselves 'enlightened'

Last edited Sun Dec 22, 2013, 06:26 PM - Edit history (1)

who, for example, think in the light vehicle transportation sector, that electric cars (hybrids and esp. plug-ins) will save us. What they can't (or refuse to) grasp is that it will take about 20 years to sell enough Hybrids and Plug-ins to reach perhaps 20-25% of the entire light vehicle fleet. Achieving a 50% GHG reduction per car yields roughly a 10%-13% GHG reduction for the entire light vehicle sector.

Well, 10% - 13% reduction in 20 years is nowhere near good enough, SOON ENOUGH. Just looking at the light transportation sector, going this route, alone, we are screwed. WE need some way of producing results much quicker than that. But, many of these people turn their noses up at biofuels. But what they don't get is that - you can replace the fuel the cars burn faster than you can replace the cars that burn the fuel.

We should be aggressively investing in biomass sourced Methanol to add to the ethanol we are currently producing to get to 20% - 30% of the fuel supply as rapidly as possible (try to get to 20% of fuel supply as alcohol, from the current ~10% in tens yrs). Using cars equipped with engines that take full advantage of alcohol fuels (and thus getting as good or better mpg than with gasoline) we could get 3 times the GHG emissions reduction as is currently achieved with low compression FFVs. A 61% GHG reduction vs what DoE and EPA computes as a 19% reduction (a dubious number in itself, but that's another issue) would represent a great improvement over what we are doing now and produce results much cheaper and sooner than waiting on electric cars to be bought by one fifth of the drivers.

We certainly should continue to build electrics and encourage all who can afford them to buy them. But electrics, by themselves, won't produce enough results - soon enough - to be of much help by themselves. Unless, of course we make them so they can float and be used as boats too (a little irony).

[dickthegrouch]

6. Just like King Canute

The rich don't think this will affect them, so they have no incentive to change. They think it will kill off a few million more inconveniently poor people and that'll be an end to it. They have no concept that their millions can't save them. They need 'lower-caste' workers to collect their food, transport it to them and cook it.

While the crooks of the world have always been able to motivate their minions with money, when the money doesn't work, they are all toast.