The latest observations from the US National Snow & Ice Data Center in Boulder, say that the extent of global sea is now as low as it has been since satellite monitoring began in the 1970s. It is also likely that it is as low as is has been in several thousand years. Likewise, global temperatures set a new record in 2016, after also setting records in 2015, and 2014. This is the first time in recorded history that three temperature records have been set in three consecutive years.
Why does the melting sea ice matter? The melting ice itself does not impact sea levels, but it does increase warming by reducing the reflection of sunlight off the ice itself. Also, the ice sheets tend to hold back or slow glaciers, whose calving does increase sea levels. Earlier this month we posted about the imminent collapse of part of the Larsen C ice sheet in Antarctica. BBC reports “if all the ice that the Larsen C shelf currently holds back entered the sea, global waters would rise by 10cm (4 inches).”
To me there is too much hype about “woe is the earth with global warming”. We should be trying to better ourselves with what can be done with the global warming. There will be less rain, yet in California they have placed solar panels over parking lots and it has changed the area. The ground is no longer absorbing the suns direct heat while providing power. Under these panels weeds have started to grow in a otherwise arid area.
If we placed enough solar panels we would no only reflect the sun from warming the ground, yet create power for the masses. There is a positive to all this. It is time we start looking for it instead of the fretting of what our society has done.
We bloody well better fret over climate change and rising seas because it is real and it will become an ever growing problem. Ninety seven percent of the climate change scientists agree. Yes, we do need to take positive action and not just wring our hands, but also we need to make sure that folks understand the magnitude of the problem and start making all sorts of small and positive changes. One of the first acts of our new president: taking the climate change section off US government websites (as is eliminating mention of it eliminates the problem) and appointing a climate change skeptic as his environmental person. Or Rick Perry as the Energy Secretary. What good does that do? Taking away the funding for climate change research is sure going to help one Hell of a lot isn’t it? How about emphasizing that dealing with climate change, and putting solar panels (which are not totally environmentally friendly FYI because of the manufacturing processes and other issues) could create a lot of good jobs, and educating folks on their benefits (panels and jobs) could do a lot. Unfortunately that is not the way our new administration is trending.
We need to both wring our hands and get to work on positive change, not regressive stuff. The new presidential family should all be flying on commercial flights and NOT in a Trump private jet ( big one!) or living in a gold plated tower suite.
Please pardon the typos and grammatical errors in my previous comment; I am writing after a long and depressing day. Watching how good, compassionate, thoughtful, decent and environmentally sensitive our 44th president has been has spoiled me and watching today as Trump the hypocrite and narcissistic liar takes over has made me incredibly sad as well as very angry.
Ginny……….why don’t you really tell us how you feel about trump?
Sorry……..pardon my sarcasm, but, I think I can understand how you feel.
I live in Adelaide in South Australia and I feel that this “bloke” is going to have an effect on the entire globe……..probably in more ways than one.
One crucial thing to keep in mind here is that we’re speaking about sea ice that’s previously floating in the sea – whenever it melts and goes away, it doesn’t have an effect on global sea levels. I am not a scientist or what so ever, i just think about the common sense way, so maybe the actual ice had been displacing its own weight and similar to when an ice cube melts in a drink,so then it doesn’t increase the water level.Therefore the disappearance of sea ice won’t, by itself, overflow our seaside places. Maybe the ocean is exposed to sunlight more i mean the underneath.
The melting of sea ice itself does not cause a rise in sea levels. It does however block or slow glaciers from calving. Glacial calving does raise sea levels.