This Antarctic glacier is cracking from the inside out — and that’s bad news for all of us

a reply to: Blaine91555

I will say that all those reports about how all major cities will be underwater in 30 years are kind of dumb since they don't take into account human responses to these changes. Naturally as the water creeps closer inland, real-estate priorities in the city will shift further and further away from the coast. This will slowly result in the cities moving inland as the water line encroaches.

Sea level rise is already a problem in many places, including South Florida. Especially bad in Florida, as the Governor has explicitly told government employees they aren't allowed to use words and phrases like "Climate Change, Global Warming or Sea Level rise" So...how do you have an intelligent conversation with someone. What if you're the Mayor of Miami and you need some help mitigating the minor flooding they experience there even on Sunny days?

Is this the area that has an active volcanoe under it?

I seem to remember there are a couple volcanoes in the antartic as well as one that has a year round lake of lava in it...

I could be suffering from faulty memory, or missed a clarification about an article.

a reply to: Krazysh0t

From the information NASA has up, sea levels have risen approximately 11 inches since 1870 (146 years). I'm sure we can deal with that without it being a major problem.

Of course those who insist on building in places where buildings should never have been built will have issues. That I see as self-inflicted however.

I'm not much for the sky is falling routine, which I think has far more to do with getting research funding than any real need to panic.

a reply to: amazing

Sounds like Florida needs to rethink it's planning and building practices.

The sky is not falling and those who insist on building in bad locations should not be surprised when they have issues.

I'm old enough to remember when Florida land could be had for very little money in large parcels, precisely because it was such a bad place to build. Money blinds both the people buying and building and the government trying to increase revenue.

a reply to: Riffrafter
Is this why Obama and Kerry went there?

a reply to: Blaine91555

Here's the thing. The sky doesn't fall all at once. Outside of some astronomical event like an asteroid strike or a geothermal event like a super volcano going off, the end of the world isn't going to happen all at once. It is instead a series of small cuts that you tolerate for a long period of time before you realize that you have a gushing head wound and it is too late. Or, those small cuts could easily heal before the next one is induced. You never know. That isn't to say that none of this isn't real and we shouldn't be concerned or anything. Whether or not it destroys society is secondary. This WILL cause massive population movements, will disrupt economies local and global, and will cause hardships that we haven't even begun to analyze and react to. These are all MAJOR concerns, and while not world ending (or even society ending) they are significant problems that could lead to things like war. So we should still be taking this as seriously as possible.

Been to NY, it was a #hole. Pretty to better flush it down the toliet.

And Maimi? Meh simon cowel has a multi million dollar mansion there, so will be fun to sunk it.


I will keep some lights on tonight and drive my car in sports mode just to help things along

originally posted by: Krazysh0t
a reply to: Blaine91555
This WILL cause massive population movements, will disrupt economies local and global, and will cause hardships that we haven't even begun to analyze and react to. These are all MAJOR concerns, and while not world ending (or even society ending) they are significant problems that could lead to things like war. So we should still be taking this as seriously as possible.

Yes we should plan but sensationalizing it is of no value other than for those trying to get funding by scaring people.

We simply do not have the hundreds of thousands if not millions of years of accurate data to even know what is normal and not normal and clearly the climate is in a constant state of flux.

One volcano can do more and has done more than everything mankind has done since we have existed. Just a single eruption poses a greater risk than we do.

That's just how it is, but that does not make for sensational news or flood researchers with money and they seem to be trying to do calculations for which neither the data nor powerful enough computers exist to accomplish.

Instead we should be dealing with long term planning and doing something about the insanity of those who build in bad locations and stop encouraging bad practices by bailing people out of messes, they created themselves. The insanity of New Orleans for instance is a great example of horrible planning and beating a dead horse. Below sea level on an ever-changing delta, how ridiculous is that if we are honest with ourselves?

Procrastination is not an issue that science can deal with and our government is too worried about votes to do what is right it seems.

The last thing we need is sky is falling folks running around scaring people for no good reason.

Meh, just grow some more glaciers.

First you need a mommy and a daddy glacier.

It is believed that for centuries in the Hindu Kush and Karakoram mountain region villagers have been practising something called glacier growing (or glacier grafting). Yes, literally making their own new glacier. This is done in order to increase the water supply for crops, for survival.

