The Colorado Springs Independent explains how rapidly warming southern oceans are causing more sea ice to form, and how deep currents of warm water are melting the ice at -40C in the interior of Antarctica.
Melting at the Earth’s poles has long been considered a major warning sign of global warming, so when two recent studies indicated a slowing of overall surface warming across Antarctica — and even some ice gain — skeptics took it as solid proof of their point. The problem is, NASA satellite data shows that Antarctica has been losing more than 24 cubic miles of ice each year since 2002.
The “discrepancy” boils down to two things: First, there’s a big difference between land ice and sea ice. Sea ice is increasing, but it’s not because Antarctica is cooling — in fact, the Southern Ocean is warming faster than any other ocean on earth. It’s due to a series of events including the hole in the ozone layer and wind currents pushing sea ice around.
Second, scientists suspect that Antarctic ice shelves are being eroded from underneath by warming seas, and satellites can’t measure under the ice. While there’s not much happening in East Antarctica, which is a high, dry desert making up two-thirds of the continent, West Antarctica — a series of ice-covered islands that rest on the ocean floor — is retreating at a dramatic pace, especially along the southern portion of the Antarctic Peninsula.
The Peninsula is the farthest point from the South Pole, so its deterioration could be a sign of what’s to come for the rest of the continent.
http://www.csindy.com/colorado/yes-this-is-happening/Content?oid=1974111
wow what devastatingly poor writing.
i had no idea islands rested on the bottom of the ocean until i mread through that very important article.
at least i guess she won’t be concerned about guam capsizing.
OT, but here’s some news for you… top palin handler works for soros 😉
http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2010/11/12/orion_soros_palin
It’s easy to pontificate about a place where no one lives.
Did I read something about a ridge of volcanoes that make up the West Antarctic peninsula? I did not think so! That would be An Inconvenient Truth. I think I just read an article from someone who does not know what they are reporting about that received their information form someone just as clueless!
If you look carefully, the basis of the argument is “you can’t prove that it’s not happening and therefore it is happening.”
Thus has been the basic argument of “man-made global warming” since its inception.