It is believed by the local people that there are male and female glaciers. The male ones, they believe, are covered in soil or stones and move very less. While the female glaciers are whiter, grow faster and yield more water. It is also believed that to grow a glacier, equal amounts of both sexes are needed.

awesci.com...

Go science. lol!

freebeacon.com...

originally posted by: Krazysh0t
a reply to: Blaine91555

Here's the thing. The sky doesn't fall all at once. Outside of some astronomical event like an asteroid strike or a geothermal event like a super volcano going off, the end of the world isn't going to happen all at once. It is instead a series of small cuts that you tolerate for a long period of time before you realize that you have a gushing head wound and it is too late. Or, those small cuts could easily heal before the next one is induced. You never know. That isn't to say that none of this isn't real and we shouldn't be concerned or anything. Whether or not it destroys society is secondary. This WILL cause massive population movements, will disrupt economies local and global, and will cause hardships that we haven't even begun to analyze and react to. These are all MAJOR concerns, and while not world ending (or even society ending) they are significant problems that could lead to things like war. So we should still be taking this as seriously as possible.

That's the thing! It's those cosmic events we should worry about, not minor changes in co2, temperature or sea level.
These all happen gradually, nothing evolution can't deal with. It even might be beneficial for evolution.

Cosmic events have shown us mass extinctions in very short times. Drops/rises in temperature, sea levels, ice volumes in a short period of time of just a couple weeks/months. Unimaginable floods and wildfires.
Those are the things we should focus on if we want to savfe our species.
But no, taxes will save the day. Hip hip hoora for our government and it's gullible citizens.

You speak about economy, remember that is just a small part of life itself. Yet it seems now a days that economy drives human survival.

originally posted by: Greggers
I certainly wouldn't consider beachfront property a good long-term investment...

I didn't like the idea of beach front when I learned was tsunamis do...nvm rise in sea levels due to icecaps melting.

a reply to: Blaine91555
Well here's the thing. I've heard the volcano analogy before. Volcanoes erupt year round. I'm sure you've heard of the Ring of Fire that surrounds the Pacific. So THAT carbon was already being pumped into the atmosphere before humans even arrived on the scene. However, and here's where humans come in, we have added to that carbon output with our society. THUS due to additive properties that exist throughout the universe we are effecting the environment to a degree. That is undeniable. We CAN argue to the extent, but to deny it happening is just folly.

originally posted by: intergalactic fire
That's the thing! It's those cosmic events we should worry about, not minor changes in co2, temperature or sea level.
These all happen gradually, nothing evolution can't deal with. It even might be beneficial for evolution.

Cosmic events have shown us mass extinctions in very short times. Drops/rises in temperature, sea levels, ice volumes in a short period of time of just a couple weeks/months. Unimaginable floods and wildfires.
Those are the things we should focus on if we want to savfe our species.
But no, taxes will save the day. Hip hip hoora for our government and it's gullible citizens.

Why can't we worry about both? I mean a negative is a negative. Why does the scale of destruction matter? If we can fix human caused climate change. Awesome. If we can hopefully detect and prevent a major asteroid collision. Awesome. Why do you want to pick and choose?

Though keep in mind that some of the scariest cosmic events hit us or are targeting us there is literally nothing we can do. For instance, look up a Gamma Ray Burst. One of the biggest blasts of energy in the universe. If one of those hit us we'd be doomed without even a warning. Like the sky would go super bright for an instant and then POOF everything is done.

Or look up rogue black holes. Those are fun. Like giant super dense wandering balls of doom. We wouldn't even need to be directly in the path of one of these bad babies. If one of these even passed close to our solar system, it could literally tear apart all of the planet's orbits, and if our orbit is disrupted in any way we are doomed.

You speak about economy, remember that is just a small part of life itself. Yet it seems now a days that economy drives human survival.

Would you prefer wide spread death, destruction, and war?

originally posted by: Blaine91555
a reply to: amazing

Sounds like Florida needs to rethink it's planning and building practices.

The sky is not falling and those who insist on building in bad locations should not be surprised when they have issues.

I'm old enough to remember when Florida land could be had for very little money in large parcels, precisely because it was such a bad place to build. Money blinds both the people buying and building and the government trying to increase revenue.

No ones saying the sky is falling but here's the reality. Streets and buildings that never flooded ten years ago are flooding on a normal basis now. This is happening on Sunny days. So now they are investing in pumps and raising some of the roads and they are doing this by raising taxes or putting new taxes on the books since this is expensive.

So this is why we need to be able to discuss the reality of global warming. It's expensive and has real consequences.

Planning and building practices and policy are one thing that is very important to the global warming discussion. But as long as Imhofe is throwing snowballs in congress we can't even have this discussion. And without even mentioning a carbon tax, South Floridians are paying higher taxes right now as a result of global warming.

a reply to: amazing

No ones saying the sky is falling but here's the reality. Streets and buildings that never flooded ten years ago are flooding on a normal basis now. This is happening on Sunny days. So now they are investing in pumps and raising some of the roads and they are doing this by raising taxes or putting new taxes on the books since this is expensive.

No one is saying South Florida isn't experiencing problems, either. But those problems have nothing to with carbon dioxide levels, temperature anomalies, glacial melting, or sea level rise. The problems are caused by land subsidence. That's something that is caused by local [mis]planning.

Trying to combat localized land subsidence caused by building overload by reducing carbon dioxide levels is like trying to fix a bad starter by changing a tire... or, in this case, by demanding everyone else change their tires.

TheRedneck

I probably shouldn't interject my ignorance here, but I really am curious.

Have you noticed the google earth pictures have huge areas of land mass just below the water? Some look like they may have had cities, roads, and mountain before going underwater.

Then I hear about strange land masses just popping up out of the ocean, and I wonder....are we just going through a earth shift, were what was once below will be above again?

originally posted by: TheRedneck
a reply to: amazing

No ones saying the sky is falling but here's the reality. Streets and buildings that never flooded ten years ago are flooding on a normal basis now. This is happening on Sunny days. So now they are investing in pumps and raising some of the roads and they are doing this by raising taxes or putting new taxes on the books since this is expensive.

No one is saying South Florida isn't experiencing problems, either. But those problems have nothing to with carbon dioxide levels, temperature anomalies, glacial melting, or sea level rise. The problems are caused by land subsidence. That's something that is caused by local [mis]planning.

Trying to combat localized land subsidence caused by building overload by reducing carbon dioxide levels is like trying to fix a bad starter by changing a tire... or, in this case, by demanding everyone else change their tires.

TheRedneck

Here's my only problem. You're saying that this is caused by land subsidence caused by building over load. Lot's of scientists, actual scientists, are telling me that it's caused by Carbon Dioxide/Methane etc. So who am I going to believe, you or hundreds of Scientists? You'll tell me not to blindly believe and do my own research. So I do, and I keep coming up with scientists, lot's of different ones from all sorts of countries and universities and scientific organizations and they keep telling me this. So what now?

This seems to be a good source. I've been following links from here for a while.

www.realclimate.org...

Everytime a person don't get the concept of cyclical events, a genius cries a little....

Comparing ice sheets now to those from the 1800s or around year 1000 is like comparing summer to winter. It's stupid and ignorant. I thought we were here to deny it...?

These cyclical events will keep occuring, it's just so damn hard to see them with a life span of 76 years. Tough luck on those who will experience it next time, but us here and now... wont make a difference.

Stop thinking that the human race in any way can muster a form of power that can even remotely compare to that of the solar system, the galaxy or the universe.

Life WILL perish here at some point, and that is well and all. Fortunately it will go on somewhere else, and hopefully in the shape of something that is more capable of living in balance with itself and the planet, and don't spend a piss-ant short life span trying to "make it!!" or berich oneself at the expense of other people.

The human race deserves to die really.

originally posted by: flice
Everytime a person don't get the concept of cyclical events, a genius cries a little....

Comparing ice sheets now to those from the 1800s or around year 1000 is like comparing summer to winter. It's stupid and ignorant. I thought we were here to deny it...?

These cyclical events will keep occuring, it's just so damn hard to see them with a life span of 76 years. Tough luck on those who will experience it next time, but us here and now... wont make a difference.

Stop thinking that the human race in any way can muster a form of power that can even remotely compare to that of the solar system, the galaxy or the universe.

Life WILL perish here at some point, and that is well and all. Fortunately it will go on somewhere else, and hopefully in the shape of something that is more capable of living in balance with itself and the planet, and don't spend a piss-ant short life span trying to "make it!!" or berich oneself at the expense of other people.

The human race deserves to die really.

Except the scientists doing this research do use ice core samples and other historical records and natural cycles. They do look at the big picture going back millions of years with as much accuracy as they can get.